Cleaner AC Source for Better Sound

Ah! the last thing I did should have been the first.
Installed a High output Ulimate Outlet and did wonders on
the grunge and noise.Really bought it for the surge and lightening protection and was rewarded with cleaner sound.
And yes the Blue Circle power cords are on all my equipment.
Have tried Golden Reference which tighten the sound stage and Harmonic Techs which adds a little grain,IMHO.Thanks

I have no connection to Blue Circle. They just seem to make electronic products that "sound right" to me; and their accessories like cables and power products do what they claim. All for a reasonal price. I was never a believer in buying a system all from the same company, but Gilbert is slowly changing my mind on that. (In his case anyway)

The Noisehound is a parallel filter.
Since it is parallel, it removes the grunge without getting in the way of the power flow, which would limit dynamics. Many of the better power condition units on the market like Vansevers are also parallel.

There are some interviews with Gilbert Yeung (the founder) were he is asked why this or that amp or preamp does not lab test well (against the established benchmark or norm). His answer is always that he could have made it lab test better, but then it would not have sounded as good. Tells you something about the "established benchmark" (there may be a better way), and that Gilbert uses his ears, and thinks outside the box to design gear.

As I read these responses and those in other threads, my best bet might be to upgrade the AC cord for my amp and plug it straight into the wall via an upgraded duplex outlet on a line separate from the components. Then run the TT, tuner, CD and preamp to something like a Chang LS 6400ISO or a PS300. Seems like this would provide a good and clean power supply to the front end stuff and provide solid power to the amp, albeit without surge protection. I live in an area of California where lightning is nearly nonexistent but I do have some concern with regard to power spikes. Perhaps the thing to do is go the "direct-to-the-wall" route for now and consider a more amp-ready unit later. Reasonable? Also, would it be overkill to use something like the Noisehound in the second outlet of the duplex where I plug in my amp power cord? I would like to limit spending to about $880 and it doesn't seem possible to do ALL I want at this price. Isn't that ALWAYS the way, though?

Yes the noisehounds would reduce the number of outlets. They can go into the wall as well as an outlet on a conditioner. Also any outlet within 10 feet or so would be fine.

I personally think the Harmonic Tech AC-11 power cords are slightly grainy; so you may want to try another cord and test for yourself. Speaking of Blue Circle, they make some nice cords as well. The BC62 is great for about the same price as the AC-11.

Plus, wouldn't each one of these Noisehounds reduce by one the number of available outlets for components?

Sugarbie, I have seen a number of your posts. Do you own an all-Blue Circle system, or do you work for, sell, or otherwise represent Blue Circle? :-) How the heck do these Noisehounds work? Aren't they a passive plug-in things that aren't directly connected to anything except the wall socket? How can that help AC to components? Not saying it doesn't just questioning how.

Get a couple Blue Circle BC86 Noisehounds. $100 each. Great units!!

Oh, life would be sweet indeed if one high quality power cord going into the power conditioner would be all that was needed. Actually, I've found the opposite to be true. Your best power cords are needed coming out of the power conditioner (in my case the Ultimate Outlet) and into your source or other components.

A friend of mine and I used both a stock and then Mini Lab Cable going into my Ultimate Outlet and then a Mini Lab going out to the CD player. We really couldn't tell a diffference between the cords on the input side of the UO, but there was a big difference on the output side of the UO.

To make matters even more confusing, there was a noticeable improvment when I upgraded from a Mini Lab cable to a Lab Cable for my PS Audio HCA-2 amp. These amps just sip juice and don't even get warm. Yet the huge Lab Cable made a big difference in the sound. I still want to get a P300 with multiwave for the source, but that's down the road.

BTW, my same friend had a Richard Gray in his system for a month or so, and it definitely helped. He also has a Power Wedge and it basically performs the same. I just preferred the UO. Taking them out of the system and plugging directly into the wall is almost torture now. Ditto, going back to stock power cords.

Thanks. I was assuming that I would need more than a 15A power supply to sufficiently accommodate my 250W amplifier. someone told me I should look for 20A minimum and, better yet 30A. Maybe they/I am wrong?

I have read some interesting articles about power conditioners, some confusing, some rather contradictory. I get the logical drift that the requirements for front-end equipment are much different than for power amps and/or preamp power supplies. I have particular interest in something that will "do-it-all". One plug from the unit to the wall – all of the component cords into the power unit. I also read where many power conditioning units "suck the life" out of the sound. Those articles recommend a "parallel" unit (i.e. Richard Gray's) or a "regenerative" unit (i.e. PS Audio). Of course, I would be open to a separate unit for the power amp and preamp and a "better" multiple outlet source for other components, as long as they were cost-effective. By cost-effective I mean a total of about $600-800. Any insights?

Also, does the power unit with an appropriate AC power cord obviate the need for more expensive power cords from the components to the power unit?

I'm using two PS Audio Ultimate Outlets (15 amp high output) and can highly recommend them for all components (including video). They will not restrict current and have the same capacity as your wall socket.

The power strips/surge protectors of the type it sounds like you are using will definitely degrade the sound. The Ulitmate Outlet cleans, protects from surges and also isolates digital components from putting any sort of interference back into the house power line that could be picked up by other components. They also have a product called the Juice Bar, but it sounds like that's more than you need for the number of components you have.

Mot check out the offerings from Chang Lighspeed. A 6 outlet model 3200 runs about $300 list; this is fine for your source components but perhaps not your amp though, since it's fairly high powered. The model 6400 ISO has higher current capability; will not constrain dynamics of your amp, and is Stereophile recommended. A really great feature within all of Chang's models is the integral transient-protector parallel MOV snubber, which can save your equipment during a thunderstorm. The protection circuitry shuts off power to all of the output-outlets if for any reason it becomes inoperable.
Chang offers a good value-for-dollar array of line conditioners. Not the most expensive by any means but not the cheap stuff either.

Should add that I am using 2 Harmonic Tech ProAc 11's, Ensemble Megaflux, and PSAudio Mini lab already.