Playing with Power

The heated debate continues as to the validity of A/C power conditioning. One side believes that “clean power”, “balanced power”, and “stabilized power” can provide audible and visual increases in performance. The other side thinks that much of the debate revolves around slick marketing terms and psychosomatics. I have my own opinion about A/C power conditioning. While A/C power conditioning is a debatable subject, filtering and surge protection is not. The simple fact is that one surge or spike on a power grid can destroy your expensive audio or video equipment. Filtering is yet another import factor. One common problem is noise in the incoming A/C line and antiquated power filtering technology can actually add to the noise problem. So now that you know the importance of A/C surge and spike protection and A/C filtering, it’s time to add a protection and filtering component in your A/V rack. Now that you have all the gear in the A/V rack protected, how do you add protection and filter to the expensive HDTV or front projection system that is installed in another section of the room?

A Simple Solution

Furman Sound a manufacturer with over thirty years of experience constructing A/C power products has a simple solution for HDTV’s and front projection systems that are remotely installed.

 

 

The AC-215 is a very small compact A/C filter and surge suppressor that will easily install behind a flat screen HDTV. The AC- 215 can be mounted to the wall, HDTV wall mount bracket or to the ceiling in close proximity to the front projector. The AC-215 includes the brackets to install the unit.  The AC-215’s 9-ft. long power cord is constructed from heavy duty 14-3 AWG wire. The small conditioner measures just 1.75-inches H x 5-inches W x 8.5-inches D and weighs 3lbs. The AC-215 has two high quality 15 amp commercial grade outlets. The outlets have very good grabbing capabilities for holding heavy power cords.

 

Many manufacturers that produce line conditioning products use cheaper outlets  that don’t have the required grabbing power to hold heavy power cords. The result of a partially dislodged power cord could introduce a hum or buzz into the system. Extreme Voltage and Protection OK LED indicators are installed in the center of the face plate. The AC-215 has a heavy duty lighted rocker style On/ Off switch and a reset button.

 

 

 

 

 

So What Makes This Thing Tick?

Removing the top cover reveals the inner workings of the AC-215.  The little AC-215 is built like a tank with extremely high quality parts. The over all electronic component’s lay out in the chassis is fantastic. A large torodal inductor is located in the middle of the chassis. This high quality toro inductor is used for surge suppression. All of the internal wiring from the A/C receptacle to the On/Off power switch, input connections on the filter/over voltage board are high quality 14 AWG. As stated previously, the AC-215 chassis is beautifully laid out and incorporates a high degree of engineering. The Furman AC-215 uses proprietary Series Multi-Stage Protection Plus or (SMP+) The AC-215 is non self sacrificing which means that the unit can absorb a high voltage spike or surge, protect your equipment and then be reset to protect your equipment again and again. Many manufacturers produce surge suppressors that are sacrificial and they must be sent in to the manufacturer for repair after a high voltage hit. This can be costly and what protects your gear while the unit is being repaired? I really like the Furman approach as it prevents the use of service calls and down time. Furman’s SMP+ technology clamps at 188 VAC peak 133 VAC RMS tested with multiple 600VAC-3000 Amp surges. This far exceeds specification of the USA/CIDA’s A-1-1 test.  Furman also incorporates the use of Extreme Voltage Shutdown (E.V.S.). The conditioner constantly monitors incoming line voltage and if an over voltage occurs the AC-215 shuts off incoming power until the over voltage condition is rectified.

The AC-215 has impressive filter capabilities with linear noise attenuation of 40dB from 10Hz-100kHz and 80dB from 100kHz-1GHz. All filtering uses Linear Filtering Technology (LIFT). The linear filtering ensures optimal performance and no leakage to ground.

  

 Clearer Picture, Less Noise?  

I decided to conduct the A/B evaluation using the HQV Benchmark DVD’s color bar image resolution test, picture detail test, and noise reduction test. I also used Avia’s Guide to Home Theater chapter 7 resolution test. Using an Olevia 32-inch HDTV LCD and Toshiba SD-K860 DVD player, I conducted the test several times with the components plugged into the AC-215 and with them plugged directly into the wall outlet. The test results I obtained were exactly the same. At no time during the evaluation did I notice that the picture quality was improved with the AC-215 installed in the system. Color Bar, Detail, and Noise Reduction looked exactly the same on both evaluations. It was very hard to conduct this test because I had to evaluate, then disconnect power and then re-evaluate.

 

 

 

Moving to the next evaluation using Avia Guide to Home Theater, I selected chapter 7-resolution test. With the unconverted 720p resolution 100 TVL image displayed on the screen, I began looking carefully at all the line structure and vertical/ horizontal resolution wedges. I unplugged the components from the AC-215 and re-conducted the evaluation with the components plugged directly into the wall outlet. Once again, I viewed no significant differences in any of the line structure, burst patterns and horizontal/vertical resolution wedges with or without the AC-215 installed in the system. To be fair I must say that I don’t have any noise issues with the electrical circuit where the system is installed. Reviewing data from Furman including Oscilloscope patterns the AC-215 does have significant filtering capabilities. This is not to say that installing the AC-215 is going to address severe ground loop or electrical interference problems.

 

The Bottom Line

Furman has developed a unique product with the AC-215. The small compact size, well thought out, highly engineered chassis layout, and super build quality are far beyond what one would expect in a product that costs a mere $249. The AC-215’s unique design allows installers and consumers the opportunity to place excellent surge suppression and filtering in remote locations like behind a flat panel or near a ceiling mounted front projection system. The fact that Furman has designed the AC-215 to be non self sacrificing makes it even more compelling. The bottom line here is you have spent thousands of dollars on your display device; do you really want to leave it unprotected? With the AC-215’s low cost and ease of installation, there really is no excuse why you should be unprotected. The Furman AC-215 is highly recommended for those with display devises in remote locations… Bravo Furman

 

Ray Adkins