Alan Maher's Power Enhancer

alanmaher · « **Reply #860 on:** 30 Jul 2008, 08:45 pm »

Yes it does....it sounds like the filter is doing what its suppose to do. I look forward to your continued review.

alanmaher · « **Reply #861 on:** 1 Aug 2008, 10:38 am »

I need a little help weeding out the unpopular designs that we offer. Please list your favs and non-favs so we can design a product line to fit every client needs, component type, and system.

Reviews are also welcomed so we can update the review section of the site.

Thanks!!!

vett93 · « **Reply #862 on:** 2 Aug 2008, 07:55 pm »

Alan,

I changed the power cord for the preamp. Do I have to wait a few days to form an opinion on the power cord?

Thanks.

alanmaher · « **Reply #863 on:** 2 Aug 2008, 09:39 pm »

Yes....turn the component on and leave it on for the next several days. What kind of cord did you install? Some geometries set up quicker than others, it all depends on the cord / power supply interaction.

vett93 · « **Reply #864 on:** 2 Aug 2008, 09:53 pm »

Wow. This is interesting. I got a Tel Wire power cord and plugged it in yesterday. There are a lot of good reviews about this PC on Audiogon and they offer 30 days money back. So I am giving it a try.

It sounded good yesterday. The manufacturer had put it in his cable cooker for a few days for me. But it started to sound thin this morning.

alanmaher · « **Reply #865 on:** 2 Aug 2008, 10:03 pm »

That is normal, all cables go through adjustment that might start out good or thick in the bass, thin out after 12 to 18 hours, continue to roll off the bass and highs to the point where it sounds like a cheap 1950's TV speaker....and then out of nowhere between 75 and 100 hours the cord will begin to snap back. Insulator ringing / damping properties at room temp will determine the final presentation and length of adjustment. Our Reference power cord takes on average 30 to 35 days of 24/7 power up to reach the 95% mark and will continue to improve up to 45 / 50 days pending the wattage draw from the selected component.

vett93 · « **Reply #866 on:** 2 Aug 2008, 11:54 pm »

Thanks, Alan. Can you explain "insulator ringing/damping"? My best guess is that the connectors in power cords may have some micro sparks at contacts. These sparks are like noises. Tell me how far off I am.

Is this an one-time effect that a power cord goes through cycles? Or, will it re-occur when I turn off the power for a few days and then turn it back on?

alanmaher · « **Reply #867 on:** 3 Aug 2008, 08:51 am »

In general insulator ringing has to do with harmonics created by microvibrations between the conductor and selected wire insulator. Damping hardness and thickness of the insulator vs. room temp will determine the frequency band for the ringing. We deal with harmonics via geometry in the Reference series without rolling off the harmonic. I suggest trying the Reference in your system to compare notes. I feel very comfortable replacing a couple of your model power cords with the Ref. The RPC is another excellent suggestion for your set mixed with the IEC filter.

Micro sparks is another subject when dealing with power cords. They do play a role and can be altered using multiple plated layers or conductive grease to close the gap.

Every time the power cord is removed and the component power supply is disconnected from the circuit you will experience a stabilization phase after the component is turned on again. People brag about A/B testing with power cords, but it's impossible to do because the power supply requires X amount of hours to interact and stabilize with the new capacitance value of the cable before it shows it's full colors....take A/B claims with a grain of salt. Try the Ref and you'll understand what I mean about stabilization times.

vett93 · « **Reply #868 on:** 3 Aug 2008, 09:32 pm »

Quote from: alanmaher on 3 Aug 2008, 08:51 am

...
Try the Ref and you'll understand what I mean about stabilization times.

I have been thinking about the "stabilization times". But I am wondering if it is a feature or a bug of the product?

Or is it something that has always been there and I just had not noticed it?

I did not notice the cycling effect until I tried PEs. In the past, the break-in process to me was the increasing clarity after the initial use. I had never noticed boomy bass one day and thin bass another.

Additionally, even though some products did take longer to break in than others, they were consistent after the initial break-in. I never noticed that they had to re-start the cycle all over again every time they were unplugged and re-plugged back in.

Regarding power cords, I have the pre-conception that the needs are different for various gears. For example, digital equipment may need filtering and power amps may need higher current. If my understanding is correct, what will your Reference Power Cord do the best at?

Don't get me wrong. I think your PE lines of products are great. They have taken my system one level up. I am a believer that power line treatment will yield good returns. The signal path is just used to modulate the power line to generate the output signal! Believe it or not, I have put 8 Bybee filters in my power amp alone! aa

alanmaher · « **Reply #869 on:** 4 Aug 2008, 01:12 pm »

Stabilization times have always been there...I believe manufactures call it "burn in, break in, conditioning"....it has many names and theories for the same thing.

The reason why the cycle is SO pronounced has to do with the strength of the PE....the PE is 10x the strength of the normal parallel design and covers 4x the frequency band compared to typical design at the same price range.

