Is the Maestro AC outlet basically a cryo'd Cooper BR20 found at Lowes for $3.47?


Quote from an AA member regarding the Maestro AC outlet. 


Image: Cooper BR20 AC Outlet

I think it’s safe to assume the Maestro AC outlet is a Cooper brand product that’s essentially the same or similar to the Cooper BR20 Commercial Grade AC outlet available at Lowe’s for $3.47. If so, the Maestro AC outlet is nothing more than an ordinary hardware store product that’s been cryo’d and treated with a sweet smelling, sticky substance (snake oil?). Perhaps this unknown coating is what can supposedly make a $3.47 AC outlet sound superior to a Furutech or Oyaide product. Sorry for the snarky commentary, but this type of thing can affect the reputation of bonafide Audio Grade AC products. I’m sure you will fully enjoy the new Furutech GTX-D(R) AC outlet, bcowen!

See link:

http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/tweaks/messages/20/202332.html

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Here is the full Tweakers Asylum thread.

http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/tweaks/messages/20/202315.html

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jea48
Jtubes, which direction do you have the Red dust facing in your P300? With the writing on the fuse going left to right (the way you read a sentence), or the writing going right to left? I have my P300 on Stillpoints Ultra Mini Risers, which works extremely well, although I’ve moved them around under the unit and found the sound changes. The Absolute Sound had an article on several different footers in the December 2015 issue, and the authors found that the exact placement of the footers affected the sonics considerably, which is the same as my experience, and explains why some people just think most footers "tighten up the bass" when they do so much more than that: they clarify the rhythmic patterns in classical compositions and remove "haze" from around instruments and increase liquidity.
It’s striking though, that we have the same conclusions, given that I have the NCF outlet in one dedicated circuit at the wall and the SE in the P300, whereas you have them reversed. You’d think that there’d be differences in the overall sound, but here we are with the same observations. Apparently, the P300 has a decided preference for which SR fuse delivers the most true-to-life sonics. So, others with other PS Audio regenerators (and even newer ones) can try out the Black AND the Red. I have to give props (credit) to SR for that 30 day trial. That really shows their confidence in the product, although it does make me smile that manufacturers get someone else’s $20 unit and then charge $250 for it. I can see why people are cynical, but given the only thing they’d lose with the SR products is the shipping costs, I can’t see why anyone would mouth off without simply buying and trying.

Thanks for clarifying that you can put a GTX and a Black in the P300. I’m going to give that a go at some point. I don’t use the FIM outlet unless I need more than 2 items plugged in. However, I may swap out the SE for a Black after I’m sure everything else is broken in, which won’t be for a few weeks (I like to make sure things are COMPLETELY broken in) at least. Also, I’ll be putting the Venom PS8 into the system in another week, at which point it will have 400 hours on it. I think my P300 had Multiwave I on it. I once had a P300 and upgraded from Multiwave I to Multiwave II, but even though I had great electronics, I didn’t notice a significant difference.
By the way, I also found the Black fuse, when installed in the P300 to have a (slight) hardness to the sound. I went back and forth a couple of times before I settled on the Red fuse, but now I’m happy with that.
And Jea, why not extend the same offer to Jtubes you did to me? (Sorry, tubes, not to put you on the spot: it’s just that you might have an easier time getting to the outlet than I do. I’m loathe to move my Shunyata Cobra speaker cables, THEN the record albums, THEN the bookcase itself, in order to get to the outlet. At least for the next 2 months. I want to listen for a while, and quick changes, I find, can cause me to reach incorrect conclusions about what I’m hearing. And I don’t consider my listening "subjective". I consider it observational. I consider my emotional reaction to be subjective, but I can clearly hear what a component (even a wall outlet) shaping the sound in some way, without having an emotional reaction if I’m in "detective mode" ( a former profession, which requires one to be pretty detached, but observant).
Really enjoying your input a LOT. Where are you located in the US (if you’re in the US!)? I’m in Connecticut.

