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  Power Products > Ultimate Outlet Ultimate Outlet More Info Starting at just $299.00! AC power is one of the most important and typically overlooked factors in consumer audio/video and Home Theater Systems. More often than not, the quality of AC power is problematic and difficult to correct.  We created our successful Power Plant line of power regenerators to improve this situation. Power Plants convert the raw, distorted, noisy AC issuing from most wall sockets into a purer form of AC. But Power Plants can't do everything. While they reduce powerline noise and distortion by up to 70 dB, they can only produce AC power compatible with their power ratings. For example, the P600 Power Plant delivers 720 watts—a lot of power, but not as much as the 1800 watts typically available from home wall sockets. We realized that consumers also need a more affordable device, unaffected by such power limitations, that is able to provide major electrical line cleaning as well as protection from surges and lightning strikes. The birth of the Ultimate Outlet What was needed was a device that has no power limitations, yet will provide a major pre-cleaning function as well as protection from surges, lightning strikes and whatever potentially dangerous situation that comes down the AC line in your home. The Ultimate Outlet is designed to replace conventional duplex sockets where critical power is required. Plug one into an AC outlet, and it will provide clean, safe, protected and unlimited AC power to A/V equipment. There are two models of the Ultimate Outlet and each achieves these goals, while remaining surprisingly affordable. They can produce as much power as a wall outlet, while lowering the output impedance of the socket, cleaning and protecting the AC current and preserving line dynamics. Equally important, the Ultimate Outlets are bi-directional. They not only provides clean power for home  equipment, but they also clean the power emanating from A/V components thus preventing your equipment from introducing noise problems to the home's AC circuit.In a listening room, we recommend replacing existing wall sockets first with a Power Port, then with an Ultimate Outlet and powering the entire A/V system with one, two or several Ultimates. Big power amplifiers should each have a dedicated High Current Ultimate Outlet to ensure they receive clean, safe, better sounding AC. Or, if you need multiple Ultimates for a system, the best choice is probably the Power Director. The Power Director features four High Current Ultimate Outlets in one rack or shelf mount unit. Our goals for this unique device Our goal in designing the Ultimate Outlet was four fold:
After a great deal of research and thought, we turned to a very old but rarely used technology invented back in the 1930's called a Balun. The balunced approach A Balun is a balanced magnetic coupler typically used to match AC impedances of an antenna. Some commercial Baluns are as large as a television set and handle tons of power. But, for our application a moderately sized Balun looked like it would work perfectly. A Balun is a donut of powdered iron with a wire wrapped around each half of the donut. When an AC signal comes into the balun's two wrappings of wire, the balanced design cancels out anything in common to the two wires. Unlike series filters that only work on noise over a specified frequency range, a well-designed balun cancels all noise at all frequencies. Yet, due to the small number of wire turns, it does not restrict power as a conventional power conditioner would.  Down with Noise, Up with PowerThe Ultimate's balun reduces common mode noise by up to 40 dB, meaning that whatever noise is on the line will be reduced by over 100 times, and also handles differential noise. This major cleaning effort takes place at virtually all frequencies, not only at the very high frequencies attended to by typical power filters or conditioners. This is a major improvement over other power conditioners, except for power regenerators, which are costlier, and balanced input transformers. Balanced transformers perform the same function as the Ultimate Outlet while also producing a balanced output, which the Ultimate does not. However, they are power limited, and not all models can deal with differential noise. Differential and common mode noise are the two basic forms of noise found on home AC lines. Both are bad, and both are reduced significantly by the Ultimate. Most other conditioners address one or the other type of noise, and only above a certain frequency. No device other than the Ultimate Outlet can handle both types of noise with no power restrictions. Surge protection is second to none Using our now famous Tranzorber and super MOV technology for surge protection, the UO provides 100% surge and spike protection for anything connected. Non-volatile Tranzorber clamps are used as the primary AC surge and spike protection in all PS power purifying products. Tranzorbers are far superior to MOV’s for protection because of their sharp and nearly instantaneous clamping characteristics and because they do not degrade over time. MOV’s on the other hand, the devices typically found in 99% of all surge protectors, are slower to respond and can degrade over