Is this a Waste of Money Monster Reference PowerCenter HTS 3500 MKII?

[bjornb17]

Excuse some redundency & overlap on a previous thread, but for the sole purpose of trying to
improve my already very good to excellent sound quality in regards to things like sound stage & seperation for CD's, TV & DVD's, will something like the Monster Reference Power Center HTS 3500 MKII which is available new on Amazon.com for about $175 after a $50 rebate & including shipping & retails for $440, going to prodice a noticeable improvement in sound. A full description of this is at this link
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...lance&n=172282
If you think something like this won't improve sound quality please let me know. Also it has 15 AMP capacity. Is that enough for a 900 watts receiver, 48" HD TV, 200 watt sub, DVD player, DVD recorder, VCR & HD DVR?

I think most people would say that it will have minimal or no effect on sound. 15 amps should be fine since that is probably what the max circuit load in your room is anyway

BTW, how is your brother doing?


EDIT: I have no clue why it put this message before EdwardGein's, I'm just responding to his question

[EdwardGein]

Excuse some redundency & overlap on a previous thread, but for the sole purpose of trying to
improve my already very good to excellent sound quality in regards to things like sound stage & seperation for CD's, TV & DVD's, will something like the Monster Reference Power Center HTS 3500 MKII which is available new on Amazon.com for about $175 after a $50 rebate & including shipping & retails for $440, going to prodice a noticeable improvement in sound. A full description of this is at this link
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...lance&n=172282
If you think something like this won't improve sound quality please let me know. Also it has 15 AMP capacity. Is that enough for a 900 watts receiver, 48" HD TV, 200 watt sub, DVD player, DVD recorder, VCR & HD DVR?

[Beckman]

No(In my opinion). As soon as the AC power from the wall enters any piece of audio equipment it is converted to DC. Any hamonics that are filtered out by the Monster Reference Power Center would be filtered out by the capacitors in the DC power supply anyway. If you are looking for surge protection you can get plenty of protection from a standard computer surge protector.

BTW Is your name really Edward Gein? I happen to be from Wisconsin.

[Mr Peabody]

Ed, this unit has the Stage 3 filtering I spoke about in your other post. Power conditioning can improve your sound quality. Like I said, I'm not currently using an outlet power conditioner but when I upgraded my power cords the noise floor was reduced significantly. The thing about the type of noise I'm talking about is that you don't really notice it until it's gone. Some of the reviews on Amazon seemed to indicate people had pretty good results. I'd say if you can find it locally for close to that price, buy it locally so if you aren't happy, you can return it. Almost every one carries Monster and most mass merchants have the 30 day no questions return policy. Even our local Radio Shack is carrying Monster now. Most specialty hi fi shops usually have products like this to audition but you are talking more expensive stuff too.

[EdwardGein]

Screw it, I just ordered it off Amazon.com. I'm not sure what there return policy is. The price was just too good to resist. It's amazing (I'm not just talking about this thing) about everyone seems to have different opinions on the effectiveness of certain equipment. I'm still trying to write the ultimate cheat sheet guide to home theater but I'd doubt anyone would buy that in mass. What I'm still amazed at is, if one is particular like me (as opposed to my sister's family), the slightest minor nuance which you can be totally unaware of easily, can change sound or picture quality. Maybe it's pschosomatic, but I just rechecked my various receiver & DVD settings and found some settings should not have been there, etc. and my new changes seem to make a difference to the overall sound as well as stupid things like readjusting distances. I think alot of the changes occurred when I moved into my current home 4 months ago. I thought I noticed specific differences in sound & now I think I know what caused it. The worst screw up & I'm sure it did affect sound was on my Denon receiver, somehow it was on the 2 room mode or whatever its called instead of the 1 room setting. This stuff drives one bonkers!

[PDK]

I don't know how much it will "improve" the sound but I got one a couple months ago through Amazon/rebate. I really can't tell the difference in sound but it does appear that my cable TV video is a little cleaner. I was looking more for the convenience of having time-delayed outlet switching, better surge protection, and a cool blue voltmeter on the front. I use similar type protection in my pro-sound gear rack so why not with my less-expensive home-theater gear?

[EdwardGein]

My problem is I'm very susceptable to "hype" if its very well done & alot of people seem to say the same. Sometimes this is good like hearing about HDTV on this board a year and a half ago made me buy HDTV which I love, buying Harmony remotes, etc. Occassionally it's a bunch of nonscence like high end Monster product as opposed to Standard Monster THX Product which in most cases I actually prefer. The only good thing is, most of the time, I can get rid of this stuff either by returning it to the place of purchase or dumping it on Ebay, albeit at a loss.

[noddin0ff]

EG, that's probably the wisest thing I think I've heard anyone say on the board for a long time! And, no, I'm not being sarcastic. And just to prove my sincerity I'll use a smiley!

[Eric Z]

Let us know what you find, Ed. BTW, how's your brother, Hershon? haha!!!!!!!!!

[jocko_nc]

I saw this at "BrandsMart" in Atlanta last week. Great place for overstock stuff CHEAP.

"Monster" brand batteries: A whole pile of them for cheap. Maybe that marketing venue didn't work out so well. I did get a pack for my remote control. My system sounds so much better than before.

jocko

[jocko_nc]

Here is my experience with that power conditioner...

I was watching an IMAX film on the father-in-law's rather expensive system. I occasionally heard a nasty metallic rattle coming from what I thought to be one of his B&W floorstanders, as though the woofer was coming apart or something. What a shame, I thought. Upon further review, the sound was actually coming from the Monster Power Conditioner. I turns out it was picking up a frequency from the sub, which is buried back in the cabinetry. The case was loose to the front panel and did not have any felt or gasket. Sheet metal, if I tapped on it it would rattle. I put some tape on it and it went away.

jocko

[Mr Peabody]

It does seem that there are several opinions but most of the negative ones are from those who have never tried any of the conditioning products. They only speculate as to why it shouldn't work. There are as many cable and power conditioning companies now as there are actual electronics companies. Logically an industry don't flurrish like this without having something to back it up.

Besides that, it won't cost you anything but time to try some yourself. The 3500 looks like a good buy, I might check into that myself.

[EdwardGein]

[QUOTE=Mr Peabody]It does seem that there are several opinions but most of the negative ones are from those who have never tried any of the conditioning products. They only speculate as to why it shouldn't work.

My major problem with this board are the people who either haven't heard/haven't tried something or can't provide a sound rational based on something, basically condemning something they know nothing about. At least when I do this,I state that beforehand, LOL.
And different fiber optic cables do produce better sound!

[bjornb17]

.
And different fiber optic cables do produce better sound!

Wait a second, i thought it was Hershon that kept saying that?

[EdwardGein]

Wait a second, i thought it was Hershon that kept saying that?

We're psychically linked as we're twins.

[bjornb17]

We're psychically linked as we're twins.

you mean in one body?

[wuttuptae]

I actually bought this for my system a few weeks ago (from Amazon no less). I can't tell a difference in sound quality, but like someone else said, I did notice that my cable TV signal became clearer (still analog here). It was relatively cheap, can't hurt, helped the video, so I'm pleased -- looks great, too.