line conditioner

[obobskivich]

so, I found a Tripp-Lite line conditioner at a local thrift shop the other day for around $10, figured why not pick it up, knowing nothing about it

googling it yields specs that seem accurate from the Tripp-Lite website (weight seems about right, has four outlets as they say, input/output #'s match, etc) however mine looks nothing at all like their picture:
LC1200 - Line Conditioner / AVR System - Automatic voltage regulator / Power conditioner / AC surge suppressor

mine is white, and solid metal, with a single switch on the front for on/off

it makes a clunk noise when you turn it on, and has a bit of a whirring noise while it runs (like a huge mains transformer would)

now, I got bored tonight and put it between my standard surge supressor and CI VAC-1 for my headphone amplifier, could literally feel the noise floor drop

the only concerns I have:
is its light hum (its really inaudible unless you're basically on top of the unit) bad?
when it turns on, the clunk is audible on the hp's, granted the CI has no power switch, but is this an issue overall?

and basically, should I even be using this thing as I am?

i have the VAC-1 on the "maximum filtration" output (it has two that say "normal" filtration and two that say "maximum" filtration)

it sounds better, but I'm scared of it dying and taking my expensive equipment with it, is that an issue?

and the red lamp for the power switch (its in the switch) flickers, but I have no way of knowing if this is normal or not, since I can't find information about my specific unit

any help?

 

[mrarroyo]

All three units (various manufacturers) I have owned and which used red lamp on the power switch flicker.

 

[fzman]

if this makes an improvement, i'd look into more audiophile power conditioners. the tripp lites offer good protection, and that model was popular for a while among audiophiles, but i;d look into one of the furman models for home theatre, like the ac-215, or a shunyata. the brickwall pieces are supposed to be very good as well, but i have not tried them.

remember, the power supply is the signal path and you are listeing to the ac from the wall, modulated by whatever the signal tells it to do.