Hey guys. So I'm about to convert my garage to a home studio/listening room. Amongst other things I plan to get at least 4 new receptacles isolated to the breaker. I'm looking at Furutech and Synergistic Research -Tesla Plex. I'm hoping to get good results with my equipment. But I was wondering if receptacles like these would provide any improvement on say my guitar amps? I also am a musician, as well as a professional music listener lol. Would love to get some input from others on this. I know these things are targeted for high end equipment, but would a vintage guitar tube amp not be considered high end of audiophile? It would be awesome if they made a sonic difference when I'm recording my music. Thanks
Hey guys...noob here. With one of these outlets you’re referring to, I still need to buy and use some sort of surge/power protection right? If so, is that going to screw with the clean power coming from the outlet?
First, the receptacle does not clean the power. If there is garbage on the AC mains the outlet will pass the garbage through its electrical contacts. Garbage in, garbage out.
As for the use of a surge protector at the equipment end. It’s not the surge protection device in itself that may affect the sound of an audio system. It’s the chain of the addition of the device in the AC power delivery circuit. In other words the quality of the plug, power cord, and receptacle outlets used in the construction of the SPD (Surge Protection Device).
If you are wanting surge protection the first line of defense is to install a Whole House SPD at the main electrical service panel. If the audio equipment is fed from a sub panel then an SPD needs to be installed there as well. Last line of defense is at the wall outlet that feeds the audio equipment.
@badger_erich I just installed a Niagara 1200 power cleaner. I couldn't believe the immediate difference it made. And it's not even broken in yet. Didn't do anything to the receptacle and I'm pretty sure it's nothing special.
Hey guys...noob here. With one of these outlets you're referring to, I still need to buy and use some sort of surge/power protection right? If so, is that going to screw with the clean power coming from the outlet?
Oh, and quiet-rock is heavy heavy. My buddy and I thought we could install it and we were wrong. We couldn’t even install sheets cut in half. He hired some young guys that do sheetrock for a living and these guys were installing them like nothing.
I agree with Millercarbon. I tried my best not to buy these Solo Oval Crystal 8 speaker cables to the point where I demo’d them 2 different times and had then had to pull the trigger. It was hard to do because they are cables. I would have no issue spending that same amount of money on any other component that made the same difference so that’s why I did it.
I have not heard SR blue fuses (these are next on my list) or outlets, but every other mumbo jumbo thing I have heard from SR actually worked very, very well, to my total disbelief and skepticism.
@jerzey2222 I use a Mesa Tremoverb 2 12 combo, I will be interested to see if you hear any difference with your wall outlet. I use the excellent Oyaide R1 for my audio system...but the standard plug for the guitar stuff.
Thanks guys. I should of clarified. I'm not rocking a vintage amp with a 2 plug prong. My main guitar amps are from the 80's ( Mesa Boogie Mark II & III ) which aren't vintage enough to be 2 prong. But thanks for the concern!
@jea48 Just to be clear, I'm NOT suggesting that he change the original plug. As I stated, this mod will change the value for many collectors...for the worse! Yes, believe it or not, an all original two pin plug is sometimes preferred on these vintage pieces! Nonetheless, the fact that the original cord and plug are attached to the amp seems to me to off-set any benefit that a new wall outlet will likely have.
Wait a minute, if you are using a vintage amp, are you not supposed to use the vintage plug ( two pin...non grounded) that came with it! Plug that into any wall outlet and you risk....well you know. Change the plug on the amp end to a decent three pin grounded...
Not so fast. It may not be a simple matter of just changing the 2 wire power cord and plug to a to a 3 wire cord and plug and ground the chassis of the amp. The OP needs to get a schematic wiring diagram for the guitar amp. Some AC line power wiring modifications will, may, be needed. https://www.thetubestore.com/guitar-amp-schematics
Wait a minute, if you are using a vintage amp, are you not supposed to use the vintage plug ( two pin...non grounded) that came with it! Plug that into any wall outlet and you risk....well you know. Change the plug on the amp end to a decent three pin grounded...and some say you change the value of the amp...and its sound! LOL.
The Synergistic Blue duplex is outstanding. A significant improvement over the SR Black which, in turn, is much better than the Shunyata or the PS Audio. 30 day free trial. Not too much break in time needed. Ask me how I know...
terry9 ..."
Put your money into Quietrock 545, which will soak up lots of $$$ real fast." Just looked at their web page and see it weighs 6.25 lbs/sf, so a 4 x 8 foot sheet weighs 300 lbs...that'll keep your contractors fit!
