I’m looking to eval either a P12 or the P15 and I’m looking for some guidance as to whether I can “get away with” a P12 or will have to budget the (much) extra dollars for a P15.
My eval system will be:
Pass Labs 350.5 (600W) power amp
BHK Pre (60W)
DSD DAC (30W)
ultrarendu (9W)
Netgear Router (35W)
Marantz AV8802a (90W)
Sony XBR75950D (250W)
AppleTV 4K (4W)
Do all of these make sense to connect to a Power Plant?
My primary concern is 2-channel music so willing to make the AppleTV, Marantz, and Sony optional
This is a big decision that should be made with good data. I suggest getting a power consumption measuring device like the Kill-A-Watt and taking some readings one at a time of the power amp, TV and preamp. This is what I did before I bought my P12 and I was pleasantly surprised that my gear, including plasma TV, drew less continuous watts than I expected.
You may have to use a more basic power cord into the Kill-A-Watt receptacle and temporarily suffer with bad sound for the 5 minutes needed to get a sense of the continuous power drawn when playing music at the loudest level you ever dare to endure. If your speakers are really inefficient, then your power amp may draw quite a bit. My 250 watt amp does not with 89 dB efficiency speakers. And my TV is rated at 600 watts, but draws less than half because the brightness is not at max.
Its worth being able to have the TV equipment on the PP because the picture quality (detail and color) and should improve. Mine did very noticeably! Mind you, the input AC on my acreage is quite poor, averaging 5% THD, so getting .1% THD for my gear made a huge difference. I already knew the AC was bad because I have a handheld oscilloscope and could see the flat topped AC waveform.
You should connect all equipment to the PP that shares grounding via interconnect cables so that ground loops are minimized, which will result in a better sound via lower noise levels.
Another aspect to consider in addition to power is the number of outlets and zones you need now and in the future. That swayed me when I was in the same boat. E.g., the 12 has two high urgent outlets versus four in the P15. In case of two mono blocks and two subs you need the four. I initially ordered and received the P12 but then upgraded to the 15 within the return window. Lastly, I hope it bought me some extra years before wanting to upgrade again
If you’re auditioning regenerators, start with the P12, plug things in and observe the % capacity number on the P12 status screen…
If, all in you’re below 50%, you’re good. Maybe higher. Ask PS Audio.
