What Is a Power Conditioner and What Does It Do?
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- Опубліковано 4 жов 2024
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Ask any studio engineer about the best ways to power your gear, and you’re sure to be advised to use power conditioners. But what is a power conditioner, and what does it do that a standard power strip does not? Join Mitch Gallagher for a crash course in power conditioners, then click the link above to learn more at Sweetwater!
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Thanks Mitch. I have a question....What do you do if you travel and you go to a country that doesn't use 110 AC (like South Korea). Do you just use a converter for the power conditioner?
@@NURREDIN Hey, Nurredin. Thank you for checking us out on UA-cam! Power conditioners protect your gear from power surges. Some of them are designed to die and self sacrifice if there is a bad issue with your power to protect the gear they are plugged in to. They also help correct voltage and distortions in the power. They make them for both 110 and 220 power. If you are wanting to use one overseas, I would buy the one designed to work with your power. If you had a 110 version, you would need a power convertor to turn it around to 220. If there is anything else I can help with, please let me know.
Thanks,
Grant Embury, Sweetwater Sales Engineer, (800) 222-4700 ext. 1647, Grant_embury@Sweetwater.com
@@sweetwater Thank You!. Merry Christmas!
@@sweetwater die and self sacrifice killed me hahah
Hey Sweetwater, will a power conditioner help mitigate the hum I get in both my monitors and my headphones that is a result of a grounding issue? It always seems to happen when I’m charging my MacBook, running a second video monitor and have my headphone amp all plugged in the same outlet.
Thanks Mitch! Now I need a power conditioner for my gear. Just when you think you’re done...
You know you're never really done bro...!
That’s what I thought. 2x 1176LN’s and 4 clones later and I’m not even there yet BUT I SWORE I WAS??(hairballs are great but warm audio if youre lazier)
I’ve been lucky lately with flipping guitars so I’m going to buy a CL1B. Wish me luck & pls give me compressor suggestions :)
Facts💯😂
Just wait till you learn you really need a voltage regulator too.
It never ends. I spent more on acoustic treatment when it was a usb hub generating a lot of self-noise 😩
I use a couple UPSs’ that I found at work, and they work magnificently. I built some filters into them, but I eventually want to build an inverter that converts the wall to DC, then makes perfect AC at its output.
Have used a power conditioner from Sweetwater for a couple years now and like the results with my clean recordings. Also added power regulators on all my major electronics including a plasma screen TV.
Double conversion or “Online” UPS’s are basically a power conditioner. They take the 120VAC, then rectify it to DC, then convert it back up to 120VAC and removes all voltage/frequency deviations and harmonics from the output waveform.
everything was going well and dandy until the last second when you said power conditioners and power regulators. now I want to know the diference with those.
Would really like to see a video that explains the Modified sine wave that some inverters provide and how a power conditioner/ filter help make it a better sine wave
Love and appreciate these informative videos!
Thanks. Just what I needed to understand why my amp is actin' like a durn fool
Thanks Mitch!!! You always breaking it down with your awesome explanations.
Awesome video as usual
AC voltage in the US can range from 115 to 128 but it will usually stay at whatever voltage the utility delivers it to you. This is not to say there won't be surges and spikes, but you won't have 115 one day for a month, then 125 for another month. The surges and spikes can be easily fixed with a voltage regulator, which I'm guessing is cheaper. A power conditioner will have a 1:1 or similar transformer which isolates the ground and has no electrical connection to the grid. They will also have large capacitors which can smooth out the flow of electricity and coils which are very resistant to change. But they will also have filters to remove RF noise, microwave static from cell towers, ground hum from the local transformer choking down 7K or 50K volts to 120. I'm an electrician working in the music industry (I'll look for you at NAMM 2022!) and hum is a wicked beast, hard to find and harder to stop, but a good power conditioner will make a big difference if you have problems and barely noticeable if you are getting clean and consistent sine waves from your utility.
Hey, I've got a question. I have tried everything in this place (new cables, unplugging everything in the house, trying different sockets and bought new monitor speakers). Yet the problem with the hum / interferance stays. Do you have any advice on what kind of power conditioner to get?
