Just about three and a half years ago, I went through a comprehensive home auditioning process of AC power conditioners. After reading reviews and talking to different audiophile friends I selected four very highly regarded pieces and the clear "winner" was the Running Springs Audio Jaco AC power conditioner. The Jaco in my system did everything better(transparency/micro-details/liquidity/soundstage layering/timbres) then the other AC conditioners and very importantly did not damage the macro-dynamics/prat/slam as the other conditioners had when I had them in my system. If your interested in more details take a look at my review of the Jaco here on the GON.
I believe that Running Springs Audio is a company with integrity that would not come out with a new reference just to get a new piece to the market, unless they believed that they had come up with a better "sonic mouse trap", in my opinion, with their new Dmitri AC power conditioner and HZ power cord they have come up with a "sonic mouse trap" that could easily capture a Blue whale.
As in all my reviews if your interested in technical details I advise you to go to the RSA website. The weight of the Dmitri is 67 lbs. and is a rather handsame piece with a carbon fiber face plate, along with carbon fiber being used internally for acoustic damping and carbon fiber feet. It has ten outlets with a power rating of 2400W. The Dmitri comes with a stock power cord or can be ordered either with an upgraded cord the Mongoose or the top of the line HZ reference cord.
On to the most important part of any review, the sonic performance of the piece:
1) A very significant increase in clarity/transparency/liquidity through out my total system.
2) With this increase of transparency and the lowering of the overall noise floor micro-details, decay trails, and the acoustic space of recordings became much sharper and easier to hear.
3) A precision in the location of individual players and more air around them with more natural layering in the soundstage. The music just makes more sense.
4) Timbres sound more real/natural across the entire sound spectrum.
5) Finally, what I still find to be somewhat of a paradox, the overall macro-dynamics, prat, and speed of my system jumped to a much higher level, yet what I subjectively call the "liquidity/easyness/relaxation" level increased at the same time. My system was already pretty damn good at letting the listener just relax into the music, with the Dmitri it's even better!
I also ran the experiement regarding the upgraded power cords effect on the overall performance of the Dmitri, to cut through the chase, the reference HZ power cord allows the Dmitri to perform to its ultimate level across the entire sonic range with even a more fleshed out midrange and deeper bass and speed and is with out a doubt worth the extra expense.
Is the Dmitri the "BEST" AC power conditioner in the world, I don't know because I did not audition all the highly regarded AC power conditioners that have gotten great feedback and buzz among audiophiles. I don't believe a "BEST" anyways, there's a lot of great pieces of gear, along with personal taste and system synergy to take into account. However, if your looking for one of the best out there, I would recommend you put the Dmitri on your audition list. It surely is not inexpensive, it retails with the HZ power cord for $6000.00, but I know individuals who have spent more on linestages and amps who got less bang for there buck, then I got out of upgrading to this AC power conditioner in my system.
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by Teajay on 06-24-09
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