Power Strip Question - PLEASE HELP

J,Sgr stated in his post to run the non-audio stuff off an extention cord from another circuit.I agree with him in your situation.This is an easy way to seperate the non-audio stuff.Just make sure it's a different circuit and not just another receptacle on the same circuit.You also need to see what else is on the circuit you intend to use for the audio equipment.Stuff like fluorescent lamps put lots of noise on the lines.As far as power conditioners degrading the sound,you'll just have to try one and decide for yourself.You will get lots of conflicting opinions.Some folks love them,some can't stand them.

Jferreir, don't sweat it too much. Try a couple of power strips and see if you get too much noise, or not.

I'm in a similar situation and use a Brickwall surge protector that feeds two power strips. One power strip is a BPT, and is used for my audio gear. The other strip is used for my plasma TV, cablebox, and blu-ray player.

I don't have any issues with noise. However my PCs and ICs are fairly well shielded, and I have been careful orienting my cords and cables. I will admit I had some noise issues with the plasma TV, but careful cable orientation eliminated that problem.

I tried a power conditioner but did not care for how it degraded the sound.

I don't think the little devices you are hooking up on the other strip will be excessively noisy.

My suggestion is try some decent quality, inexpensive strips first, and see what happens. You can always use them somewhere else in the house.

However, I do suggest you consider having some surge protection.

Oh, I forgot to add that the Brickwall surge protector is fairly sonically neutral. I did snip off the captive brass power plug and replaced it with a better plug. This resulted in a little bit better sonics.

Believe it or not, and I deem this could not happen in your current setup, but the sound of your system would be greatly enhanced by running a direct line from your circuit breaker for each of your components. You might be surprised what a differnce this would make. Your integrated amp would really love the current a direct line and reward you with better bass and dynamics, along with a sweeter treble, flushed out midrange, enhanced imaging, etc. Your digital gear puts a lot of trash into the line also and should ideally have a circuit all to itself.

For now, though, I would budget more money towards a power enhancer. You could go with the Shunyata as outlined above, or purchase a used PS Audio PowerPlant Premier which would regenerate the power, protect your system from spikes, and give you a separate outlet and regenerated electtrical plug that is isolated from interfering with all your other gear. I believe you'd be able to plug all your gear into this one unit. To me, this would be one of your best options, and the one I'd try. You can purchase a used one on Audiogon for around $1150.00 and try it. If you tell any differnce you should be able to sell it easily as they seem to be in demand.
To upgrade this, build a power cable like I mentioned earlier. It is really not that difficult and does not require a large amount of tools. You would need a wire stripper, wirecutters suitable to cutting through this heavy cable, and a scewdriver. You could purchase an electrical book at the same time which should give you all the info you'd need. Surely someone at the hardware store could help you also.
The other option would be to purchase the heaviest extention cord one could purhase at Lowe's or Home Depot. You'd want at least 12 guage if possible. Use it to run all of your other components and use the PowerPlant Premier from the outlet by your system.
You might want to go to the PS Audio website and read about their various Power Plants.

Hope this helps.
Sgr

Thank you for the suggestion, but the PS Audio PowerPlant Premier is, oh, about $1120 USD more than the Wiremold L1032. That is way, way beyond my means.

I have $100 CDN max. No exceptions. If I'm going to spend that kind of money (which I don't have), I'd rather upgrade my $250 turntable. Please keep in mind that I'm already over budget. At this phase of my 'audio project', power distribution is a minor tweak and nothing else.

Now, what's up with surge protection? Everyone on the Naim forum seems to be of a different opinion. I seriously can't get a straight answer. Can someone please explain the science behind it all in idiot-proof terms? Thanks!