Thanks a lot, Rick! You're finally saving me some money. Those results certainly make sense. I guess I'll focus on upgrading to cosmetically pleasing cords that are shorter and make my set up look neater. I may try a venom 3 on my next receiver just to see. Maybe the digital version would be a better solution for that application. I'll wait for some more reports and buy some more gear in the meantime. Thanks again!

Cheers,

T Cobe

Well not having much to say recently, I have decided to put my $.02 worth in.

Rick, I have the V3's on my Decware amp (same one as Anthem) and on my T1's. I attached the V3s several times to my OPPO 105 - gosh, it was always ugly. Don't ask me to explain it! But it would have been noticeable to a beginner if one had been here - Yuck! I plugged back in my AntiCable power cord (much more expensive than the V3's) each time and the OPPO comes right back sounding great. Not sure why the V3 doesn't work on my OPPO but they don't. However the Decware Mark IV and T1s enjoy a LOT more musical life with the V3s - the AntiCable never seemed to help either of these two components. (BTW, I put a V3 on my new TV (suppose to make it blacker) - while it might have helped "some" - it was not very noticeable.)

I am like Anthem - it is hard to remember what each sounded like when I first switched power cords - so I don't know if they have changed (broken-in?) since first plugging in or not. I have 400-500 hours on these power cords now (V3s) - still going strong - wouldn't switch unless my friend Anthem tells me I should, after listening to his new purchase later this week!!

Finally, let me say I have the military interconnects that Anthem mentions every now and then. These rate much more positive for my system than the power cords. I would go back to the original pc's before I would relinquish these military cable interconnects.

Keep us posted on what you are hearing!! Blessings...

Dilettante,

Thanks for joining in on the discussion. You have been absent for a while and I appreciate you providing your input. The digital cable from Shunyata is about $400. That's a bit more than I want to spend right now while I'm saving for a new processor.

Thanks again for joining the discussion. I appreciate your .02. I think I'll invest in a Venom 3 to test out on my various components. With three trusted opinions (you, Anthem, and Rick), it's certainly worth a try.

Cheers,

T Cobe

Dilettante wrote: Well not having much to say recently, I have decided to put my $.02 worth in.

Rick, I have the V3's on my Decware amp (same one as Anthem) and on my T1's. I attached the V3s several times to my OPPO 105 - gosh, it was always ugly. Don't ask me to explain it! But it would have been noticeable to a beginner if one had been here - Yuck! I plugged back in my AntiCable power cord (much more expensive than the V3's) each time and the OPPO comes right back sounding great. Not sure why the V3 doesn't work on my OPPO but they don't. However the Decware Mark IV and T1s enjoy a LOT more musical life with the V3s - the AntiCable never seemed to help either of these two components. (BTW, I put a V3 on my new TV (suppose to make it blacker) - while it might have helped "some" - it was not very noticeable.)

I am like Anthem - it is hard to remember what each sounded like when I first switched power cords - so I don't know if they have changed (broken-in?) since first plugging in or not. I have 400-500 hours on these power cords now (V3s) - still going strong - wouldn't switch unless my friend Anthem tells me I should, after listening to his new purchase later this week!!

Finally, let me say I have the military interconnects that Anthem mentions every now and then. These rate much more positive for my system than the power cords. I would go back to the original pc's before I would relinquish these military cable interconnects.

Keep us posted on what you are hearing!! Blessings...

Hi, Dilletante

Thanks for the input! I think it's true that what a power cord upgrade does for a particular piece of equipment depends very much on what the full sequence of equipment is in the stream, including pre amps, amps, cables and connects, the type of equipment, and of course, speakers. So there is no one right answer for what works. Plus one's own tastes in sound quality comes in also. So there's nothing to do but try options. Interesting that the V3's sparked up your T1's, and I heard minimal difference on my sequence of equipment involving the T1's!

I need to keep an open mind on power cords, cables and interconnects. Your statement about speaker cables being right at the top echoes what Wayne has been saying.

I appreciate your feedback on what power cords helped where, and am also looking forward to anthem's opinions on the Venom Digital cable he ordered.

Thanks!

Rick

Something I don't understand:

When I plug my T2's directly into a wall outlet via Venom 3's, top octaves can be harsh at times. When plugged into an Emotiva cmx-6 and then into an cmx-2 this problem disappears. Dilettante has an cmx-6 (but not an cmx-2) and when plugged into it alone, always remarks with the word yuck. He always ends up going back directly to the wall outlet. Question is, why would a power cord plugged into the cmx-6 >cmx-2 affect the upper frequencies?

From Emotiva's Website:

The CMX-2 offers a solution to a less-familiar, common problem - DC offset on the AC power line. DC offset is usually the result of unbalanced loads or by flaws in the power distribution system itself. It can cause DC current flow in the transformers that power your audio equipment, making them run hotter, produce more mechanical hum, and, in extreme cases, even potentially causing permanent damage. In addition to removing line noise, the CMX-2 also totally eliminates this annoying and potentially damaging problem as well.

The CMX-2 delivers clean power, free of high-frequency line noise and potentially audible DC offsets to your audio components. It also continuously monitors your AC power line wiring integrity and alerts you to common fault conditions like open grounds and reversed lines.

Constructed from premium components, the CMX-2 utilizes our exclusive Power Direct Connect™ mounting system, which connects the commercial grade outlet directly to the high current circuit board by the shortest possible path, eliminating power robbing resistive losses and other problems caused by less reliable and robust wiring techniques. It also uses top grade common mode and differential mode L-C filtering to reduce oreliminate all types of high-frequency noise.

Anthem,

Do you recommend either of these for amps? Specifically, I'm considering the for my XPA-1Ls.

Cheers,

T Cobe