Best Power Conditioner?


Just wondering what people's view on different power conditioners are. What could be considered the best?

Audio Magic Stealth
Shunyata Hydra
Sound Application CF-12XE
PS Audio Powerplant 1200
5 dollar 6 outlet electrical strip

Obviously there are others. What have you had the best sucess with?
smjason
Miguel,...if its all as good as I read people's comments stating it is for Tripoint, it could ruin me forever to hear it ! I would love to see more detail on what's actually happening in those units, i.e. the technological approach behind them and what sets them apart. At any rate, they seem to making alot of people happy; simply well out of the budget here! You can catch me on Audiogon mail then we can hook up via phone. I'd also be glad to have a listen; we can talk about where close to SC that can be facilitated.

Quick question...if your top PC has 3 grounding posts that allow for 'up to 9' components to be grounded, what prompts the need for a separate grounding station. I get that it is needed for people who don't buy your PC but what benefit for those do own the Tripoint PC does the separate grounding station achieve?

Thank you for the comments on the system; very much appreciated. We should talk more about grounding...
Zephyr24069, I like your system approach when building your system. More folks should follow your footsteps. I bet it sounds wonderful.
Zephyr24069, understand your point. I also feel that if folks got to listen to this set up, there point of reference when judging different components and source material would change. Enjoy the music.
Please note the last comment was made with a smile, LOL, etc...I simply don't think most mortals would ever be able to spend this kind of money on a system overall let alone one key layer of it. You are talking about a very rarefied slice of the system-owning community in the world.

My vote for power conditioner is ISOTEK EVO3 TITAN plus SIGMAS tied together. Best I've heard for the budget available.
That whole calculation on Tripoint will give one a moment of pause to be certain! $260K in Power Conditioning and Grounding....probable overall system cost with this substrate would be well north of $750K and much higher I would guess. Sounds like Audiogon is probably the wrong pool to be trolling in. Try the Robb Report...
I think the simple answer is the bigger the better. I do not have the technical expertise, but the bigger the windings the better it will sound. I installed, audio friend with skills, 3 commercial units under my house all powered by 220 volts separate breakers. The one on my preamp was small. It sounded lean. I replaced it with a full size 20 amp unit and the sound changed a lot. Much richer and fuller.
I have to admit...i thought long and hard about Tripoint since i am an owner of the Troy Signature with Thor PC and a HUGE fan. But ultimately, a second hand Burmester 948 came my way, and i really liked it. We all have a budget.

Having lived with Tripoint, i am one seriously happy customer...and i have also heard great systems which also use Tripoint power conditioners...and was exceedingly impressed as well.
10-15-14: Himiguel
Melbguy1, this thread is titled Best Power Conditioner? Don't forget the 60k in grounding cables plus another 60k in power cables. 260k total in grounding and AC power.
.Yes, the thread title does say that, but let's put it this way. Most punters on this forum can't afford my conditioner which is $7800 + power cables. I am using Jorma Prime which is about $6k, so around $13,800 retail. Doubtless the Tripoint products you listed are the best grounding products, but completely irrelevant to 99% of members on this site.
Charles1dad, thanks for the support. Yes, that is me holding the microphone. This attendee sums the the event best. Check out his review of the Audio Exotics High End Show.

我是代我父的友人貼上以下文章:

I wish reviewers from the west would have come for the 2nd AE super show. The crew successfully set the international benchmark for public demonstration. I should say this is an “attitude” that simply does not exist elsewhere in the world. I have read so many positive reviews about the Vox Olympian speakers driven by a suite of Kondo flagship electronics in Munich 13/14. To be fair, I attended the Munich Show this year and had been to the room orchestrated by Kevin Scott of living voice. I spent 45 minutes there. The selected music for demonstrations was all well calculated. Tonality is beautiful and audiences were easily engaged by the music. To my picky ears, the system however lacks speed and transient resolution.

To be fair, the Cessaro performance in Munich 2014 driven by TronÂ’s cheaper line of electronics really sucked. There was no refinement. Resolution was vague. Details were rough. The speed might be there but sorry the roughness really hurt my brain. I had to leave after 15mins. I came back for the 2nd day, slightly better but the inferior quality of the electronics continued to prevail.

