Power Conditioners?

[worm777]

Hi guys new to the forum!! I just purchased a 55" Sony Grand Wega and I am picking it up tomorrow. The salesman was really pushing these power conditioners but I decided to do my own research. I was planning on just getting a surge protector to protect the unit but I also heard the power conditioners can really clean up any noise on your picture. I would appreciate any input anyone has on this.

[Army82ndAB]

I can say that I've owned a few different surge protectors from Monster Cable with the clean power built into them, and to me they do clean up the picture. For instance, I had some very bad static coming through my tv from a heating pad that is under an iguana cage downstairs and the surge protector i just bought for my Toshiba 52HM84 cleaned it right up?

But I'm sure others will say there is no difference, but for me there was an undeniable effect.

[Doug Mohr]

You'd be better off getting a small UPS like an APC Smart UPS 600. You not only get the surge supression, but also protection from low voltage which is just as deadly to electronics.

Watch Ebay and you can pick them up for under $50.

[picopir8]

Idealy you would want both a UPS _AND_ a line conditioner.  Most UPS devices do not filter ther power lines most of them supply raw power from the wall until the circuit breaker trips.  Even then, a lot of the inexpensive UPS devices do not provide pure sinusoids.  Instead they build up a stepped sine wave.  That introduces high frequency noise.  While line conditioners wont prevent low voltage conditions, they will provide nice clean AC power.  So there will be little to no noise when someone else in the house turns on a blender or hair dryer and there will be no faint radio nose comming throug your speakers.

Obviously you dont want to plug a line conditioner into a UPS or vice versa because you would be creating a fire hazard.  You can buy boxes that do both but they are pretty pricey.  If you dont want to spend that much, I think the line conditioner would provide the most benifit.  You will see the benefits every day and it will provide protection against surges.  You do leave yourself open to low voltage conditions but I have yet to have anything damaged by such conditions.  Even if something does get damaged, its generally covered under most home owners or renters insurance policies.

APC is always farily reasonable in price, and this guy looks promising:
http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=S15

[naimbeg]

I located this site through the avsforums...
Brickwall

Seemed pretty recommended over there...

Problem with surge protectors (or other products) from companies like Monster, is you are really paying allot of $$$ for the name...
Have you ever seen the display models at the stores with the clear lids?
Not too much inside the thing, yet there is like a $500 price tag...

Reading through the site, it really seems they tout the surge protection more than the line conditioning, yet they say it act as a line conditioner...
Worth looking into though.

[Doug Mohr]

Idealy you would want both a UPS _AND_ a line conditioner.  Most UPS devices do not filter ther power lines most of them supply raw power from the wall until the circuit breaker trips.  

APC's Smart UPS series and higher are always regulating and produce sinwave output. They use large transformers to bring the power down to the same voltage as the batteries, then run it through the inverter to feed the outlets.

From APC's website
http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=SU500J
Waveform type:  Sinewave  
Filtering: Full time multi-pole noise filtering : 0.3% IEEE surge let-through : zero clamping response time : meets UL 1449

lot of the inexpensive UPS devices do not provide pure sinusoids. Instead they build up a stepped sine wave. That introduces high frequency noise.

With most electronic equipment using switching power supplies now, why would non sinusoidal power be an issue in creating noise anyway?

Also, I was not talking about cheap UPSs. I only use the APC smart UPS series. I have a 3000RM for my computer farm, a 2200 for the downstairs HT, a 1400 for the bedroom HT, and a 600 with three extra batteries (about 24 hours runtime) for the Fire & CO alarms. I paid from $40 to $200 each on Ebay.

Doug

[picopir8]

With most electronic equipment using switching power supplies now, why would non sinusoidal power be an issue in creating noise anyway?

Doug

Im no expert on power supplies but I assume the filters on such power supplies are tuned to the harmonics introduced by the switching process (>20kHz).  The filter may not be able to filter lower frequencies that may exist in a dirty supply signal.  I may be mistaken but I dont think that amplifiers and other high current devices use switched mode power supplies.  You definately want to ensure that those devices have a clean signal.

In the same light, I have noticed that power supplies on most electronics have gotten crummier and crummier in recent years.  High end products are still pretty solid but manufacturers seem to be cutting back on mid to low end products.  Granted, somone who buys a $20 DVD player is probably not going to worry about clean signals.

If you get a high end UPS that produces a pure sine wave, then yes you should be okay.  However, most UPSs only have 2-4 plugs that run off the battery.  That wont get far in most home theater setups.  In my case I have 2 battery driven outlets which I use to supply my projector and my HD/DVR cable box.  Everything else is on a power conditioner.

[oz]

You guys are nuts.    Didn't you pay enough for your big screen? Then that same amount to calibrate it?  Then that same amount for your speakers? Then that same amount for your receiver?  Now it's batteries?

[naimbeg]

You guys are nuts.    Didn't you pay enough for your big screen? Then that same amount to calibrate it?  Then that same amount for your speakers? Then that same amount for your receiver?  Now it's batteries?

The real question is... Is there ever a point where it will all be finished with nothing to upgrade???

Someone once asked Henry Ford "How much wealth was enough?"
He replied "Just a little bit more..."

[StarvingForHDTV]

The real question is... Is there ever a point where it will all be finished with nothing to upgrade???

Nope.  Ford hasn't stopped churning out new models even with Henry in the grave long ago.  The electronics industry will not stop innovating either.  We aren't even close to the Star Trek hologram level yet.  Maybe at that point we can all relax and stop worrying about future upgrades....

[picopir8]

You guys are nuts.    Didn't you pay enough for your big screen? Then that same amount to calibrate it?  Then that same amount for your speakers? Then that same amount for your receiver?  Now it's batteries?

I cant speak for anyone else but Im a penny pincher.  I probably spent less on my entire home theater setup than what most people spend on the TV alone.  Heck my UPS was free after rebates.  I just got gold plated banana plugs for all my speaker cables and the total cost was <$4 (after $25 Amazon coupon code that I came across).  I like all the bling bling, I just dont like to pay for it.  

I dont know what I would do w/o the following sites:
http://www.spoofee.com
http://www.slickdeals.net
http://www.woot.com
http://www.mysimon.com

[StarvingForHDTV]

I love your links, thanks.  Reading the Woot.com FAQs was highly entertaining.  That's one of the more creative business ideas I have seen in some time.