Noise Destoyer Power Conditioner

For $75 I chose the Alan Maher Designs Power Enhancer which has similar technology. From what I have been able to gather the difference is the Noise Destroyer uses smaller valued caps, total 2,2uf, while the PE has 3,58uf in mixed values.

I have one of these on every circuit in my home (no dedicated lines unfortunately) and have experienced significant improvement in audio and video. They replaced PS Audio Noise Harvesters in my system. I would suggest you experiment as well with more of the Noise Destroyers. In addition to the audio, you might want to consider putting one on the same outlet as your refrigerator.

I have one and can't honestly say that I see any improvement at all sonically.

I actually bought one because whenever I flip the light switch that is connected to the ceiling fan in the stereo room, I get a "Pop!" out from my speakers. I was hoping that the Destroyer would intercept and take care of whatever is causing it, but it didn't do that either.

Thanks for the info. I am always curious when someone says this is better than that.
How do you know what is inside the Noise Destoyer.
They just came in from Germany ?
Did you buy one and take it apart ?

Ozzy, I think they are both fine products and offer similar benefits, just using different capicitance. The Noise Destroyer has been out in Germany for a few months now. I personally have not taken one apart, but know someone that has.

Krell man. Wow, interesting. I have seen the most improvement on my HD TV.
Do you have yours plugged into a outlet that the TV shares ?

Hi Krell_man that's not good to hear, your receptacle must be on the same line as your switch for the lights and you are getting either a short or power serge. I would suggest you have an electrician come in and look at feeding a new line, this way you have a designated line. Shouldn't really cost that much and look at it as an upgrade, the benefits that you will receive will be well worth it along with protecting your gear. What is happening is not good for your electronics and can damage them.

Having lots of fun with the Oracle 2000 transport with the Accustic Arts Transport. Burning-in Virtual Dynamic Genesis bi-wire speaker cables along with a Supratek Sauv. pre.

Ozzy that is very interesting, I have not tried one before.

I'm using it in my 10'x12' stereo room on the same group of outlets as the power conditioner is plugged in to. The light/ceiling fan is on the same circuit.

My TV is in the living room. I don't have a home theater anymore, so I wasn't really concerned with the TV setup.

Ozzy,

I placed mine on the TV circuit last night and neither my wife not I saw any improvement in the picture. I wonder how you tell if it's working?

Chuck

Krell man,

I have mine plugged into my Hydra 8 in a outlet that my Sony HD Shares. My Audio is on different circuits.

Everything matters in Audio and probably Video.
With my Video set up ,I am using Quick Silver Extreme Gold contact Silver paste on all my connections (F connectors, AC plugs, etc. )
My HDMI cables have silver conductors.
My Hydra 8 is on a dedicated circuit.

So, perhaps all this has allowed the Noise Destroyer to bring out additional information.

Everything matters, there is a marked difference with the Noise Destoyer on my set up.

I will admit I have not tried this Noise Destroyer.

But, it sounds strange to me that it would improve your audio and video if the ND is plugged into Hydra8. By the time current gets to it, it had already passed through all the internals of the Hydra.
This makes me think of a possibility that your Hydra8 was not performing properly or actually Hydra8 is not performing as advertised because it did not clean up the power enough to improve your AV set up performance, creating a need for additional filtering.

I personally find it not very likely.
Could your enthusiasm about it simply be an initial reaction? Sometimes we tend to hear and see things we think are there when something new is introduced into the system simply because we pay a bit more attention to certain things that we are used to already.

Can you have someone unplug it without you knowing it and see if you can tell? If you feel like it.....just as a sanity check before you order the second one......Would be interesting.....

Ozzy,
Should it not go before the Hydra or at least be pluged into the wall together with the Hydra?
Have you tried this?

That is how I use one of my Power Enhancers. I plug it into the same outlet as my RSA Haley, not into the Haley itself. I was advised this would be better. Since the Noise Destroyer works on the same principles I'd be inclined to think it would work better in this manner as well.

I agree it really should be plugged into the same wall outlet as the Hydra 8.
However, that wall duplex outlet(wattgate) is also used with my APL 3910 which I do not plug directly into the Hydra.

By plugging the Noise Destoyer into the the Hydra's first outlet (closest to the IEC jack), I believe that outlet has a direct path to the incoming signal from the wall. Thus helping to reduce the noise going into the Hydra.

