I have had the ADD Powr Wizard in my system for a couple of weeks and I'm impressed


The audio writer's conundrum: How do you find the right words to describe sound? It's not easy. It's like trying to describe a color. You will get a sense of it but in order to really get it you have to hear it. We have all read many audio writer's attempts to do so with varying degrees of success. What does the writer wish to convey about how a particular component sounds? And more problematically, how does that get put into words?   Here is the bottom line for me- how strong is the emotional impact of the sound when I listen to the equipment? That is it. And of course that can not be separated from the companion question- How strong is the emotional impact of the music? One reason that this hobby is so amazing is that these questions are two sides of the same coin and complement each other beautifully. Collecting fine (and well recorded) music is a great hobby in and of itself. Couple it, however, with the equally enjoyable hobby of component swapping and tweeking and you have a match made in heaven. It's like what happened when John met Paul.
All of which brings me to this review of the ADD Powr Wizard. What I keep returning to over and over again with this thing plugged into a nearby outlet is how intense my emotional connection to the sound and the music is. To use a well worn audio writer cliche, It's like I'm listening to my collection for the first time and hearing things I never heard before. But it is so much more than that. It's not just that I am hearing more of what is on the record it is that I am hearing more of what the artists on the record are intending to create with their music. The ADD Wizard allows me to do this more completely than any other addition to my system over the last 10 years. It lets me fully relax into the music. With all my other tweeks, at least the good ones, the ones that work, I was able to get a better sense of space and detail each time I added one. The benefit of the Wizard is on a different plane than that. Yes it adds to the sense of space and detail in the sound, but it also creates a stronger impression about the music itself. It's a feeling of being one with the music. Hard to describe but very powerful!
You will have to read the literature to get a sense of what ADD Powr is doing with its algorithms and how they are being applied to the household electric circuit in order to filter out the audio nasties so that the music can come shining through in all its glory . That part of the review is way above my pay grade.  I would love to be able to understand that. But hey that's what makes tweeks so much fun. The fact that you may not understand the electronic or physics of it doesn't mean that you are not hearing amazing things from it. And in the case of the ADD Powr Wizard what I am hearing just makes me smile.
bradmorris1

Showing 18 responses by ozzy

Since I really like the Sorcer X4 that I have, I just bought the new item just released from Add-POWR, it is called the SYMPHONY I/O. And it is listed at 1/2 off during the introduction!

It is designed to be used with usb or ethernet cables. I hooked it up to my Lumin X1 and to my external hardrive. The more traditional use would probably be at the modem say to a Uptone Regen or similar device for streaming.

Thus far I am really digging it. I also connected it to my Apple TV and it really improved the video quality as well.

Highly recommended!

ozzy

 

I just tried it with the top off and I don’t notice any difference. Is it something that will take sometime or is the change instantaneous?

ozzy

I own the Sorcer X4 and it has become an important part of my system.
BTW, I found that the springs that Geoff sells worked better under it compared to the Stillpoints Ultra SS.

ozzy

marc777, david_ten, or who can answer

So, I just ordered a piece of clear plastic 12 x18 1/8" thick. I guess I will need to trim it a little.

The metal top has vent slots in it, should the plastic also have vent hole(s) in it?

ozzy

marc777, Thank you for that info. I should get the clear plastic cover tomorrow. Gotta love those swirling lights...

Do you turn it off after use?

ozzy

bemused,

Congrats!

I seem to keep my setting at the high setting. Have you ever used the lower settings?

And, do you turn it off after use?

ozzy

marc777,

I just bought a thin piece of glass cut to size for the Sorcer X4.

ozzy

marc777, tweakmenow,

It must be that the metal is acting as a shield.

ozzy

I will state again the new ADD-PWR I/O unit is awesome! I am using it on usb cabling between my 8TB Hard drive which has all my Hi Rez music and my Lumin X1. The soundstage widens and deepens, very impressive.

It also has provisions to use it with ethernet cable.

And, even my wife has noticed the picture improvement. Yes, it's true!

ozzy

bemused,
I have mine placed near the audio equipment about 3 feet off the floor. It's plugged into the same wall duplex that my Audioquest Niagara 7000 is plugged in.
Please try it nearer to your equipment before you settle at the breaker box.

ozzy
bemused,
Some other tweaks for the future or when funds allow that helps with the Sorcer.
Experiment with the power cord. I have found that premium or highly insulated power cords are not always the best. I now use a DIY power cord with Dueland unshielded wire.

Also, try some footers, I have found that the springs that Geoff sells to work quite well under mine.

ozzy

wisper,

I used usb. I got a good deal on a couple of WireWorld Platinum 8 usb cables. One cable comes from my hard drive to the I/O unit and the other to my Lumin X1.

It is also sitting on top of the Lumin in which the proximity of the unit is supposed to be important because it does have a radiated field.

I also have a couple of ethernet cables for my streaming connected to it.

ozzy