February 2002

An Interview with Dick McCarthy of Richard Gray's Power Company: Part 2

Jeff Fritz: Are the RGPC units system dependant, or have you found them to be effective in all applications?

Dick McCarthy: It is more AC line dependent than system dependent. If you have stiff power there is little reason to use the RGPC unit other than for surge suppression. Since RGPC is a cure for many ailments in systems which have been previously tweaked to mask unwanted noise on a soft AC line, once RGPC technology has been introduced, it is not unusual to revisit power cords, interconnects, and speaker wires which had previously been placed to match the system and/or to compensate for shortcomings.

Previous tweaking of an audio system is perhaps why some who have introduced an RGPC unit have found it not to perform as touted. For audiophiles this is a sensitive area because so many of us have spent literally thousands of dollars to purchase these important tweaks, so if the RGPC unit doesn’t yield nirvana, the culprit must be the RGPC unit and not their cables which are masking the noise. The same is true for video because once the RGPC unit improves the delivery of more consistent current, the monitor needs to be re-calibrated. This is most welcome because it gives the installer more latitude to hand-calibrate a system.

Note: It takes about a week for an RGPC unit to settle into a system, so a quick A/B comparison doesn’t fly. It is important to allow your system to settle in with the RGPC unit to achieve a higher, more laboratory grade of current, and it is only when you remove the RGPC unit after this period of time do you see the usual dramatic contrast of before and after.

JF: What are the current capabilities of the RGPC products, and how do they interact with high-current amplifiers? Do they limit current under any circumstances?

DMcC: RGPC units do not limit current whatsoever, and because electricity doesn’t flow through the inductor, but past it, the equipment is only limited by the size of the AC circuit. Unfortunately, too many consumers like to overload a circuit with mega-powered amplifiers. At CES a year ago many manufacturers of high-end audio equipment were using the new RGPC 1200S to power their amplifiers. We were surprised to observe that they all had chosen to plug their power amplifiers directly into the wall outlet with the RGPC unit plugged into the adjacent duplex wall outlet. Their argument was simple: Why ask a current-hungry amplifier to be driven through two power cords and two fuses (one fuse in the amp and at least one fuse in the RGPC unit). Subsequently, we advise the following:

We suggest you plug your basic power amplifiers (not integrated or receivers) and powered subwoofers directly into your wall outlets, with the RGPC units plugged into the adjacent duplex wall outlets, to take full advantage of our non-current-limiting parallel AC-line enhancement and energy-savings technology. Yes, this means that all components, just by being plugged into the same AC circuit, will receive RGPC enhancement. Basic power amps and powered subs do not need surge suppression because we feel that their own internal transformers protect them adequately. We recommend, however, that all front-end surge-sensitive components be plugged directly into an RGPC unit to take full advantage of our unique state-of-the-art surge-suppression system. The only component within the RGPC unit that limits current is the 20-amp fuse. For power-hungry amps, we recommend bypassing this in-line fuse.

JF: How much actual noise can an RGPC product remove from an average system?

DMcC: It removes as much as or more than any PLC of which we are aware. Regarding the second part of your question, what is an average system? The more RGPC units you place in parallel within any system, the greater the ability to remove noise, the more current on demand, and the lower the noise floor.

JF: What effect do the RGPC units have on video circuitry? Would a consumer notice a difference on a standard 27" monitor, for example?

DMcC: Video monitors require a more constant laboratory level of current than is available on a soft AC line to form-up sufficient black level to produce a more dimensional and dynamic image. Unfortunately, traditional series methods of line conditioning have the opposite effect; they remove line noise, yet they restrict current even further. RGPC’s parallel technology removes the line noise (which is not rocket science), while providing a more laboratory grade of current. This absorbs both the lethal spikes and the constant smaller surges that plague electronic parts, which makes components work harder to overcome line anomalies. RGPC provides a more dimensional video picture on all video formats, from a 27 " TV to the largest plasma and projectors, with greater color intensity, greater dimensionality, and a much lower noise floor as evidenced especially in the outer edges of the monitor. To accomplish this it is desirable to have all video sources and the monitor enhanced by RGPC.

JF: Are there any differences between the models in the line other than capacity? Would, for example, a 1200S be an upgrade from two 400S units?

DMcC: All RGPC models contain the identical "choke" or inductor wired internally with 12-gauge wire. An RGPC 400S has one choke with a 15-amp IEC connector and a removable 14-gauge power cord. The new RGPC 600S has one choke, a 20-amp IEC connector, and a removable 12-gauge power cord. The RGPC 1200S has two chokes with two 20-amp IEC connectors and a removable 12-gauge power cord. Electrically the RGPC 1200S provides twice the power and double the noise reduction, and because it is internally wired, there is less "extension-cord effect" than the external star clustering of two RGPC 400S units.

The more RGPC units star-clustered within a system, the lower the noise floor and the more black level is achieved on video. Also, the audio system becomes more and more effortless in the reproduction of music within an analog or digital system.

In more demanding applications, RGPC units operate optimally in multiple sets for incremental additional enhancements. Star-clusters of two or three RGPC units double and triple current-on-demand. Again, it's all about parallel technology. (Try star-clustering series devices for a speedy tutorial on the merits of parallel technology!) This means that one RGPC unit is plugged into the AC wall outlet with additional RGPC units plugged into this primary RGPC unit. The more RGPC units wired in parallel into the same circuit, the larger the inductance and the lower the noise floor. You would never do this with conventional PLCs with series architecture because the cumulative resistance placed on the line would be completely unthinkable.

JF: Tell us about a home-theater experience you have had that you found especially satisfying. What type of system was in use?

DMcC: I quote a letter received from one of our excellent dealers, Terry Morton of Land and Sea Entertainment in San Diego, California: "It’s late and I spent 11 hours at the Smargon site today with my video-calibration guru. He arrives with a $10,000 radio-spectrometer, a computerized color analyzer, and a true HDTV signal generator. William and I have done four other Sony G90/Faroudja 5000 ultra-hi-def video installs, and we’re used to seeing the same excellent results during a long, rigorous calibration process.

"Until today, I explained all the electrical circuitry isolation and showed him all the (10) RGPCs and he looked for a minute, nodded, and went on about his business. When he got into the nitty-gritty of the calibration, William started going nuts. He couldn’t believe the picture he was seeing. It was entirely free of noise or electrical and transport artifacts, and he clearly demonstrated this to me with the sophisticated equipment and our own eyes.

"There are currently about 700 of these projectors worldwide and today was his 145th calibration, which includes the ultimate who’s who. I have personally never seen a better video picture and William says it’s the purest picture quality he’s seen from all installs. Even our ultra-fussy client (Dan) couldn’t find defects. It was a happy milestone for him, and the project.

"The very complex projector-table structure fit like a glove. The cabling plan is finalized as of today. The audio is next, but not until the cabinet is more complete. Kent Penner made the calibration possible by literally depriving all sunlight from the area so the most sensitive measurements could be taken. The RGPCs gave us pristine video quality. The audio system will enjoy the same. At this point, I think this system will exceed even our own expectations." 

To learn more about Richard Gray's Power Company's products visit their website.

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