Has a Power Conditioner Improved Your Sound?

I have tried the special port for amps, and separate power conditioners made just for amps... so they don't restrict the power. All have interfered with the amp. The amp would sound better plugged directly into the wall. I've had a couple dedicated ones in my home for demo... it was obvious within seconds. 

Because @jfrmusic system responded significantly to a PC, seems likely that further exploration into other PCs can yield significant positive results.  

@jetter I got a Topaz Ultra-Isolator transformer for $200 based on another poster’s suggestion before I started trying out power conditioners. The idea that a transformer could improve sound quality by blocking EMI/RFI coming in through the power lines sounded reasonable. Before putting the Topaz transformer in my system, my guesses were that either it would do nothing audible or maybe make the background sound quieter. Neither of those guesses turned out to be true.

 

I listened to four tracks of music. I listened to one track at a time and switched between having the Topaz in or not in my system while listening to that one track. The tracks were:

 

Tchaikovsky (2016). Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35 [Lisa Batiashvilli]. - 1st Movement

Elgar (2012). Concerto For Cello And Orchestra In E Minor, Op. 85 [Alisa Weilerstein] - 1st Movement

Norah Jones (2021) Sunrise track on the ’Til We Meet Again album

Jennifer Warnes ( 2007) Ballad of the Runaway Horse track on the Famous Blue Raincoat album

 

My impressions in the first minute or so while going back and forth with the Topaz unit in and out of my system was that the sonic differences between having the unit in and out of my system were slight if there were any. It wasn’t the immediately obvious difference that I’ve heard in the past from switching to a different power cord. After listening for a while though, what I found to be interesting though was that sonic differences with the unit in and out of my system became quite apparent on the Ballad of the Runaway Horse track by Jennifer Warnes. In that track, tonal qualities of the string bass and of Jennifer Warnes’ voice are what create pace and drive. A system that doesn’t reproduce variations in tonal quality well will make that track sound exceedingly dull.

 

 

The effect of having the Topaz in my system was that it muted dynamics in the music and reduced the amount of tonal color that was being conveyed. I first noticed this as I was listening to the Ballad of the Runaway Horse track with the Topaz in my system and realized that it was sounding a bit boring and lifeless. I pulled the Topaz out of my system and the life came back into how the Ballad of the Runaway Horse track sounded. I had heard this in the other tracks, but couldn’t put my finger on what the Topaz was taking out of how the music was being reproduced. I even checked with a sound level meter to make sure the volume was the same with the Topaz in and out of my system.

 

The system with the sources plugged into the transformer and the amp plugged into the wall sounds just like it does with both sources and amp plugged into the transformer. It’s possible that there is a potential effect of the transformer on the sound of the amp, but I’m thinking it’s more likely that the effect of the transformer is on the streamer and DAC.

 

Here’s my WAG about why music might seem to sound less dynamic and with less tonal color with the Topaz in my system. Feel free to provide any educated commentary on this. 

 

I’m not claiming that EMI/RFI can turn the 1s in a digital signal into a 0, but what I have read is that EMI/RFI can affect the time domain aspect of a digital signal. Meaning affecting the precision of being able to read when exactly does that 0 in a digital signal turn into a 1 (or vice versa). I know the ’bits are bits’ crowd think that a digital signal is just a stream of 1s and 0s traveling down an interconnect. But those logic gates flip from 0 to 1 or vice-versa based on voltage that reads near a reference value (ground volts) or, on the other end, at a value near the supply voltage. Voltage reading near the reference value represents a boolean ’zero’ while a voltage reading near the supply voltage above a certain threshold represents a boolean ’one’. But there is a transition zone where the voltage is right between the reference value and the supply voltage. I’ve read that stray voltage from common mode noise can either flip the ’0’ to a ’1’ prematurely or delay that switch. When sending computer data, there is no time limitation on how fast error correction needs to happen, but there is a time element of music that hinders the ability to do real-time error checking. My understanding is removing common mode noise from the system makes those transition from ’0’ to ’1’ closer to what was originally intended in the music data.

 

This is the real WAG guess part of my thoughts. I’m wondering if having my system plugged into the Topaz transformer might have had the effect of hindering common mode noise (in the form of EMI/RFI)  from being shunted to ground (at the same time that it was blocking analog noise coming out of my wall outlet) The muted dynamics and less tonal color might have to do with the leading edge of notes not being reproduced with as sharp or as distinct of a change. The increased presence of common mode noise in my system due to the Topaz transformer blocking that noise from being shunted to ground might be having the effect of muddying up transitions in volume, start/stop of notes, and generally reducing clarity and resolution of how music is being reproduced. My experience is that equipment I’ve heard that tends to have better perceived "pace" creates this perception by more clearly defining when notes in the music start and stop.

 

I tried the Topaz tranformer connected to the wall and the AQ Niagara connected to the Topaz. That sounded better than using the Topaz alone, but using the AQ Niagara alone still sounds better than connected in series with the Topaz. The sound is crisper and more open with the AQ Niagara alone. One thought I have is that even though the Topaz blocks EMI/RFI coming from the outlet, maybe it also hinders draining any EMI/RFI generated or picked up in the system to ground at the outlet.

 

In any case, the Topaz was a dud for me in terms of sonic improvement.

My experience with a Furman PST-8D and an Audioquest Niagara 1200 is that one had a negative effect on sound quality and one had a positive effect:

 

Furman PST-8D Power Conditioner

 

My initial impression was that plugging my system into the Furman made music sound calmer. After several more minutes of listening, it seemed like the Furman was taking some life out of the music in comparison to both the cheap computer surge protector and the AQ Niagara. The muted dynamics and overall flatness of the sound wasn’t nearly as dramatic as with the Topaz Ultra-Isolator in place, but it was noticeable especially in comparison to when my system was plugged into both the cheap computer surge protector and the AQ Niagara. 

