how important is clean power...really ?!?
hi guys , im interested to hear any thoughts on the usage of power conditioners and power cables for home theatre and hi-fi setups...I use a few decent power cables but am mindful of for me at least , large outlays of cash for small percentage gains in performance . i try to keep it proportional in respect to cost of equipment to cable ratio. I have read and heard that one should accomadate 10% to 20% of total costs towards cabling...I have equipment that im thinking of adding a better power cable to inhance PQ performance.
cheers guys 
I have had excellent results in the past with specific power cables and blocks. My mains is now excellent, as the up a big pole step down transformer is a little behind my house and I'm first in line for the power but I still use the gear just in case it helps a tiny amount.
First step for many people is to have an electrician put in a dedicated spur/loop for the audio/video and is probably the most cost effective. Don't use conditioners on power amps is the general consensus.
Money invested in good quality actives would probably cure you of cable worries.
Tacima CS929 worth every penny of £25 you can get them for - don't see need to spend any more very good product
Tacima CS929 worth every penny of £25 you can get them for - don't see need to spend any more very good product
+1
Spend any more and it is a waste of money.
So Bass etc.,
Have you read any of the replies to your post because you haven't had the good grace to acknowledge any of them? It would be nice to know whether you and WE have wasted our time. 
if your mains power is that bad, then surely getting a ups which smooths out the mains and properly conditions it is going to do a lot more wonders, and protect your kit, over expensive mains cables.
if your mains power is that bad, then surely getting a ups which smooths out the mains and properly conditions it is going to do a lot more wonders, and protect your kit, over expensive mains cables.
if your mains power is that bad, then surely getting a ups which smooths out the mains and properly conditions it is going to do a lot more wonders, and protect your kit, over expensive mains cables.
Agreed! If you are going to go down the route of investing quite a bit of cash in mains cleaning products from the likes of Isotek, then a mains regenerator is the better option. A mains filter is a half-fix of the problem, whereas a regenerator will at least give you a pure and perfect AC sinewave free from all distortion or interference.
These units are excellent value for money, have similar specs to the so called 'audiophile' models from PS Audio etc, and a decent amount of available current output to support power amps also:
http://upsmart.co.uk/product_info.php?cPath=98_99&products_id=1742
yep, even a cheap model like this http://www.ebuyer.com/81906-apc-sc420i-smart-ups-420va-260w-serial-with-... at 115 quid has auto voltage regulation so keeps the voltage steady.
Cheaper than a couple of "audiophile" mains cables...
yep, even a cheap model like this http://www.ebuyer.com/81906-apc-sc420i-smart-ups-420va-260w-serial-with-... at 115 quid has auto voltage regulation so keeps the voltage steady.
Cheaper than a couple of "audiophile" mains cables...
That model would be fine for protecting your system, but I don't think it would do much for mains noise and interference, its still a direct connection to the mains supply with some voltage filtering - but as you say, it would probably do more than your average power cord upgrade.
The point with a mains regerator is that the incoming mains AC feed is converted to DC, and then back again into AC in a perfect AC wave form. All mains noise, voltage and wave form irregularities are inherently removed by the very nature of the two conversion steps.
Some higher spec UPS units do this as standard, but they tend to be a bit big and noisy.
I agree with "The Audio Critic":
Just about all that needs to be said on this subject has been said by Bryston in their owner’s manuals: “All Bryston amplifiers contain high-quality, dedicated circuitry in the power supplies to reject RF, line spikes and other power-line problems. Bryston power amplifiers do not require specialized power line conditioners. Plug the amplifier directly into its own wall socket.” What they don’t say is that the same is true, more or less, of all well-designed amplifiers. They may not all be the Brystons’ equal in regulation and PSRR, but if they are any good they can be plugged directly into a wall socket. If you can afford a fancy power conditioner you can also afford a well-designed amplifier, in which case you don’t need the fancy power conditioner. It will do absolutely nothing for you. (Please note that we aren’t talking about surge-protected power strips for computer equipment. They cost a lot less than a Tice Audio magic box, and computers with their peripherals are electrically more vulnerable than decent audio equipment.) The biggest and stupidest lie of them all on the subject of “clean” power is that you need a specially designed high-priced line cord to obtain the best possible sound. Any line cord rated to handle domestic ac voltages and currents will perform like any other. Ultrahigh- end line cords are a fraud. Your audio circuits don’t know, and don’t care, what’s on the ac side of the power transformer. All they’re interested in is the dc voltages they need. Think about it. Does your car care about the hose you filled the tank with?
+1 to Jax (and Bryston and Audiocritic).
+1 to Jax (and Bryston and Audiocritic).
I don't disagree with either of you guys - I sit on the fence on this one, but if someone is going to spend money on mains conditioning, they are better off with a regenerator than expensive mains cables and conditioners.
I have to say though using Bryston as an example against mains conditioning may not be the best choice given that the company makes three of their own units?!:
Yes, it's funny how Bryston have spent their entire lives ridiculing the idea that any form of power conditioner could in any way make any difference whatsoever... until they want to market a range themselves (or rather to buy them in from a third party and put their own faceplate and price-tag on it!)! There'll undoubtedly be Bryston Mains Cables to follow shortly...
Not all countries have a nice stable grid like we do in the uk. It's understandable that ups and what not are popular in certain areas of the US where they suffer huge fluctuations and brown-outs.
Good topic!
I'd say it greatly depends on ones equipment and/or how "dirty" the powersupply is. It can differ a great deal from system to system, from home to home. But in essence I'll just say this for my system; I could not do without the excellent ISOTEK EVO3 SIRIUS and ISOTEK OPTIMUM power cable. The combo have lowered the noisefloor and brought new levels of clarity. Plus the 6 sockets benifit all my a/v components. When switching back to a "normal" powerstrip with standard cables thats when I truly notice the difference - it sounds more "grainy" and less "vivid". Yes, it might be subtle, but at this level even small nuances of improvements can be worth the money.
A good friend of mine who have similar electronics borrowed my ISOTEK gear over a weekend to laborate, and I was there when he connected it up. We didn't notice the kind of improvements that were evident at my place. He lives in a house with his own powersupply, I live in an apartment building sharing powersupply with 11 other residents. In this case that might have been part of the reason? You just don't know for sure.
People who automatically write off cables and power conditioning equipment as 'snake oil' have simply not experienced differences first hand. I'd still say its important to have a level head about this sort of accessory, and definitely try at home before buying!
>>> VIEW MY SYSTEM THREAD HERE <<< Current equipment: DENON AVR-3808 | OPPO BDP-93 | MONITOR AUDIO APEX 5.2 | SAMSUNG LE-52B755 | YAMAHA CDR-HD1500 | HUMAX BXR-1000 HDTV SATELLITE | ISOTEK EVO3 SIRIUS | NORDOST PULSAR POINTS | LOGITECH HARMONY REMOTE 900