The problem isn't with my equipment. If I pick up my speakers and go to the neighbours there is no problem. It is something with the electricity over here but I got no clue. Yamaha hs7 or fresh out if the box adam v7 doesn't make a difference.
If you have any idea or suggestions that would be great! Either way, thanks for your reaction :)
@@frowzone286 My first thought is you and your neighbor have power from different transformers. Unlikely but possible. More likely is you have a ground loop in your house where the neutral and ground wires are connected. The only place they should be on the same busbar is the service drop where the utility connects to your house. Your main service panel will have a bonded...ok look in your house for any subpanels where the neutral (white wire) and ground (bare or green wires) are attached to the same set of screws. It's pretty common and it sets up an electromagnetic loop between that spot and the main panel so any musical or sound equipment in the space between will have a strong hum. Or anything plugged in between the two. Does this make sense? I can explain it better, what to look for.
Can you recommend something that is not crazy expensive but just as good to clean up the power from the outlet. My case is not music specific but overall a computer systems performance.
@@zazabean23 I wish I could, I'm still collecting info myself. If you have a musician friend they probably have one.
i live in Indonesia, and it have 220V . is it oke to use this? thx
Have a Furman 2x 8 and still hear hum, pops and clicks from appliances in my home. Why?
Any top recommendation by Furman with the voltage regulator?
Just bought 3. Thanks for the info
Thanks, very helpful and useful information and I might add the need to use power conditioners in all live and studio applications.
I have a Furman PL PLUS C which I got in 2018, into that I plug in an ASUS all in one pc and everything related to it that I use in conjunction with it, that includes an internet modem and two powered KRK V6 S4 monitors. From the same outlet, different plug, I have an ART PS4X4 PRO which I plug in a phone modem, a PVR, a video monitor, and BOSE Companion 20 powered speakers for TV audio. I have experienced zero problems of any kind.
When you use a power conditioners is it okay to plug in your pc + sound card + pair of speakers + synthesizer? where should all this material be separated between two different power conditioners?
@@1eidji652 The two power conditioners were originally bought at different times for different locations and since I had them both I thought I might as well use them, so the the Furman PL-PLUS C is addressing everything audio related which includes powering the Shaw modem that supplies the audio signal from the internet, the PC, the Focusrite audio interface (USB powered) and the KRK V6 S4 powered monitors. The ART PS 4X4 PRO handles everything else which includes a computer monitor (my TV) the Shaw PVR and the Bose Companion 20 multimedia speakers....could it all be plugged into the Furman PL-PLUS C....sure it could (there's 9 things to plug in and the Furman has 9 plugs total) but I've never actually tried to do that.
I have a furman and pl 8c power conditioner. About 300 dollars and does absolutely nothing for the sound . Back a few years ago when I got it I assumed a power conditioner actually made the voltage consistent and this doesn’t do that. It may help with a power surge. But if there is a drop is power it won’t help and it also lets all the emi rfi noise come through. This is after I contacted furman and also replaced my unit .
As someone told me those Furmans even at the price point of the one I have, are glorified adaptor cables, with some surge protection quality . But again , did nothing to improve sound even . Can’t really say I’d recommend it since it doesn’t make a noticeable difference
Really? What Meters are you using to detect the difference(s)?, your ears? This item isn't designed to give you (for the most part) a human ear Audible difference. Some people think never even Measure the Noise on the Outlet they use to Start with! I use Hospital Grade Outlet(s) for my HiFi, with a Dedicated 20 Amp Outlet, straight from the Breaker Box, with OFC Shielded wire! My point is all the CLEANING/Conditioning may not be audible to you// your ears. But, the Voltage Regulation, Spikes, and Brown Downs & Brown outs, have to be considered. All in All, it's Conditioning your Line Power in ways your NOT going to hear! It's not made to take you Equipment to the NEXT LEVEL, meaning if you have a cheap $500.00 Stereo, it's not going to make it Sound like a $10,000.00 system. Do some measuring of you line power, then do the same off of line conditioner... I 'm sure you'll be surprised. You can't Drive a Audi RS7, while making VW Rabbit payments! Just the Voltage Regulation is worth that kind of money! All in all, what u hearI is necessarly the only thing being corrected. EMF, RF, percentages, Line conditioning, etc., As I have stated, it's not a device that will MAKE you Device Sound Better that it was intended to sound, BUT... it will Clean up & Condition it to WORK at the PROPER Voltage. PLUS >>>>>adding the Spike & Surge Protection!!! Hopefully, this helps you out! Fore the most part, YOU CAN NOT, hear the LINE Noise of you Power.... Only can be detected with Meters.
