Elite 15 PF Linear AC Power Conditioner - Furman Sound

EQUIPMENT ReviewFurman SoundElite 15 PF Linear AC Power ConditionerDoug BlackburnNorthern California’s Furman Sound wasfounded 31 years ago and now producesmore than 100 audio and video signal processingand AC power conditioning products.They are well known in the pro audioworld and have become known in the highendaudio world for their high-performanceto-costratio. As home theatre has gainedin popularity, Furman has made the adjustmentsnecessary to provide high-performancefiltering for video to complement analogand digital audio filtering and the specialneeds of amplifiers. The subject of thisreview is Furman’s Home Theater Elite 15PF power conditioner.Elite 15 PFThe Elite 15 PF is a “passive” typepower conditioner. It uses parallel and/orseries filters to remove noise from thepower line. There is no active filtering orregulation of the power. The “PF” in themodel name means this unit incorporatespower factor correction. Power factor is theratio of real power to apparent power.Power factor has no units or dimensionsand is typically between 0 and 1. A powerfactor of 1 means all the power deliveredwas consumed by the device. An incan-“Surround sound was more precisewith a noticeably quieter noisefloor... There was a newfound kick,drive, and tightness to the bass.”descent light bulb is a good example ofsomething with a power factor of 1. Anaudio amplifier is a good example of adevice with a power factor of somethingother than 1. The closer the power factor isto “1,” the more efficiently the device willoperate and the more effectively it can useall of the power. Power factor can changewhen loads on the power line change.Active power factor correction deviceswould switch capacitors and/or inductors inand out to try to move the power factor asclose to 1 as possible. This is very expensiveequipment, though, and is not practicalfor home theatre systems. Using some“fixed” amount of capacitance and/or inductanceto help keep the power factor closerto 1 is a more practical and affordable wayto deal with power factor correction for ahome theatre product.Furman’s perpetual surge and spike protectionis a significant advantage over conventionalsurge and spike protection inmany other products. Most surge and spikeprotection employs conventional MOVs(Metal Oxide Varistors) that are “sacrificial.”That means they are damaged by an overvoltagecondition and can never protect theconnected products from over-voltagesurges again. An electronics technicianhas to remove the damaged MOVs andreplace them to restore surge and spikeprotection. The Elite 15 PF has a frontpanel LED indicator to alert the user thatan “extreme voltage” condition exists andthat power to the outlets has beenremoved. When the over-voltage conditionis gone, the unit switches automaticallyback to normal operation.The 12 outlets on the back are groupedinto fours—video, digital, and amplifiers.The groups of outlets are isolated from eachother with filters. The outlets are either all onSPECIFICATIONSElite 15 PF Linear AC Power Conditioner15 Amps input current11-15 Amps continuous RMS outputGreater than 40 dB linear noise attenuation from10kHz-100kHzGreater than 80 dB linear noise attenuation from100kHz-1GHzCable/Satellite TV surge suppression with lessthan 0.1dB loss3 year limited warrantyDimensions (WHD In Inches): 17 x 4 x 14.5Weight (In Pounds): 15Price: $499.95Designed In The U.S.A By:Furman Sound, Inc.1997 South McDowell Blvd.Petaluma, CA 94954-6919Phone: 707.763.1010Fax: 707.763.1310www.furmansound.comor all off. There is no sequencing orunswitched outlets. The power cord isdetachable via IEC connector, so third-partypower cords can be used if desired. Thereare also single in-out connectors for onetelephone line and one CATV or Satellite TVcoax so that both of these will be surgeandspike-protected.There are two white LED lights in tubelikefixtures on the front panel that are usefulfor illuminating other equipment in the rack.These LEDs turn on and off by pulling themout and pushing them in. While pulled out,they can be rotated from about 8:00 to 4:00.They cannot be turned upward—all light isdirected downward. A dimmer knob controlsthe brightness of the white LED lights. Thereare no fuses or resetable circuit breakersother than the on/off switch/circuit breakeron the front panel. The front panel has asingle convenience AC outlet that is filteredand protected like the back panel outlets.Widescreen Review • Issue 105 • February 2006

EQUIPMENT ReviewBack To The WallPower conditioner reviews always haveto start with no power conditioning. Existingpower conditioning equipment has to beremoved, and all components have to beplugged directly into the wall. I have two30-amp circuits; each with a duplex outlet,and four 20-amp circuits; two with quadoutlets,and two with duplex outlets. Theobject is to acclimate to the sound andvideo performance of the system withoutpower conditioning aids. That takes abouttwo weeks.I hate the wall. The wall has neversounded good to this power-conditionerjunky. The wall has never produced a pictureon a video display I can get excitedabout. The wall makes hiss. The wallhums. The wall makes audio and videofuzz. The wall sucks an entire dimensionout of audio and video. Two weeks is along time, and memories of the systemwith