Incidentally, I have NOT noticed less sparkle in the highs or a more monochromatic color. Brass sounds quite good on the Black outlet, as does a tuba, and a glockenspiel. Are your amps solid state or tubes, just out of curiosity?

gmbcleod,

The red fuse runs from the side of the p300 (SR) in the same direction of lettering on the fuse. Please note what i meant that i reversed installed based on listening, the other direction from R to S is what i feel "IS" the correct direction with slightly more focus and upfront details, but just didnt like it here. All my other fuse, i think is wiring in the correct direction offered a more solidity and focus to the sound. Strange but that was how it ended up. 

I have tried Audiopoints and SR M.I.G, thought again offering more focus, tightening of the bass etc, i now use is sideways(due to space constrants) on a 5 inch block of Massacar ebony. i havent really further experimented. I also find the most balanced sound is using sinewave at 60hz.

Position of the outlets i feel do offer possibly better synergy in the correct location, but it a bit more work than i want to do, unless i find that particular installation not at all to my liking and would be compelled to perform more test and swapping locations. I do think from the instals of these outlets is that there signature will somehow permeate though no matter where they are installed! I have pick up a reference from another forumer in the fuse thread has even installed these outlets in not audio connected location and experienced an improvement. I believe it does have some impact!

I think it would be worthwhile having a black instead of SE at the back of the p300.

I used to be a tubehead, Cj's, jadis's  but gone from tubes to solid state (not those with a typical clean, SS sound) but one i could still identify with tubes and yet have all the bass slam i could want). But that musical connection is still very much important to me.

Jea, i might add that from the early days of the Teslaplex, SR20 fuse, i am most certain that there is something from Quantum tunneling and use my audiodharma religiously because it does offer an improvement. 

What would be interesting is that does the tunneling SR does retain this character over an extended period of time, or will it revert over time to sound like that exact $3 outlet.

As proponents of cable cookers do state periodic 6 monthly recharges of 1-2 days is required as the burn in effects are not permanent.

It is of interest that i had a conversation with a designer and manufacturer of a burn-in device which was to be offered with a few thousand dollars worth of Duelund silver/copper caps in the PSU or circuit as somehow, the characteristic sonic properties of these capacitors somehow find their signature being passed on into whatever is being conditioned with their burn in equipment.
I’ve noticed that the Black’s "brilliance" is very slightly less in evidence the last 5 days or so, so that the dueling guitars in the break of "Summertime" seem to be less transiently sharp, but there’s a caveat to that: I put a Shunyata Sigma analogue power cord on the NAD (just for fun) and removed the Alpha HC power cord, which I loaned to a friend. I’ll get it back Monday and see if the transients (and a very slight increase in rhythm) return. Being me, I turned off a wall outlet in the living room (not even on the same circuit, but I CAN hear it, just as I can hear the microwave when it’s powered on) to see if it was affecting the song. From what I could tell, it was not affecting the music, but Summertime is just slightly less plaintive right now. I moved one tube trap at the door to the music room, because I found the seam orientation could make Janis’ voice recede or come forward (and this is not a matter of the "presence" region being highlighted, but more the lower and middle midrange, so the entire voice sounds as though Janis moved 3 feet closer to me). Tube traps ( I should write a book about the perils of them!) are exceedingly sensitive to movement (my room is 8’ x 13 x 20 at one point and then the ceiling - when an addition was added - goes up suddenly to 10 x 12’8" x 20. think of a backwards "L" with the bottom of the "L’ being the 8’ height then the vertical part of the "L’ representing where the addition rises to 10’. The room is a nice size, but even bumping a trap on the way out of the room (one trap, on the side wall is close enough that if I swing the door all the way open, it will hit the trap on the side wall and push it out of alignment) will cause slight changes in sound. No wonder HP, in issue 57, opined they worked, but they needed to be carefully placed and he hadn’t the time to mess with them. Even in my dealer’s large 12’ x 22 x 25’ room, I frequently go in and move the tube traps around (I have free reign to wander thru the music rooms unless clients are in there) and usually find he has them placed in less than optimal positions.
So, the Black outlet seems to have "settled" down (just in time for yesterdays’s presidential election) so that it is less brilliant. When I turn the sound down, Joplin’s voice does not project so much. The Venom PS8 will reach 340 hours on Friday around 1 p.m and then I will place it back in the system to replace the P300 with the NCF at the wall, and then later, the SR Black at the other outlet. The Black is UNQUESTIONABLY less bright in the presence range than the TeslaplexSE. I’ll try the setting you mentioned (60 Hz).
Other than that, I got nothin’. Except that I played 'The Planets', the XRCD pressing (Japanese) and it sounded good, but not mesmerizing.