I have multimeters and also the outlet tester that came with my multi meter.
The Furman power conditioner I bought does absolutely NOTHING to change the voltage.
The voltage goes up down and the Furman infact reads the voltage at around 117 when my other devices say up to 127 VAC.
Infact furman told me it should have gotten rid of some hum and clean up the sound of my guitar amplifiers and it did nothing .
I also have this on a separate 15 amp circuit and It’s still useless down to one device in the circuit . A guitar amp and a humidifier react to the changes in voltage that constantly happen ,guitar amp goes up and down in volume as well as the humidifier fans, furman products like the one I mentioned are absolutely disposable .
Even their 5 grand devices Iv read on many forums increased electrical noise when measured at times. Furman told some people they wouldn’t fix their items but would give them a slight discount to buy a new one .
Some of their items are marketed at being quiet like their highest end conditioners and yet people say they make humming noises and have to isolate them . Furman told these people they sometimes make noise, despite their false advertising.
My 300 plus conditioner did and does nothing to help with sound for clearer guitar amp quality, it doesn’t even read the VAC right, it serves essentially no purpose .
Some people will benefit from some conditioners but they don’t regulate voltage and they don’t clean up the electricity the same .
Many devices out there are noisy and also cause new issues . Furman only had one regulators that kept the voltage within 1 +\- accuracy (within certain limitations) and that product is discontinued .
If my VAC changes just by one point the amp sounds different , so if a Furman Regulator can’t keep up with that, then it’s not very useful at all
I retried using my old container with another amp, and infact it did clear up top end bite on the guitar amp . Sounds a bit clearer and tighter . Not as soft sounding either . Although I’m not sure I think it’s an objective improvement in sound for playing with distortion (since the guitar sounds less distorted , almost as off it has slightly less gain and saturation) it did effect this setup surprisingly .
Last the I check it wasn’t noticeable but it was on a less compressed amplifier.
So I can verify it makes a sound difference depending on the setup now.
Everything else about lack of power regulation and reading electricity correctly and adding its own noise still stands.
I own 4 of them got them all from sweetwater 😁 . Furman are the best one
I've got a lot of noise in my home rehearsal and recording studio. I'm running lots of mic lines to my drum kit and for the vocalists, Line inputs for keyboards guitars and bass, a mixer, a preamp, and an interface into the computer. Is a power conditioner what I need to eliminate that hum? Which would you recommend?
Now can anyone please tell me, why don't people just use Online UPS (Online doesn't mean from the internet).
Online UPS will take AC input, turn it to DC; Charge the battery while the battery provides DC which goes to the inverter and then comes out as cleanest possible Sin wave AC. Here as the output power is basically being generated in house, there will be no chance of issues that are usually created by the main line coming to the house. Online UPS also has spike protection and it is already isolated from the mains. What do you guys think?
When you use a power conditioners is it okay to plug in your pc + sound card + pair of speakers + synthesizer? where should all this material be separated between two different power conditioners?
I think your suggestion is the standard for pro studios. UPS system in an adjacent equipment room. I’m planning on a UPS near my sub-panel that will power my computer but I’m not sure my interface or tube amps go m the UPS. Amps may be better on power conditioners not UPS - but i am NOT sure of that yet.
UPSs are double the price of a standard, inexpensive conditioner/surge protector.