The second Noise Destoyer is plugged into another dedicated outlet with my Amp.

I did notice that with using the Quick silver Gold paste on the Video connections, even more improvement is noted on the Video.

Well I just tried the (ND) Noise Destroyer on the wall duplex outlet with the Hydra 8 plugged into the other ,and the Sony HD is still plugged into the first outlet in the Hydra 8.
The result: HD TV not as good as plugging the ND into the first duplex outlet in the Hydra with the Sony HD plugged into the other.
The difference is quite remarkable.

Perhaps the improvements I am seeing is with the Sony HD and the Hydra outlet being isolated from the other outlets, in the Hydra 8 it is concentrating all the ND energy into that one duplex outlet.

So,one ND will remain in the first outlet on my Hydra 8 and my other ND will go into the wall outlet that my APL 3910 is plugged into.

I plan on purchasing a couple more and will play with additional placements with my Amp outlet, etc.

You guys should use a parallel device on both side for best effect. The wall is good and the first outlet in the Hydra is good.

Alan

John Pharo at The Cable Company sent me a Noise Sniffer from their library so I could see if my Noise Destroyer is working since I didn't notice any improvement anywhere on TV or stereo.

Very interesting! In my stereo room I have four outlets on the same circuit, with the Noise Destroyer in the third and the system in the fourth (last). Using the Noise Sniffer I found that it cleaned up the most noise, not in the third outlet closest to the system, or even the second outlet. It cleaned up the most noise when it was in the first outlet.

And for some reason, neither the floor lamp, ceiling light nor the ceiling fan added any noticeable noise, even though they're on the same circuit, unless the ceiling light and fan are before the first outlet.

Chuck

I tried plugging the Noise Destoyer into the same dedicated outlet that my APL Player is plugged into.

For over a week I couldnt figure out what had happened to the treble and the dynamics.
I blamed it on the Quick Silver Gold paste I used on my connections.
It turns out it was the Noise Destoyer . It was sucking out the treble and there was an apparant loss of dyanmics.

Once I removed it and put it on a circuit with only Video the treble returned along with dynamics.

I have ordered a couple of Alan Maher Power Enhancers and I wonder if that will have the same effect?

Ozzy, please let us know what you think of the PE from Alan Maher. In my system, it made a noticable improvement in both video and audio. Allow about a week of break in, however, I heard a noticeable improvement after just a couple of days. Also, I recently e-mailed Alan to buy another one and his wife jen informed me that Alan was on tour( he's a sound engineer) and won't be back until mid-August. I don't know when you ordered your PE, but if it was fairly recently, Alan hand builds the PE to order so you might have a little longer wait than usual. Jen told me that I could still place my order as Alan builds them in the order received. I decided to hold off until Alan returns on ordering a 2nd unit to get an idea of his schedule. I'm in no hurry as the one unit is providing me a much improved listening experience and with more time I'll be better able to evaluate where the 2nd unit will benefit the most in my system.

My PE order from Allan Maher was sent out last Friday after waiting several weeks. I ordered 2 of them.

I hope to have them within the next few days.

After the Noise Destoyer experience and knowing that Alan Maher units also take about a week to break in , I may put them on a Video only circuit for the first week before trying them in my Audio system.

Ken

I am sorry for the delay of your order. We had a part problem. We ordered cases back on July 1 that took an extra week due to a back order. When the cases finally arrived we lost 60% of them because they were broken during transit. When our next order arrived all pre-orders were filled. According to our records you placed your order on July 13, 2007 (order shipped July 27, 2007). At the time you placed the order you were informed of the part delay. Your comment of several weeks is a gross exaggeration.

If you plan on installing the PE into the audio circuit I suggest you do it right out of the box. The PE itself does not break in. The circuit must adjust to the filter, and it can take up to several days pending the size of the circuit and the size wire used in the wall. Every time you reinstall the filter you will experience the same circuit adjustment.

Jen Maher

Jen, chill...
I received the units today, thank you.
I wasn't really complaining about the wait and I do not think it was a gross exaggeration. It took several weeks to get it.

Thanks for the info on installing the unit.

Hey Ozzy. Give us your impressions of the PE from time to time.

A slightly different observation. I too have the Noise Destroyer and have gone back and forth from liking it to thinking it may suck some air out of my system.