The AE guys are tremendously famous in the internet. Audiophiles from the west probably see them as a bunch of rich Chinese audiophiles who want to show off their expensive audio trophies. I felt the same beforehand until I attended the 2nd AE show. I was in “awe”. What I experienced last Sat in Hong Kong was simply “Live music” with a vanishingly low noise floor that allows the inner detail of music to bloom with genuine color. Those damn expensive ground filter boxes by Tripoint must be doing some serious works from behind. And one of the AE crews told me those SRA boards contributed no less than the ground/AC filters. Whoever you are, I can’t verify your claim. I can only comment from a total experience point of view.

Dynamics are almost no different from live concerts. And I do mean it because I come from the music industry. The replay of Peter, Paul and Mary was astonishing because it was so freaking real as though the audiences were teleported in time to the venue where the concert was took place. The Spanish guitars duo was another show stoppers. That exhibition hall was at least over 120 square meters. Energy fills the entire room. Refinement and resolution of details are all there without highlighting themselves. I suspect some seats might probably have more bass volume than others. But that is natural. The only criticisms I can imagine would have come from those “imaging freaks” associated with conventional speakers. Those who sat in the first few rows may find imaging bigger than those at the back row. Try listen to Jacky Cheung live in the first few rows in the HK Coliseum, imaging is much bigger with excessive bass. I can see the Chinese audiences were truly engaged by the whole event. And the standard is much higher than western counterparts. I truly mean it is a few planets away than what I experienced in CES and Munich.

If guys like Srajan, Edward Baker or whoever thought the Vox Olympian driven by Kondo was spectacular in Munich, my honest words to them – “Sorry pals, you have never had any experiences of ultra fidelity yet.” What they thought so great attained by the best in Munich is mid-end at best. And Ralph Krebs of Cessaro probably never knows what his speakers are really capable of if he keeps using Tron years after years for the Munich Show. The electronics by that skinny Robert guy and the white hair Yamada are way better than what was chosen for the Cessaro/TW acoustics room in Munich.

AE truly put forth a system that plays music as a wholesome experience. In comparison, the guys over Munich/CES shared a room purely to economize costs as the priority. Sound quality comes second without considering synergies. How do you explain Cessaro allowed cheap Tron electronics (mostly front end) to partner with the Lizst retail well over EUR120,000. To compare, the British chap is smarter. That was why he succeeded in winning compliments from audio journalists because he voices the big Vox with Kondo electronics. And that alone made him stand out as he had complete control on mating. And this room is indeed well ahead than those big German brands like Burmester and Avantgarde that sounds metallic and plastic respectively year after year. The standard of the Hi Fidelity industry is getting worst and worst with ever increasing price tag.

The whole execution of this show is one of a kind. It is unique and it is much higher class than anything out there. The boss seems like a man who excels in public speech. That probably deepened the color of the event. But I don’t care who runs the boat from behind. It is the content that matters. I am not an AE customer and will unlikely be one anytime soon. But I have to say that the AE crew had achieved something genuinely splendid. I admire the spirit of challenging the ‘status quo”. I encourage journalists from the west to attend the 3rd AE show next year. There is so much more to learn and write from just one single company than the sum of many companies who simply wandered in the audio forest with inadequate planning. Audio designers who think you have done a great job in designing electronics should look for a manager who can put together a system that allows your designs to shine through. If not, it does more harm than good very much too often.

Audio Aristotle
Melbguy1, this thread is titled Best Power Conditioner? Don't forget the 60k in grounding cables plus another 60k in power cables. 260k total in grounding and AC power.
Miguel,
Is that you in the final picture holding the microphone?
I know your Tripoint products were a smashing success at that show and people were in awe. Congratulations, that ultra High End Asian crowd is tough to impress.
Charles,
10-15-14: Himiguel
None of the ones mentioned above even remotely come close to the Tripoint Emperor Ground and Tripoint Emperor AC. 600 lbs combo.
I would hope so for $70k each!
None of the ones mentioned above even remotely come close to the Tripoint Emperor Ground and Tripoint Emperor AC. 600 lbs combo.

http://www.monoandstereo.com/2014/08/audio-exotics-super-hi-end-show-2014.html?m=1

Dealer disclaimer
Never underestimate the ability of the Audiogon community to bring back a thread from the dead :D That said, I vote for the Gigawatt PC-3 SE Evo or PC-4 Evo depending on the number of outlets required. Superb engineering and the improvement in sound is amazing. They are one of the only power conditioners where high current amplifiers sound better connected to the conditioner than direct to wall. Also, they are the only conditioning products which are subject to an Insurance policy that covers damage to the connected equipment up to $250,000EUR.
Pair your Equitech with a large Foundation Research power cord downstream into a power strip and the sound is incredible!
How could you not list Audience Adept Response PC's at or near the top, especially the models with the Teflon components. I have had and /or heard Shunyata, Synergistic and a few others, and IMHO there is simply no comparison.

