TESTIMONIALS
TESTIMONIALS
I recently upgraded some components in my stereo system and as a result the Equi=Tech Son of Q 1.5R Power Conditioner was not able to handle the additional wattage. I replaced a McIntosh MC302 amplifier that’s 300 Watts per channel with a McIntosh MC452 amplifier that’s 450 Watts per channel.
I also added a JL Audio Fathom f112v2 Sub that’s 1,800 Watts. I loved the Son of Q Power Conditioner. Using it was like night and day. All the instruments came into focus. It was like a fog or haze was lifted. The music just came out of Total Blackness and the sound stage expanded. I took the subwoofer out of the Son of Q Power Conditioner and you could immediately tell the difference. The best way I can describe it is that it was not as tight or as crisp.
The Bass now sounded sloppy. All of my equipment is plugged into a dedicated 20-amp line. I was going to order an Equi=tech Son of Q 2R 20amp Power Conditioner until I spoke to Rick Henry from Equi=tech. He suggested that a better match for my system would be Equi=tech’s Model Q 2RQ. Well to put it mildly it just blew my mind. Don’t get me wrong the Son of Q is really good but the Model Q is on an entirely different level. It’s as if the musicians are in the room. I just didn’t think it could get any better, but it did. Just to be sure, I had a friend who is very familiar with my system give a listen and he confirmed exactly what I was hearing.
It simply took my system, “The Music” to another level entirely. As a direct result of the Equi=Tech Model Q 2RQ the music was holographic, 3 dimensional if you will, the soundstage was more developed and now it just expanded even more. The bass was tighter and more commanding, cymbals now were crisper.
The music was clearer more defined. There was more space between the instruments. Thank you, Rick, and everyone at Equi=Tech for building an exceptional product. Remember it’s all about the Music. My System consists of: McIntosh C52 Preamp, McIntosh MC 452 Power Amp, Aurender N100h Music Server, Enlightened Audio Design CD Player, Focal Sopra No2 Speakers, JL Audio Fathom f112v2 Sub, all cabling Nordost Heimdall 2 and Equi=tech Model Q Power Conditioner.
As you know, we are using an Equi=Tech Model ET2R for transfers and we were so impressed by the improvement that we decided to get the ET10W to run the whole studio. Listening to original master recordings on our system run through the ET2R has been a joy. On “Genius + Soul = Jazz” Mr. Charles located a master that was in wonderful conditon and on playback it was like the control room walls had disappeared. I have long argued that AC power should be run this way for studio, so finding your systems has been a godsend. On behalf of Mr. Charles and myself, I thank you for all your help.
We received our 5KVA rack mounted Equi=Tech ahead of schedule, ran a new
240VAC 40Amp circuit using #8 romex (no splices) direct from the breaker box to the Equi=Tech in the private theater, plugged everything into it and, guess what? THIS DAMN THING REALLY WORKS!
Other than dressing my power cords carefully as I was changing over to the Equi=Tech, I made no other changes, lifted no grounds, shields, whatever.MY NOISE DISAPPEARED.
Next week, we are going to plumb the digital video projector (JVC D-ILA)
into it, and see what it does for the picture.Thank you, thank you, thank you.
I probably would have never totally believed it if I had not heard it in my own home on my personal stereo components. To be blunt and to the point, my stereo system sounded good, however, after I integrated the Equi=Tech 2Q power balancer into my components, the entire system sounded like it got an injection of steroids at the highest dose possible! I am one very satisfied customer!
The first few days that I used the model 2Q, I listened to a dozen of my audiophile recordings that I always use for the purpose of demonstration and comparison. I immediately noticed the lower noise floor, wider and greater depth and definition of sound stage, increased resolution including more detail, better vocal and instrumental harmony, and bigger deeper bass resolution.