time. UO’s take advantage of both technologies. Tranzorbers are PS Audio’s first line of defense in the war against surges and spikes. The problem with Tranzorbers is they can be damaged by too large a surge and so we protect them from damage by removing them from the line if there’s too big a surge. That’s where the backup super sized MOV’s come into play: we wouldn’t want to count on them for our primary defense but they are just fine as the backup provider. These MOV’s need to clamp long enough for the internal power switch in the UPC to disconnect the AC power from your equipment. It’s a very foolproof protection management product. While other manufacturers rely solely on MOV’s, without the internal automatic power switch to remove your equipment from the power line in an extreme circumstance, or in the case of products that do have an AC bypass device, they do so at the expense of adding a large and restricting power inductor in the AC path, only PS Audio provides foolproof, non-volatile protection without restricting the power. Choose between one of the two Ultimate Models There are two models of the Ultimate Outlet. The Standard version and the High Current model . The Standard version of the Ultimate is recommended for all source equipment such as preamplifiers, CD players, Tape decks and DVD players. In addition to sour  ce equipment, the Standard is also recommended for solid state power amplifiers that output less than 100 watts per channel and video equipment of all kindsThe higher Current model is better suited for higher current applications such as big power amplifiers, projectors, and tube equipment. Any of the two Ultimate models can handle any amount of power your AC wall socket can deliver, but from a purist's standpoint the Ultimates perform best when matched to their loads. As an example, when we power our smaller test amp (a 100 watt Classe amp) we find that the Standard Ultimate Outlet does a superb job of improving the sound of this amplifier. The same Standard Ultimate Outlet also dramatically improves the video picture on our Sony Wega and our Mitsubishi RPTV. Adding the High Current model of the Ultimate to any of these products improves the performance yet again, especially when the amplifier power goes above 100 watts. When we power our reference tube amplifier - an Audio Research VT100 MKIII - or our reference solid state amplifiers - the Classic 250 or the HCA-2 - with the  Standard version of the Ultimate Outlet, the amps sounds far better than when plugged directly into the wall. However, replacing the Standard Ultimate Outlet with a High Current version improves the bass and better defines the soundstage on all amps. So the rule of thumb is, class AB solid state amplifiers of 100 watts or greater require the High Current model of the Ultimate Outlet. So too would any tube power amplifier of 100 watts or greater, as well as any class A solid state amplifier. Solid state amplifiers of less than 100 watts, all video equipment and tube power amplifiers of less than 100 watts and all source equipment are greatly improved by the Standard Ultimate Outlet. In a video environment, we recommend mounting a Standard Ultimate in the ceiling to feed a top-mounted video projector (or 15 amp High Current for anything over a 6' CRT), or on the wall next to a duplex outlet to feed a rear projector or surround sound system. The Standard, 15 amp High Current versions of the Ultimate can also be used to further enhance our own Power Plant AC regenerators. The mounting plate for this is optional. The Ultimates perform 'I´ve plugged my new Ultimate Outlet High Current just a few minutes ago to my Cary 300SE-Signature monoblocs and Meridian 508.24 CD Player...UNBELIEVABLE!!!! Incredible openess, tone, transparency...Just true 3D sound. I almost can´t believe what this little jewel makes to the sound of my system!! Thanks for such an amazing product. ' Jose Ramos The Ultimate Outlet cleans the power coming out of a home's AC sockets without restricting the power. This helps improve the performance of both audio and video components. Three  dimensionality is enhanced as is the beauty of an audio system's top-end and midrange sounds, yet never at the expense of dynamics or bass. In a Home Theater environment, the picture noticeably improves. Better color definition, clarity and image depth are immediately apparent.The Ultimate also serves important protective functions. Each home outlet can potentially damage connected equipment by allowing surges and spikes through the line. Traditional protection, relying on power conditioners, is often less than successful because it requires a trade-off in performance. An AC regenerator like the Power Plant, the only other solution, offers tremendous protection but is not as affordable as the Ultimate Outlet. With the advent of the Ultimate Outlet, the dilemma is over. Ultimates can be used to power everything in an A/V system, while protecting all components and enhancing their performance. Does it replace the Power Plant? No. While the Ultimate is a great pre-cleaning device, it cannot fix lo  w voltage, it cannot regulate the power, it cannot repair the typical clipped sine wave that comes out of your home, and it does not convert your wall voltage to balanced power. Only a Power Plant