Tyler,
Thank you for the opportunity to audition the iFi AC iPurifers. I wouldn’t have thought about devices such as this, without the tour.
My system is not on a dedicated circuit. I utilize 6 outlets spread along the wall and had to move power cables around to make outlets
available for the AC iPurifiers. I have a Belkin outlet strip that I use to power non-music peripherals that are plugged into the same circuit.
I never thought that I had noisy power and that my system sounds really good, but I’m always willing to try something for an improvement.
I plugged 1 of the iPurifiers into the outlet closest to the breaker box and didn’t listen for a day. After listening for a while, I settled on 2 songs
that I thought sounded different and better; "Ode to Billy Joe” by Patricia Barber and “You Can Bring Me Flowers” by Ray LaMontagne. I used
these as my reference songs.
"Ode to Billy Joe” – I was really impressed with the improvement in clarity of the upright bass; tighter and cleaner. The soundstage was
improved with Patricia’s vocals having a better sense of presence. The snapping of the fingers became more cohesive and their placement
moved slightly out and closer to me.
“You Can Bring Me Flowers” – I’ve always liked this song. Instrument separation was improved with better clarity. Ray’s vocals improved
similar to Patricia’s.
I continued listening for over a week and occasionally came back to my 2 reference songs. During that time, I moved the iPurifier to the
Belkin power strip. I couldn’t tell whether it was plugged in or not. It immediately went back to the outlet where I had it. I added the second
iPurifier by pugging it in an outlet at the far end of the wall. So, I had an iPurifier at the beginning of the power chain and one at the end.
Adding the second iPurifier did not make nearly as much a difference as adding the 1st, but everything that I sensed with the 1st one was
slightly better.
As with many things audio, changes that seem to make an initial improvement becomes “normal”. It’s not until the change is reversed that
the change is appreciated again. As soon as I removed the iPurifiers and listened, I decided I needed them. I ordered 2 of them and have
them installed. For the price, these are a must for my system.
System:
Source - CAT -> iFi iPurifier2 -> XMOS 192kHz USB to SPDIF converter -> Eastern Electric Minimax DAC Plus
Source Power Supply - HDPLEX 100W linear power supply
( The variable output powers both the CAT hard drive and the XMOS converter )
Preamp - Odyssey Candela
Amplifiers - Odyssey Khartago monoamps
Speakers - Salk Soundscape 8’s.