power conditioner for cd transport and dac?

I use isolation transformers on my digital front end gear. That is where I have found a transformer to have the most effect. Perhaps this is because, besides removing noise from the AC to the gear, they also isolate the digital gear from the rest of the system.

my experience has been that digital is the area that most benefits from power conditioning.

I'd recommend getting and installing a Porter Port or Maestro or TelslaPlex and plugging your DAC directly into the wall without conditioning. Experiment with various power cords (give them time to settle in, don't A-B them back and forth like a switch... PCs need to settle down). Power cords make a huge difference on DAC sources. Doing so has made a huge difference on my system. In fact, on my most high res system, I have entirely eliminated the use of power conditioners. Careful selection of the right power cords has made all of the difference with PorterPorts and Maestros. IMHO, lots of money goes into power conditioners that is better spent elsewhere, such as a dedicated power line to the system components, e.g. isolate the digital sources with a separate line.

Just my opinion and experience (YMMV),

:) listening,

Ed

How much time do power cords need to settle down? Same as break-in for IC's and speaker cables? I put an audiophile cord on an amp I recently broke in with it's own power cord, and it sounded so bad that I thought, "Oh, no. Can't deal with it right now." Took it off again but you are convincing me to try it again.

Arnettpartners

You ask a very difficult and important question.Some aren't a good fit no matter what, and some take time to finally handshake, and the most dangerous of all "fit" right away and deteriorate later. Yeah I know.

No matter what, the ultimate and decisive variable is time. If the cable is in fact broken in, let it play, turn it entirely off, fire it up, play it awhile, let it sleep...give things a day or so.

Remember that the emotional intelligence of the listener varies during the month, week, and day and all music requires emotional intelligence. If it's off, the system literally won't sound right. Yeah, I know.

Time, if it works, ok; if not, no problem, make a note of it, and try something different, such as plugging it in to the wall instead of the conditioner, or visa versa. Or try switching cables in the system; the one to the preamp to the DAC and the one to the DAC to the preamp. You'll be surprised. And the same goes for the amp cord. Try to stay simple and minimize variables. One variable I'd work on no matter what is the wall receptacle: Porter Ports, Maestro, Teslaplex... each deserves attention. One might be best suited to the preamp and DAC. Another might bring out the preamp and amp, with the DAC on different receptacle.

Sorry for the rambling response!

:) listening,

Ed