Invention audio power conditioner

[square_wave]

I had the opportunity to audition the invention audio power conditioner in my audio system for couple of weeks. I was able to do some A/B comparisons keeping the direct mains supply as the comparison point. I also have a double conversion online APC ups but I kept this out of the picture for this exercise.
I live in an apartment so there is a bit of noise in the power. I think the power conditioner did a very good job of filtering out the noise. Some observations below as compared to the direct mains.

1. The bass opens up a bit. The right word is “ added life “ in the entire bass region. The layers in the bass notes become a bit more palpable and clean.
2. The noise floor drop slightly making the mids and highs cleaner. Not a night and day difference but it is still palpable.
3. There is some clearing up of harshness in the mids and highs. The overall feeling is the system relaxing a bit freeing up the music a bit more. You may think that you need to raise the volume up a little to hear more details. But If you raise the volume, the music blooms more without the hardness / harshness which is a good thing.
4. The manufacturer said there could be changes in the soundstage as well. My speakers are kept only about 2ft from the front walls so I already have some issues with sound staging so most of my listening is at close quarters. Hence I could not verify this phenomenon.

I think this is a device people should check out in their systems. I have this with me now. If anyone in bangalore needs it for a trial PM me. I can send you the manufacturer’s phone number. Please co-ordinate and pick it up from me in Koramangala.

 

[g_k_suraishkumar]

Let me add to the review of the Invention Audio power conditioner by square_wave. Although I have been a member for a long time, I started reading posts on the forum again only about 10 days ago.

I live on a campus (IIT Madras) with a good power supply compared to the city outside. Or so I thought because I live in an `almost' independent house - the building has only one other house. Thus, I thought that the power supply would be reasonably clean, and thus did not look at power conditioning for many years of listening.

Background: My power chain is wall socket > Krykard 5 KVA servo stabilizer > robust (custom-made in a wooden box) power outlets. My music gear (connected to the power outlets):

- Yamaha AS 2000 fully balanced integrated amp
- Yamaha CD 2000 CD player connected to the amp through XLR connects
- Audio Technica LP120 turntable
- STAX energizer SRM 353X (paired with STAX L700 earspeakers)
- Denon tape deck that I rarely use nowadays
- Polk audio DSW 660 sub-woofer
The passive floor standers that pair well with my amp are Polk Audio RTi A9s (with 6 drivers each) connected to the amp with The CHORD company speaker cables.
I play high-res files through my laptop through The CHORD Mojo DAC

My listening space is sound-treated with diffusers and bass-traps (that improves music from any source).

I have been considering to try out power conditioning for a couple of years, just to see whether it improves music quality. I finally bought the Invention Audio power conditioner that was recommended by FM (fellow member?) Dr. Karthik Mani to me.

As soon as I connected the power conditioner between the power outlets and the equipment in the above mentioned chain, I was completely surprised. I did not expect that amount of a positive change to the music. I was blown-away with the improvement. The following were immediately perceived:

- the lower end was much better defined, and somehow felt tangible. The music opened up dramatically and felt alive
- the harshness at the mids and highs reduced significantly (there was significant harshness earlier)
- the sound stage became wider, deeper, and even higher (my speakers are about 5 to 6 feet from the back wall) - the speakers had already disappeared earlier (even before connecting the power conditioner) with the phantom center speaker integrating well with other positions of the sound around it.
- the sound became more pleasant, and I felt like listening to music for a long time without fatigue
- the sound was a lot more detailed. I started hearing the instruments and the details that I had never heard before. The parts at the back of the sound stage were a lot better audible - they seemed to have a rightful place in the music. The recorded echoes in the music were complete and clear. I realized how much music was getting obliterated by the noise from power lines
- the sound felt a lot more relaxed and enjoyable (I prefer relaxed sound)

With a burn-in of 6 days (the manufacturer told me that there would be a significant improvement after a 100-h burn-in), the definition and mellowness of higher frequencies seem to have improved. The sound stage seems to have improved further.

My headphone sound has also improved - especially the lower end, which is a general difficulty with e-stats, sounds a lot better with the power conditioner in place. The sound-stage has also become better.

Overall, I am enjoying my music a lot more because of the power conditioner. Looking at upgrading my power-cords, next to minimize RFI. Let us see how that goes.

I would certainly recommend the Invention Audio power conditioner for power conditioning.

