(page 3)

Performance continued ...

All I can say is that Mr. Blue Circle was spot on. The odds were stacked high against the BC86: It was very late at night when power is usually cleaner than during daytime, I had the polluting appliances turned off, I was listening to new material - so lower chances of me picking up on subtleties, and I plugged in the unit further away than optimal. Even under such conditions the Power Line Pillow made an audible difference. I was pleased to hear an increase in soundstage depth and focus, more ambiance and recorded material coming through. The textures were richer and dynamics improved as well. The sound appeared to be now emanating more from the space between and behind the speakers. The background was quieter allowing more detail to surface. Plugging the unit into the same outlet center as the rest of the audio system offered further improvements but not as much as treating an untreated circuit altogether. Proximity improved things but the existence of the filtering device alone made the bigger impact; just make sure your comfortably within the recommended limit. Un plugging the unit confirmed my findings: The sound dulled down and the images became flatter.

On the third day of the show I saw Gilbert again and told him about my findings. He was pleased but not surprised. He further explained:

"You should really try using two or three of these. You see, their effect is cumulative, each device lowers the noise floor further - you have to try more then just one."

A month later I had two more units from Gilbert. And yes, two and three in parallel did further improve on what was already a fine performance offered by a single BC86. I find two to be best "bang for the buck"; with more than three in place there is something to be said about diminishing returns. You also end up being slowly invaded by a bunch of little black boxes! Besides, Blue Circle has other products higher up in its line of power conditioners for you to consider.

Here I have a Hubbell AC outlet augmented with a snipped power cord extension cable feeding three "pillows" in parallel. This is my current setup.

Conclusion

Blue Circle has a great product in their BC86 MkII power line filter. It delivers on its claims and it's the right price. I wish my amplifier had a little switch that I can toggle as I wish and at those times I desire improved sound-staging, focus and dynamics. Until then I'll just have to make due with plugging in a few BC86's to the same effect. If you have never tried power line conditioners or power line filters, I can't think of a better place to start from than Blue Circle's BC86 MKII. Highly Recommended.

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Comments (add)


Mac	Hi Boris.... This is in regard to the Blue Circle review, the BC86mk2. I have one (will pick up another someday), and have used it for a couple months. I noticed a vast improvement in sound qualities, especially imaging and stage...really does everything Gil said it would. But what he didn't tell me, and what you miss in your review, is what it does for Television. Cleans up a TV picture like crazy! My teenager walked into the room the first night it was on and thought we had a new TV...(ok...he's not the most observant kid on the planet...I mean, it was the same tv, but the fact that he noticed the difference floored me ;) The TV is a 5 yearold Sears 25 inch (actually made by JVC), and is what I would call a cheapie, compared to what I have been shopping around for recently, and have stopped shopping...for now at least. Now it ain't gonna look like my sister's mega wonderfull HDTV Sony flat, but it is truely a HUGE improvement. Cheers Mac

Brian	Check out our review here: http://www.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/5/2918.html

The Blue Circle BC86 MKII