Some of these comments are just hilarious. Expectation bias? My expectation is no outlet, fuse, speaker cable, or anything else made basically out of wire can possibly be any good. My expectation is heavily biased towards being able to get great sound cheap. The last thing I want to do is find something as silly as an outlet is gonna be worth a couple hundred bucks. My expectation bias is its all snake oil, and my expectation is I am far from being alone in this. Oh, and when buying something with a 30 day no questions asked return guarantee my expectation is heavily biased towards them honoring the guarantee.
If in spite of all that the darn thing sounds so freaking good that instead of sending it back I have to start figuring out where more of them can go, well there could be many reasons for that but the last one on Earth is expectation bias.
This however is what passes as logic- at least among people who have never actually compared and so have no idea what they're talking about.
There's a whole segment of audio devoted to making really sexy looking stuff that sounds like crap. Half the industry I bet. Judge not by how it looks jazzy but how it sounds. Be shocked if you aren't floored by how much difference that little outlet makes. Be even more shocked as time goes by and you notice its actually even sounding better and better as it burns in. Or if not, send it back. Save a lot of money. Not only on this but all the other stuff you won't be able to hear any difference from.
I doubt very much this will happen.
Besides, Synergistic Research is so good, and so confident of being so good, and so concerned with you getting good results and being happy, that even if for some reason you decide its not all that I bet all you have to do is explain the situation and they will be happy to take it back.
More likely, I think we will be reading your post about how puzzled you are and trying to understand how a lowly wall outlet can make so much difference. (Hint: yes, quantum tunneling really does work.)
I have tried some different outlets before but not the synergistic ones. Can’t say that I heard a difference but I was happier that they clamped onto the cord better.Now that I’m a bit more knowledgable I understand that there’s no way they could possibly make a difference. If you’re hearing a difference you need to look up expectation bias.
a friend of mine spent a few thousands on ps audio's power plant in his recording studio only to find that he hates it .but if you are using some generic switch mode power supply that looks like an iphone charger for your dac , swapping to linear will improve sound quality. some high end components have this brightness i try to avoid.it's trial and error so don't invest too much.these things change the tone so you should make an aware decision regarding this change. it's also not common in the guitar realm to use power conditioners.
i think it's better to put your money on components that you can understand like nos tubes or better speakers/pickups/effects. it doesn't mean that the basic principles of powering audio gear like isolation shouldn't be applied .try asking studio people not audiophiles . no one can predict your situation(maybe if the neighbours use their washing machine it degrades your sound because you are sharing the same power line)
one cheap simple device that maybe can help you evaluate it is the ps audio noise harvester (if it works ...i haven't tried it myself ).
try to watch the audiophiliac video about acoustic treatment.
always remember that dumble used stuff from radio shack and peavey in his amps but he had the best ears in the business.
solve only the issues you notice with your ears .
I’ve tried Porter Ports, PS Audio, FIM, Maestro, and Synergistic Blue. The Blues are the best so far. If you like them, The Cable Co. offers deals every now and then, two blue outlets get one blue fuse free. That’s what I did. I’ve never tried the Furutech, but I imagine they are built better.
As far as "What makes them so special?" Their use of graphene I imagine.
So glad you posted this right now Ozzy. Reason being is I just received the SR blue in the mail today and from a boxed standpoint and over all appearance, I'm not that impressed. There was no lititure in the box and the actual receptacle looks like it was used almost. I am actually impressed with the appearance of the PS audio receptacles more. The clamps inside do look like nice raw copper and they are more beefy than the PS audio. But what actually makes this thing so expensive? Is it really this quantum tunneling bs they claim? Is this a real thing? And if so how does it all work? I honestly bought this thing because I read alot of people liked the way they sounded of other hi-end receptacles. Unfortunately I won't be able to test them before the 30 day guarantee. I hope I didn't just buy snake oil lol
What makes them so special? The details on the outside actually look sloppy imo. Maybe I can post a picture on here?
I am using all Furutech Rhodium NCF outlets and I think they are the best made and remember they are made exclusively for audio applications. Once installed you can rest assured that the outlet will never be the weakest link.
I have owned most of all the others except the SR blue. Which does interest me because I like the blue fuses. But, I just can’t get over the selling price and the fact they are basically an off the shelve item that has been tweaked.
@jea48 and yes; Romex is a brand name. I was using it like I would say "I need a band-aid" instead of saying "I need a sterile adhesive strip" or kool-aid instead of powdered drink mix or Kleenex instead of boxed tissue.
@ zyphryx I meant no disrespect. Read any of my posts, I always say Romex is Trade Name for NM sheathed cable. Even when it is me that mentions Romex in a post. Been doing it for years.
