Welcome to Decware

Zen Line Conditioner

Model ZLC

The ZLC is a power conditioner for your hi-fi using a real

Zen approach to improve the sound...

DESCRIPTION

The Zen Line Conditioner uses a giant toroidal isolation transformer to store and release energy to your equipment. It 100% de-couples whatever is plugged into it from the noisy power grid that contaminates the sound quality of your gear.

The result is better dimensionality, far better liquidity, an absence of grain and better dynamics made possible by the large toroid.

The internal components are soldered.
The wire is top grade THHN stranded copper.
The outlets are hospital grade.
6 receptacles each individually switched.
Star Grounding.
Spike protection.
Increased safety for you and your equipment.
Heavy steel case.
Powder Coat Finish.

BETTER GROUNDING

One of the biggest headaches in the hobby of high-end audio is noise and hum. The largest contributor is having your equipment plugged into several places, or into power strips, which have similar results.

Each place a component is plugged-in has different contact pressures and resistances leading to ground that create small or in some cases large ground loops that make your system hum.

Having everything plugged into a single place, like the Zen Line
Conditioner, creates a single-point ground scheme that not only
eliminates ground based hum issues, but also improves the sound of your entire system with blacker backgrounds.

Many homes are miss-wired and have the neutral and ground bonded together mistakenly in one or more outlets that can and do create current on the ground line causing irreconcilable hum issues. The Zen Line Conditioner will create a perfect haven in such an environment because it isolates the ground and neutral.

NOISE SUPPRESSION

The Zen Line Conditioner features heavily shielded noise filtration on the input IEC device to kill incoming noise and keep it from reaching the inside of the steel cabinet where the toroidal transformer lives. Once the power is cleaned, the transformer magnetically decouples it and then feeds the various outputs. A single beeswax cap is used on the secondary to multiply the noise rejection without creating any artifacts.

Some people will wonder how this approach compares to a power regenerator so it pays to know that a power regenerator is a large power amplifier that instead of playing music plays a single 50 or 60 cycle sine wave. It is an amplifier whose performance is affected by incoming power quality just like anything else therefore it would make sense to plug a power regenerator into the Zen Line Conditioner.

ISOLATION

The power grid for any area is noisy. It has thousands of spikes from motors and other things turning on and off all over the county. It is also saturated with microwave RF from cell towers as is your home. While it is possible to filter a lot of this out, it is not possible to get all of it. Some would rationalize that this is OK, but in reality it is like saying that it's OK that we got 94% of the piss out of your ice tea. The only way to completely de-couple yourself from the grid is by using a large heavy isolation transformer like the one incorporated into the Zen Line Conditioner.

OPTIONAL DC FILTERING

Besides dirty power there is another issue becoming all too common in peoples homes and that is DC current on their AC line. This comes from certain appliances in the home like electric heaters or hair dryers or curling irons set on low. These devices use a diode to achieve the low setting which injects DC into your home. It can be from any house connected to the same telephone pole transformer! This is why checking your entire home doesn't usually work - the problem is coming from your neighbor.

When you have DC on your AC line it makes larger power transformers, like those in tube amplifiers, vibrate -- creating a physical hum. The operating temperature of the transformer also increases. And most importantly it's not doing the sound of your system any favors.

The ZLC can be upgraded or built with serious DC filtering as an option.

HUM & VIBRATION

Isolation transformers come in two flavors, E-Core and Toroidal. E-Core is less expensive square transformer that vibrate proportional to their size and the load placed on them. So if you use an E-Core you will hear 60 cycle vibration from the transformer with anything other than small amplifiers and preamps. Toroidal transformers also vibrate, just that they do it less at the same amount of load.

Vibration and apparent mechanical hum are proportional to the load applied to the Zen Line Conditioner. While it is rated at 8 amps you will start to hear a low level vibration at around 4 amps. This is generally not an issue with Decware gear because our amplifiers draw between 0.6 and 1.2 amps.

Using this isolation transformer with large power amps may result in mechanical vibration, far less than the same current on an E-Core transformer but still enough that you will probably hear it.

ON ANOTHER NOTE

It is a common misconception that dirty power somehow causes noise and or hum in audio gear. It doesn't. It causes dryness and grain in the music and compromises dimensionality. If your system hums loud enough to be heard at the listening chair against the normal noise floor in a home than you need to figure out why. Don't buy this product thinking it will fix the hum in your system because unless you have ground loops, it's not likely to have any effect on it. The sound quality of your music will still be a lot better with this product despite the hum your equipment might have.

SPECIFICATIONS

Weight : 26 lbs.

Dimensions: 5.75" H x 8" W x 10.5" D

Switched Outlets: 6 Audiophile Grade

ISO Type: Toroidal

Max Power: 1000VA

Max Load: 8.7A @ 115VAC

Regulation: 4%

Efficiency: 95% at full load

Fused: 8A

Voltage: 100~120VAC 60Hz. NOTE: This unit is not available outside the USA.

BUY HERE

Zen Line Conditioner - 10% Deposit

$109.50

Select Options in Cart

ZLCs are hand-built to order. There are presently lots of orders on our real time build sheet. A 10% deposit secures your place on the list with today's date and timestamp. Balance is due when it's ready to ship. You will be sent a final invoice with the total price including actual shipping costs by our office during your wait.