Furman PST-8D Power Conditioner with amplifier plugged into the wall

Plugging my amplifier into the wall with remaining components into the Furman MIGHT have resulted in a slight improvement in dynamics, but any difference was so slight that I don’t think I could tell the difference in an A/B test.

 

Audioquest Niagara 1200

I have to say that I’m impressed with the effect that the AQ Niagara 1200 has had on sound quality of my system. My immediate reaction was that the quality of the sound seemed calmer, but without any loss of pace or tonal richness. The overall character of the sound remains the same. Upbeat music still remains upbeat, but calmer music feels even more calm.

There is slightly less edginess to the quality of the sound but to a perceptible degree. My system was already pretty good in terms of not sounding harsh or edgy, but the AQ Niagara tones it down a bit more. With the AQ Niagara 1200 in place, listening fatigue seems to have gone away altogether for me.

I’m better able to follow individual instruments and voices when they are layered together in music. In complex music passages in some tracks, I’m used to voices and instruments sounding mixed together. The AQ Niagara 1200 seems to provide better separation and more defined placement of individual voices and instruments.  

More "air" around instruments & voices. Better able to hear the acoustics of the recording space: On the Cowboy Junkies, The Trinity Session

• Highs seem sweeter: 

• Better flow.

• Tonal quality sounds more evident: 

• No loss of pace or timing.

• Bass seems fuller.

My notes on experimenting with power cables on the Niagara 1200:

 

Shunyata Venom: Sound seems more muted than with the AQ NRG-Z3 or maybe even the Tripp-Lite Heavy Duty cable

AQ Blizzard vs AQ NRG-Z3:

- There is at least no more listening fatigue than with the NRG-Z3 power cable. Unfortunately, that meant that I did more listening to music than doing work yesterday afternoon. Perhaps a good problem to have. :D

- Bass sounds more solid with more presence

- More of a spotlight effect on Jennifer Warnes' voice in the 'Ballad of the Runaway Horse' track from her Famous Blue Raincoat album. Perhaps with imaging  becoming more solid, it is increasing the perceived separation between voices and the background.

- Low level details are more evident and easier to follow

- Leading edge of notes are better defined

- Voices seem to float even more, but also sound more substantial on the 'Love Song' track from Melody Gardot's 'Sunset in the Blue' album.

- I'm hearing more detail in music. In the  'Pay It no Mind' track  from Sarah Jarosz' World on the Ground album, I didn't previously realize there was an electric guitar playing in the background from about 0:48 seconds in.

- Better separation of instruments in the intro of 'Smells like Teen Spirit' from Nirvana's Nevermind album. I know this part of that track sounds like a big mess of instruments playing over one another on a lower resolution system. I was able to follow individual instruments.

 

So something kind of humorous about my listening session with the Niagara 1200 plugged in with the AQ Blizzard power cable. I was listening at home with everyone else gone. While listening to the 'Come as you are' track from Nirvana's MTV Unplugged in New York album, I turned off the music several times because I wasn't sure if what I was hearing was from the music or from someone in my family coming home downstairs.

 

My impressions of the AQ Blizzard power cable vs the NRG-Z3 are:

1. There is at least no more listening fatigue than with the NRG-Z3 power cable. Unfortunately, that meant that I did more listening to music than doing work yesterday afternoon. Perhaps a good problem to have. 

2. Bass sounds more solid with more presence

3. More of a spotlight effect on Jennifer Warnes' voice in the 'Ballad of the Runaway Horse' track from her Famous Blue Raincoat album. Perhaps with imaging becoming more solid, it is increasing the perceived separation between voices and the background.

4. Leading edge of notes are better defined

5. Voices seem to float even more, but also sound more substantial on the 'Love Song' track from Melody Gardot's 'Sunset in the Blue' album.

6. Low level details are more evident and easier to follow. In the 'Pay It no Mind' track from Sarah Jarosz' World on the Ground album, I didn't previously realize there was an electric guitar playing in the background from about 0:48 seconds in.

7. Better separation of instruments in the intro of 'Smells like Teen Spirit' from Nirvana's Nevermind album. I know this part of that track sounds like a big mess of instruments playing over one another on a lower resolution system. I was able to follow individual instruments.

 

Looks like the AQ Blizzard power cable is staying. I think this is the end of trying more expensive power cables. Trying out power conditioners has been an interesting and useful exercise. Total cost has been around $850 ($550 for the AQ Niagara 1200 and $300 for the AQ Blizzard power cable) so about 1/2 of the new retail street price of about $1000 for the AQ Niagara and $695 for the AQ Blizzard power cable. The addition of the power conditioner didn't change the nature of the sound from my system, but lifted at least several levels of veiling from the music and improved resolution from my digital source much more than I expected.

 

This is my perception of the degree of improvement generated by each component in my power conditioning setup (if Audioquest Niagara 1200 and AQ Blizzard power cable represents 100% of the improvement)

 

AQ Niagara 1200 with Tripp-Lite Heavy Duty power cable: 60% of total improvement

+ AQ NRG-Z3 power cable (in place of the Tripp-Lite power cable): 20% of total improvement

+ AQ Blizzard power cable (in place of the AQ NRG-Z3 power cable): 20% of total improvement

 

In summary, the AQ Blizzard produced a more significant benefit in reducing the noise floor and improving resolution than I expected. Using the percentages above, I expected perhaps that the AQ Blizzard would have contributed perhaps 10% of the total improvement over the NRG-Z3, but it actually contributed a perceived 20%