Components:
First Sound Presence Audio Linestage I
Wadia Transport #20
Dodson Audio Model DA-217 MK II D
Cary 2A3 Monoblocks
SP 004 Sistrum Platforms
Audio Points under all components
Equi=Tech Model 2Q Power Balancer
Soliloquy SM-2A3 speakers and stands with Sistrum Micro-bearing steel fill
Abby Nearfield speakers
Velodyne F-1200X subwoofer with Bass Euphoria RAC interconnects
Bybee Quantum Force — single ended interconnect filters
Bybee Quantum speaker filters
Pure Note Epsilon Reference Speaker Cables
Pure Note Epsilon Reference Interconnects
Purist Proteus digital Cable
Purist Proteus 20-Amp Power Cord
BMI White Elite MK-1 Power Cord
BMI White Elite MK-2 Power Cords
BMI Shark Power Cords
Virtual Dynamic Power Three Cryo Power Cord
Salamander Archetype 5.0 with Mega-spikes
Dedicated 20-Amp circuits with FIM #880 (cryogenically treated)
Wattgate 381 (cryogenically treated)
Hubbell 8300’s (cryogenically treated) outletsThank you Equi=Tech, Keep the music flowing
I purchased a ET1R directly from the factory a few weeks ago and then called you last week to let you know about my favorable experiences. This is the follow-up email that you asked me to send you. And this is my Equi=Tech story…
Just prior to the unit arriving at my door, I was listening to an old live Allman Brothers CD through my inexpensive monitor system. After the ET1R arrived, I unpacked the unit and plugged in all of my audio gear and my computer. Then I restarted the CD from the beginning and just sat back.
It didn’t take but two or three seconds for me to notice that the sound from my speakers had dramatically changed! I rechecked the mixer to make sure that it was the same as before installing the ET1R. It was. Amazingly, the CD now sounded like it had been totally remastered! The music was less cloudy, the highs were brighter, the stereo separation was more dramatic and the low end had more punch. There were even a few background sounds on the CD that I had never heard before.
I couldn’t believe that the Equi=Tech alone could have improved the sound that much, so I plugged the amp, mixing board and CD player back into the regular wall outlet. Immediately, the original 1970’s dull mix came through my speakers again. I said to myself right then, “From now on, there will always be an Equi=Tech between the outlet and my ears!”
After doing some vocal recording a few days later, I determined the Equi=Tech had reduced my system’s noise floor by about 6 to 8db. In contrast to previous tracks, the new takes also seemed to have increased dynamics and more “life” to them. Even video, that I had edited on my computer after installing the unit was brighter, has better contrast and contained fewer digital artifacts than before.
By the small investment in the ET1R, it immediately improved the performance of my mediocre gear to a much more professional level. And it enhanced the sound of my pro components to where I would feel comfortable using them in any recording studio on the planet. As long as I could plug them into my Equi=Tech!
In the days of always being told that the bugs will be fixed in the next revision, thank you Equi=Tech for producing a product that honestly does what it claims – from the very first second!
I have compared an Equi=Tech 1.5R-SI-F (S/N 928) with the prototype 1.5Q-SI-F (S/N P-3) balanced power supply in my audio and video systems. The prototype had no obvious hum and there was no excessive in-rush current – both major improvements over the previous model. While there does not seem to be much performance difference between the two units on the video system, my audio system definitely benefited from the switch to the prototype. There was a greater sense of dynamic freedom imparted to the music, and there was a notable increase in bass authority. My McCormack DNA 1.0 amplifier seemed to emanate from an even darker, more silent background – and this is an area where the 1.5R-SI-F already excelled.
My only concern in exchanging my standard 1.5R-SI-F unit with the prototype Q Model is that the new model only had a filter on one bank of outlets; the older unit has two such filtered banks. While this currently has no impact, there may be a situation in the future when I may add additional digital hardware which would benefit from a filtered outlet. I wonder how easy it would be to add an additional filter without sending it back to Equi=Tech.
In addition to providing a second bank of filtered outlets (most audio/videophiles have more digital components than I do), I would like to make one more suggestion: offer five rather than six pairs of outlets with the Q Model. The vast majority of home audio/video users will not benefit from the addition of one more pair of outlets. Five banks should be sufficient. The parts and labor saved could be spent toward the addition of the second bank filter.