I found the background sound (?music) in this video distracting and the vocals are not as clean as the usual MG video. What changed?
They disconnected their power conditioner to show us 😂 & it brought noise
I play guitar in a small 100 Sqft bedroom with incessant ground hum, and can't plug multiple appliances in without the "safety protection" always giving a minor spike/jolt. Ground hum and variances are greatly reduced with solid state amps, but I'd like a better solution. Which power conditioner is best for me?
So if I understand this blows up in a electric failure but protects my amps and PA system correct?
Appreciate it. But why background music?
Great presentation, straight & to the point.
straight in his bank account
Mitch RULES!!
🤘
Will this thing get rid of the buzzing coming through my monitors?
Should I connect my active monitors to my power conditioner? Wont it limit the transients reproduced by my monitors?
Hi, Victor! Great question. I would definitely recommend connecting your monitors to your power conditioner. This shouldn't have any effect on the sound of the monitors, other than possibly filtering out noise coming through the AC lines. Feel free to contact me directly with any further questions, and thanks for the interest!
Caleb Lowrey, Sweetwater Sales Engineer, (800) 222-4700 ext. 1620, caleb_lowrey@sweetwater.com
I play Bass in a part time classic rock band. The last time we practiced. I noticed a big drop in my bass rig volume. I asked the vocalist who’s place he rents.
I said did you notice the drop in my bass rig volume. He said ya, we only have one circuit breaker.
I told home with all this equipment running on one circuit breaker. You can cause a fire in a panel and destroy our Riggs. I didn’t have a
Power conditioner on this wrack rig. So I picked one up and next time I’ll be ready. Let’s see how he feels when power is robbed from his P.A.! Lol we are working on installing another CB.
For most people hum at home is normal. Home power can be very dirty, and a conditioner won’t always fix it. Try to use an isolation circuit, where no appliances or lights are on the same outlet chain you are using.
Yeah- ‘Star grounding’..,,researching this and wiring a dedicated outlet to my computer and audio gear. Hoping to put a UPS near my subpanel. Apparently, you’re not supposed to put a surge/power conditioner on a UPS circuit? Need to research that now….
These videos are so helpful thank you!
Can I flip the transfer switch while my electronics are on? That's if I wanted to switch over to another source of power. Will it damage my electronics and if yes, what can I do to protect my electronics when I want to switch over to another source of power without turning off all my electronics before doing so?
i want a furman m10x and it requires 230v. I live in the U.S so that won't work, how can i get one that uses 110v
power conditioner = white collar hair moisturizer?
Can I use a power conditioner for my home stereo system? Will it help me get clean power from the wall AC to my amplifier or pre-amp and CD player...?
Hello, great question! Yes, you can use a power conditioner for any electronics! It will help prevent any damage from surges as well as help with any interference or other issues.
Thanks!
Jason Filloramo, Sweetwater Sales Engineer, (800) 222-4700 ext. 1281, Jason_Filloramo@sweetwater.com
I’m having a weird interference when I play my online games but when I disconnect from the internet the games feel smooth and visually pleasant on the eyes as they should but when I connect to the internet online games almost feel sluggish and almost like a visual noise it’s not lag I’ve called isp many times they say it’s fine on their omens I’m wondering if you may chime in lol sorry it’s been happening for years to me then I stumbled across your vid I live I. A big tall mid 70s apt I’m thinking maybe fibre optic being a deticated line could solve issue or this power conditioner I’ve never hear of until now because I am trying to game at a high level but it makes my experience completely unplayable so any advice would please be appreciated thanks
Hey, thanks for the info. Quick question, im my country(Argentina) the electricity its 220v, which u recommend
Actually, Sweetwater is really confused here as MOST power conditioners are just beastly surge protectors. As far as "purifying power" or cleaning up "noise" power conditioners do nothing or very little. In fact, my Furman PL-Plus DMC tests at 179 mV with my Greenwave EMI meter. Almost the same mV as the wall outlet using assisted filtering.