 

[Mi_10]

Let me add to the review of the Invention Audio power conditioner by square_wave. Although I have been a member for a long time, I started reading posts on the forum again only about 10 days ago.
.
.
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I would certainly recommend the Invention Audio power conditioner for power conditioning.

Nice review.
Where to source these in Chennai ? Any idea on the cost ? . Are you also running an Isolation or balanced transformers in your chain ?

 

[g_k_suraishkumar]

Nice review.
Where to source these in Chennai ? Any idea on the cost ? . Are you also running an Isolation or balanced transformers in your chain ?

Thank you.

The Invention Audio company is based in Hyderabad. The Invention Audio person, Sandeep, is also on this forum - sandyj... (something). You could get in touch with him for the details. He initially quoted 32.5 K for the universal sockets version. The Indian sockets version is less expensive. Negotiations seem possible.

They ship the extremely well-packed product. The regular shipping, which is by road, is free. If one prefers, (s)he can pay extra, and get it shipped by air through a courier, say DTDC, Blue dart, etc. I received mine the day after it was shipped.

Regarding my power chain, I have only a servo-stabilizer before the power conditioner.

 

[sandeepmohan]

Nice.

Are these the same guys who were present at the 2015 or 2016 What Hi Fi Show in Bangalore? They did a demo of their own speaker and amplifier, if I remember right. Decent stuff. Nothing ground breaking and as far as Indian brands go, Sonodyne's Avant was at another level.

 

[sandyjhyderabad]

Shows were done in Bangalore Whathifi for 3 times but the last two shows in Bangalore were at another level. You can see the reviews

What HiFi Show Bangalore

Not much of a stereo guy, i'll be visiting to take stock of HT offerings. Maybe on Friday and Saturday morning

www.hifivision.com

The show was also done at Highend Munich Germany 2017. Got the best sound of the show. I guess not easy to get the best sound name out of 500 high-end brands, you name any high-end to the ultra-high-end brand in the world`s finest HiFi show. Entire industry came to know after that.

 

[Nikhil]

@sandyjhyderabad, can I request you to please stay on topic in these discussions? As a manufacturer you are welcome to clarify any points raised, in this case your power conditioner.

Regards


.

 

[Aquarian09]

Hello all,
I happened to meet Mr. Sandeep out of luck I should say. I am not an active user on the forums, just happened to visit one of the forum members place and Sandeep happened to be there. Discussed with him about my system and the issue I had with it.
I have a dedicated theater room with all the sound isolation/treatment done, this is a 7.1.4 theater with pre/pro and poweramps driving all the speakers.
So, couple of days after meeting Mr.Sandeep, I ended up ordering Invention Audio Power Conditioner and also asked him to calibrate the room as well. I checked with other users and got a very good feedback about this power conditioner.
I should say, after connecting the power conditioner, it felt like no room calibration was required, I am not an audiophile, but I can say that the sound in my room felt alive right after connecting the power conditioner, Sandeep had to do the calibration and all which was not done by the guy who did the installation of my theater. I really felt the difference what this power conditioner did.
The sound quality improved alot and I could really hear my speakers sounding crisp and clear.
First when it was connected I couldnt feel much difference coz we were playing movies and checking the surround system for calibration and all. System was running for couple of hours and I was more focused on getting the 11 speakers to sync and sound correct, and then I played music to check how it was sounding, exactly 5 seconds after the music started I told Sandeep, THIS IS IT, this is the kind of sound quality I was looking for, I never thought I can get that kind of clarity from my speakers and told him not to do any more changes to the front L and R speakers
Once everything was done, I can hear all the 11 channels really clear with perfect clarity, while playing action sequences I can hear each and every detail from my atmos speakers which I didnt hear earlier.
I was surprised to see that Image Quality has also improved alot. Specifically I can say blacks improved, i can clearly see that depth in video now. with a 4K projector I thought I was getting the best image quality, but after connecting it to this conditioner I realized I was wrong. This conditioner changed my opinion about power conditioners, All these days I was thinking that power conditioners will not make any difference in the quality, that was the reason I didnt invest in power conditioners, I just have a stabilizer and thought it is enough. Now, I am not connecting anything in my theater without this conditioner and if I am to add any more equipment then I will definitely get 1 more conditioner from Mr. Sandeep.
I am now planning to setup my dedicated stereo system in a different room and the first thing that goes into that room is this conditioner
There are different conditioners for Home Theaters and Stereo systems I believe, thats what Sandeep said, so, I am sure the stereo conditioner will be much more superior.
End of the day, I am really surprised and Happy with the kind of improvement to the sound quality, not to forget about the improvement it did to my projector also.
I can definitely and strongly recommend anyone with a home theater to go for this power conditioner.

