The music sounds better after 49ers won. Sorry Eagles fans.![]()
A true statement coming from a Bay Area resident ![]()
Thanks Elk. That clears it up for me.
What threw me off and caused me to post my original question was Paul’s Better At Night post of January 9 where he states “Of course, a Power Plant doesn’t care if it’s noon or midnight. It just gives you steady, low-impedance, noise-free AC all the time.”
Its was the ‘noise-free AC all the time’ part that caused my confusion.
I actually believe the P20 and its siblings do such a great job time of day makes zero difference. When I used my P20 no matter what the incoming distortion was the output distortion was always .1%. No matter the time of day. No need for improvement on .1%.
And the incessant leaf blowering stops blowing.
When I was in a bar band, we would implore people to drink up. “The drunker you get, the better we sound”.
So there’s that…
You obviously almost never have power interruptions, Al. Plus, your equipment will no doubt have extremely robust internal power supplies. ![]()
Elk, I’ve been on the regenerator bandwagon since the P300. I can’t recall that any PSA regenerator was ever marketed as per this description. In fact, quite the opposite: It’s supposed to be impervious to dirty or fluctuating power. Fun fact, btw: The early power plants were way less tolerant of power fluctuations beyond a mere (say) 10V either side of the spectrum (in a 230V country). This aspect of its performance has improved drastically of course. Ironically, with earlier models most Hi-Fi products were way more robust in terms of power fluctuation outer limits than the regenerator that was supposed to cure these shortcomings.
Does my P20 drastically improve my sound? I really have no idea; I have never compared. That is because in the SA situation, it is extremely rare to have a constant reliable grid supply due to cable theft, load shedding and lack of maintenance on the grid and power stations, etc. So, I use a P20, fed by a Victron Quattro inverter and Lithium batteries (22kWh).
This is not a rant, btw. It is just that your description struck a nerve, because of my previous experience, and because it’s quite the opposite of the marketing hype. I find the P20 to be very stable btw, in IMO the best regenerator PSA has manufactured thus far.
Not many power interruptions, no. But a power conditioner can’t do much without power.
My comments are based on what I saw on the screen on my P20. Normally distortion was in the 4% to 7% on the incoming power. The distortion on the outgoing power was nearly always below .3%. My other gear has nothing to do with this. It just gets to use the low distortion power from the P20. Day or night. These things work. ![]()
I’m curious as to why your P20 is unused with 4 to 7% incoming distortion? Mine is 2% (from the Victron, not grid), though the outgoing is mostly steady on 0.1%. Yes, they do work - which is why I can’t understand why yours is just “lying around” ![]()
I missed this part: “But a power conditioner can’t do much without power”.
True, but I’m on battery power ![]()
So what is the 0.1% THD of outgoing power you see with your P20 if not residual THD, less than perfect power?
The Power Plants are wonderful, but not perfect. In my experience, they typically reduce THD to one-tenth or better of the incoming THD. Amazing.
Yep, of course I realize 0.1% THD implies “less than perfect”. It’s not that I’m denying that. Maybe I should just reiterate that the power plant (in my experience) is rather less impervious to what it’s fed with, than most HiFi components just by themselves. And yes, they do typically reduce THD to 1/10th of incoming, though that figure comes down the more it has to correct to achieve perfect voltage - even on the low distortion setting.
BTW, thanks for all your work on the forum.
the doctor said one glass a day, but didn’t say if could or could not refill it!
Thanks.
We seem to be in agreement, at least fundamentally.
I thus do not understand how my comments “struck a nerve” and hoped to clear this up. ![]()
Ever since I got my P3 power regenerator last December, my listening pleasure has been exceptionally high at any time of the day or night. It doesn’t display any gains in power quality so I don’t obsess about that–I just enjoy the sonic improvements in my music, and there are lots of those.
Late-night listening often reveals subtle details in audio systems that aren’t as noticeable during the day. Ambient electrical noise from other devices and the grid can affect sound quality. Even with a high-quality PS Audio PowerPlant, these improvements can still be perceived because human hearing is more sensitive to small dynamic changes when the environment is quieter.
I just wish my ears had the level of experience that some—most—of you have. I’ve been in this hobby for 50+ years, but I consider my listening experience to be limited to the level of systems I’ve actually lived with, if you know what I mean. I simply haven’t had enough exposure to truly high-level systems to develop a reliable sense for the finer distinctions—the kind that only reveal themselves after long, repeated listening across a wide range of reference-quality setups. The journey continues.