i've not yet tried ANY power conditioner in my system that failed to degrade the sound in one way or another. as sean and others have suggested, an up to-date and code electrical wiring upgrade should be your first priority, not just for your nascent audio system, but your overall sense of safety and wellbeing. once you've got the proper wires going to your rooms, have high grade outlets installed, at least in your "sound room" (lots of threads on these). from there, all you should need are good power cords (more threads on these) and, perhaps, a secondary surge protector (yet further threads on these). BTW, wouldn't it be proper to change your moniker to, say, "cwusetabelondon." :o) -kelly
AC Conditioners: Must Have Tweak or More Voodo
As the old school, 2 channel, sentimental dinosaur that I am, power conditioners are very newfangled devices to me and are filed in the same section of my brain as home theatre receivers. However, I have just moved into an apartment in an old townhouse where half the plugs don't even seem to work and even the ones that do requie "cheater" plugs. As I continue to build a system around a Levinson 23.5, ARC SP-11 MK II, Michell turntable and Sony SCD-1, I am wondering if some of these devices would erase my worries about old wiring in the house. Can someone please educate me on what I should do? Dealers seem to tell me that the power amp should go into the wall or a chang lightspeed thingy and that PS Audio 300 would be good for all the source components but I'm clueless. Would these things really mitigate the need to rewire or seek a dedicated line? Thank you.