Thanks for posting this. It takes a lot for people to move out of their comfort zone and I am always impressed when they do. It’s not easy making big changes, but as as been said before, it’s good to step out on a limb because that’s where the fruit is.
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I don’t know if there is a better indicator out there showing whether or not an upgrade was worth it. Thanks for the feedback Jerry!
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I have a system similar to a couple of other posters (BHK pre,BHK 250 Amp,Directstream DAC & Memory player) And finally received the SP3 and got into the system the other nite (needed to build up a new power cable Supra LoRad 3x2.5 power cable) which has a 16 Amp current load rating.Listened several hours last nite intional sound was brittle and kind of hard but settled down a bit at the end of my listening session so the hope is it will only get better over time.
Yes, you can absolutely expect the sound to settle down a bit. I bet a decent amount of the brittle sound was powering everything down for a little, rearranging cables, and then warming everything back up. Along side of course a brand new piece of gear. Give it a few more days and everything will settle down well.
You’ve got a new piece of gear and a new power cord give it time.
It’s been a couple weeks since breaking in my new SP3. As I posted earlier this is replacing an AudioQuest Niagra 1200 that I really enjoyed. Some of the posters here were interested in the comparison between the AQ 1200 and SP3.
BLUF (bottom line up front): The SP3 is a keeper!
The brittle harshness of the highs and lazy bass have subsided after about 30 hours of play (2+ weeks being plugged in). Now, I am enjoying the hallucination of separation of instruments and non-fatiguing listening with treble, mids, and bass in great relation to each other.
Better than the AQ1200? At this point I’d say just as good at least. I expect SQ will improve with time.
I am very happy that I got in on the power the performers special, otherwise I think I’d have stuck with the AQ1200 - which wouldn’t have been a bad thing.
Great to hear and thanks for keeping us posted! Very glad the harshness settled down. That two week mark seems to be a good benchmark for folks.
Nice. Thanks for hanging in there with it. As you can see, it’s worth it. Thanks for the report.
This almost makes me regret the fact that our recent rapid power cycling didn’t damage my old P500. 
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I did some measurements on mine SPP3:
The loads were old classical lights bulbs => resistiv load.
- Load: 0W, Wall outlet: 232V, 0,29A, 10W, PF=14 (Power Factor), Surface temp: 29C, 84F
- Load: 75W, Wall outlet: 232V, 0,54A, 102W, PF=80 (Power Factor), Surface temp: 38C, 100F
- Load: 150W, Wall outlet: 232V, 0,90A, 194W, PF=91 (Power Factor), Surface temp: 47C, 117F
- Load: 190W, Wall outlet: 232V, 1,10A, 242W, PF=94 (Power Factor), Surface temp: 51C, 124F
- Load: 230W, Wall outlet: 232V, 1,31A, 294W, PF=97 (Power Factor), Surface temp: 53C, 127F
Efficiency: (Outlet-Load)/Outlet= X, (1-X)x100= E: (I hope I have done the calculations correct).
- –
- 73,5%
- 77,3%
- 78,5%
- 78,2%
Voltage difference in 1-2h:
Wall outlet: 230,7-236,7=> ±3V
SPP3: 230,3-231,1=> ± 0,5V
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Wow. Got mine installed on the upstairs system (not with its stellar brethren yet even) on a Peachtree (hey, it has a higher WAF, and is decent enough) where I am for now and wow. It’s never sounded better.
Thanks, PS Audio!
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I have recently acquired a Stellar P3 and could no be happier. This is my first ever regenerator but have used a few cheaper power strips with conditioners in the past. When I first plugged it in and listened it did not sound good at all but after just 24 hrs of being on improved substantially. Now after being on for several weeks, I would have to agree with others that I cannot imagine having a system without a regenerator ever again! Great job PS Audio! My system now has the blackest backgrounds, greater detail, and improved separation of individual instruments. For power cords I’m using a combination of Pangea and BAV 10 and 12’s in from the wall and out to associated equipment.
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Thanks for the feedback and glad you’re loving it!! Glad you pushed through those first few hours. Burn in plus powering down your whole system even for a little can have profound affect on the sound quality.
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" Burn in plus powering down your whole system even for a little can have profound affect on the sound quality."
I’m a little confused by your comment. Are you saying that powering down for short times is good for sound quality? This would fly in the face of the widely held view that keeping components turned on like the regenerator and the dac is recommended for best sound.
No, it can impact the sound heavily and not in a good way. I think it should read “it can have a profound affect on the sound of the system.”
When burning in a new component, heat and power cycling seems to speed up the process. If it’s a SS component leave it on during the day and unplug (yes, unplug not standby) it durning the evening for 2-4 weeks. After that, leave it on 24/7. The idea is to have it go 100% cold to 100% hot back to 100% cold then repeat.
Tube equipment is basically the same. In general tube equipment seems to heat up much faster.
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Just got my Stellar Power Plant 3 2 days ago, and I’m also experiencing this:
- music is less dynamic, I had to crank up volume higher.
- overall SQ is smoother but a bit more on the dull side especially treble
- slightly darker tone
- less resolving detail and small soundstage particularly in the mids
Here’s my setup:
- PS Audio Stellar Power Plant 3 -> Audioquest Thunder power cable plugged into wall.
- Cayin HA-300 SET 300b tube amp (Psvane ACME 300b tubes + NOS Sylvania 6SN7W metal base tubes) -> Morrow Audio MAP3 power cable plugged in to high-current socket set on REGEN closest to SP3 power cable
- Chord HUGO TT2 DAC -> original CHORD switching power supply plugged into REGEN socket farthest away from amp socket.
- Audeze LCD-3F with Mavizmods headphone cable + Furutech XLR/mini XLR ends plugged into Cayin HA-300.
Is this a matter of me needing to burn in more? How long should I expect for the sound to regain and hopefully surpass the beautiful resolution and huge soundstage I’ve had prior to the SP3?
You need to give it a week or two to open up. It’s odd and I wish I understood fully what is taking place. You’ll reach a point where the opposite will happen and it becomes more dynamic.
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Same thing happened to me and changed dramatically after just few days of being constantly on. Now it’s amazing!
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Me too. Got better over the course of several weeks – say 3 or 4, depending on how much music you play.
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