Brad
Welcome to the forum. Hope you have many pleasant threads here. Lots of available expertise.
On this subject of power conditioners, we've seen this set of inquiries a bunch of times.
Most times, the answers all start with questions.
Why do you think you need a power conditioner? Where do you live where the power is so bad you think a conditioner is needed?
Most times, new posters think they need a power conditioner because they either had a conversation with a sales person, or, they have been at someones house who has power conditioning equipment to "clean up the power". In most residential areas, consumer solutions provide little or no real benefit and many manufacturers of quality amplifiers caution against them, not for them.
I'll pause there and see what you think. This is an area where companies make a lot of profit and actually provide the end user with little or no tangible benefit.
Ok, I will start by saying that I live in very remote areas of northern Canada. Because of my job I have lived in some places that are a 17 hour drive through the bush to where the real power is coming from(power plant). So the power is very unreliable and I have actually seen the lights get brighter, then dim down and flicker. I have seen the power go out on a sunny, no wind, no rain and no thunder and-lightning because of something going on down south (about 14-17 hours away).
I was a very big sceptic of whether or not power cables and things of that nature could actually make a difference in my sound until I finally took the plunge and bought some high-end power cables for my system. I actually found some really nice power cables on eBay for fraction of what well known name brand companies wanted for them. These cables are 10 gauge and shielded cables. I actually picked them up for just under $60 Canadian a peace. I am so glad that I did because I actually noticed a difference in my sound and I could not believe it. Here is a copy and paste of a message that I sent to a buddy of mine on Facebook after trying these cables....
“ Sheena was telling me the other day that there was too much bass but what she was really hearing was the mids. I only have a bass and a treble dial. So if I turned the bass down to fix the mids I would lose my low end bass. So the bass was making the mids sound murky. After I changed the power cables I listened to it all night and I definitely heard the difference. But I had to get a second opinion. So I got Sheena to listen to a bunch of different songs and I did not tell her that I noticed any difference. After listening for a while I asked her what she thought about the sound. I asked if it was too much bass,treble or mids. She said it sounded perfect. I then told her that I did not adjust the bass or treble (which I did not) and she still said that it sounded much better. It is a more balanced sound. It sounds cleaner and more defined. It is not as big of a difference as the wifi receiver but still a very notable difference.”
So I KNOW that depending on your situation that simple things like better power cables can actually make a difference. I am very sure that my results could very depending on the house that you’re in, how far away your house is from the power plant and many other circumstances.
But like I stated right from the beginning, I have been into audio for many years ( but again I am no professional ). And one thing that I can guarantee anyone is that the gauge of wire is very important. I am also mechanically inclined and I do a lot of my own mechanic work so that being said I use a lot of power tools. And when I think about using an electric impact with an extension cord you actually lose torque on that impact. So what’s happening there is you’re creating too much resistance in the delivery of that power. And with an impact wrench it’s actually measurable physically because with an extension cord it will not break a bolt free but if you take the extension cord out of the mix it will break the bolt free no problem. So using a heavier gauge wire makes perfect sense that it could make a difference.
Now, when it comes to a surge protector/power conditioner I want something that will definitely protect my gear and add some filtration to the power. But first and foremost I want really good surge and high and low voltage protection. Also, I am planning to rewire it with 10 gauge wire.
Sorry for the novel.
