Outlet shoot out

Comparing outlets is not quite as easy as it sounds. If your system is drawing from more than one receptacle, be prepared to replace every receptacle at the wall and in your line conditioner to really hear the true sound of that receptacle. I've never owned any of the "audiophile" receptacles, as buying 4 of them in Canada would cost what I'd consider to be too much money for my system. I have, however, compared the Pass and Seymour 5262 (the Acme is based on the 5242), various Leviton and Bryants, the Arrow Hart 8200 and the Hubbell 8200 and 8300. The Arrow Hart is very good value for under $10 U.S. and trounced the Pass & Seymours and I used them for quite a while. Further experimentation with the Hubbells (using all Hubbells versus all Arrow Hart) has led me to believe that the Hubbell 8200 and 8300 are definitely superior sounding; they are not as "exciting" as the AH, but they are smoother and in my opinion more accurate and realistic sounding. If you don't need a 20 amp receptacle, I think the Hubbell 8200 is a super deal at $12-$13 U.S. and I'd be curious to see how it compares to the "super receptacles". The contacts in the 8200 and 8300 are slightly larger than in the Hubbell 5362, which is sold cryoed by Jena Labs and Soundlab for the big bucks and touted as a "higher conductivity" receptacle, but the increased size of the contact may just be a result of the nickel plating on the 8200 and 8300 series. The copper content of the receptacle (supposedly the reason for the high conductivity) is exactly the same in the 5362 as it is in the 8200 and 8300 series, but the contacts in the 5362 (a 20 amp spec grade that is a fair bit cheaper than the 8300) are brass finished as opposed to nickel plated. The PS Audio power port is essentially a souped up 8300 with more nickel plating. In any event, I think the 8200 and 8300 Hubbells are superb sounding receptacles and I can't really justify spending any more; I think they'd compare pretty favourably with the "super receptacles" at a fraction of the price and should definitely be included if you're doing a "shootout".

Hubbell makes two versions of its Model 8300 hospital grade 20amp outlet. According to the Hubbell spec sheets available on their web site, Model 8300I has nickel plated power contacts. But Model 8300HI (slender/compact) uses brass non-plated power contacts.

I would think the non-plated outlets might have sonic advantages, and I remember seeing a posting to that effect. Can anyone comment?

www.hubbellcatalog.com

Both of the last two responses are right on. I use the Hubbell non-plated and had them cryo treated by Purist Audio. This makes the highest performance outlet even better.

By the way, Hdm has described the Hubbell PERFECTLY, it is not "in your face," but has layers of depth, very low distortion and a neutral sound.

Hi Tim; I've used and more or less compared FIM (wrote a rave review on them), Acme silver plated (non-cryo); Hubbell audio grade, and P&S hospital grade. I've concluded that the outlets that will sound best in any given system depends on on the character of the AC power supply itself. My AC system tends to be bright and so (I think) copper outlets provide a richer, warmer and more musical character than the silver Acmes which are too bright for my taste (in MY system).

That said, I use four 20 amp Hubbell audio grade outlets for all source components and pre-amp. I plug my amp into a FIM or a Hubbell (the FIM is a little more dynamic, more live, and smoother, but slightly brighter too). I got the Hubbells (don't know the numbers) from The Cable Co. @ 2/$25.). These outlets are all installed on dedicated AC lines, so unlike Hdm's excellent observations, I CAN change one outlet and compare it to others. I tried using all FIMs and music became overall too bright, and I went back to mostly Hubbells-- with just my amp plugged into a FIM.

BTW, I plug my Vand. 5 speakers subwoofer amps into non-dedicated lines with Acme silver plated outlets, and the Acmes work well here because these amps only handle 125 HZ and below, and the Acmes provide for quick and articulate bass.

I haven't tried PS Audio or Wattgates. Outlets are every bit as important as power cords IMO. I think you need to do some experimenting. Cheers. Craig

I agree with Garfish. It is impossible to call any one outlet the "Best". I have a combination of FIM outlets and Hubbell outlets in my system. As component changes occur in my system, so do my choices of the combination, making me believe that our choices directly reflect our systems. (Sounds like cabling, doesn't it?) Knowing the change desired (tonality, dynamics, bottom end, etc.) that is desired is only half of the battle. I can say that from my experience, those offset screwdrivers available at your local electrical supply house are well worth the money!