PS Audio Soloist yay or nay for feeding a P 10

[euphonite]

I have a dedicated 20amp circuit which goes into a Soloist SE. This is then fed to my P 10. I have read that Paul suggests no conditioners before a regenerator. Does the Soloist qualify as a conditioner in this respect? Would it be better to replace the soloist with hospital grade outlets instead. Thanks to Lonson for providing his experience with this in which he preferred the sound without the Soloist, but as making this change will be a pita I thought I would try to get some more input before taking everything apart and trying to work with the 10 gauge again it is not an enjoyable experience. If anyone from PS Audio could chime in that would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot!

[Schroedster]

Sounds like a classic struggle of pain vs gain. I know Lonson is an attentive listener so I trust his experience.

Our engineering team tends to be okay with running something like a Soloist or Dectet before a Power Plant, however there will likely be some differences in performance. Those differences, though are unlikely to be massive.

Personally were I in your shoes, I would leave the Soloist. If it’s been working well and you don’t notice any deficiencies, don’t stress and instead spend the time it would take to replace the outlet enjoying your system

[euphonite]

Thanks Schroedster, I certainly don’t notice any deficiencies as things sound pretty darn good. The Soloist has been in place since I installed my dedicated line even before I got my first Power Plant (PPP). I never gave it a second thought until that recent post I read about putting conditioning upstream of the powerplant. I think I will take your advice as I expect you are correct that any improvements would not be all that great. Thanks for getting back to me:)

[gstew]

As I remember, either the early manual or some of the early website copy for the P10 recommended using a Soloist before the P10 (I no longer have a P10, so don’t have any of those manuals anymore). As my 1st P10 was incoming, I got a Soloist and installed it next to my existing outlet, which while is not on a dedicated line, is a line with little else on it.

I went back and forth between the Soloist and direct outlet several times and always preferred the direct outlet.

I now run a P15 there, I haven’t re-tried the comparison since.

There is a thread here on power conditioning before a PS Powerplant:

Anyone using power conditioning upstream of Powerplant?

Interesting question. I’ve done three types of filtering. First are parallel filter chokes, Hammond 193L and 193M as suggested in a number of threads on the Audio Asylum a few years back and I believe are similar to those used in the RGPs. The second type are ferrite clamps on power cords of appliances and other equipment that have SMPS’s in the house… microwave, washer, dryer, DVD players, TVs, all the extension cords where phone / tablet / PC power supplies or chargers are plugged i…

I posted some additional comments on my experiences there.

Best to you. I found the P10s invaluable in my systems and that is what drove me to upgrade to the P15s.

Greg in Mississippi

P.S. I ran dedicated lines to my audio system in a house I owned back in the 1990s. When I did that, it was as if I had replaced my gear with pieces that cost 2-3x more. It was an ear-opening experience and I’ve been a big fan of ensuring one gets good AC power into your gear ever since… in-wall wiring, outlets, power conditioning (of which the PS Regenerators are unique and un-paralleled, in my experience), power cables and their connections, and yes, even fuses. IMHO, they all make a difference. And that is why I have 2 P15s here, which along with my 2 BHK-250s are the most expensive pieces in my systems… and each is worth every penny! AND when I can arrange to run dedicated lines here, I will do so as I expect that will multiply the improvements I’ve gotten with the regenerators.

[euphonite]

Greg, thanks for sharing your experience. I read the thread you linked to. You said you had increased dynamics going straight to the wall vs through the P 10. How much of an improvement are we talking here? To pull the Soloist off the dedicated line will be a bit of a pain in the bum. I am willing to do it if it is a significant change though. Probably will to be honest as if I don’t I will always wonder about it thanks again.

[gstew]

The difference was not huge, but noticeable. I use fairly in-efficient planar speakers, so any increase in dynamics is useful.

Of course, I don’t have your dedicated line. I suspect your diff might be larger than what I experienced. BUT that also will be otherwise system dependent too… amps, speakers, room and amount of damping in the room, cables, etc.

If you don’t try it, I’ll always wonder too!

Greg