Thanks again for allowing me to upgrade to the Q-Model prototype. The 1.5R-SI-F model is enclosed. Please keep me informed if there are additional, non cosmetic changes when the production Q Model is released.
Sound conditioning is a must in this day and age to get the optimum performance in any system. I received my Equi=Tech 1.5Q not even a week ago and the effect is nothing short of stunning. I have a low power tube system with high effiency speakers and the Equi=Tech improved timbre of the instruments, width and depth of the sound stage, and blackness of the background dramaticallly. What else is there? If you are in to musicality and are thinking about changing your amplifiers or some other component in your system do yourself a favor and get one of these first. What you don’t spend changing out in your system may actually save you money in the end.
Ok! I did like 3-5 hours of listening tests, it’s a-fu**ing-mazing!!
I am very pleased with your Model Q. It does what it says it does. It’s just making things better, darker, clearer, I don’t want to disconnect it at all. It’s much more noticeable on my TOTL 100k headphone setup. It’s just great. Please make sure Jonathan from OMA gets something nice, as he is really the one that convinced me to buy it with his demo in Brooklyn and his video from Munich. Anyways, I’ll make sure others learn about this!
Very happy!!
Just a quick note to comment about the new ‘Q’ line of Equi=Tech power conditioners. After many rounds of tweaking my stereo system (most recently in the power cable regime), I found things had settled down to a satisfactory point in terms of balance and detail with one exception: the matter of upgrading the power conditioner. I was in the mood to update my Equi=Tech 1R-SI, and after deciding to stay with the brand, the choice became only a matter of model. On the advice of my dealer, I decided on the new 2Q model. The result? UNBELIEVABLE!!! The immediate difference was the sonic detail- vocals sounded even more exact in sonority. Long-time friends who performed on some of my own recordings never sounded so accurate. Snare drums and cymbals became clearly identifiable by manufacturer. For example, I happen to know that on a particular track a percussionist used a drum made by the high-end drum maker Nobles & Cooley, and it was immediately obvious. The bottom line? This product is MYSTICALLY GOOD! Equi=Tech has a real winner here, and anyone who is even remotely serious about good power should have one. There are now two kinds of audiophiles: Those who have Equi=Tech Q Power Conditioning, and those who need it.
After our conversation on Thursday, the contractor and I isolated the ground and plugged in the Equi=Tech 2Q. It made an incredible difference. I was prepared for improvement in sound quality, but not dramatic improvement! To my ears the difference has to do primarily with definition and sound stage. It’s as if the 2Q has doubled the size of my listening room and turned the whole space into a more vibrant sound stage with cleaner, more well defined instruments and voices. Incredible! Overall, of course, the system is quieter so I’m getting considerably more music and less noise.
I think it helped me immensely to isolate the audio ground from the ground in our house. That I did in the way you urged me to do when we talked. I used a hospital-grade receptacle (with both circle and triangle symbols) that isolates the ground from the metal box and conduit. We then grounded the receptacle by connecting it to a ground rod about ten feet away using 12 gauge wire. We then completed the ground circuit by connecting that ground rod to the main house ground rod (30 feet away) using 6 gauge wire.
So, I’m a VERY happy audiophile. Thanks for developing an excellent product and helping me get the most from it. I also owe thanks to David Weinhart of Ambrosia Audio, who introduced me to Equi=Tech’s balanced power and sold me the 2Q.
How about I cut to the chase? EQUI=TECH RULES!!!!!! I am just ecstatic over the performance of the 2Q Line Balancer your technicians recently built for me. It is by far the best AC product I have ever owned. It is truly a reference piece. I have never heard my high-end audio system produce such pure, clear and lifelike sounds before I started powering all the components with the Equi=Tech Model 2Q. And I am no beginner when it comes to line conditioning. I have been chasing down those nasty AC gremlins before it was fashionable. Starting shortly after putting together my first serious system in 1978, I knew the importance of clean power. I spent many nights listening in the wee hours because the system just sounded better. Since most of your previous clients have been in the recording industry you may not be familiar with the following product names. This compilation represents many thousands of dollars I have spent ( not to mention all the time involved ) on products that promised to help clean up the AC powerline……..Double Tice Power Blocks with Double Titans and Micro Block; Pac Idos; API PowerWedge; the original plastic cased MIT Z-stabilizer; Chang Lightspeed; VPI Bricks; Cable Jackets; Versalab IEC Woodblocks, Red Rollers, Split Rollers, FLat Rollers; Marigo Apparation (two different incarnations) with Reference Power Center; Bybee/Curl Pro Signature Line Conditioner with AC Chargers on every component; TG Audio Power Strip; two PS Audio 300 Power Plants ( I returned them within the 30 day trial period for full refund); Audio Prism Foundation 3, Waveguides, Quietline Symphony. I have also owned Cardas, Synergystic Research, Audioquest, Grace, Marigo, TG Audio, Silver Audio and Omega Mikro power cords.