@jea48 and yes; Romex is a brand name. I was using it like I would say "I need a band-aid" instead of saying "I need a sterile adhesive strip" or kool-aid instead of powdered drink mix or Kleenex instead of boxed tissue.
Porter Ports are great! Cryo treated medical grade and Albert Porter is an Audiogon membrr. Check out his system!
Cullen Cables are great as well! I love mine :-)
Quietrock is definitely your friend. It will make everything sound better and will help with sound proofing your room so you can crank it up late at night and not bother anyone.
GIK acoustic panels are great as well. You can build your own as well out of owens corning or roxul
I've been upgrading all my equipment with Anticables Level 3 PC. They are decently priced and have improved the sound as advertised. Better dynamics, quieter background and better bass.
You can use 12/3 or 14/3 Romex. The braided 4-wire is for 220v ranges & dryers. It’s braided because if it were solid you couldn’t pull it through studs and joists. Canceling EMI wasn’t really a consideration although it may work.
It’s not braided.
Some 3 wire + ground has a spiral its entire length. I have seen some that is flat.If using NM-B (Romex is a Trade Name) for best practices use 2 wire with ground.
If shielding is desired use 2 wire with insulated ground MC aluminum armor cable. 3 wire with ground (4 conductors) is not recommended be it Romex or MC cable.
About 2 or 3 years ago, I was inquisitive about outlets as well....tried many....returned many. I kept top of the line carbon fiber Furutech...yes I know they are expensive. Oyeida is also excellent, but in my house for my system, the Furutech wins.
I've found that Hubbell hospital grade outlets are all that I need, but I have to confess that our local utility delivers an excellent product and my house wiring seems up to snuff.. Perhaps others with a questionable quality power source might benefit from some of the more "exotic" (and expensive) offerings that are available, but the hospital grade Hubbell's suit my system well.
I'm a GC and I've been kicking around the idea of building a sound room above the garage. I don't know anything about room treatments (yet) or what receptacles to choose but, if you have room in your main panel or sub-panel, I would have the electrician set a separate 15 amp breaker for your lights and, a dedicated 15 or 20 amp breaker for your hi fi receptacles only (I assume your garage has existing receptacles for general use?). Ask for a double-gang box termination (4 receptacles). You can use 12/3 or 14/3 Romex. The braided 4-wire is for 220v ranges & dryers. It's braided because if it were solid you couldn't pull it through studs and joists. Canceling EMI wasn't really a consideration although it may work. Just a big cost for a "maybe" IMO. You can pull your ethernet cable to the next stud bay over from the receptacles in case you ever want a hardwired streamer. I would also put a 1 inch conduit from the top plate to the receptacle height just in case you want to bring another wire in in the future. Just my 2 cents
And no, I would not consider a vintage tube guitar amp to be high end audiophile. Not audiophile at all. Emphasis was different (POWER), and distortion tended to be high. But still should benefit from HG.
I have a listening room and installed #-12 gauge 3 wire-that is 1-white 1-black -1-red and 1-naked ground reason is the wire is twisted-not parallel. That helps to fight radio frequency!
I think I'm going to just pull the trigger on the SR Blue Duplex receptacle and see what sounds best with it. I need to hear if the hype is real lol. As far as the other outlets, I'll just get PS audio for the remaining. They are good modded HG at a fair price tag. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited to audition the Synergistic Research though! I'll post my results when the job is complete. Now if someone could just point me in the direction of a thick power cable with hi-end response at an affordable price. Hmm......
I too would like to know what is the best outlet??? All this stuff is so hard to know. Almost any upgrade is better than stock. I have been amazed at the differences interconnects, speaker wires and internal components have made. It sure would be nice to know peoples opinions on the 3 best outlet choices. Best bang for the buck so to speak!
I would go with hospital grade receptacles (Hubbell, Pass Seymour) and save a lot of money to get the same results. The objective is to cover and grip the power cord prongs as tight as possible and that's what HG receptacles do.
But I think vintage guitar amps will do a lot better with a thicker gauge power cord. I remember plugging my Twin Reverb into a cheap power strip/extension and it sounded as if a blanket was placed over it.
Yes the outlets will make a difference on your guitar amps. Same as anything else. Only thing to keep in mind, since the guitar amp is essentially mono you obviously won't notice imaging or depth like you will with the stereo. But in terms of attack, harmonic development, decay, dynamics, sure. The only thing that would give me pause is the range of what sounds good with electric guitar is so all over the map you may actually prefer the grainier more distorted sound of a stock outlet. Oh well. When you're looking at building a whole room I doubt you will balk at swapping a few outlets.
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