Neal
Yes, no such things as "good ac power" or "best power conditioner" just enjoy music with whatever you had.
I have a sine sa 6 silver cryo...its not a so called power conditioner, but a high-end power bar. It seems to make a difference.
There is no such thing as "good AC power"
in any Metropolis today. The grid is used to transport
digital signals and creates noise. Try a decent conditioner and let us know your findings. Post when you are trying it for some tips.
Thats a good point. I live in Quebec where the Grid and the electricity are quite good. I wonder If I need a conditioner at all!
Detlof I think the Cable Co has a variety of "loaners".
How would you have your power line analyzed?
Best power conditioner? There ain't no such animal. I would first have my power line analysed to find out which problems might occur and only then start to research which of all the offerings will best solve my problems at the best price point. I would then try to borrow such a unit and listen.....
I havent looked at what the Audience does but I know its good.
The Equitech as first off the wall will remove tremendous amount of noise and let the audience work easier. I would definitely try them. Why not both ways? Love to hear your results.
Ptss,

That is an interesting comment. I have wondered about whether I would benefit or not from pairing an Audience conditioner with my Equitech.
To get the best conditioning you need a complementary set of conditioners. Obviously Equitech,Shunyata, Sound Application and some MIT products are 1st class- but their best effect is revealed in synergy with another product. Sorry if you were hoping one would do it all.
Hr1
remove it after 3 weeks and your high frequency area will be much better again. The 948 dulls it. And the digital / analog inputs are completely useless, a gimmick.
Shunyata Powersnakes HYDRA!

Have owned: Perfectionist Audio Components IDOS, Chang LighSpeed, Adcom ACE, Monster HTS2000, PS Audio PP300 (2).
I just purchased an API Power Pack II and feel it makes a nice improvement on my CD player.
I would go for Sound Application CFXe-12, which dramatically improve more details, clarity but not grainier, dynamic, more musical and absolutely transparent. I had owned the Hydra but I would definitely choose SA XE-12 as a reference power conditioner
Depends on how bad your electrical source is. I did all the new wiring for the new room I built for my mucic system.Tried some different line condisoners. Only found very small changes in the sound. With over 50 grand in equipment thought if you have good wiring just the basic power line accessories will do the trick. If you happen to live in A big city good luck try them all. Think that ps audio is very good for the price.
Stehno
The BP-2 Ultra is 15amp balanced power unit from Balanced Power Tech. This is the ultra low noise piltron transformer. Sorry if that was unclear. I agree that using one in an apartment complex would be impressive. It was quite easy to install dedicated outlets in my basement.
Tim
Flemke, yes, you will notice improvements based on your suggested endeavors.

However, the topic here is recommended power conditioners, and if you haven't done so yet, you will notice a still lowered noise floor/blacker background, minimized sibilance, better imaging and soundstaging with proper power conditioning.

Of course, that's assuming one obtain's decent power conditioner(s).

I do believe power conditioning demonstrates it greatest impact when installed in an environment where lines are not dedicated and perhaps digital and analog are shared on same circuit. In other words, the dirtier the AC, the easier it is to hear the positive affects of proper power conditioning. Diminishing returns, you know.

-IME
Before conditioners,I start with dedicated outlets. 20amp. breaker to 10 gauge wire to 20amp. variac to BPT BP-2 ultra that is putting out 118v a/c on the old Fluke. Sounds nice to me. Really cleared up background noise on the 65" mitz.
Goldmund AC Curator 7500.00
Audio Tekne 5000.00
Fisch 560.00
I am a dealer . This is what we recommend and what We think are the best.
I know he's a dealer, but sometimes even dealers are right. All the same...no dealer is perfect...(-;
Jonathan is a dealer so don't take his words seriously.
No conditioner is perfect.
I like none of the power conditioners for amps. They condition power which means the amps are getting the real thing. They are fine for digital equipment and video. However, I agree with Jeff_s that the way to go is the Equitech balanced power system. Go to their web site for the specs. but this isn't conditioning, it is balanced power which had my electrician scratching his head when he put my wall unit in. It is clean and provides all the protection you need for you system. In my application I had numerbers lines run to where I was going to use a/v equip. and got clean undisturbed power. My stuff is plugged straight in the wall. They have rack units as well.
Not on your list, but you can't make a short list of "best power conditioner" without inclding the Burmester. Pricey, but worth every cent.