Power Conditioning Help Please?

I just recently purchased a Richard Gray Powerhouse. This unit is a 30amp 240 to 120v step down isolated transformer with power conditioning. I personally felt the improvement was worth the $$'s. It is expensive, and it all depends on budget and priorities. The outcome was a clean and detailed sound, there was an absence of "dirt" in the air (my description).

I've got to throw my 2 cents into this forum. I'm relatively new to audiophilia but have jmped in with both feet. I want to give a major thumbs up to Running Springs Conditioners. I have a pretty revealing system (MBL transport, Boulder pre, Boulder 2060 poweramp, and wilson Maxx2) which I arrived at somewhat gradually (some would argue that!!). I made one (at least) rookie mistake after reading a glowing review of Shunyata Hydra 8 and power cords in TAS, by letting a dealer I no longer will speak to, convince me to buy a Hydra and a full array of power cords for my power amps (at the time BAT VK 150 monos). I have since learned that power conditioners on power amps is an iffy proposition. I have never been more disappointed. I had just gotten the hard sell and shelled out 8 grand and my system immediately and permanently sounded worse. I tried to use the power cords and hydra on the front end to salvage my investment but I found they were wthout question colored. They definitely changed the sound, but I wouldn't say it was better, just different.
A dealer I trust recommended I try running springs. I ordered a Harley from the cable company and the second I plugged it in...WOW! Soundstage explosion, everything better with no discernable weaknesses. Had I gotten that conditioner earlier I probably would have saved alot of money. I have since added 5 dedicated 20A circuits with PS audio outlets, upgraded front end and added a major league amp. If you pressed me I would have to say the RSA was the single biggest incremental leap in performance in my system. That's saying lot with a new $40,000 amp. (One might question my sanity/or intelligence:o). I have a Jaco on the front end, and Dukes on my power amp and Sub. I have only been using the Duke on the amp for a couple of weeks, so I don't have a final verdict. What I can tell so far is that it definitely is either unchanged or slightly improved. The boulder 2060 is a monster, but so far no compression of dynamics. So I recommend giving RSA a try. I can't say I can notice a difference between the Jaco and the Harley, thus for around $2k or less you can get a major (I hope for you) improvement in our system.
Good Luck

PS all my comments are IMS and IMHO

I’ve had Legacy speakers for several years now. First I had the Focus 20/20s and now I have the Whispers. Although efficient, Legacy speakers can still be very challenging for many amps because of their hunger for current [amperage]. It is well known that the Focus 20/20s are current hungry with an impedance dip below 2 ohms, and I believe I read somewhere that the Whisper may be even more demanding. If you have everything running from a cheap Monster power strip, then your whole system is very likely bottlenecked right there. Especially your monoblocks/speakers…I would guess anyway.

Here’s something to try – Find another circuit and plug your pre-amp and source into it if at all possible, and then plug just your main amps into their own circuit with power cords as short and/or heavy as possible. Try this when there are not big demands on any of those circuits elsewhere in your house.

Perhaps doing this would give you an indication of whether or not dedicated circuits are worth while. If there is a big improvement, then you know what to do [new circuits]. If there is not…well…then the jury is still out.

Anyway, this is just my out-of-the-blue suggestion. BTW, I also use Shunyata stuff. The Hydra 2s are not that pricey here on Agon, and they go very quickly all the time, so you know there is a resale market if you don’t like it. Remember though, it takes a 20amp power cord.

Thanks to all for the advice and counsel...the ball is in my court now and I appreciate your collective feedback.

Good question re: budget. I try to make a habit of buying "near state of the art" gear...and always second hand to attain excellent bang for the buck. Deciding on budget for "tweak" gear like power conditioning seems a bit dicey for me. If I KNEW I'd hear considerable, positive impact, I'd be willing to lay down for something good...make sense?

Agree with Lak the first place to start is dedicated circuits and high end AC outlets.

High end outlets such as any of the following written about in this review or others, (http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?raccs&1065488253&openfrom&1&4#1) would be a huge improvement. If you were to add a sub panel and three dedicated lines (one circuit breaker per line) you might find out that there is no need for a power conditioner or a power conditioner sounds even better with a dedicated line and a good quality AC outlet.

I recently picked up an Audio Magic Stealth - and I too was a doubter of conditioners.

Let me tell you that the difference was nothing short of staggering. Night and day.

Do a bit of research on the Audio Magic stuff - it's THAT good.

Running Springs Audio has worked well for me.

Your response brings about a question. How does one know if his power is clean or otherwise?

I have installed dedicated circuits. Each has its own new outlet. Fortunately I don't have to use anything more than a simple surge protector, no complicated filtering etc. My power is clean. They don't turn a system you are disatisfied with into something else.

Thank you for responding. No...no dedicated circuits or high-end outlets. Not sure if dedicating the circuits is practical due to limited outlets...required for non-audio devices. Have seen ads for outlets, but didn't understand if they'd make a difference or not.

Presently, I have most of my stuff plugged into a cheap Monster Cable conditioner.

Hi, there are so many to choose from. I use a Shunyata Hydra 8. I love it and have tried to listen to my system without it. I always reconnect everything back up to the Hydra. It doesn't limit current and works great with power amps too.

Are you using several dedicated circuits with high end AC outlets?
That's the first place to begin, asuming you don't rent.

you have some really nice gear, whats your budget?

Audience Response,Shunyata,Exact Power and BPT for starters.Buy them all,if you can afford it,keep one then sell the rest.Otherwise it will be one at a time as your curiousity[sp] is piqued.Oh,Running Springs is in Phx,I think.If you live close to there maybe you could try them also.Its difficult to say w/o actual interface....good luck,Bob

I am not a big fan of conditioning. I dont think they do much. Most amp manufacturers also do not recommend them. I would look at ac regenerating units like the new PS Audio Premier. By the way, NICE amps. I really like the JC-1s.