Power Supplies & Performance

@williewonka 

Just pointing out that Panamax and Furman are manufactured by the same company, Core Brands. 

@gdhal - that's interesting - was that a recent merge/takeover?

Do you know if their product lines are the same?

When I looked around 2-3 years ago, Furman appeared to have slightly more "professional" products.

Cheers

@williewonka 

I'm not sure if the merger was recent, but Core Brands has been the parent company for at least 18 months, which was the time I had "checked" into this and bought my Panamax. I spoke to a Panamax rep (tech support) at that time and he basically told me both brands are good performers but that Furman would be better in the case of voltage regulation. Voltage regulation isn't/wasn't something I was looking for so I went with the less expensive option (Panamax). Both Panamax and Furman have many models from which to choose and that too can govern which product is best for your particular needs.

Also, the owner of a local electronics ma-and-pa repair shop where I bought the Panamax from told me he personally had an MR4300 on an oscilloscope and other measuring devices in order to test Panamax's claims of power filtration and over/under voltage shut down. He advised me it did pass as they advertise. He didn't check the surge protection aspect of the device as he told me that's a one-and-done deal (i.e. the unit sacrifices itself by blowing mosfets and perhaps other components).  I think Furman is the same in that regard. 

Admittedly, I would tend to agree with you that Furman appears to be more professionally oriented as opposed to Panamax which appears to target "the masses". But I recall a comparable (to my MR4300) Furman costing at least twice what I paid ($229) and I just didn't want to go that route. 

Moreover, I am using a dedicated (separate breaker) 20 AMP wall outlet >>> Emotiva CMX-2 >>> Panamax MR4300 >>> all audio and video equipment. The CMX-2 provided a DC filter, and I don't think Panamax or Furman offer that functionality. 

@gdhal - thanks for the update - I'm going to look into the CMX-2 - looks very interesting.

Thanks

@cleeds LOL. Yeah, so it’s helpful for me to remember that circut ≠ outlet. Go ahead and ask me why I’m not an electrician. ;-) That said, what was missing in your post was the explanation as to why.

@williewonka Interesting stuff on cables. But a project for another day.

Seems the consensus is that a power filter/conditioner helps reduce noise, therefore improves sound.  For some reason I had it in my head that there were disadvantages - so I'm glad that's cleared up.  I’ll see about reorganizing the cabling. The problem in my home is trying to figure out which outlet(s) are wired to which circuit(s) so I can keep them separate. It may not be possible due to distance.

Thanks for everyone’s feedback!