POWER: conditioners vs filters vs cords

I use a Monster HTS2000 ($125.00 mail-order) and a Harmonic Tech. Pro 11 PC ($130.00 used) with very good results. I plug everything into the Monster though you would want to try your "amp" both straight into the wall as well as into the Monster. My power is really bad and the "amp" socket on the Monster is the better sound, it is supposed to not limit the current and there are two of these "amp" sockets on the Monster. The upgraded PC by the way is on my source a CAL II CD player. I would recommend the HT PC to try on laid back sources that you would like to liven up a bit. If you have a brighter source you may want to try something else as it is all system dependent. The good thing about PC's is that you can buy used, try them, and resell them without losing any money. My amp has a huge external power supply which may also be why the power conditioner does not seem to deteriorate the sound. I pulled the cord on the power supply by mistake and the system continued to play at volume for at least 10 to 15 seconds. I highly recommend the HTS2000 based on your budget and with the extra left over you may be able to upgrade a couple of PC's if you purchase used. Both the conditioner and the PC have been worthwhile upgrades in my system. PS: While you are at it you may as well replace your wall socket with a Hubbell or something similar. If you can do it yourself it would only cost around $20.00 to do.

I have had good results with power wedge 116, you might find one used in your budget. As with the above post though, you will want to try your amp with and without it.

I started with Adcom ACE515, then went up to Monster stuff, and now have Vansevers conditioners and cords. Do not plan to upgrade again other than maybe demo a Vansevers "Unlimiter" which is a power center designed for power amps. As the name suggests, it does not limit power as some/most conditioners do.

All of these items are subject to "your mileage may vary." I recently added a Richard Gray's Power Company unit and it has helped to open everything up and increase the palp factor. But a word on ground loops: in my system, neither a Chang Lightspeed unit or the RGPC were of any help with a nagging ground loop problem. My dealer recommended using "cheater" plugs, but I had to lift almost every ground in the system for that to work -- which just didn't make sense to me. The thing to do is to find the source of the hum, which can be done by a fairly tedious but worthwhile diagnostic, essentially disconnecting the entire system & reconnecting each piece, component by component, starting with amp to speaker cable, then pre-amp to power amp, and then adding the various inputs until you isolate the source(s) of the hum. In my case, the hum came from the interconnect running from my TV (with apologies to purists) and, in particular, tracing it back further, from the CATV cable from my wall. Inserting a Jensen ISOMAX isolation transformer (cost $49) between the CATV cable and my VCR eliminated the hum from my audio system -- no cheaters. Go to www.jensentransformers.com for more than you'd ever want to know on the subject. Jensen also makes an isolation transformer for stereo audio use, but it's more expensive. For a less expensive audio isolation transformer, check out the JK Audio "Pureformer" isolation transformer. I ordered one and it looked like a quality product, but I didn't need it because the Jensen piece did the job. Good luck.

Spend your money getting a good powerline to your system - put a spike in the line and save your money on these items.