I have heard the various model power cord jargon before from manufactures.....I don't believe in that stuff if the product is well made....the Reference sounds good on all types of components (solid stage and tube....CD or amp), best advice is to start with the first component in the chain and work your way to the amp one cable at a time. Paydirt for our set up is the IEC filter combined with the Ref.

zmanbands · « **Reply #870 on:** 5 Aug 2008, 06:02 pm »

Burn-in Update: Day 25 for RPC/Ref One Filter and Day 22 for PE V IEC and Added PE. Sounds great but I can't tell any difference in resolution, one way or the other, from 5 days ago. The 3 or 4 db increase I heard 5 days ago doesn't seem to be there though. Does it make sense for the loudness to vary like that?

alanmaher · « **Reply #871 on:** 6 Aug 2008, 10:24 am »

zmanbands

It sounds like your harmonics are just now leveling out....this is normal. The "loudness" increase / decrease is not really a physical increase in db, human hearing is sensitive to 500 Hz to 4.5 KHz range, so any shift or emphasis in this band will be perceived as a db boost or cut, but in reality nothing really happened to raise the component volume, when the lower harmonics stabilize and equal the mid harmonics the db will level off to what you are experiencing at present. Now you should be able to raise the component volume to higher levels with less listening fatigue and increased sound stage size / resolution compared to a non-a/c treated (power cord / IEC filter) component. Compare notes on day 30.

alanmaher · « **Reply #872 on:** 6 Aug 2008, 05:46 pm »

Bulk Purchase Info: All orders must be placed before August 15, 2008. We are extending the bulk pricing on the Reference Power Center for a couple of weeks while supplies last. RPC w/ 5' power cord: $350.00 plus shipping.

zmanbands · « **Reply #873 on:** 7 Aug 2008, 07:41 pm »

I installed the PE V S/AC an hour ago in outlet 1 of the RPC and the system already sounds more natural and more musical. What is the break-in scenario for this beauty? What does the S stand for?

zmanbands · « **Reply #874 on:** 8 Aug 2008, 02:37 pm »

PE V S/AC Burn-in report----Day 1. This thing is great! The resolution is definately up a notch. Great tweak. Stupid question. This has 33 filters in it. What all is being filtered--noise?---distortion?

alanmaher · « **Reply #875 on:** 8 Aug 2008, 09:19 pm »

zmanbands

Individual harmonics are being controlled, neutralized, and levelled out. RF, EMI, arcing, spikes, crosstalk distortion, and harmonic ringing, are all different forms of noise, the V series addresses each form of distortion and neutralizes it's impact on the circuit. At the same time the V series also acts as a second power supply for the system or component pending the model selected for the install. Strategically installing the V around the home will combat all forms of noise and provide a pristine electrical environment.

Average adjustment time is about 12 to 14 days, but I expect additional enhancements up to around day 20 because the unit is installed in the RPC and the main Reference power cable will experience the same enhancement scenario as the IEC/Reference combo.

"S" stands for standard/basic in the V series. The Pro and Pro Custom offer a huge leap forward in performance compared to the S models.

Tip: Treat the a/c blades of the V (any PE model) with QuickSilver Gold and the performance of the filter goes up another notch on top of what you are already enjoying.

michaelv · « **Reply #876 on:** 9 Aug 2008, 01:34 am »

Quote from: alanmaher on 8 Aug 2008, 09:19 pm

Tip: Treat the a/c blades of the V (any PE model) with QuickSilver Gold and the performance of the filter goes up another notch on top of what you are already enjoying.

I agree. I treated most of connections in my system with QSG.

Alan, Question: is it better to treat the wire contact to the A/C blade? I got a bunch of power cable and i'm lazy to give them surgery

. So if the performance between two methods is not a day and night, then i'll just leave them the way they are now.

thanks

zmanbands · « **Reply #877 on:** 9 Aug 2008, 04:41 am »

Thanks Alan. When you say treat with QSG do you mean the entire regimen starting with polishing the blades with steel wool, detoxit, steel wool, detoxit ect QSG? BTW, I don't have QSG but the cheaper version which I think is just called quick silver. Is that OK to use or should I get the QSG?

alanmaher · « **Reply #878 on:** 10 Aug 2008, 08:28 am »

Sorry Gents...I was out of town....I donated my time to a charity festival to raise bucks for a local children's hospital.

michaelv

It all depends of the geometry of the cable. Can't really say one way or the other, I would stick to painting the a/c blades and IEC socket.

zmanbands

I use both products pending the application. Quick Silver is brighter sounding and a little edgy compared to QS Gold, but I have found that I like QS on darker sounding circuits and QSG on brighter circuits and main system. Obviously component selection and musical preference plays a role in the decision to use one product over the other. I highly recommend QSG to be used with all our products for additional enhancement.

How is the new S/AC turning out?

zmanbands · « **Reply #879 on:** 10 Aug 2008, 12:21 pm »

Thanks Alan. That helps a lot on the QSG. Who has the best price on QSG? Extreme cables has it for $159.