Amp straight into the wall
I’ve seen more than a few members recomend going straight into the power oulet and not using power conditioners for power amps. I was hoping someone would explain the rationale behind that.to me. I have been meaning to try that for awhile now, power conditioner is a Torus 15 , thx in advance for your input.
That is simple: it makes a very positive improvement in the sound. Then, next step, put in a direct line to the outlet you have your amp plugged in to (and of course to the outlet your power conditioner is plugged into as well).
The theory is that almost all power conditioners restrict the current in some way. Even most that claim they don’t. Sounds plausible to me. I don’t care if the theory is correct, the effect has been real… it has been true every time I tried it. |
@bikeboy52 As with most things audio, it depends. IF panel, ground, wiring to the wall and the wall outlets, etc. have all been addressed properly AND your amplifiers are a quality design and build THEN, yes wall direct is typically best/better. |
@david_ten Yes circuit is a clean 20 amp home run number 12 romex straight to a hospital grade gound fault receptacle ,amp is Prima Luna Evo 400. Thx , thats a much simpler explanation than I was expecting@ghdprentice thx. |
@ghdprentice P.S read you praise of the AQ cable that you use on your amps the other day ,really wish I could afford one of those, Ive always felt like Im leaving some SQ in there somewhere and feel that would be a good place to start looking, |
@ghdprentice For those units with high-end robust and beefy power supplies in their amp designs and builds, those OEMs recommend a direct wall outlet plugin. ( unless you are in bespoke dodgy power feed locales such as old apt buildings, or fringe service areas that experience an uneven or like daily power feed requiring a PC ) |
Regular power conditioners don’t allow for momentary spikes in current, so in dynamic moments you will find a lack of dynamics. Electrical noise from your house/neighborhood sources and noise generated from other audio devices can pollute the power going to your amplifiers..etc, so a quality power conditioner would be useful in providing clean power. If you want clean power and dynamics, then you must purchase very high cost conditioners/regenerators. Shunyata claims that my conditioner can provide a momentary 30 amps into each of six channels and the conditioner combined with noise reduction power cables take care of line noise and the noise from audio components. |
I can report that plugging my Coda #16 power amp into my PS Audio P15 will very noticeably restrict dynamics. Even thought about selling this wonderful amp until I decided to plug it directly into the wall. Then I went a step further and installed a dedicated power line into my listening room. That with a Furutech outlet and good power cable has elevated this amplifier to an incredible level. |
@vonhelmholtz Amongst the PC I tried were Shunyata, Audience and others that promised no reduction in dynamics, didn't prove to be true. And this allied to very high end power cables into dedicated circuit. Auditioned all this through Cable Company lending library, have most if not all the best conditioners, cables.
|
Big difference between CAN and WILL. It's not automatic. I have lived in my home 26+ years. I had a dedicated 20 amp to a 4 outlet box installed shortly after moving in. I have owned a bunch of PLCs and in each case the various amps sounded better direct to wall. My current (NPI) PLC is a Core Power 1800. When I first got it my amp was plugged direct to wall. One day I got a bug to try plugging it into the 1800, and much preferred it that way |
@bikeboy52; You have received some excellent answers to your question. The real test is try your amp into your power conditioner and next directly into the AC wall outlet and decide for yourself which sounds best. Finally let us know your findings ;-) Out of curiosity what power cord are you using on your Prima Luna Evo 400 and what AC outlet are you using in the wall outlet? |
Laser printer manufacturers tell you not to use a power conditioner because it causes a voltage sag that will prevent it from working correctly. Many amplifiers draw more current during transients than laser printers. Voltage sags will slow the recharging of the filter caps and that can cause less than optimal performance into low impedance loads. Same rationale as dedicated circuits for high power amplifiers. |
@gs5556 +1 Mike |
@ghdprentice and everyone else.Update on bypassing power conditioner. Without a doubt the most drastic improvement in sound quality I’ve experienced in the last few years. The difference is literally like night and day, feeling pretty silly not trying this sooner. Using a Cullen cable into a hospital grade IG receptacle. Think when I get some free time I’ll run another home run back to the panel using number 10 wire ( using 12 currently) I was skeptical of that but I may have been converted by this . Thanks everyone on the thread for the advice. |
@bikeboy52 Thanks for the update and congratulations. If you have a short run from the panel, 12 gauge is fine. If long, then 10 gauge. As for aftermarket power cables...I would not lock in on one. Try a few out. There can be notable differences. |
I need to plug everything into a power strip (Niagara 1200) due to the lack of outlets near my rack. I plug my amps (speakers and headphones) into the high current outlets of the Niagara. There is a severe decrease in dynamics when you use the filtered outlets with the speaker amp (Class A 30w/8ohms), but not so much with the headphones amp. |
