line conditioners whats your experience ?

[misterdoggy]

I was considering a line conditioner as I live in France and the current swings are fairly important. Has anyone any experience to share ?

[ZX10 Guy]

I have a Monster HTS3500II power center I'm currently using in my system. After putting it into my system, I thought the vocals were a bit more clearer and sharper but it wasn't enough for me to say definitively whether the Monster power center actually did anything or not.

In the next few weeks, I should be able to try out my Equi=Tech balanced power devices. I'm thinnking the Equi=Techs will provide a dramatic improvement but we'll see. I have a 1.5BQ dedicated for my Bryston 6B ST while the 2Q will be feeding the front end components and a Carver TFM-25 used for rear surround duty.

[scottielee]

try running springs audio. the haley is non-coloring, non-current limiting, and has voltage correction. works great with my tube amps, cd player, subwoofer, and plasma tv. innovative, proprietary parts and quality cardas wiring are used. not cheap, but well worth it in my opinion.

http://www.runningspringsaudio.com/products.html

[misterdoggy]

I heard the HTS 5100 Monster Cable box was good ? Do you really hear anything or is it more for peace of mind. ?

[Mark_C.]

I've got one of those Monsters, older model HTS 2500. It's a glorified power strip, but the lights on the front look neat. No way does it "open up'' my system thanks to "clean power.''

[scottielee]

i used to own the hts5100. can't comment on the audio performance since i never got a chance to plug my amps and cd player in it (sold the conditioner before they arrived). with running springs, i did notice the plasma tv responding a lot quicker when switching channels.

[jim777]

I got the Monster HTS1000 MKII and it is a big piece of s***. I get a better sound with my amp plugged directly into the main circuit. It doesn't even filter the air conditionner noise from the tv screen. Now I just hope that it will save my TV and CDP if thunder strucks; my experience is that the HTS1000 MKII just "looks" good...

[ZX10 Guy]

I only have the HTS-3500 for piece of mind in surge supression. I have an AV700 that saved some equipment attached to during a power spike into my home when two main feeds crossed due to a truck hitting a utility pole. The spike was severe enough where it popped circuit breakers in my main panel. Even though the HTS series of power conditioners have plugs marked for amps, I've been told by numerous sources that amps should never be plugged into any of these types of conditioners verified by James Tanner, VP of Bryston. My Bryston 6B ST is currently plugged straight into the wall. The issue is that the EMI/RFI filters employed by surge protectors are current limiting.

When my sound room gets finished, my Bryston will be plugged into this:
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b173/zx10guy/43600079.jpg

[misterdoggy]

When my sound room gets finished, my Bryston will be plugged into this:
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b173/zx10guy/43600079.jpg

ZX10 Guy Thats pretty impressive looking. Is it brand or something you have put together ?

[ZX10 Guy]

ZX10 Guy Thats pretty impressive looking. Is it brand or something you have put together ?

I didn't build it. The transformer kit is sourced from Equi=tech. The unit you see in the picture is their 1.5BQ balanced power transformer. Balanced power in a nut shell is the process of taking 120V A/C input and converting the output to two 60V each out of phase by 180 degrees. So instead of having a hot and a neutral, there are two hots. The company explained that the sonic benefits are that there is no noise that can filter between components via the common neutral. And that transformer kit is heavy. Weighs 80 lbs.

Here's their website: www.equitech.com

[krellfan]

I use a PS Audio P600 with Multiwave2 option in my system and it works well for me. I have also had a couple of P300 in the past as well. It greatly reduces the background noise and provides regulated 120V. Most power conditioners can reduce noise but can not fix distorted sine wave or regulate it.
The major disadvantge of the PS Audio power plant is that its output is limited, gets hot and ineffcient. But this is the trade off for power regeneration.

Richard

[misterdoggy]

Do either of those companies produce something for the 230v market ? or do you know of someone who does something for Europe. ?

I've heard for and against about lots of stuff line conditioners. I am using the hts 1000 monster and I have my 2 krell amps plugged directly in to the wall. The filtering is just for the TV, Videos, cd etc..... Its way too small for 13amps x 2. I had to change the fuse in our house up from 10 amps to 10 amps with a special line from the fuse box to the plugs by the system. Heavy duty line let me tell you. Here its 230v. Mymain worry is the fluctuations in current which are common to our area. So Far no worries, but I do think not only about filtering, but also protecting my sensitive Krell amps from power surge.

[ZX10 Guy]

I don't know if Equi=tech makes a 230V model. You'll have to contact them to see. As far as protecting your equipment from power surges, you can install a whole house surge protector at your main service panel. I did this in my home and actually installed it myself. It's not hard to do.