Hey, Charlie

It's been awhile with your new P20.... Please update us, including latest impressions, and what settings you've tried/played with.

Still jealous!!!!! My noise harvesters still showing lots of noise in the incoming feeds, off and on, and voltage readings vary 119-122. Not sure what all that means except I do not have a constant, noise free incoming power supply.... and you do....

Rick

Hi Rick!

The P20 continues to amaze, and I still haven't gotten used to the improvement it has made. Ultra fine detail and improved bass slam. A soundstage that extends to infinity. Very clean and pure highs. What more could a boy want? I am convinced that a major reason why this is so good is the 5 milliohm output impedance of the P20. All the clean power you need is there with virtually no voltage drop. There is another follow up review of the P20 in the latest issue of Stereophile. So far, every reviewer has noted significant changes.

It has an oscilloscope function that displays both incoming and outgoing waveforms. The incoming is usually squared off top and bottom, and the P20 calculates around 123 V and 1.5% THD most of the time. Not as bad as some people report. I have confirmed the incoming voltage and waveform shape with an oscilloscope. The outgoing wave is perfectly sinusoidal.

I did have a firmware problem where the screen would lock up and require a hard reboot. That problem did not affect the sound and basic function, and I have installed a new firmware revision that appears to have solved the problem.

I'm using the standard setup, and I'm using a dedicated 20 A line with 20 A outlet, and running a non-exotic (Amazon) 20 A power cord to the P20. I output a pure sine wave at exactly 120 V and 60 Hz. I haven't felt the need to experiment with the more exotic multiwave waveforms that are available. I have all my A/V equipment plugged into it, including the TRefs, and I still have gobs of headroom. I have never exceeded 500 W with 2000 available, and most of the time I run around 250 W, including the TV.

I am using a Nordost Heimdall 2 power cord from the P20 to my DAC, and Nordost Red Dawn power cords to my amps and Oppo. Everything else is running stock power cords.

I leave it and my amps, Oppo, and DAC on all the time. (DAC in sleep mode that keeps the clock and analog output stage hot.) Power consumption in that mode (TV off) is low. The P20 is very efficient.

Minor quibble: the displayed voltmeter shows an average over 1.5 seconds or so, and I would like to see a brief peak hold function there just to know how high things go. But this is just curiosity on my part.

Note that PS Audio requires a dedicated 20 A line and a 20 A power cord to unlock the full potential. If you run a 15 A service or cord, it will be limited to 1440 VA. This from their manual,

"If your system needs to utilize the full 2000 VA capability of your P20, it will be necessary to have an
electrician install a dedicated 20A circuit to feed your Power Plant. In order to comply with the North
American electrical codes, this circuit should have one single (not duplex) receptacle and cannot be
connected to any other devices. To connect your P20 to this dedicated circuit, first disconnect the
standard 15A power cable. Slide the door covering the 20A inlet to the left. Now the 15A inlet is safely
covered and the 20A inlet is available for powering your unit. You will need to purchase a power cord
with a 20A (Nema 5-20) plug to match your dedicated receptacle and a 20A (IEC C19) connector to
match your P20. The P20 will automatically detect the position of the door and enable the full power
capabilities of your Power Plant."

That NEMA 5-20 plug has a horizontal prong for one of the connectors. I did all of these things, and my P20 is 2000 VA capable.

Bottom line: I can't recommend this thing highly enough. Yes, it is expensive, but it made a leap improvement in my system sound, not just a minor incremental change.


Moderator Dude, you guys should consider using one of these at show demos (if you aren't already). The only question is whether a 20 A service is available at a show. If not, then you'd be limited to 1440 VA.


Charlie

Rick,

One correction. I said I was using stock cords for "everything else". In fact, I did upgrade my TRef power cords to 20 A cords I got from Amazon. I did that before I got the P20, and I noticed an improvement in TRef bass slam with the new cords. Then, I put in the P20, and I heard MORE improvement.

And, I should add that my system is very transparent (see my goodie list below), and others may not hear as much improvement as I did.

Charlie

Hi, Charlie

Great report!!!!

I do think good power cords still play a role even with "perfect" power available via the P20. The power cords play a role in minimizing the internal digital noise added/made by the processing component that would otherwise add new noise to the electrical path.

I think you, I and T Cobe have settled in on the Nordost Heimdall 2 as the best source power cord we have tried. Lots of options. Anthem loves his AntiCable Reference 3's and Audience Forte F3. Wayne loved what the Audience F3 did for his Emotiva source. No limit to the upper range of cost though.....

I did read the Stereophile review of the P20. Very positive!! The reviewer sure has a super system! 1,000 wpc monoblocks, Wilson speakers, Nordost Odin 2 power cords that cost more than the P20. That's serious equipment!!!!! Seems even serious equipment with exceptional power handling and noise reduction built in, benefits from a clean power source! I think it starts there with all audio equipment. It's about giving, and protecting clean power to the gear.

I give you all sorts of credit for making the big step!! Bet your system sounds amazing!!!! Keeps me thinkin'.

Rick

Please see my post under New GE Speakers. I have an interest about your power cords.

Hi Fred

Yes, upgraded power cords, especially for sources, can further clean up and refine sound quality sent to the speakers.. I use them on most of my gear. Didn’t believe the hype until I tried some. And some work better than others. Some not at all.

Holler if you want some feedback on brands folks have tried and like. Those include AntiCable, Nordost, Audience, Shunyata. Lots of info and interchange in this thread. Feel free to browse!

Rick