Power Conditioning / Surge Protection

@audio2design - Garth Powell (Audioquest) talks about current compression in power amps and its effect on sound in his "Power Demystified" article (link above), an excerpt of which is presented below....

There is an additional problem: In order to cover enough range, a passive filter will require some inductance (the “L” in LCR), which will raise the AC impedance somewhat and create a phase lag for power current transients. This is of no consequence to video, computer, or source audio components, as they utilize low-amperage constantcurrent circuits. However, this can severely current compress a power amplifier as its power supply draws down to supply an audio transient, while the power amplifier itself requires a large influx of current to its power supply to maintain low-distortion operation. To get around this issue, many passive AC power filter/conditioners will isolate the circuits that utilize any series inductance for source components only. The circuit without series inductance is set aside for the “High Current” power amplifier outlets. If a power amplifier experiences current compression, the sound that results from an audio system can be described as thin, anemic, muddy, and slow, while the soundstage tends to collapse or pull with frequency during dense or modulated passages.

+1   mike_in_nc .... my friend bought Power Plant P600 Power Regenerator and  was very disappointed how it affects the SQ of his system. First I thought maybe it warming up issue or he just too used to previous setup, but when I visited him after couple of weeks and tried different setups it’s was obvious for me too that this power unit has negative effect.  

Furman Elite 15PF i 

Garth Powell writes some words but offers no proof or even solid technical discussion. This is word smithing for consumer marketing. The higher current the peaks the larger the instantaneous voltage change which is much harder to filter out for subsequent electronics. That so called compression only happens if you are driving the amp into clipping.  If you are not driving into clipping no solid technical explanation has been presented for loss of dynamics. More likely seems a decrease in the THD unless clipping.

audio2design101 posts11-08-2020 11:30am"Garth Powell writes some words but offers no proof or even solid technical discussion. This is word smithing for consumer marketing. The higher current the peaks the larger the instantaneous voltage change which is much harder to filter out for subsequent electronics. That so called compression only happens if you are driving the amp into clipping. If you are not driving into clipping no solid technical explanation has been presented for loss of dynamics. More likely seems a decrease in the THD unless clipping."

The current "compression" that Garth Powell refers to is what I would call current "starving" which can occur in power amps at levels lower than clipping due to transient voltage drops associated with high source impedance. The effect on sound has been experienced by many audiophiles, which is why many plug their power amp (or integrated amp) DIRECTLY into the wall outlet.