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Power Amps and Power Conditioners, Do you plug in?

Here is my situation. Like many of us I have always believed in plugging my amplifier directly into the wall socket. I have somewhat dedicated line, separate 15 amp line with Hubbell hospital grade outlets, that does not feed off a separate dedicated line. This is because I live in a co-op that has 14 floors and 170 dwellings. It is as isolated as I can get. It is better than what I had before.

I have a Monster HTS 2000 that is plugged into one of the four outlets provided in the dedicated line. I just purchased a Synergistic AC Master Coupler powercord that I am using with a Sim Audio Moon W-5. The powercord is not user-friendly. I cannot plug it directly into the dedicated line because it will not flex to allow me to do so. I plugged it into the amplifier section of the Monster HTS 2000, claimed to be non-current limiting, and gave it a try. There is no doubt that my system sounds more dynamic that it did before.

Am I fooling myself? Am I limiting the ability of my amplifier to perform at its peak? Does anyone else find themselves plugging their amplifiers into their power line conditioners and are getting similar results? Should I use the new power cord with my preamplifier through the power conditioner and plug my amplifier directly into my dedicated line with an inferior power cord?

I look forward to your comments and experiences.

Thank you,
Drew
drewfidelity

Showing 1 response by artemus_5

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artemus_5
1,992 posts
 
Drew> I have the same setup ie dedicated circuit and HTS 2000. I added the HTS 2000 prior to the circuit and I have never thought my system sounded better because of it. However I don't think it has degraded the sound either. I have plugged my amp into wall and conditioner and can't hear any significant difference either way. For me the biggest improvement was the addition of a dedicated circuit. I have my amp plugged into the wall because concensus says that is the way to do it (plus when I put it back in the rack the last time it was easier to reach than the conditioner).
As to whether you are fooling yourself, I think probably no more than I am fooling myself for believing the concensus of what is in vogue at the moment. And with summer coming and the thunder and lightning starting to come you might see a post by me saying "My amp is fried. Was I fooling myself by not having the good common sense to plug my amp into my surge protector?" I guess that's why they call us audiophools
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