can perform those functions.What it can do is clean noise and harmonics, lower the output impedance, and provide protection, without limiting dynamics. Because the balun is based on balanced construction for its operating mode, it can reduce common mode noise by more than 40 dB! 40 dB is a lot, considering it is a factor of 100. Whatever noise is on the line, it will be reduced by over 100 times. This major cleaning effort by the Ultimate will take place not at just very high frequencies, like a typical power filter or conditioner, but at virtually all frequencies presented to it. How the Ultimate is used Ultimates can be mounted on the floor, on the wall with an optional quarter-inch-thick aluminum mounting plate, in the ceiling for use with a top-mounted video projector, or on the output end of a Power Plant. And because the Ultimate generates no heat, there is no need to worry about ventilation. Each Ultimate Outlet also comes with a three-foot power cord to connect the Ultimate to an outlet. Users can pla  ce the Ultimate on the floor behind an equipment rack or a power amplifier. Used behind a rack, it's a simple matter to connect a multi-plug extension strip to the Ultimate to expand the number of available sockets. Ultimates can also be installed on the sides of a rack. The mounting plate makes it easy to set up in almost any small space.Placed behind an amplifier or television set, the Ultimate is perfect for dedicated use. The power amp or TV plugs into the Ultimate's output, and the Ultimate's input goes into the wall socket. The power amp or TV plugs into the Ultimate's output and the Ultimate's input goes into the wall socket. Now your power amp or TV is completely protected, has unrestricted power available to it, and both common mode and differential mode noise is reduced by as much as 40 dB. The Ultimate's small size also makes it easy to mount on a wall next to an AC outlet; installing the Ultimate inside a wall is not recommended. Used behind your equipment rack, it is a simple matter to connect a multi-plug extension strip like the Juice Bar into the Ultimate so as to extend the number of plugs available. Use the Ultimate just as you would a duplex wall AC outlet.  In the ceilingUltimates are especially useful in ceiling installations. After all, what can you do with a ceiling-mounted projector? Conventional power conditioners that might fit are likelier to harm than help picture quality, and Power Plants are just too heavy for ceiling installations. But adding an Ultimate Outlet will protect the projector, clean the AC in both directions—protecting the home's AC from the power supply of the projector—and deliver clean dynamic power to the projector itself. Place it on the output of a Power Plant Placing the Ultimate between the Power Plant and your equipment is not as important as placing the Ultimate before the Power Plant or using it to provide power for amps and TV's. However, it can help in one area: reverse noise injection. Because the Ultimate is bi-directional, meaning that it reduces noise and harmonics in BOTH directions, you can use it to prevent digital equipment from contaminating the output of the Power Plant. The Power Plant does an admirable job all by itself, but the added benefits provided by the Ultimate Outlet can be a noticeable improvement. Using different cables The Ultimate comes with its own custom built 14 gauge power cord, three feet in length. While this is a good power cord, we certainly recommend the addition of an xStream Power Cable to both power the Ultimate as well as from the Ultimate's output to your equipment.  How much power can the Ultimate produce? Technically speaking, the Ultimates are designed for up to 30 amps of unrestricted power. However, most AC wall sockets in the United States and Canada are limited to 15 amps. In Europe and Asia, the current is half that but the voltage is twice. So, we feel quite confident that the Ultimate will provide virtually as much power as your wall socket can deliver under normal household conditions. Are they available in 220 volt as well? Yes. We offer 220/230 volt versions of all three models of the Ultimate in addition to the 120 volt versions currently available. Do you offer the same 30 day money back guarantee? Yes. If you purchase directly from PS Audio, we offer a full 30 days for you to take the unit home and try it to make sure it works in your system as well as it does in ours. If you purchase it from one of our many dealers, or a distributor in your country, please check with them to see what their individual policies are for in-home trial. What is the cost of the Ultimate? $299 US retail for the Standard Ultimate. $399 US retail for the High Current Ultimate. US Retail on the Standard Ultimate Outlet includes the Ultimate with one spec grade duplex socket and a shielded three foot AC input cord. US Retail on the High Current Ultimate Outlets includes the Ultimate with one Power Port duplex socket and a shielded three foot AC input cord. Prices in other countries will be higher, reflecting shipping costs, customs and duties where they apply. Please check with your local distributor for information. Interested in listening to one in your own home? Click here to find out how! |
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