prodj101 Posted August 22, 2002 Share Posted August 22, 2002 hi, I was just wandering how much of a difference those power conditioners actually make, like the ones from monster and panamax. is it actual audible, or is it one of thsoe thigns where people just say it helps cause they don't want to admit they got jipped? ------------------ -Trevor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mighty Favog Posted August 22, 2002 Share Posted August 22, 2002 I wouldn't go so far as to say I was jipped on my Monster HTS-5000 but I would have to think long and hard brfore I would pay the $600 retail for it. I paid $360 at a Dutch Auction on E-Bay. An audible difference? None, as far as I'm hearin'. But sometimes I like to see how steady and how much current is coming into the system. A rock steady 120v is optimum. Mine tends to sway between 108v and 125v. May it's mental but I "think" the sound isn't as good when the voltage is under that 120 mark. If anything it's one hell of a surge protector/outlet strip. ------------------ Tom's Money Pit This message has been edited by tblasing on 08-22-2002 at 08:55 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minn_male42 Posted August 22, 2002 Share Posted August 22, 2002 maybe the best thing power conditioners do is remove occassional garbage that the power system lets through; whether from local contamination or from system contamination. The better ones also provide some surge protection....although you never know if they still are working if they protect you once.....almost all surge protectors use components that are sacrificial....components that burn out to protect your equipment....the problem is that you never know if they have burned out or not ...is your equipment still protected???...check out this link... http://www.surgex.com/ This message has been edited by minn_male42 on 08-22-2002 at 09:27 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j-malotky Posted August 22, 2002 Share Posted August 22, 2002 Trevor I use regular old Computer UPS's I have an APC 650 and an APC 1000. This gives me surge surpression and a gell cell to guarentee me 120V during brown outs. Just make sure NOT to plug a UPS into a surge strip, they must be plugged directly into the outlet in order to sence the power properly. JM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m00n Posted August 23, 2002 Share Posted August 23, 2002 I concur with tblasing. I was told by the dealer that it would make the difference between night and day if I bought a nice line conditioner. Yes, I was a tootsie lollypop and believed him and I bought one. Well, I have not noticed a bit of difference in the sound quality. HOWEVER, to be fair, I have not herd any sound issues when the microwave is going off, nor when any other appliances are running. AGAIN to be fair. I never herd any of those issues before I even got my home theater. So, maybe in my home it would have never been a factor in the fist place. BUT, I do like having the surge protection. ------------------ m00nsCinema to be the m00n system FRONTS: RF-7 CENTER: RC-7 SURROUNDS: RS-7 SUB: RSW-12 RECEIVER: Harman Kardon AVR 520 DVD: Harman Kardon DVD-50(DD, DTS) VIDEO: InFocus ScreenPlay DLP Projector COMPUTER: ProMedia 4.1 c>Microsoft XBOXc> f> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prodj101 Posted August 23, 2002 Author Share Posted August 23, 2002 surge protection shmurge protection, waste of money in my opinion. The amount of power needed to fry your system would be soooooooo rare, theres really not need to buy one. Now, if it improved sound quality, it's a whole nother story, but I don't wanna pay 400 bucks to have a thing that will most likely never be used taking up rack space. The only thing I can see that would be good about it, is if you had a friend who worked in the near by power plant, and got him to blow your system with it and collect the 500,000 dollars or w/e the amount is! ------------------ -Trevor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j-malotky Posted August 23, 2002 Share Posted August 23, 2002 Trevor Im surprised you started this thread if your opionion is it is a waist of money. And I must disagree with you on a few points. Power conditioning and line filtering will remove electrical patterns in the line that will make sound in your audio. As TB and Moon point out with the Microwave situation. Do I hear a cleaner sound running through a conditioner - NO. It is more for extending equipment life. Line conditioning is evan more important on older homes that do not have a 3rd ground line. I am lucky that I live in a new neighborhood that has good power. But years ago, I use to live by an industrial park and had continuous low voltage problems. Now Im talking 80 Volts!!!! My neighbors lost a TV and sterio due to low voltage. The chances of loosing your equipment to a gigantic spike is rare and few of us will ever experiance this. What does wear out SS equipment over time is continuously changing voltage. It is a slow process, but it is REAL. Unless you change components every 3-5 years, go ahead and plug direcly in the wall, you will never see a failure. But A lot of us here have vintage equipment that is 20-40 years old and we plan to keep it for a long time. FYI - Power companies only gaurentee power from 105V to 125V That in itself is a big range. JM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krusty46 Posted August 24, 2002 Share Posted August 24, 2002 Maybe Trevor would like to replace the big screen TV my uncle lost a while back due to a lightning storm. Or the laptop and TV a co-worker lost a few months ago due to a lightning storm. I agree with most that you will probably never see a benefit in sound quality, but I'd rather know that I was protected. ------------------ Mains: KLF 10's Center: RC-3 (I know--doesn't match mains) Surrounds: Quintets Receiver: Denon 3802 DVD: Denon DVD-900 TV: Sony 36XBR400 VCR: Mitsubishi HS-U48 LaserDisc: Pioneer D605 MIT T2 and T3cables throughout Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prodj101 Posted August 24, 2002 Author Share Posted August 24, 2002 lol, I do replace equipment around yearly. sorry about the laptop and tv. I believe our insuarance covers damage due to lighting, power surges, and fire. ------------------ -the forum prowler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minn_male42 Posted August 25, 2002 Share Posted August 25, 2002 personally, i prefer to replace my equipment when i want to and not when the lightning decides it for me....not to mention your computer....how much info on your computer can be replaced if you get zapped by lightning?....a good surge protector is well worth the money....(in my opinion)...i can't comment on the whole sound quality issue....but surge protection is a definite value! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maximilian Posted August 28, 2002 Share Posted August 28, 2002 I'd at least get a surge protector. Make sure the clamping voltage is 330 volts. The joule rating doesn't matter; if the surge exceeds the rating, you're out a surge protector, but your equipment is protected. The main protection is a few $2 metal-oxide varistors. These fail shorted, so your circuit breaker will trip and the equipment will lose power but be intact. Don't spend big bucks. I got an RCA surge protector with EMI filters that protects two coax cables and a phone line in addition to the power. Costs $40. The line conditioning is not needed IMHO. The AC is converted to DC anyway by the equipment power supply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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