Is a power conditioner really necessary with axfx?

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Phil emptiness.be

Inspired
Since we have a 3U rack instead of 2...

I don't know why it would be different to other units but maybe someone has some more detailed technical knowledge that can help us decide.
 
Phil emptiness.be said:
Since we have a 3U rack instead of 2...

I don't know why it would be different to other units but maybe someone has some more detailed technical knowledge that can help us decide.
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No more necessary than having one for any other expensive piece of equipment you want to protect from power irregularities...that being said, I use a voltage regulator with mine for live use to keep a constant, surge protected 120v going to it. Clubs can have widely different voltages coming out of the socket at any given moment. This can cause computer crashes (and the AxeFx is more or less that). I've had digital gear crash on me due to the voltage dropping and since the AxeFx was replacing my entire rig live I wanted to make sure it ran as flawlessly as possible. I've never had the unit crash or glitch on me. It's a little spendy versus a straight power conditioner but for me it's been worth it considering how reliable everything has been.
 
dpeterson said:
Lightning doesn't care about Axe version
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Lightning doesn't care about power conditioners either, millions of volts go through whatever it wants to go through.


You don't really need a "power conditioner" that costs hundreds of dollars for devices like the Axe-Fx if you live in a developed country. Just get a good surge protector power strip if you want extra protection.

Read about it, under "All about surges" heading:
https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-surge-protector/#all-about-surges
 
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yeky83 said:
Lightning doesn't care about power conditioners either, millions of volts go through whatever it wants to go through.


You don't really need a "power conditioner" that costs hundreds of dollars for devices like the Axe-Fx if you live in a developed country. Just get a good surge protector power strip if you want extra protection.
Read about it, under "All about surges" heading:
https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-surge-protector/#all-about-surges
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i'd rather have one then not. regardless what people say, makes me feel better, and 35 years of playing i've never had a piece of gear die because of it. IMHO YMMV.
 
Typically you get what you pay for, though there are certainly plenty of exceptions. A cheap surge protector/power strip with metal oxide varistors in it is better than nothing, but keep in mind that those units are self sacrificing and wear to their protection circuits is cumulative. Many tiny surges can cause just as much wear as one big one. Even worse, many really cheap units also often continue to provide power even after the surge protection circuit is no longer effective. This can give a false sense of protection. If you use cheap power strips, replace them regularly or invest in a quality non-self sacrificing unit that does not rely on simple varistors. The Furman classic series is a good place to start.
 
The Furman M-8X2 is not much more than a basic power strip/surge protector in a rack chasis. They are passive and MOV based, but they will disable the unit when the MOV's are spent though. The Furman units with SMP (classic series and up) are self resetting, have isolated outlet sets, over-voltage shutdown, and can better protect from repeated surges over time. Big difference in quality and protection between the two. Merit series is better than nothing, but definitely not as good a value for the long term protection they offer. You can also skip the models with the meters in the front too. Those are just passive displays that do nothing to keep voltages steady. True active voltage regulating models cost significantly more ($600+).
 
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mr_fender said:
The Furman M-8X2 is not much more than a basic power strip/surge protector in a rack chasis. They are passive and MOV based, but they will disable the unit when the MOV's are spent though. The Furman units with SMP (classic series and up) are self resetting, have isolated outlet sets, over-voltage shutdown, and can better protect from repeated surges over time. Big difference in quality and protection between the two. Merit series is better than nothing, but definitely not as good a value for the long term protection they offer. You can also skip the models with the meters in the front too. Those are just passive displays that do nothing to keep voltages steady. True active voltage regulating models cost significantly more ($600+).
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I agree with and appreciate your correct technical sharing regarding power conditioners! Everyone listen to this guy! haha

But I disagree with your preference :p
I'd rather buy a good surge protector strip for $30 (and replace it every 3~5 years), rather than buy a Furman-type for $200 (that lasts indefinitely). I prefer lightweight and small, and I think it's also a viable option for most. It's not Furman or nothing, just putting it out there ;)
 
+1 on the "better to have it" crowd.

I have watched, with my own eyes, gear go up in smoke from bad wiring sending 240 where 120 was supposed to be. My rig and the keyboard player who was sharing my power went unscathed when my Furman PL Pro DMC shut it down. Turn off to reset and we were golden.... no damage at all. Not so for our unfortunate bandmates. I'll happily continue to "waste" my money on power protection, and recommend it to others.
 
I have a second line Furman that I plug all my gear into. I only care about incidental problems that are easily solved by a surge protector. While it might not be the finest protection there is, I still can't see plugging roughly $5000 worth of gear directly into a club socket without spending $80.

The best protection won't help you from the greatest of catastrophes, but it's worth a token effort (and convenience of one plug...done.)
 
My Furman kills the noises, which is really cool, and the lights are really handy too. I don’t hear my freezer anymore in my playing :D It has separated sockets which allows it to turn on or off my Active FRFR and the axe fx separately, so it’s absolutely noiseless, no pop no nothing. Love it
 
I use one of those Furman SS-6B surge blocks. I assumed that was decent enough. :oops:

Now you guys have me second guessing myself...

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I have no illusions about the filtering or surge/sag leveling capabilities of most devices on the market. They're mostly a joke, marketed to prey on people's insecurities about expensive gear, as if the guys who design fancy computer-based electronic gear know nothing about power. Phbbt. The devices they're designed to "protect" often have better power conditioning built into them than most of the devices purported to provide that functionality.

However, there's a lot to be said about having a convenience outlet strip built into your gear with its own on/off switch, its own circuit breaker, perhaps some illumination for the rest of the devices in the rack, maybe even a voltmeter. Then when you set up, all you need is one outlet. That's a lotta convenience for what those things cost.
 
Rick said:
I have watched, with my own eyes, gear go up in smoke from bad wiring sending 240 where 120 was supposed to be.
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Axe-FX will be fine with 240. Just saying. Overvoltage isn’t that big of a risk in the US as in Europe, but even there I think Axe should handle most typical scenarios just fine. It’s theoretically possible that somebody will mess up with phases and you’ll get 380 instead of 220 (400 instead of 230, 208 instead of 120 etc.). So in Europe it will be out of safe operating bounds and whatever safety margin Axe-FX has, in the US it should handle that easily. Getting some weird stuff like double the voltage like the 240 you mention would be extremely strange and unlikely, IMO. Or maybe they don’t use three phases in the US for transmission?
 
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