My conclusion as follows:
When I just leave the Noise Destroyer in my system, (plugged into the wall), I find music is wonderfully grain free with a huge sound field with lots of air. When I do rapid A-B comparisons I find it sucks some of the air out of the outer reaches of my sound stage along with any grain or hash. Conversely when I listen to my system without the Noise Destroyer for a few days I find some recordings have some hash in the upper registers but I do notice more air.

I think this unit takes time to settle into a system and then if you feel your system sounds dark then that is the time to take it out. Factors that could contribute to this effect are- dark sounding electronics, speakers, and cables. If you have boxes on all your cables and warm electronics then the Noise Destroyer may not be your cup of tea. If on the other hand you do not use a line conditioner, have open and transparent sounding electronics, and transparent "sounding" cables then the Noise Destroyer may be all the line conditioner you'll ever need. With or without the Noise Destroyer my system’s sound is holographic in the extreme with air and special cues that are holographic. As with everything else it boils down to system compatibility and personal preference.

Sherod,
I sure will keep you guys updated.

Leica man ,
I think the Noise Destoyer depends on where you place it.

I have 3 dedicated lines.
One for my APL 3910 digital Player , one for my Amp, a Pass Labs x 350.5 and one for my Hydra 8 which all my other Video stuff is plugged into.

On my dedicated line with just my APL 3910 on it the Noise Destoyer was way too much, killed dynamics and Treble (air).
On my first outlet on my Hydra with my Video on the same outlet it works great, video colors and definition is greatly improved.

I am going to try the Allen Maher unit on the same Digital outlet as I tried with the Noise Destoyer and will place another one on my dedicated oulet with my Pass Labs Amp.
I'll give them a week of break in.

For what this is worth , the Noise Destoyer and the Allem Maher units are phyically different. The Allen Maher unit is about twice the size of the Noise Destoyer, but the Noise Destoyer costs twice as much.

Leica man,
I have to say that the PE conditioner from Alan Maher( I haven't heard the Noise Destroyer) can also add a bit of warmth to my system. Maybe that's why Alan himself recommends placing the initial PE into an outlet that has the brightest sound. I found the PE a tad too warm connected to a Vans Evers strip I had my T.V. plugged into, which was plugged into the same outlets as my monoblocks. I moved the PE to another outlet about 10 ft. away from my system and I get a much more neutral presentation. It's very interesting how this unit can alter the sound when experimenting with it in different outlets in the room. This is just with one PE. I am contemplating buying another one to see how two work out in the same room. Another interesting thing is that I also had an Electroclear unit in another outlet and once it was removed, the PE unit by itself provided a much better sound. Somehow, the Electroclear's parts are clashing with the PE. What a fascinating hobby this is. Tweaking can be such a kick, sometimes. YMMV

Sherod-
Alan has mentioned in the past on various sites to remove other kinds of parallel units when auditioning the PE. Sometimes filters of this type can overlap one another and cause a harmonic crossover effect. The PE will work with other types of power conditioners. The Quantum Symphony Pro's for example work fine with the PE, we have three in our reference system. Richard Gray units are another good example of a power conditioner that works great with the PE. We have clients who own Exact Power, Monster, BPT, Hydra's, Equitech, Furman, and PS Audio units, and all report excellent synergy results with the PE. Of coarse the best set up is to use the PE by iteself on as many circuits in your house as possible.

Enjoy the product!!!

Regards,
Jen Maher

I just posted a review of the Alan Maher PE units under Accessories AC Filter. I hope it gets posted.

Sherod

Always plug the PE into the brightest sounding outlet on the circuit if you want good performance from the PE. You will know after the first 15 minutes if you like the placement. A second PE in your set up, installed as I described, will provide more of what you are already experiencing with rolling off the top end. I have clients with 15+ in their home and they keep coming back for more. Properly set up the PE is an amazing product.

Take care and I'll talk to you all next week.

Alan

Alan, is this a typo that a 2nd unit will roll off the top end? Did you mean "without" rolling off the top end, I hope?

It is a typo...I'm still living in a out of hotels over here and they are charging me by the minute to log on....so I am trying to cover a lot of information in a short period of time....not to mention I'm not the greatest typist in the world...two fingers all the way.

If properly placed, the PE should never roll off the top end. I have client homes with 25+ and professional applications with 55+ and never experienced a roll off problem. Take a look at my response to Ken's review. I try to explain in basic terms what the PE is doing on the circuit and how to properly install.

