What a difference a Zitron Cobra power cord makes

[medward0]

Over the past few months, I've been upgrading some LAT power cords (their mid range) with Zitron Cobras. The LAT cords are good, but....

So, now I've got a 20amp Zitron Cobra from wall > (old) Hydra > Zitron to CJ pre

OMG...deeeep image out in front of the speakers and waaaay more detail than I've ever heard. And, smoother, more musical, longer and richer decay, quieter, etc. Yea, sounds like a component upgrade to me.

I knew that power cords mattered, but sheesh! I had no idea how much.

Now, I'm scraping the budget to add these Cobras to my DAC and REL.

I've still got a LAT PC on the CJ amp as it has a ground loop issue that I have yet to be able to solve (am still working on it) other than disassembling the plug and disconnecting the ground wire from the plug. Effectively, a $400 cheater cord. (Kinda tweaks me that an $8.5K amp has a ground loop issue. )

Would love to put a Zitron Cobra to the amp as well, but I don't know if disabling the ground pin is a good idea and if, in fact, a disabled ground pin Zitron would sound any better than a disabled ground pin LAT cord.

In other words, would a ground-disabled Zitron sound as sweet? Me thinks, probably not. Thoughts?

In any case, I hate floating the ground, but I'll take that over a 120Hz hum all the time.

[Ritmo]

Glad you are happy with the Z-Cobra. Shunyata is doing a nice job with their cables.

[gshepardbuster]

+1 for the Z-Cobra. I replaced a Hydra HC and two Sidewinders out of a Cyclops with three Z-Cobras. It's hard to believe what some wire will do!

[BlueFox]

Originally Posted by medwardo

Would love to put a Zitron Cobra to the amp as well, but I don't know if disabling the ground pin is a good idea and if, in fact, a disabled ground pin Zitron would sound any better than a disabled ground pin LAT cord.

In other words, would a ground-disabled Zitron sound as sweet? Me thinks, probably not. Thoughts?

In any case, I hate floating the ground, but I'll take that over a 120Hz hum all the time.

I am a big Shunyata fan, and have all Zitron cords in my two-channel, and Vipers in my HT, with a Zitron on order to connect from the new dedicated 20 amp line to the HT power conditioner.

Add a Triton to go up another level.

Anyway, Shunyata builds all cables per order, so it should be easy for them to build a Zitron without a ground. Assuming that isn't illegal.

[Glisse]

I can see how the Zitron technology works on signal cables, but it is not at all obvious that this same approach is used within the power cables. But without knowing, there is a reasonable chance that removing the ground on a Zitron cable will also remove the benefit.

In addition, I have found that at least part of the performance on Shunyata cables is due to how they terminate it at the factory. Removing a plug and rewiring usually detracts from the performance. I think this applies even more so with the Zitron cables, IIRC a post by Grant/Shunyata.

I really think it would be better for the long term to find the source of the problem. You seem to be sure that it is the CJ amp. I would have thought the primary culprit would be the REL Stentor (especially if you are using the high level connections, which some amps hate), followed by the DAC. Have you tried disconnecting these one at a time to see which components are creating the problem?

If the REL is on a different outlet than the amp, this can often cause a problem because there can be a difference in ground potential between the 2 outlets, which causes a ground loop.

You can also try "star earthing" all the components, ie connecting a wire to a chassis point on each component, which can get the ground noise off the signal cables.

Best of luck, and if you do manage to isolate the ground loop, then I'm sure a Zitron on your other components will be a wonderful addition

[New guy]

Great cord! I have recently added 6 Cobra cords and a Talos to my system.

[medward0]

Originally Posted by Glisse

....

I really think it would be better for the long term to find the source of the problem. You seem to be sure that it is the CJ amp. I would have thought the primary culprit would be the REL Stentor (especially if you are using the high level connections, which some amps hate), followed by the DAC. Have you tried disconnecting these one at a time to see which components are creating the problem?

If the REL is on a different outlet than the amp, this can often cause a problem because there can be a difference in ground potential between the 2 outlets, which causes a ground loop.

You can also try "star earthing" all the components, ie connecting a wire to a chassis point on each component, which can get the ground noise off the signal cables.

Best of luck, and if you do manage to isolate the ground loop, then I'm sure a Zitron on your other components will be a wonderful addition

Thanks, Glisse.

Yea, I need to do some troubleshooting. I've done a bit, but I'm gonna do some more. What a strange disease this audio is where I'm willing to do hours of work just so I can use a new Power Cable!

I too suspected the REL and its high-level connections, but even when it was on the same outlet as the amp, I had the ground loop hum. Even disconnecting the REL from the amp terminals entirely didn't stop the hum.

I'll let y'all know what I come up with.

Thanks again.