My Gear:
Marantz AV7702MKII Preamp/processor
Emotiva Gen 3 - XPA6 and XPA5 (for 11 speakers) with XPA6 @ 200watts and XPA5 @ 250watts per channel(XPA5 connected to primary 5 channels)
All speakers are Klipsch with RP280F, RP450C, RP250S, THX Ultra2 KS7800, PRO 7502L THX
Oppo UDP203
Optoma UHD60

I thank Mr.Sandeep for having patience to listen to me for my requirements and providing the exact solution.

Cheers and Thanks,
Aditya

 

[sandyjhyderabad]

One unit is in Bangalore with forum member Square_Wave. Do contact him if anyone wants to evaluate it.

 

[sandeepmohan]

End of the day, I am really surprised and Happy with the kind of improvement to the sound quality, not to forget about the improvement it did to my projector also

Good to hear.

I would have approached this in gradual steps though. It sounds like the calibration of your system was totally off or poorly executed the first time around, which is surprising for such a high end rig. The again, room specifics matter.

To hear that a power conditioner made a difference to your display quality is a first, for me. Personally; I have found cabling to make marginal difference to the sound but then again, I have little experience with the best there is.

 

[sandyjhyderabad]

Power is like what drives the entire circuitry to speakers so if that is not pure then what you are listening is Music + noise together. Remove the noise you will find better musicality and in fact the true capability of your system. Looking towards the picture quality we have two different types of power conditioners one for audio and another for audio + video. Our power conditioners are developed not just keeping math into consideration but also better musicality and visual quality into consideration hence we have two versions that are optimized for that application. PM if you are interested to go with these.

 

[Selvin]

Is this Invention Audio power conditioner is basic RF/EMI filter or something more inside to treat the power impurities?

 

[vijwilso]

Selvin
I have the internals of the power conditioner from one source .
I am not much of electronic guy .
you can check your self below

 

[panditji]

That is one heavy duty power conditioner... I am a commerce graduate but want to know how such a small transformer can clean up much bigger transformers in the amps? And if it can, then why the hell do the amp companies not incorporate the technology within the amp box? I am sure there is enough space inside the amp to accommodate another small component..

 

[mohamednaseer]

When i check the internal components all are looks like getting from electric shop.I dont know anything in electronics but i will open amp and see the brand name of capacitor and transformer.What component is special here.

 

[g_k_suraishkumar]

I am surprised too.

Of course, I did experience a significant improvement in the sound quality from my system, as detailed in my earlier post. But, this is the first power treatment of any kind that I have done. And, given the fact that I did not expect so much of a change with power conditioning, I was happy with the improvement.

But, a look at the components inside in the picture posted above makes me feel whether I paid too much for the device.

My background is not EE, but I am basically an engineer, and have some understanding of how electrical systems work.

 

[Selvin]

Selvin
I have the internals of the power conditioner from one source .
I am not much of electronic guy .
you can check your self below
View attachment 39956

Hmmm.... This is a simple single stage RF/EMI power filter ... with input side MOV for over-voltage protection...

That is one heavy duty power conditioner... I am a commerce graduate but want to know how such a small transformer can clean up much bigger transformers in the amps? And if it can, then why the hell do the amp companies not incorporate the technology within the amp box? I am sure there is enough space inside the amp to accommodate another small component..

Sir, this is not a transformer. It is ferrite core inductor value about 0.5mH and a common component of such Low pass filters.

 

[sidvee]

Is the estimated price for this unit Rs.32k? Significantly on the higher side for the components shown in the internal picture.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[panditji]

Sir, this is not a transformer. It is ferrite core inductor value about 0.5mH and a common component of such Low pass filters.

Like I said, I am a commerce graduate with extremely limited knowledge of electrical components. My question is why such a simple device cannot be a part of an amplifier if it improves the sound on it's own even if a little? Even I had the Invention Audio conditioner for trial and it did improve the sound a little. Now that we see what is inside, why is this not a part of regular amplifiers costing more than 1 lakh?

 

[prem]

Panditji, most amp designers believe that addition of rf and emi filters and surge suppressors mess up the sound. Which is why they don’t have this in their amps. Good designers focus on having large power supplies so that current can be delivered instantaneously on demand and that there is no lag. To them things like filters are band aids and not the right approach to a power supply design.