Power Conditioners for racks - What does it do exactly?

[cyndicate]

I am a noob trying to do a rack setup, was wondering, is a Power Conditioner necessary? What does it do exactly? Eliminate ground loop hums, etc.? Any suggestions on ones to get, seems the Furman PL-Plus Series 2 or other furman ones seem to be the most popular.

 

[noseminer]

i prefer the kind that both shampoo and condition my power

 

[badger71]

A power conditioner will just "clean" up the power coming into the unit....Supposedly eliminating "noise" etc...

What I used is a Furman voltage regulator. This keeps the power coming into the unit a solid 120v. This will keep your tone intact incase of "brown" outs or fluctuating voltages. I plugged it all into a battery backup similar to what I use on my computer. That way, if the power went out completely, I could safely shut everything down.

 

[Code001]

A power conditioner will just "clean" up the power coming into the unit....Supposedly eliminating "noise" etc...

Some of them barely even do that. Most are just rackmounted power strips.

 

[badger71]

A power conditioner will just "clean" up the power coming into the unit....Supposedly eliminating "noise" etc...

Some of them barely even do that. Most are just rackmounted power strips.

Yup...I agree 100%.

 

[jcj]

Voltage regulator is a very nice thing to have.

 

[Marshall Law]

I have a oneac works very well

 

[verderacer]

Voltage regulator is a very nice thing to have.

I still have my 3PN Variac right beside old Randall and Marshall heads...

 

[blackba]

Voltage regulator is a very nice thing to have.

I have heard of them causing problems with PA applications when the voltage is in near brown out condition. Frankly if the voltage is below 110VAC, you probably should be looking for another power source. I prefer monitoring the voltage versus regulating it.

One thing to consider about power strips and power conditioners is that they do wear out. Most have MOVs in them which after so many hits no longer conduct at the proper voltages. When there are not issues they appear in the circuit as open. The problem is when they fail they are open all the time regardless if a surge comes along. For this reason I put a date on my power strips and change them out every 5 years or so.....

 

[Bash_Man]

I recently purchased a new Furman PM-8DM power conditioner and I used it in the PA setup we have instead of a "powerful" Power bar from Belkin and I definitly noticed some noise reduction happening and also pops and clicks that we were getting sometimes are all gone.

 

[gdgross]

I like them. If nothing else, for the convenience of turning everything on with one switch.

I just went to the local a/v supply place and bought a rackmount power strip for $50. Opened it up, added $20 in parts (MOV and corcom power line filter), and it's basically a furman without the lights and the voltage monitoring LEDs, but much shallower, like maybe 3" deep. I keep in in the back rail opposite my g-system, which is in the front. Helps keep my rack smaller and more schlepp-able.

 

[glpg80]

i love my furman M-8D

i know i can rank the piss out of everything without a noise gate and not worry about all the noise from other appliances, lamps, PC's, and the other band-mates gear on small stages.

plus.. the gigantic on switch turning everything on and off is awsome. well worth $89