Buying Guide:
What Power Conditioners Can Do For Your Home Theater
What is a Power Conditioner?
Power conditioners (also referred to as line conditioners) are used in many different environments, not just in home theaters. They are also used in computing and other environments that take advantage of expensive and/or sensitive electrical equipment. By definition, a "conditioner" is something that is designed to improve the attributes of something else. So by putting the two together, a power conditioner merely refers to cleansing and purifying the electrical power that is channeled to the equipment in your system. These devices more commonly seen in higher end home theaters but are becoming more popular for all environments because of the multi-faceted benefits the device provides. I think everyone should consider this as part of their overall home theater design concept.
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Benefits of Using a Power/Line Conditioner
These devices are often confused with surge protectors since many manufacturers include this feature as part of their product(s). For all practical purposes, these products are surge protectors but with a few additional, yet very noteworthy benefits. Before we begin, please take note that the product offerings across manufacturers are somewhat differentiated, meaning it can be difficult to identify and use baseline comparators across models. Nonetheless, we'll run through the common features and their benefits below.Clean Power (Filtering)
The primary benefit of a power conditioner is to provide the best quality power from the power supply to the electrical device. While many home theater enthusiasts take measures to ensure the integrity of audio and video signal transmissions (choosing the right wiring, location of wiring, using conduits, etc.), the electricity is still and will always be subject to external environmental factors that can have a degradatory effect on signal quality. These units help shield your system from these unwanted influences by filtering line noise caused by variances in electrical current coming from the power supply and/or interference stemming from the use of a microwave (a common culprit) or other home appliances, among other things.
The result? Less interference (or static), which improves picture and sound quality. This will help to minimize the "humming" you may encounter coming from your speakers and the "fuzz" you see when watching your television. Crisp, rich, vibrant audio and video is ultimately what we all want to achieve -- and the products help move us closer to our goals. In a computing enviroment, some performance benefits may be achieved through the use of a power conditioner, such as faster Internet browsing, data upload/download, and networking.
As an added bonus, many line conditioners provide power conditioning to your Ethernet connection, cable, and phone lines.
Surge Protection
If you're reading this article, you more than likely own or are in the market for a home theater system. Obviously, your home theater system represents a significant investment for you and you want to certainly want to ensure that it doesn't get fried during a severe storm. Surge protection is a common feature among power conditioners and regardless of whether or not you choose to purchase a power conditioner, you should at the very least get a surge protector.
Even though testing hasn't been standardized, you can reasonably compare the surge protection capabilities across products using its published joule rating. By definition, a joule is a unit of energy equal to one watt of power flowing for one second. So what? What you really need to know is the higher joule rating, the more the conditioner can handle under the pressure of sudden increases in electrical current.
The surge protection feature in line conditioners can vary across products. Some will "sacrifice" themselves for the life of your home theater components; unless it's a relatively inexpensive conditioner, this isn't preferable. What is preferable are those line conditioners that disconnect the power going to your components in the event of a surge.
Power Regulation (or Voltage Regulation)
To promote clearer picture and sound quality of your system, some power conditioners are equipped with a power regulation feature. Essentially, these regulators monitor and control the amount of voltage flowing from the power supply, through the conditioner, and to your equipment. Its goal is to maintain a consisent level (range) of voltage while the equipment on powered on. It will increase voltage when the current dips and reduce the voltage it surges.
Centralized Power Hub
Since most electrical outlets consist of only two receptacles, you need something that can serve as the power source for all of your system's components. You should consider the quantity of components (and other electrical devices) you have both now and in the future, especially if you're making a significant investment in a conditioner. Most come with a minimum of eight receptacles, which is enough for most home theater systems.
Who are the Major Market Players?
Within the home theatre community, the major players in this market include Monster, Panamax, APC, Belkin, and Furman.Buying Tips
Below are a few tips you should consider before purchasing your power conditioner:- Do you have a dedicated place for the unit? Size may matter, especially if you plan on mounting the conditioner to a wall.
- Does the unit have a noise suppression rating? Typically stated in terms of decibels, the higher the rating the better.
- Does the unit have a strong warranty? Some will replace equipment up to $5,000,000. If the company will stand behind their product in this fashion, you should be able to trust that their product will do a good job of protecting your system.
Power Conditioners → Home Theater Design Buying Guide