power conditioning fades. The systemalmost seems okay after the two weekshave elapsed.Enter The All-Conquering HeroThe first night that a (good) new powerconditioner is added to the wall-poweredsystem is always exciting. There is a blizzardof reference audio tracks and videoclips to see just what the new productbrings to the table. In the case of Furman’sElite 15 PF, I was really happy with theresults. All the obvious gremlins were banished.The tiny bits of residual hum weregone, the audio and video fuzz were gone,and the bass was full and strong. Best ofall, the third dimension was back. I was nolonger living with 2-D sound and video.DVD images were more noise free.Everything looked better: sharpness, shadownoise, color reproduction, detail, andtextures. Those things together improvedthe 3-D appearance of images significantly.Surround sound was more precise, with anoticeably quieter noise floor, even thoughthe remote rear amplifier was still withoutpower conditioning. Bass improved noticeablywith the front three amplifier channelsand three subwoofers all connected to theElite 15. There was a newfound kick, drive,and tightness to the bass that improved thequality of the entire bottom end. AlmostFamous (Untitled: Director’s Cut) revealedthe improvements easily. Concert scenesclearly had less noise everywhere from theblacks and shadows to the lighting effects.Lester Bang’s leather jacket had a muchmore convincing surface that showed thedullness and movement much better thanwall-power could. Skin tones on everyoneimproved from pasty to natural. The verycharacteristic arena bass reverberance wasclearly not right with wall-power while theElite 15 PF restored the roundness, distance,and size of the reverb to the samesound I’ve heard many times in arenas.HD images returned to life with crisp,clean, stunning color gamut, and loadedwith detail. If anything, HD images improvedeven more than DVD images. The TonightShow With Jay Leno’s backdrop went fromflat and dull on wall power to a wealth of 3-D detail and vibrant color powered throughthe Elite 15 PF. A Shark’s Tale went fromnearly naptime to vibrantly riveting—thoughFurman’s Elite 15 PF couldn’t help the storylineat all.Neil Young’s Unplugged stereo CDsound really opened up to reveal great width,depth, and much more realistic vocals andaudience sound. The pump organ on “LikeA Hurricane” was more detailed, richsounding,and seemed to be present rightin the room. Beau Jocque and the ZydecoHi-Rollers’ Git It, Beau Jocque has an incessant,high-energy bass line that seemedtired when reproduced using wall-power.But, with the Elite 15 PF, the same basslines popped to life, changing the wholepresence of this great music.But not all was perfect. The harder Ipushed the system, volume-wise, the easierit was to hear signs of current limiting.Dynamics would soften, bass would losesome definition, detail would fade a little,and the sound would be less 3-D. I hadstacked the deck against the plucky Elite 15PF, rated at a nominal 1800 watts output, andI connected 1550 (output) watts of amplifiersand 700 watts of source components.Considering that the amplifiers could probablydraw 2500 to 3000 watts of power at fairlyloud listening levels, the load I put on theElite 15 PF was way over the top, potentiallydoubling the current rating, though I don’tthink I pushed the system that hard.Surprisingly, the circuit breaker on the Elite15 PF never tripped, not even when thelarge direct view monitor was turned on withits huge current inrush. That proved to methe Elite 15 PF was a tough little cookie, buteven so, it was being asked to do morethan it could realistically deliver.ConclusionsThe Elite 15 PF performs very well for its$500 price. The Elite 15 PF improved bassfrequencies more than similarly priced passivepower conditioners. Video and audioimprovements were equal to or better thanthe best sub-$1,000 passive units reviewedpreviously.The Elite 15 PF offers non-sacrificialsurge suppression protection that works forthe life of the product. This is a much betterdesign than the simple sacrificial MOVsused in most passive filtering power conditioningunits in similar price ranges. Onesurge, and simple MOVs will never protectyour equipment again. That will never be aproblem with the Furman unit. The goodprice-performance ratio and always-workingsurge suppression make the Elite 15 PF agood choice for those looking for high qualitysystem protection, along with worthwhileimprovements in audio and video quality ata mid-range price. ■■Provided ByThis review, Copyright © 2006 WidescreenReview, has been reproduced in its entirety fromIssue 106, February 2006.Take advantage of our no-risk subscriptionoffer: 13 For $34*—1 free trial + 12 monthlyissues + 1 special edition + full access pass toWSR’s paid subscriber Web site—a 56% savingsoff the monthly newsstand price (over $43 savingsoff the cover price)! Subscription orders maybe placed via phone, fax, or online.* Foreign subscriptionrates are $40.00US Canada/Mexico,and $55.00US International. Canada/Mexico andInternational Special Edition Offer Plus ShippingCost.Widescreen Review, 27645 CommerceCenter Drive, Temecula, CA 92590. Phone 951676 4914 Fax 951 693 2960. Order on-line at:www.WidescreenReview.com/13.All major creditcards are accepted.www.WidescreenReview.com • Issue 105 • February 2006