Best line conditioner???

Hi Mr. Parrot, TAS likes it so that is the final word? Nuff said? Come on. It may be a good place to start, but unless you assemble the reviewer's exact system including his room, you are unlikely to get the same results.

I've had excellent results using both the Welborne Labs "Gatekeeper" and the Shunyata "Hydra" in my system (currently use both)These units are passive (unlike the Tice) and do not seem to restrict dynamics or cause any ill effect on the sound. Hydra = $1,500.00 used. Welborne = $300.00 new. The Welborne is 90% of the Hydra IMO.

Good line conditioners help. Bad ones may not and can sometimes make things worse.

You might want to check out the Foundation Research LC-2 and LC-1 in-line power conditioners at analogshop.com under 'What's New" and also at sonicculture.com to see what they have to say about these products.

These are dedicated in-line conditioners, meaning one per component and take the place of the power cable.

I believe the LC-2 now retails for $1100 and the LC-1 for $700.

And no matter which line conditioner you chose, you will still benefit from dedicated AC circuits/lines and good line conditioners will still improve the sonics if you already have dedicated AC circuits/lines.

A dedicated line still has AC noise. Only now the AC noise on that line is dedicated.

-IMO

I have had a bunch - Tice, Chang, PS Audio PP300, Audioprism, ESP, Sound Application XE-12 and the Audio Magic Stealth. Some were better than others, some not worth the money. But, in MY SYSTEM, the new Audio Magic Matrix (with it's new power cord which is an integral part of the system AND included in the price) beat them all and by a fairly decent margin. I didn't want to believe this flimsy, lighweight, cheap-looking box could possibly be anything but snake oil, but I'll be darned, it was the FIRST PC in my system that didn't do some bad with the good. It simply improved the noise floor, it smoothed the digititis and it DIDN'T negatively impact the transparency or dynamics like the others did in one way or the other. But, as always, YMMV.

A dealer also told me about the Audio Magic Matrix (Fmpnd) already has. Stehno also states another condieration. Shunyata will be out with a new conditioner and very inexpensive along with a cheaper revised Hydra.