Lonely Raven said,
OK, I've been reading and reading, and I've pretty much sold myself on getting a Power Plant - where is the best place to find one used/discounted/B-stock/Demo -whatever?? I'm hoping I can get a base model for around $1000. I don't need internet connectivity and all that - just the clean power for my Mystery amp and Oppo.

McGowan said,
The Shunyata is a good sounding device but it really doesn't address the problems that are inherent in power - dynamic and long term voltage regulation, high impedance and clipped peaks that prevent your Meridian, Sooloos, Oppo and TV from giving you all they have to offer.

A P10 fixes those problems and what I would imagine you'll hear is a reasonably dramatic improvement in soundstage width and depth coupled with an openness you didn't have before.

Gabriel said,
Good questions and to the point. You didn't shy from asking a tough question and I respect that so you will get a straight answer. When I talk about regenerators I talk about them in general and not specific to a single manufacturer. Also I will use US voltages when discussing this for simplicity.

Regenerators have some appealing advantages. The most important would be its ability to regulate voltage. This is a legitimate and valuable feature if you live in a third-world country or region where the power quality is unreliable. You will notice however that the regenerators have operational limits for their own operation. Usually the range of operation for the regenerator is not much different than the range of operation for your audio components. This is usually 90-125VAC. Many audio components sound best when operated at their peak voltage range which is around 117-120 volts. Advantage to the regenerator.

In most countries the power service is very reliable regarding the maintenance of voltage level, frequency and phase. In our research, we have found that THD and other low frequency power line distortion is not audible in an audio system. High frequency noise, RFI and EMI however do have an audible effect on perceived system performance. Both regenerator and passive designs can reduce high frequency noise. Advantage to both.

Regenerators have some very serious disadvantages. Since they are essentially a high-current amplifier internally, they are subject to the same limitations as any amplifier. Imagine what would happen to reliability of your 1000 watt amplifier if you ran a sinewave through it at 70-80% of maximum power for days and weeks at a time. First you are going to generate a lot of heat and heat is what kills solid state components. So reliability is a very real problem for regenerators. Disadvantage to the regenerator.

Since a regenerator is an amplifier it has limits on how much current it can deliver to the load over time. No regenerator is 100% efficient so some of the energy from the power line is consumed and lost by the regenerator. High end audio systems consume massive amounts of current. Current is what drives your system. Current is what is important. When the voltage sine wave in your home is flat topped this means that either the wiring in the wall or the power transformer feeding your house is maxed out in its ability to deliver peak current. The voltage falls because there is not enough current reserve in the power system not because the voltage level needs to be adjusted. Now you introduce a power regenerator into the circuit which consumes more of the current that you already didn't have enough of in the first place. So what did you accomplish? As an aside: if flat topped waveforms are such a problem why do some of these regenerators have "alternate" waveforms which is essentially flat topping the waveform? Curious. And if THD is a problem then changing the waveform from a sinewave increases harmonic distortion. Curious again.

Several years ago, we purchased and hold the patent to the best power regeneration technology. It was created by Michael Vice in collaboration with Jack Bybee. If we believed that the best way to power an audio system was through regeneration then the HYDRA would be a regenerator. If and when the inherent problems with regeneration can be resolved we will introduce a regeneration type product. Until then, we believe that HYDRA technology is superior in reliability and performance for high-end audio systems.

Do your homework. Why do so many high-end audio manufacturers and PRO audio studios use HYDRAs? How many of the same use regenerators? And finally try a HYDRA and a regenerator in your own system. As a matter of fact don't use a HYDRA for the comparison - borrow our least expensive power distributor VENOM PS8 for the comparison.

cg