I just purchased a couple of power conditioners by "OneAC" (model #MD1170 which I understand is equivalent to PCM750A). When I look inside basically all I see is a big switch, a HUGE transformer, and a small board with some poly caps on it connected to the receptacles. I measured the voltage coming out of my wall and it was ~122.5VAC. Then I measured the VDC and it swung between -0.3 and +0.3. Now when I measure the voltage THROUGH the conditioner I see ~126VAC and a swing between -0.1 and 0.1 VDC. I've got two identical units and they measure the same.
Questions:
1) Huh? I thought this was supposed to regulate the voltage?
2) Do these provide surge protection at all?
Questions:
1) Huh? I thought this was supposed to regulate the voltage?
2) Do these provide surge protection at all?
The term "line conditioner" is loosely thrown about these days to mean anything ranging from a glorified power strip with a few filter caps to a true power conditioner that outputs a clean, stable 120V, regardless of how poor the quality of the input. All you have is an isolation transformer in a box and filter caps across the load. The 126V reading you're getting is the no-load figure which will drop under use. Most isolation transformers have a slight boost to compensate for output voltage drop when its loaded. Judging by the difference between the input and output voltages, yours has about a 3% boost which is typical. BTW, nice work on the home theater.
Glen:
Thanks for the response. Will this protect my equipment from lightening? What other benefits, if any, will my A/V equipment have from being connected to it?
Thanks for the response. Will this protect my equipment from lightening? What other benefits, if any, will my A/V equipment have from being connected to it?
You need a separate device that provides surge protection ahead of the OneAc. A Brickwall surge protector is a good choice. I use carefully selected MOVs with my balanced isolation transformers for surge protection. Some people criticize MOVs, citing as a reason the fact that they wear out and lose their effectiveness. I have not had issues with them over the years. They are inexpensive and I just replace them periodically.
Of course no surge protection system can protect against a direct lightning strike. The best form of protection is to unplug your equipment during an electrical storm.
If you already have a good, clean household electrical supply, you may not notice any benefit from an isolation transformer or any of the other line filtration products. If you have a dirty electrical supply, an isolation transformer may reduce noise riding on the power line and give your system a lower noise floor. You may also see improvements in the picture quality of video displays.
http://www.brickwall.com/conditn.htm
Of course no surge protection system can protect against a direct lightning strike. The best form of protection is to unplug your equipment during an electrical storm.
If you already have a good, clean household electrical supply, you may not notice any benefit from an isolation transformer or any of the other line filtration products. If you have a dirty electrical supply, an isolation transformer may reduce noise riding on the power line and give your system a lower noise floor. You may also see improvements in the picture quality of video displays.
http://www.brickwall.com/conditn.htm
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