Hmm no response from Sweetwater?🤔
@@wesleynelson8263 and? That's doesn't mean anything. They aren't the keeper of the power conditioners and it's not up to them to defend and/or have a rebuttal to every comment about them. Considering this vid is over a year old and they've likely don't hundreds since then, I'm sure it's not high on their priority list. They dont post vids to get into debates in the comments
@@wesleynelson8263 Nope. They are obviously not checking any power conditioners with an EMI meter.
So what do you recommend?
@@KyleBevis-u7j First and foremost I'm using Greenwave filters in the studio to cut the EMI down to around 180 mV. Without the filters, the studio EMI is around 1100 mV. I'm about to replace my Furman PL-Plus DMC with an Art Pro Audio PS4x4 PRO USB Dual LED. I'm interested specifically in the Art Pro model as they claim to have an internal discrete module called APF (Advanced Power Filtering) to filter out EMI. I'll let you know if their filtering claim is true.
"There's so many problems, but we only mention voltage and say nothing about frequency--buy our product!"
Why cant I see sweetwater in Nigeria without a VPN
Thanks Mitch!!!! Now my wife has another reason to yell at me after i buy this!
Hi i just want to ask if avr is a type of power conditioner?
Does the power conditioner also provide the gear with some clean power if I connect a power outlet between the power conditioner and gear?
Because most of them take too much space under the desk and for many gears, the output amount is not enough to connect all devices on one power conditioner. Also, it means double protection right? 😅
Any suggestions what kind of power conditioner I should use for my jl fathom F212 v2 and my mc901 mono blocks? I used niagara 7000 and synergistic powercell sx but didn't like none. Thank you
Thanks for the useful videos
Well explained
I play for a church where multiple things go on at once sometimes and it causes the sound to get weak or I guess lose voltage. Will this fix that and keep the sound consistent??
According to his explanation, yes, if you get a product that does what it advertises.
Conditioners take whatever comes from the wall and processes it through its hardware into one uniform value.
Whatever process that is sends a stable power supply to your gear making you immune to most outside interference.
Bassist: "I need one of those Power Conditioners, need one bad. For my hair! Hey how do I look in this pose? Whoa did you hear that Power Conditioner also handles A/C? That will totally keep us cool on stage. My hair will look great!"
Anyone know what the music in the background is?
I live in an old house. I recently got guitar that emits a lot of hum. I can kill it, or tame it, with a noise filter in my Pedalboard but I sacrifice some tone to kill it enough. Will a Power Conditioner help with this situation?
invest in very good instrument/patch cables like ernie ball or providence, buy a furman and put all your electronics as further away from your audio gear. Will save you lots of headaches
I noticed my studio monitors are not pushing out sound like it use to, I have to crank my volume knob all the way up. Could this be fixed by getting a power conditioner?
Nope
Mitch did it again. 👌🏽
LOL, ya the dive bars. 1 circuit running the whole place and bathrooms that the devil himself wouldn't step ?hoof? into. Mr Furman is the hero without a cape.
I have heard stories about how neil young could tell what the voltage was at any given venue by how his amp was performing.
Who makes legit voltage regulators for guitar amplifier purposes? I don't need a step up or down, just a 120 regulator
And what about power cable in this device? To me it looks like 3x0.75mm2 and current comes from walls where are usually 2.5mm2. Hovewer, "audiophiles" will put their expensive cables into it and think how they are blessed with improvement.
Am I only one who see how absurd that is?
Good Stuff
You wouldn't believe how many people see the RS4 Rockn Stompn thing and think "$329 for a surge protector with a $2 footswitch on it?!? That's a ripoff!" because they're clueless about power conditioners and sequencers.
1 more piece of gear to add and 1 more to hide from my wife
Holy crap it’s a piece of RACK GEAR!!! Finally!
0:37 you said UPS is also referred to as power conditioner, but then 0:49 you say "a true power conditioner goes beyond this and purifies the power". So is a UPS a power conditioner or not?
Thanks for watching, happy to clarify! At 0:37 I was continuing my discussion of some examples, such as power strips and UPSs, that are sometimes incorrectly referred to as “power conditioners.” I was not saying a UPS is a power condition - it is not.