As you can see from my list, I even had my power company change transformer kettle which provides power to my residence when an oscilloscope check showed the sine wave peaks were flattened out. I have put in new electrical service paying close attention to installing the 20 foot ground rod away from the overhang of the house but near a downspout to insure that it will always be in moist soil. Dedicated isolated ground outlets into the listening room ( #10 underground romex inside Seal Tight with Seal Tight grounded at the panel end only) Ferrite chokes on all appliances, clocks, etc., Using 220v switches to break both hot and neutral wire on any fluorescent position….WHEW!!!! After doing all of this, along comes the Model 2Q Equi=Tech and I am just amazed at the incredible improvement in the noise floor, bass extension and definition, sound stage placement and overall sense of ease in the delivery of the recording. My amplifiers are 18 watts class A single-ended going into the 91db efficient speakers and I no longer hear them even hint at clipping as they did before the 2Q was installed. Thanks Rick for all your advice and help assuring a swift delivery of my unit to me. Martin, you were right on. The Equi=Tech 2Q is drop dead gorgeous with the blue LED lights you have chosen to use. I love the front panel layout using symmetrical positioning of the rocker switches (to underline balanced perhaps?) Top notch workmanship and the meter is so trick. It is surely Stealth-like in appearance and I love it! Thank you Martin and all the people at Equi=Tech who make it possible to get so much closer to the music.
I recently received your ET1R for evaluation. I had been using the PS AudioP300. The differences between the two units sonically was fairly dramatic. The PS unit was great at reducing the noise floor in my system but after a time seemed to give the overall sound a brittle or hard character, to me it was much like an old or poorly designed solid state amplifier. At first I must admit that there was a lot to like about the PS but after a time it became increasingly fatiguing to listen to. Enter the Equi=Tech, after hooking your unit up the brittleness evaporated, my ears quit bleeding and I was listening to music again. The sound was much more relaxed and natural sounding to me. My first thought was that your unit may be too relaxed but after a few hours the unit started to break in and it became apparent to me, that the sound through the Equi=Tech is far superior to my ears than the PS unit. The other nice touch is that I am able to plug all my front end components into your unit where as the PS limited me to just my CD player and phone stage. The PS Audio would ramp itself up and shut down whenever I plugged my pre-amp in (Atma-Sphere MP1 MKII).
All in all guys a great addition to my system. I am looking forward to trying the ET2R on my amplifiers. Again, thanks to everyone for your prompt and professional advice and service. Here’s hoping the entire High End catches onto you soon. The best of luck and continued success to you all.
On behalf of Morrison Planetarium I wish to express my appreciation for the generosity of the Equi=Tech Corporation. The “balanced power” conditioning equipment donated by the Equi=Tech Corporation, has virtually “solved” a serious problem in Morrison Planetarium’s Theater.
The thoughtfulness of companies and individuals is essential to the well-being of the Planetarium. Through your generosity we are better able to serve the astronomy education needs of students as well as the general public. Thank you.
We will be honoring your donation with a plaque located on the wall in the Planetarium Theater.
The Equi=Tech High Definition Power Conditioner. I have the original model (30 months old), but this high definition iteration blew it away. This black box had a profound impact on the sound of my audio system. The “noise floor” dropped to the sub-basement! The bass was tighter and more extended and crisp. I could hear much more information across the music spectrum. The overall musical presentation was much closer to a “live” sonic performance than I experienced with the older unit. The sonic presentation drew me into the music. This improvement was across the board (turntable, CD, CD-RW, and tuner). This unit took my audio system to another level of musical enjoyment.
