For a couple of months, I’ve been toying with the notion of including a PP (either a P3 or a P12) into my headphone rig. The August sale has brought that decision forward a bit earlier than I was originally planing.
Interest is not because I believe it needs improvement from a sound/noise perspective (although I’m sure there would be some improvement by including a PP). Rather it is simply because my source and headphone amp are taking up the only two outlets anywhere near my set up. I’m purchasing a new streamer relatively soon. and it’s almost as cost effective to purchase a PP and a shorter power cable than to purchase one single long power cable to keep the full loom intact in the system (plus, I’m OCD about having cables running across my office–I like a really tidy workspace, it just annoys me for some reason).
System consists of Mano Ultra Mkiii/Farad power supply, Etherregen, DS DAC and Auris HA2SF headphone amp.
I know for a large system, bigger is better (I have a P15 in my main rig, only because I don’t have rack space for a P20), but would a P12 be overkill for my small headphone rig? To put it another way, would I basically get the same level of improvement from a P3 as a P12, but save a couple grand?
FWIW, I have found the P3 to just be adequate in terms of the amount of power that can be drawn and it not struggle. I don’t have much drawing a lot of current from mine and it struggles sometimes with my plasma television being plugged into it.
Not to bash the P3 – my point is, in the interest of flexibility and future proofing (and, ultimately, saving money), if you can swing it, buy the “biggest”, most capable regenerator you can reasonably afford.
If you have the financial resources, choosing b/t the P3 and the next model (or even one further up the food chain) is really a no-brainer.
But of course, this is your money not mine.
I think you will be happy with whatever you decide.
Get the P12 if you can swing the cost. Then you will be able to use it for quite a few devices if needed.
I have my modem, router, NAS, cable box, smart TV, Denon 4400 AVR, Sony blue ray player, and laser printer plugged into a P12 and it never breaks a sweat.
If you get the P3 you can always trade it in later on a bigger unit or sell it here or on the aftermarket.
The truth is that the regenerators sound better as they get bigger. I wish that weren’t the case as the P10 and the P15 I have are both too “big” for the systems that I have them attached to, but they have sounded better than the PPP and P5 I had before that were still not stressed by the system size.
Thanks for the responses and feedback. I saw that around the same time another member asked similar question around the differences between the P3 and P12, so looks like I wasn’t the only one trying to make that decision.
I’m going to pull the trigger on the P12 and, thus, need to explain to my wife why I needed another “surge protector”