Alan

Anytime I plug a line conditioner in my system it does harm. Try your system with no conditioner and take another listen.

Stringreem, You are so right! I just removed all the Alan Maher and Noise Destoyer units and everything sounds much better.
I suppose it matters how your electrical power is in your home and area as to if these types of units are a benefit.
They help on Video , but suppress Audio dynamics and high frequencies

Ozzy,
I'll take one of your PE units off your hands for a "brother-in-law" deal.

Thanks, but I hate my brother in law.

LOL! Just my luck.

Interesting... I just got 2 noise destroyer from the Cable company. I already have a noise harvester installed. When I inserted them into my system, I was trying to listen for more darkness because apparently that is what noise free power supply should do right? But the reverse is true. The sound became way more detailed and added a lot of air but not sure whether it has also turned my system a bit sharp. Or am I a bit overwhelmed by the level of detail. Thing is the noise harvester is still blinking even with 2 of the destroyers installed. BTW I have a PPP installed too. So not sure why the dramatic difference.

You really should try the Alan Maher PEs. Installed properly you will experience the black background and realism of musical instruments. I have 9 placed throughout my home (1 on each non-audio circit and 4 on the audio circuit itself) as well as a Reference Power Center V2 to plug all my gear into. This includes my amps which experience no loss of dynamics.

The sound became way more detailed and added a lot of air but not sure whether it has also turned my system a bit sharp.

Is it possible you somehow have a jitter problem? You may need to investigate. High powered gaming PC's with switched power supplies are often a culprit. Computer power supplies are notorious - they are some of the cheapest crap found on the planet...and of course computer chips vary their loads all the time.

i own and have reviewed alan maher's product. i also auditioned the noise destroyer. i corroborate the observations of wonderful electric regarding the noise destroyer.

in addition to alan maher's product i use blue circles sound pillows and ps audio noise harvesters.

i can't say i prefer any of the three noise reduction devices over the other, but they are reasonably priced and merit an audition by anyone considering noise reduction. there is a way to test a parallel device, by using a noise sniffer.

Shadorne.
I don't think computers are the culprit here since before the installation of noise destroyers, the sound of my system was actually darker. Right now, it sounds a lot more energetic like it has been given a vitamin drink. Anyways I notice an elevated sense of energy too when I replaced the stock cords for the PS audio PPP with the Russ Andrew's Signature. Also, my system was extremely quiet to begin with so.....

Bottom line: Less noise, more music.

Any difference between PE and PE2?

As Alan's description states:

The PE has 4 wide band filters (versus 5 for the PE 2) installed to offer good noise suppression over a wide frequency range. The PE can reduce and eliminate harmonic noise riding on the a/c circuit up to 250 feet (versus 350 ft. for the PE 2).

don't think computers are the culprit here since before the installation of noise destroyers, the sound of my system was actually darker. Right now, it sounds a lot more energetic like it has been given a vitamin drink.

What you are describing, however, is exactly the way jitter would sound to me. Less energy or levity or articulation to the music and a darker sound with lower midrange emphasis and a slight heaviness rather than punchiness in the bass. More energy or dynamics "like a vitamin drink" is just the way a really clean sounding system should sound.

Incidentally have you tried Sheffield Labs drum track on XRCD - if you have not then I suggest to give it a whirl - you may be surprised - it is one of teh most dynamic recordings I know of.

Shadorne
You think so? The cleanliness of power can have an effect on the clock performance of a D/A converter? How important exactly is AC power? I thought just a decent quality power should yield good results for your equipments? I have already had a PPP installed as a power source. Why such dramatic difference? My D/A converter is DAC3 from Bel Canto BTW. Anyways regarding my previous post, I sorta misunderstood what you were saying, thought you said liveliness of sound should be associated with jitter.

Oh BTW. I have good news to report. The noise harvester no longer blinks. It was blinking a bit yesterday and now no more. And I had actually tried plugging it into another power outlet to check whether it is working. The noise destroyers work! But then again how significant is burn-in to the performance of equipments? Things are starting to not make sense to me. If burn-in and power source make such a difference to the performances of electronics, what are the logics behind them? Is high-end audio that sensitive? Jeez... how are the manufacturers able predict the results in the end users systems? If indeed measured performances vary this much.