I hope this helps!
Mitch
I think I'd rather go with one 16-outlet power strip over two 8-outlet conditioners.
unless it was for a touring rig or a venue.
But.... Theyre not even comparable?
@@tilly3702 Hmmm. You know what? I might give it a try. It's just that even with Power Conditioners there's still some noise through the stage monitors. But now I'd like to experiment in my home studio. Yeah. Hmm.
@@troublesomecorsair Well my point is that a power strip just provides more outlets to power more appliances. The power conditioner is primarily for cleaning up the current. So they arent really comparable unless your strictly looking for more outlets. And even that case, im sure there are conditioners with more than 8 outlets (i may be wrong ive never looked into it).
I was thinking of getting one for a small studio. I want to connect an 850w high end PC, two Yamaha Hs7 monitors and potentially down the line a rack mounted audio interface. Is a power conditioner suitable for this?
Hi, Kemaro! Thanks for the interest. Yes, getting a good power conditioner would be a really good idea for that type of setup. It will protect your equipment from electrical surges, and also improve the quality of your recordings by preventing noise from your AC lines from showing up in the audio path.
Hope this helps, and feel free to contact me directly with any further questions!
Caleb Lowrey, Sweetwater Sales Engineer, (800) 222-4700 ext. 1620, caleb_lowrey@sweetwater.com
I hear some clicks coming out of my speakers anytime I turn on the lights from any room at home.
Dude, lol, that’s exactly why I’m researching power conditioners. I recently moved my gear (amp head, 4x12 cab and pedalboard) into a different room from the garage. Everything I touch in the room feeds through the cab….switching lights, even touching the ceiling fan lol. I’m hoping a power conditioner takes care of that
It's working for me.
@@cesargonzalezbueno3359 ah sweet! So since your comment you’ve purchased one and it’s has fixed the problem? Which mode did you get?
@@troyskinnard1393 the way I'm using it is; I plug in the power conditioner and then, I plug everything else in the power conditioner. I have exactly the same one we see in this video thumbnail.
@@cesargonzalezbueno3359 awesome! Thanks man
Tripplite!
To all musician starting to go around playing at any place , you need a voltage regulator , hapen to me we went to a restaurant and connected all equiement to the outlets ,suudenly we play and around 20 minutes in to aour set all sound and instruments went down, why? a bakery oven was connected to the electricity supply lines and every time the oven started our sound and power used to go down .
bad experience but happen, my advice get a voltage regulator.you guys never know the kind of situation you will be.
even musician with years in the bussines dont know about this problem if you notice your sound is low or cant be pumped up is because the voltage is going down. our sound and power went down very ,very ,very low. but lowwwwww!
and regulators protect your gear ,over voltage ,spikes.get one.
Only ever had bad reviews with sweet water gear is the best in world but the customer service sucks sad cause i spent atleast 20 grand there
@1:35 lol i'd like to see that
Who was the guy that down voted this video. Must be a guy that only uses 9volt batteries or $4 cheap-o power strips.
Highly intelligent person. As this all is BS.
What Is a Power Conditioner and What Does It Do?
it gives your wife a reason to buy an equally expensive and unnecessary purse
...then there's the horror story of the Furman M8DX that took a shit, had voltage running across the ground and neutral and fried dude's powered tops... $2500 later, I wonder if a fkn UPS would've saved it... hum and all...
Stay away from transformers or just use batteries. No noise. 👍🏻
Snake oil.
And I thought Santa wasnt real
Ha.ha.big foot story 😅😊
The music overpowers your voice,
You won't need a power conditioner until you hear it in your recordings.
We should use a power conditionner to condition to tell the true not the BS that this guy tell us. Please follow a course in electronic before taking!!!
Power conditioners are SNAKE OIL, you need to buy a $20,000 power cable instead!🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
💥💥💥💥
😍
my neighbor found one, & sold this plus other expensive looking equipment for $25.00
and?
who is your daddy and what does he do?
Prove yourvtechno babble, ???????????????