Power Conditioners, Are They Useful/Worth It?

markjazzbassist · #1 09-26-2006, 03:55 PM

Are Power Conditioners Useful/Worth It? If you have an amp do you really need one? Is there a difference between low end and high end ones? Will it damage your amp if you don't use one? How? To What extent?

thanks,

mark

superbassman2000 · #2 09-26-2006, 04:56 PM

yes, they are useful

niftydog · #3 09-26-2006, 05:30 PM

They are useful, sometimes, to some people. Too me they seem a bit of a waste of time.

Low end ones consist of nothing more than over voltage protection and EMI filtering. Often this stuff is already built into amps and other equipment, so all you're doing is duplicating it - which definitely seems a waste to me.

High end units are more sophisticated and come with ridiculous price tags to boot.

I would have to say, if you're unsure if you need one or not then you probably don't need one. I've gigged for 15 years without ever using one and never felt like I've needed one.

That said, if you play often in places with dodgey power, then it might be your saviour.

bongomania · #4 09-26-2006, 06:39 PM

+1 to Nifty. Also there is actually very extensive discussion of this over in the Amps forum. Most of the amp designers like Bob Lee etc. say that any good amp will have as much power filtering built in as any power conditioner. Pedals, on the other hand, often have little to no filtering built in and are suceptible to bad power IME. I use a Pedal Power II, but if somebody is using a bunch of generic or cheaply-made wall warts, they might benefit from a better power supply.

I also use a power conditioner for rack gear, but mostly in the same spirit as wearing a talisman against the evil eye.

tplyons · #5 09-26-2006, 07:59 PM

Mine is no more than a glorified rack mounted power distribution unit with lights and a VU meter so I can see what kind of power I'm drawing, and see my settings on my amp, and use one switch for everything. Sure, it's there for protection too, but I hope that day never comes.

BTW, better response in misc probably.

srxplayer · #6 09-26-2006, 08:53 PM

I think they are useful and do the job they were designed to do. They do filter out EMI/RMI and they ad a level of protection that that a standard surge suppressor can't do. It will absorb the surge instead of sacrifice itself and shut you off. This is only really important if you are playing outdoor gigs and using a generator.

I own several Furman units both the SPL-Series (higher end) and the Merit series and think the lower priced Merit series does just as good of a job.

Guiseppe · #7 10-09-2006, 12:38 PM

You can never tell from place to place what you're going to have for power, I think it's worth it a) to protect your gear, and b) to know if you're on a weak power circuit.

Bottom line, IMHO: if you don't care enough about your gear (you're willing to go replace it if the absolute worst happens), or are willing to give up music if that SHOULD happen, then you probably don't need one.

I've never had a car wreck in 28 years of driving, but I still pay my insurance.

Foamy · #8 10-09-2006, 01:45 PM

I have a higher end Fuhrman and a Merit series with the LED voltage display. A few weeks ago, I plugged in at a place we played for the first time and it showed right at 100 volts.
Sorry, I'm not going to run off that circuit.
I'm not sure what problems that prevented, but my gut feeling is that electronic equipment does not like to run off voltage that low - or at least it may cause a significant increase in amps drawn to compensate.
I consider that $80 on el-cheapo Merit Series Furman to possibly have paid for itself.