I recently purchased an Equi=Tech Model 2Q conditioner, replacing a Richard Gray 400S. I used the 400S on my front end components. It didn’t however work well with the amp plugged into it. The Richard Gray is a nice unit and has served me well over the last several years. However, it does not play in the same league as the Equi=Tech.
Your Model 5Q balanced transformer is incredible. I would love to sit all the ‘doubters’ or those who think the revolution in balanced/symmetrical power is ‘hocus pocus’ in front of my system and make believers out every one of them! For I know for certain they’d be headed to their local dealers just after a few minutes. The difference it is astounding. This product is amazing and worth every penny.
All too often we audiophiles spend far too much money for things that make little or only very slight differences. In the quest for that elusive sonic perfection, we then begin to buy things only us and our ‘trained’ ears can hear. Despite the craziness of this practice it is important to note another role these purchases make- and that is to make us ‘feel good’ about the ultimate signal path in our systems. i.e.: expensive interconnects, belt-driven, dedicated cd transports and d/a’s, etc… Any true audiophile knows what I’m talking about. So rare is the moment a new piece of equipment makes you leap out of you seat and want to jump up and down. Its the same moment when you want to pull out every great cd you own and listen to again like it was the first time!
Over the past two years I’ve been fortunate enough to already know the benefits of balanced power isolation transformers. My first go at it was the Furman 30A-IT series unit. I found that it made a noticeable improvement in sonic quality, but after opening the unit up (as all tweaks do) and comparing the transformer size and overall build quality to Equi=Tech’s I’d seen at a trade show, I decided to step up to your product, the ‘originator’, and spend the additional money for your flagship 5Q. While more expensive and not yet even in production, the differences in the overall size of the transformer, your workmanship, and extra features were enough for me to give it a try.
Just about a month ago I received my Equi=Tech Model 5Q with the same understanding that, while probably spending too much money for something seemingly esoteric, it would nonetheless give me the satisfaction that I owned the finest piece of AC conditioning equipment money could buy- and even just knowing that, I would have settled for a marginal difference. After lifting the near 200 lb. unit into my rack (I had to enlist a friend to help me accomplish this), I quickly began plugging in all my expensive audio gear into the appropriate outlets on the back. I was lucky enough to have a 220V-30A outlet at my rack fed directly from my breaker panel ahead of time in anticipation of the unit.
Now was the true test. I put on a CD that I’ve used for sonic clarity and imagery for years and what I heard BLEW ME AWAY. I could NOT believe my ears!! Thinking I was imagining things, I quickly jumped up and put on another trusted CD and it too was nothing short of amazing. The details in the imaging and depth of the recording were vastly improved. Also, I noticed the low end was MUCH tighter and controlled. These recordings sounded as though Id heard them for the first time.
So hats off to everyone there at Equi=Tech for producing such a truly fine piece of equipment. One that is a ‘must have’ for any serious audiophile and one that I will cherish for a lifetime.
I read Martin Glasband’s letter in the back of the June issue of Stereophile with interest. I own a fully modified PS Audio P300, upgraded with the fan kit, the multiwave option, and a low level “quantum” filter by Jack Bybee. I also own an Equi=Tech ET2Q. While the P300 can provide enough power to run my stereo’s front end without overheating, the Equi=Tech can handle the entire system, including several class A amps AND the P300 and not even get warm. I paid about the same for both the ET2Q and the modified P300.
For my money I feel the Equi=Tech is a better product. It doesn’t use electricity just sitting there; what goes in, comes out – no real loss. It never gets warm; there is no annoying fan noise. It provides balanced AC to my two 200 watt class A amps with no apparent loss of headroom at high volumes. This lets them run much more quietly; the cost for a PS Audio regenerator that could provide the 800 watts of steady power they consume is really extreme; this makes the Equi=Tech a huge bargain in comparison.
