Power Conditioners

Great info on why and what PLCs and other tweaky stuff at www.audiotweakers.com

IMO, the most bang for my buck by far has been adding dedicated lines, 1 for amps, 1 for digital, 1 for phono, 1 for my preamp, using Hubbell 8600 outlets and 10ga wire, the whole job cost me $310. Prior to this I have used Chang, Power Wedge, Seakay, Counterpoint conditioneers...which all had subtle improvements...my advise is to first get dedicated lines...then add on Line conditioners. BTW, make sure to run a dedicated ground.

I've tried a few and am using the Cinepro Power Pro 20 and the PS Audio PS300. Go to PS Audio's website and check it out. It blows anything else away and is priced right.

I leave my two PS audio units on all the time

If its solid state or digital leave it on.Power conditioners is a difficult subject.Most help in some ways but also create other problesm.one unit hich i have treid and really works is the PS 300.The PS 600 is also a very good unit.I would run dedicated ac lines before i did anything if it is feasible.That is generally the best bang for your buck.One line for every component.dont put two components on the same line if you can avoid it.

Ensemble makes a superp power strip that is completely passive. give brian a call at Artistic Audio, (949)362-6080. website: aaudio.com , also check out the review on stereotimes.com for all the Ensemble products.

(1) Yes to always leave it on (for solid state only). I used to turn everything off, but my trusted dealer convinced me otherwise & he is absolutely right! I always noticed improvement in systems' sound >1 or 2 hours on, but it's not at best until about 30 hours warmup. Dlr. also says the equipment will also last longer (eliminates thermal cycling). I do pull the plug during thunderstorms of course, which leads to your first question. (2) Power-strip type conditioner (again dealer recommended) is the Chang Lightspeed (Stereophile recommended also). There are several models & pricepoints. Unlink many conditioners, the Changs do not constrain current peaks. They also have integral MOV transient protection, for those nasty lightning strikes (but I still power down during a nearby storm, if I'm home at the time - why live dangerously?). I have a Chang 3200 for the lower current devices, & or smaller amps if you have that. But my SS amps run 100 watts/ch to 150 w/ch (I have some different ones that I change around sometimes) so for that I got the Chang 9900 high-current conditioner. Still use upgrade power cords on everythng too, but much filtering (like a heavy filtered cord plugged into the Chang) constrained dynamics & rolled off the highs & lows. Example: the McCormack DNA-1 amp works better for me with a Custom Power Top Gun HCFI heavy-filtered cord plugged directly into dedicated AC line. But with my Ayre V-3 bi-amp setup, I use the Synergistic Research Designers Reference2 AC cords plugged into the "Chang 9900Amp" filter box. You must experiment with your rig for best results; try many different combo's to find what you like. Good luck & happy listening!