My additional black outlet is settled and with tweaking room acoustics,  i use quite a fair bit but have equalised the highs that was a tad dull,  inluding a touch od silve paste walker esst,  after the addition of the 2nd black outlet.  It sound fine,  but knowing that brilliance which allows that silvery sheen to emerge which allows cymbals to take on a more realistic metallic edge is still not comparable with the T. SE and gtx r which is in the upper midrange up "presence"region, but other than that i like how it sounds in orher areas. 

This is almist exactly like 2 same photographs,  one with saturated colours in which colourful objects pops upfront and the very same photo with more neutral tones allowing you to see more deeply as if you took a step back as there are no catchy colours pushing and competing for your eyes attention. 

I going to allow myself more listening time not focussing on this to see if i still feel shortchanged after which i will then have no choice but to reintroduce the T. SE or Gtx R in to the chain. 

Possibly introducing the GtxR elsewhere or even in an unused socket might be the ticket in restoring that last bit of brilliance.  I intentionally use brilliance as opposed to terms like sharp or glary,  because it is not. 

As for the p300,  1hz below adda a tad more warm,  maybe bit much sometimes and 61hz shows more dynamic contrast and tightness,  but also less presence and a whitish tonality accross the board. 
Jtubes, I'm finally satisfied my SR Black has broken in completely. 
I'm pleased with the unit, but less euphoric about it for perhaps the same reason you mentioned: the treble. It's very good and clear, but it was most "brilliant" on the first day, which was also when the sound had the most 'physical' representation. As time went on, the sound receded just a little, so one moved from row 6 to row 10. I would correlate this to your comment about the shimmer and metallic edge of a cymbal, and I agree it is not as refined as the Tesla SE, which overdoes it in the same regions that the Black does an about face and backs off a bit in the upper midrange and treble.
Another thing I noticed when playing some Frank Sinatra CDs (My September Years (Capitol) and a couple of others ( long after the initial post about the unit). Sinatra's voice sounded not as 'voluptuous' in the way that it had in the past. So I connected the Sigma power cord to the PS Audio (into a Tesla SE outlet, such irony), an thru an Alpha HC power cord into the Furutech GTX NCF outlet (instead of using the amp on the UEF Black outlet. The improvement in his vocal tones was clear, but at the expense of a sense of clarity and transparency. And the highs, while not of the super airy variety, still is quite, quite good. Of course, perhaps using an amplifier with an airy quality might reveal the shortcoming to be in the NAD, but given that I've used it before with other outlets, the colorations of the amp are clear enough for me to decide that the outlet, as good as it is, is only an equal and worthy alternate to the  Furutech NCF. I could even see preferring the Black with a component that is warm in the upper bass/lower midrange, although I would just like Sinastra's voice to be as I know it has sounded for many, many years. On female vocals, the Black is excellent and even some older 50s  r&B artists with a falsetto (Jackie Wilson, Little Richard, as examples).

As far as the older Furutech generation, however, The Black is clearly superior, to the GTX- Rhodium outlet I have.