Each step will provide a notable improvement in sound quality. 15amp direct lines... one for amp (no power conditioner) and one for the rest of your components. And a good quality power conditioner. The better quality the better. I would look at Shunyata and IsoTech. Since it is likely you will replace your power conditioner nearly as often as components, it is worth getting a good one. My 75lbs conditioner won awards twenty five years ago when I bought it and has been performing incredibly well since then.
AC Power
I have a relatively nice system, but have done nothing with my AC power, with the exception of upgraded PC’s and a cheap iFi plug in power conditioner. My question is multi fold… do I need to do something, and if so what? Dedicated line (15A or 20?)? Quality power conditioner? Both? Which one first? How do you tell?
My system is a combination of HT & 2 channel & I tend to use both simultaneously as I like to watch sports while listening to music.
My amp is (I think) a relatively low draw… Moon 330A, Rythmik sub, BHK pre, Aurender, Qutest w/Sbooster, R11’s. No high power amps are in my future & never listen above 75db. I do currently plug my amp directly into the wall. All my wall warts are gone. For my HT, add a 75” Sony TV, Marantz 7015 AVR & a Klipsch sub (although at zero volume the AVR & sub should not come into play).
I am considering buying the Furman IT-Reference 15i or 20i first as they are well reviewed & are priced very well on Amazon ($1,400 / $1,900). Before I pull the trigger, should I go dedicated power & at what amperage (my nephew, an EE & audiophile thinks I am drawing no more than 5 amps) as that will dictate the Furman model?
Interesting, my nephew thinks neither are worth the investment. His statement: “Do you have appliances on the circuit now? What kind of interference can they inject?...voltage drops would come from current draws...which trip breakers.
Not steady 60hz a good power supply handles. So it all comes back to was the power supply engineer dropped on his head as a child.”
”Personally I think it’s something audio people do when they have run out of gear to buy.”
Any thoughts or recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks!
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@erik_squires Thanks! That was the unit I thought you were recommending. It would save space & money while providing good voltage regulation, while cleaning power. It does not have additional amp RMS reserves like the reference model. Not sure which is better? |
@ghdprentice Thanks! Good recommendation. |
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"which trip breakers." Motor loads can. Non motors loads no. .
I strongly disagree... I assume you are feeding your 2 channel audio equipment and H/T equipment from a single 15 amp convenience outlet branch circuit. FWIW per 2020 NEC (National Electrical Code), there is no limit on the number of 15 amp duplex receptacles that can be installed on a 15 amp convenience outlet branch circuit in a residential dwelling unit. Also worth noting ceiling light fixtures can also be connected to the same branch circuit wiring. Got LED lamps in them fixtures? Harmonic distortion noise... What wiring method did the residential electrician use to make up the in and out branch circuit joints/connections in the wall outlet boxes? Worst wiring method is using stab in the back residential grade 79 cent duplex receptacle outlets. That’s four connections, (2 hot conductors & 2 neutral conductors) for each outlet times how many wall outlets from the electrical panel to the wall outlet your equipment is plugged into. Problem with stab in the back outlets? Piss poor connections. Poor connections? AC high frequency harmonic distortion noise caused from micro arcing in all the stab in the back connections. I didn’t even mention the type of loads plugged into wall outlets on the same branch circuit. I looked at your equipment profile. I would recommend at least two 20 amp dedicated branch circuits. Maybe three... The big Sony TV with its Switch Mode Power supply isn’t helping the sound from the PS Audio BHK Signature Preamp and the Simaudio Moon 330A Amp. Those two analog and any other analog equipment should have it’s own 20 amp dedicated branch circuit. (Note 20 amp branch circuit.) Labor cost is the same whether 15A or 20A. Even the circuit breakers are the same price. Only difference is the price of the wire gauge used. Labor is the biggest cost. Labor for one circuits does not double for two, or triple for three... It doesn’t work that way. Material costs does though. . |
OP: Recently had a contractor plug a circular saw onto the same circuit and I watched the voltage after the AR, and it stayed rock solid. I could see the AR switching transformer taps every time the saw turned on and off, but the gear never felt it. That's how stable the voltage is. I've kept the combination ever since. Best, Erik |
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