Power Cord Possibilities

[prepress]

Sunday I replaced the WW Electra on my C2300 with the Shunyata Venom3s that had been on my TV. i have listened to NPR and watched some DVDs and am pleased. Most important is a much better grip on the 2300's IEC, which is why the switch was made, but I listened comfortably and wasn't listening to sound so much, but music. Other than a Venom extension which gets my system to the wall, the Venom 3s is the only Shunyata cord I'm using.

I wonder if I would gain anything by going to a regular Venom 3, which is 12AWG versus the 3s at 14AWG. Perhaps I should try the Kimber PK14 or Transparent High Performance before declaring the Venom a winner. I'd try the Transparent Premium, but I don't need 2m as the 2300 sits on the shelf above my Furman conditioner, and 10AWG is overkill for a preamp.

[rnrmf1971]

I know you've tried to lessen brightness in your system.

I have a z-tron viper and viper HC in my house that I was demo-ing for my guitar amp and the z-tron viper has incredible, rich, warmth in the midrange and saturated tone. It's only very modestly extended in the bass but the the treble is definitely down a few db if not rolled off a bit more, perhaps.
But it was exactly what I was looking for and I'm keeping the z-tron viper. The price is very reasonable and it's on sale, too.
I'd guess that using it on your C2300 could have the same effect. No edge AT ALL. It might let you use your more detailed tubes without them sounding bright.

[prepress]

Originally Posted by rnrmf1971

I know you've tried to lessen brightness in your system.

I have a z-tron viper and viper HC in my house that I was demo-ing for my guitar amp and the z-tron viper has incredible, rich, warmth in the midrange and saturated tone. It's only very modestly extended in the bass but the the treble is definitely down a few db if not rolled off a bit more, perhaps.
But it was exactly what I was looking for and I'm keeping the z-tron viper. The price is very reasonable and it's on sale, too.
I'd guess that using it on your C2300 could have the same effect. No edge AT ALL. It might let you use your more detailed tubes without them sounding bright.

Hi,

At this point my main concern is the CD player, as the other sources seem fine. With a limited sample the non-bright CDs have a nice openness, and the bright ones are listenable so far. A bright CD is a bright CD, but it's possible to mitigate that somewhat. With the Venom 3s on the CDP itself, the sound was a bit too mellow, I thought. Fine with the bright ones, but only okay with the non-brights; brass seemed less lively, for one thing. But with it on the 2300, that reversed. My "torture-test" CDs were okay, but one or two tracks were borderline too bright.

Of course, a warmer CD player is the mot expensive and ultimate option here, or a different DAC. But for now I'm doing research on Shunyata and Transparent cords, eventually Kimber too. The Viper is a real jack of all trades according to Shunyata's Component Guide, even recommended on amps with more than 250w/ch, though any of the HC cords are a better choice in that case. Decisions, decisions. The other thing is I'll need to get past the fact that I don't need more than a 1m cord for the preamp, as the Furman it plugs into is on the shelf below; anything longer than that introduces extra clutter in my mind. Maybe a Kimber, at 4ft, would be okay. The Viper is 1.75m, or about 5'9".

Power cords do make a difference, it seems; not as dramatic as ICs or speaker cable, but there's a difference. How much may depend upon where they're used and with what.

[rnrmf1971]

Originally Posted by prepress

Power cords do make a difference, it seems; not as dramatic as ICs or speaker cable, but there's a difference. How much may depend upon where they're used and with what.

Yes, and unfortunately the ones that can make the greater differences often cost a lot. The Ztron Viper, despite the extra length you don't really need, might do what you want, though. It seems to do one thing very well - that being warm, rich mids and de-emphasized treble, at least on the gear I'm using it.

I actually wouldn't count on a new cd player changing things, satisfactorily, if brightness is the issue. In my experience cd players are more alike than different with the large changes being improvements in realistic presentation of soundstage depth, realistic tone of instruments and vocals, and clarity/detail. Those are the areas where I hear the biggest differences between an Oppo and say an Esoteric, for example. That said, once you zero in on these differences, one becomes enamored of them as they are like the icing on the cake, so to speak.

[prepress]

Okay, I needed a dose of reality and a change of perspective.

With both the holidays and a rather large dental bill coming, I've re-focused a bit and decided I won't want to make myself crazy. I have a 1m Transparent High Performance power cord on the way (the store was out), and it will replace the Venom 3s on the preamp as a test. We'll see what happens. Despite the Shunyata Viper being on sale, the TP cord is cheaper yet and the size I preferred. Of course, a Venom 3 would have been cheaper still, but I wanted to try the Transparent. And, having seen the Kimber PK10s up close and personal at the NY Audio Show on Friday and in a system that sounded good, I want them. But I can't go there now. It would be for the best to stop chasing sound and to remember my priorities. Maybe the Vipers would work on the amps or my CD player, if they're still on sale when I'm ready to make a move.

Meantime, I 'd better be about the business of acquiring plane tickets and a hotel for the annual holiday trip south.

[prepress]

The Transparent High Performance power cord (HPPC) arrived yesterday, and I put it right to the test with my usual material. There was an immediate difference versus the Venom 3s, and that is in the bottom frequencies. They were stronger, less subdued than they were on the Venom 3s. The top end was similar, but my sense was that the Transparent was smoother, whereas the Venom 3s felt rolled off; not certain those two are the same thing. It should be mentioned that the Venom 3s is 14AWG and the HPPC is 12AWG. Source material for this brief session was the Atlanta Symphony's Appalachian Spring/Rodeo/Fanfare for the Common Man CD, and the 1964-1965 CD from the Rock 'N Roll Relix collection.

The HPPC is Transparent's second from the bottom PC. Next up the line would be the Premium, companion to the Plus ICs and speaker cables; the HPPC goes with the MusicLink cables. Perhaps, eventually, I'll get a Premium for the preamp and put HPPCs all around elsewhere. Right now, there's no reason to get away from the other Wireworld cords I'm using (Stratus on sources, Electras on the amps). The low frequencies are perhaps a tad stronger than they were with the WW Electra 7 I used on the preamp before. More listening is required with my demo discs.

[prepress]

Kimber PK10 Ascent ($450, 6 ft) vs. Transparent HPPC ($320, 2m) or PRPL ($600, 2m) for my MC501s. A slow decision as to what to do. This is where things are, and I'm hoping to not get carried away as other bills vie for attention.

[prepress]

Over time the Transparent HPPC has opened up, and things are sounding better. But I wasn't prepared for what I heard yesterday.

Many here are surely familiar with Yes' Close to the Edge LP. They'll also know that the title track has four movements, the third one called I Get Up I Get Down and the most quiet of the four. Toward the end, there's a low synth note played, and I usually hear it only barely, as if there's a hole in the sound at that point. Yesterday, playing my SACD version, that synth note showed up in spades. It was clearly audible and even packed a bit of punch. I've never heard it that clearly before. I pulled out the original CD to check this against, and though slightly diminished, it still came through clearly! The only change in the system is the HPPC having replaced a WW Electra 7. If this is what TA cords do once they get loosened up, I'm wondering what putting these on all sources might do.

[prepress]

A plunge, of sorts. I have just ordered two more Transparent HPPCs, to replace the Wireworld Electra 5.2 cords on my MC501s. The Electras will be moved to sources, displacing WW Stratus cords on the CD (7) and tuner (5.2). The Electra 7 displaced by the HPPC on my C2300 will replace the Stratus 7 on my blu-ray player.

Things are moving along, not sure to where.

[prepress]

Ok, the Transparents arrived yesterday. They're on my amps. I guess they'll need time to break in, but I think they'll do well.