Best power conditioner for headphone amps

Ask your amp's manufacturer about its power supply and whether power conditioning is necessary.

A power supply actually is a power conditioner; it changes AC into DC while heavily filtering it. If the power supply is of good quality, then a conditioner would be like taking a shower before a shower so you aren't dirty in the shower.

Erik,

If wishes were fishes, you would be correct. Indeed, the power supply in each component should ideally provide adequate filtering to eliminate line peturbations as well as isolate components from each other.

But the fact that most components lack even a grounded shield between the primary and seconday of their toroidal power transformers, contradicts your assertions. Empirical curiousity on your part, comparing filtered vs unfiltered via a 4pdt switch might also let you speak with other that theory. Then again, your tube equipment might have adequate series inductive elements to provide line filtering. The only component I've ever owned that did not benefit from external power filtering is my CAT SL-1 preamp which makes herculean efforts internally.

Tunes,

All the products you mention would do a fine job, save for IMO, the Shunyata. But the problem is that they are all built to minimize dynamic constrains with a 15amp draw. They are trading filter efficacy for current capability. A headphone rig, assuming a source and headphone amp isn't going to be drawing more than an amp in total. In that situation, you might consider a diy project, <$50, that might address your needs for lower current and stronger filtering -
Felix meets the Squeezebox

Regards,
Paul

I noticed at Canadian Tire they sell for $49.99 CAD a line conditioner that says it is for HDTV. Would one of these be of use with my LunchboxPro headphone amp? LunchboxPro has no ground prong on the power cable. This is what I am talking about.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/browse/pr...romSearch=true

p.s. what if I plugged that device into the wall outlet and then my power bar into that, would that be of any benefit?

The general consensus is amps do better directly from the outlet unless you want to spend for big capacitor banks. Digital sources do better with filtered power because they don't need the current reserves.

This is based on my limited study.

IMO

That's assuming that there is a problem with the power to begin with. The power coming through my wall isn't perfect, but nothing the average power supply can't handle. Also, components don't always interact with each other.

If I don't hear a problem, I don't buy more stuff to fix the problem I'm not hearing. Sometimes things are OK as they are and you don't have to keep adding to them for "improvements."

Also, not every component has toroidal transformers and while shields can be helpful, they're not always necessary.

I have tried out several filtering schemes in gear I've built and work on. I usually put a RFI filter in line with the socket, but it's been my experience that there's not a whole lot of value in that stuff.

You probably think this stuff isn't included in commercial gear because manufacturers are cutting corners and being cheap, right? Consider the other side of this. Almost all gear comes with a warranty and a right of return. Now, if the power supplies were so poor that lots of noise got in, then the components would be returned as defective. Not only would that be a sale lost, it also incurs costs for having a refurb/B-stock item. Further, the customer will buy another product and spread negative word of mouth. That is a very fast way to go out of business.

Consider that the average filtering stuff might cost $10-$20 in parts (especially bought in quantity), then why wouldn't a manufacturer up the price a few dollars to ensure that their products aren't returned due to noise?

Also, if the filtering is s necessary, then why don't more manufacturers spend a few dollars more and use that as an advertising point against their competitors?

You can provide solutions to all sorts of rare or non-existent problems, but then you have the extra cost without benefit.

Some things that do make sense are master kill switches (cut off everything in case of an electrical storm), a surge suppressor, a dedicated circuit off the box for the audio system, and big grounding rods for homes. Those might not help the sound, but they are excellent protection.

Power filtering like cables is a very contested issue. As a norm the power in the USA is pretty good unless you live in an older house or one from the 70's where they use non-copper wiring (yes it did happen).

I have bought a few conditioners and so far I have mixed results. In the AV system I have a Panamax M5400-PM which in my opinion improved both the sound and the picture. Allegedly this Panamax maintains the voltage constant (plus or minus certain low percentage) which is supposed to also extend the life of the gear it feeds.

In the headroom rig I have a Monster HTS 3500 MkII which is also a surge protector (the Panamax is a surge protector as well). I can not hear any improvements nor losses, so for me it is transparent.

The same for the Monarchy A/C Regenerator, although I think I hear a blacker background and an overall crispier micro details. However the Monarchy A/C Regenarator is an expensive unit and can only supply 150 watts.

So in closing, who knows! In some cases they help in others it does not.

Every conditioner I have tried on my system has been detrimental to the sound. I have tried/owned/demoed:

Passive:
Isoclean (own, not in use)
Shunyata Hydra 8 (demo)
Sound Applications (own)

Active:
PPP (demo)
Audiophile APS (demo)

The main impact has been to soften the sound and decrease impact/punch. While they do help the soundstage and background noise, the hit to the punch/live sound of the music was too much for me.

My gear builders both told me to go straight to the wall but I had to learn the hard way.

PPP> aR1p > Quintet

Before I listened to a high-end headphone amp, I thought the built-in amp of my DAC1 was pretty amazing. So did many reviewers out there, pointing out the DAC1's amp section is a "major class A headphone amp."

Life gets better with certain improvements, and power conditioning, for most audiophiles without dedicated power lines , is one of them. Even for reviewers with dedicated lines, some power conditioners have reportedly made improvements; therefore, you can safely assume there is a problem with your power (if proved otherwise, congratulations, return the power conditioner). I've owned the PS Audio's Power Plant Premier (PPP), P500, P300, Quintet and the Audience aR1p, so I think I have enough experience to qualify me to comment on both the issue of whether power condition can make a difference and the relative merits of each of them. For a short time I even owned 2 PPP and use one to feed the other. That did prove unnecessary because I didn't hear any difference between using just one PPP and using two although I did reduce the harmonic distortion from 0.3% (using one PPP) to just 0.1% (using 2 PPP; one feeding the other). I did it just for the hack of it. With any of the Power Plants, the improvements (not just mere difference, but genuine improvements) were real and well worth the money spent. I'll say the Power Plants made everything connected sounded sound much more expensive than they actually are. The PPP provides more watts, but for a headphone setup; a P300 or P500 will be more than enough.

The Power Plants are much better than the Quintet, although at $350, the Quintet is excellent value and does make the background noticeably quieter.

I prefer the aR1p over the Quintet, but the aR1p needs to be extended to something like a PS Audio Juice Bar to provide more than just a single outlet. I like it so much that I use it before the P500 and my system sounds more "at ease" and provides quieter background than plug P500 straight into the wall.

For the price these are really good. I have one and xtreme4099 just bought one. Furman Power Station PST8D by Revolution Power. It makes the the background a little blacker. It makes the TV a little more brighter and crisp. It does just about everything. For the price it is more than worth it to me.

I can't go directly to the wall because I have too many devices that require power. As it is already, I have 4 power bars in my living room alone and will soon need another if I keep buying more electronic gizmos.

Do you use anything to protect from spikes and surges? And do you always keep your system plugged in or just when you listen?

Many thanks,
Bill

I think power conditioner's are worthwhile for most people. If you have dedicated lines and are the first guy on the block hooked up to the power pole, then obviously your very lucky, and unlikely to see much benefit, but for most people I think the benefits are tangible and the protection is a nice peace of mind. I live in an old apartment with aluminum wire, and my PS Audio Duet and UPC-200 make quite a difference, I would not be without power conditioning where I live. I think the Duet is a great value, I bought mine at cryo parts, with free cryo.

care to talk about the difference between duet and upc200? is duet just better and different then upc200?

I actually use the UPC-200 in my living room for my ht reciever, TV, and dvd player. I've not compared the 2 in the headphone rig, but i've read comparisions, and most say the duet is slightly better then the upc-200.