SteinMusic PowerBar

"The Powerbar 10 Signature is the most effective, elegant and sophisticated passive power distribution device I have ever seen or auditioned."- Robert Levi, Positive Feedback Online, Issue 92

Reviews

• Positive Feedback Online

Having a passion for unlocking the potential in your music is what has driven Holger Stein for the last 3 decades. His products take an unconventional approach to the problems of noise, signal propagation and fine tuning of your audio system. The results SteinMusic products achieve towards creating a more exciting, immersive and involving musical experience are undeniable once you have tried them.

The PowerBar Series

The PowerBar series of power distributors from SteinMusic take the same approach and unconventional path to musical transparency. For power distribution, it is most important to do no harm first.

With this knowledge and by the use of proprietary, unconventional and unique solutions our friends at SteinMusic have built a sonically balanced series of power distributors that do not possess their own character.

No Capacitors

Capacitors on the AC mains are a common approach to getting rid of noise. As with most things in our hobby, that which has benefits also creates compromises elsewhere. Capacitors can be highly nonlinear, and their dielectric losses suck out finesse and detail from the music. If you are using a standard audio system this may smooth out the sound, and make listening more enjoyable. However with a good audio you will not want to miss the loss of fine detail.

The same effect can be said of inductors due to their core loss and dynamic limitations.

Connectors

All connectors in their Powerbar 6 and 10 are custom made to SteinMusic's specifications, so that a perfect sound and long term stability are insured. For the contacts, they chose a plating material of proprietary materials including rhodium. This, in combination with their other materials and techniques offered up more finesse and detail than a gold plated version.

Wiring

SteinMusic has gone to great lengths to ensure pure power delivery. The internal wiring of the Powerbar 6 and 10 are made of the purest copper throughout.All outlets are star-wired to a central point, and the orientation of each wire is aligned for the correct directivity.

3 Layer CNC Machined Chassis

The Powerbar power distributors are built very compact and rigid with a three layer CNC machined composite housing. The outer layers are made out of a special fiber board, where the dominant medium layer is a proprietary carbon composite compound.This construction is extremely stable and warp resistant.In addition the carbon composite compound is grounded to avoid electrostatic charge.

The CNC machined aluminum top plate which supports the outlets is mounted on the base housing to avoid unwanted resonance.The feet are massive walnut feet, a choice Stein made after extensive listening of a wide amount of different other solutions.

SteinMusic's Touches

In addition to the above details, the star grounding connection on the Powerbar 6 & 10 are one central point where all conductors are connected by their proprietary InLine technology. Here the vectors of the magnetic fields which are generated while a current is flowing through a conductor are completely random, which means the sum is zero.This avoids magnetic distortion, resulting in a much more layered, delineated sound. At this critical point, a small amount of Stein's proprietary quantum solution is also applied. Last, to protect this critical part and mechanically quiet it down, it is sealed in a specially filled epoxy resin.

All wires and connectors are demagnetized.In addition to this they undergo another proprietary treatment which significantly increases the movability of free electrons in all metal parts.This is done in a very complex process Steinmusic calls plasma treatment.

Adding The Highline Power Cord

I'll just let Bob Levi do the talking here. In his review of the PowerBar 10 Signature, he states:

"Though I tried my best, most expensive reference power cords with the Powerbar, the Stein Highline Power Cord was noticeably superior and enhanced system performance. The synergy here is pretty obvious to me."

Powerbar 6
size: 25 x 18 x 11cm
weight: 3.5 Kg

Powerbar 10
size: 39 x 18 x 11cm
weight: 5 Kg