My stereo system is really top notch; it’s worth about the same as a BMW 528. I get an amazing level of resolution, detail, air, and all those other audiophile attributes. Perhaps I have been fortunate not only to have decent AC to begin with, but to have chosen components that are highly immune to power fluctuations. I say all of this because, when using the highly touted PS Audio AC frequency and waveform adjustments, I have never noticed more than the most minute differences. I feel that it is mostly just hype. A completely different device, the Richard Grey’s Power Company box, also had almost no affect on my system, but I have at least heard this device give seeming improvement to other systems.
I’ve been reading Equi=Tech’s white papers for a couple years now, and I’m glad to see them. I am not an electrical engineer, “merely a programmer”, but I’m trying to learn what I can.
Mr. Glasband’s letter to Stereophile was another shot in the “power play” the AC improvement manufacturers seem to be having; I know I will not be getting the straight story from the magazines, so I’m more than interested in your opinions.
Hey Equi=Tech Guys:
Thanks for such a well-engineered and great performing product. This Equi=Tech power conditioner is money well-spent on my home theater rig. I leave my system on all the time and I’m used to hearing audible hisses, buzzes and hums through the speakers. When I first plugged in the Equi=Tech it scared me because I thought my system was dead. All the noise was gone! Even listening to vinyl with my low-output moving coil cartridge where I have to really crank up the volume control, the noise floor is very low and very clean.
To check the systems’s Equi=Tech’d audio performance, I fired up Medeski Martin & Wood’s Last Chance To Dance Trance. The exotic percussion and deep piano chords that open track 4 emerged from a black silence and just hung in space in front of me. When drum and bass kicked in I was floored by the slam and drive of the performance (one of those “Oh Sh*t!” experiences). The kick drum had that resonant snap and whomp that you hear in the studio, but rarely over a hi-fi rig. The bass plcuking jumped out and added a percussive overdrive to a very sweaty, nervous sonic assault by the MMW boys. Now I’ve tapped my toes to this cut before, but with the Equi=Tech in the system, it was like the guys were in my face relentlessly pounding on me with their instruments. The intesity level was ratcheted up at least three notches.
The Equi=Tech also did wonders for my video rig. The colors on my 32″ TV are crisper and don’t bloom excessively, and noise and snow from my antenna feed are gone. I love 60 miles south of the LA broadcast transmitters and I’ve always had problems cleanly pulling in channels 2 (CBS), 4 (NBC), 5 (WB), and 13 (UPN). The video noise and interface drove me crazy during the Laker’s playoff run last Spring. With the coax antenna cable grounded to the Equi=Tech, the snow, hash and grunge are gone and my antenna picture now rivals and sometimes betters my DSS picture. This is great news as football season and the Olympics are about to start.
Thanks to Equi=Tech, I am digging life big time in my little A/V world. Great job!
The Recording Workshop appreciates the “loan” of your Equi=Tech Model ET2R Balanced Power System. During our 20-day trial day period, we installed this in our 16-track Studio C (where we currently have a 24-input Alesis X2 console and two Alesis ADAT digital multitrack recorders) and noticed a significant decrease in the overall noise on the stereo bus and a definite increase in the clarity and quality of the audio produced in the studio.
Currently, we are in the process of remodeling Studio C which includes installing a large-format console bumping the tracking capabilities of the room from 16-tracks to 24-tracks (thus increasing the overall power requirements).
Once again, we thank you for allowing us the opportunity to test the Equi=Tech Balanced Power System in our studio. You will be pleased to note that we have made Equi=Tech a part of the curriculum, receiving mention during both our System Interface and Live Sound Reinforcement lectures. Since our yearly enrollment consists of 500-plus students from all parts of the globe, this is, of course, no small mention. Include the fact that students who complete the program move on to larger audio venues, ranging from home studios to pro studios, live sound to production houses and you can rest assured that the word is out.
The Equitech ET5R at Heitor’s project studio is amazing. We’re up to the mix stage of the record, and everything is working perfectly. If you ever need an endorsement for an ad, or a referral for others considering Equi=Tech, feel free to call.