PS Audio - Noise Harvester evaluation

[twich54]

Well after a week with this little device I think there is a difference, albeit a subtle one. When it arrived I placed it in various outlets around the hse and one thing is apparent, don't put it within "sight lines" of your listening position, that little blue LED will drive you nuts ! First a little background on my AC wiring for my system, I have two dedicated 20 amp circuits that the amp, pre and the other associated equip. use, whereas my Vantage's are plugged into a "common" outlet in my room. The Noise Harvester blinked much more frequntly when plugged into the "common" as opposed to the two dedicated lines.

As for listening impressions, it "seemed" to make the most noticeable difference when plugged into one of the dedicated outlets though. While I believe it added nothing sonically it appears to have helped lower the noise floor ( so the video advertisment says)in a small minute way. I had my wife randomly plug and unplug the unit and I was able to identify 3 out of 5 times correctly, probably a meaningless stat but I had to try something ! An example of what changed is on Chuck Mangione's live recoring of "Land of Make Believe" at he end when Esther Satterfield finishes her vocal and the applause begins the soft initial clapping is more descernable.

I've got twenty two days left to make up my mind, for now it's in the system, yet out of sight !!

 

[Craig]

that little blue LED will drive you nuts !

A small piece of black electrical tape works wonders for taking care of annoying LEDs.

 

[attyonline]

As tweaks go, eighty bucks isn't bad for an audible improvement. Guys have spent a lot more on cables with no better results than you got.

 

[Tube60]

A small piece of black electrical tape works wonders for taking care of annoying LEDs.

I've been considering power line conditioners, DIY or manufactured, so this is good to know!
As for the above quote, a small piece of automotive window tint works too, and lets a little bit of light out, if one so desires.

 

[twich54]

I've been considering power line conditioners, DIY or manufactured, so this is good to know!
As for the above quote, a small piece of automotive window tint works too, and lets a little bit of light out, if one so desires.

good ideas, as of now I have it plugged into my amp circuit which is out of sight from my listening position.

 

[ralflar]

Regarding the Noise Harvester, I think it is one expensive LED. I'd rather buy another power conditioner. Mixed opinions on the Noise Harvester can be found in this thread
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=703410&highlight=noise+harvester
and others which it references.

Regarding power conditioners, a power surge killed my old amp. So when I replaced the amp I bought a power conditioner, too. I am not sure if the power conditioning makes a difference or not, but I definitely wanted decent surge protection.

Power conditioners happen to be an expensive but practical solution. I say practical because the conditioner provides - aside from surge protection - power to a whole rack of components in a nice looking package. It helps keep power cables out of sight. Some conditioners have voltage and current displays. I find them useful.

While I am not convinced that they improve sound quality it strikes me a little that many reviews of high dollar components emphasize how silent said component is. They write that they have to turn the volume all the way up and then get very close to the speaker to hear the slightest hint of hissing. Or something like that.

My system so far is cheap but as silent as those descriptions indicate. I wonder if this is the result of using power conditioners. One of these day I perform the test without it. Maybe I'll find that there is a difference.

 

[boutrosa]

I was saved by a power conditioner. Since that day, I run my electrical equipment through a tripp lite voltage regularor and 2 monster power units two be sure that I am safe. I also put a ground rod right outside ht room and rund a seperate ground wire.

my house was struck by lightning. IT literally blew the electrical outlet out of the wall behind my refridigerator. as far as my tv room, my monster power 5000 blewup and I did not loose anything. Another good reason is better sound.

$400.00 is a small price to pay compared to $15,000.00 - 30,000 of equipment. Bad electricity eats up the electrontcs also.

I used to sell Pcs in a third world country and all the computers that were not connected to voltage regulators were the ones that usually cameback for harddrive repairs.

 

[Genesis]

As I posted in the previous thread on this topic, I won't buy into the hype on noise harvesters, especially the requirement that "more of them is better" since that's pure marketing. For everyone that believes in them and found a sonic improvement, all the power to you (excuse the pun ), I can't dispute the claim, after all who can substantiate that they don't work?

But I do believe, in a big way, in power conditioners. There is a huge range of products available with an even bigger range in prices. You can drop a few grand (or more) on a PS Audio conditioner, but for a fraction of that I picked-up a Xindak unit that when installed gave an instant boost to my system. It didn't improve the absolute quality of the sound, but it certainly improved sound dynamics.

That was a huge lift for a hundred bucks, much more than I'd get for a similar amount of cash spent on a noise harvester (or two, or three). Yours to decide....