Update on the world's introduction to the Snake River Audio Takshaka lineup.
They will be featured at the Capitol Area Audiofest, Nov 8th through the 10th. The system will also include the new Popori speakers, powered by the V.A.C. amplifiers. Room 840, for those who are or may be interested in hearing the latest lineup from Snake River Audio.
Jonny himself, will be down in the Marketplace, main booth. Ya' can't miss him.
Tom
Snake River Audio Power Cables - Best Unboxing
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@kdoerner congrats with finding your audiophile happiness formulae! I see your new cables have RF clamps, closer to IEC conn side (correct use). Unless your original PC is defective (out of spec), you most likely deal with high freq. noise issue, penetrating from AC into amp. (I debugged hundred issues like that). I have bunch of different permeability / freq. response clamps in my Lab, used for debugging / filtering RFI noise. Those clamps typically cost between 50c - $5. I can provide you link, if you are interested, to compare to your upgrade PC. |
@westcoastaudiophile I identified "upgrade" based on sound. I have a set of songs I A/B test between the cables after they are broken in. Over the original Pass Labs PC, The Nordost added greater detail in the sound. Bass was a tighter and highs were more detailed. When moving from the Nordost to the Audioquest, the sound appeared to have greater imaging and more expansive. When going back to the orginal Pass PC, it was night and day. When moving up to the SRA, the lower end is way more pronounced and controlled. The sound is even more three dimensional and the sound stage is huge. These changes have not been subtle over the original PC and have given my the exact sound profile I enjoy. |
@kdoerner PC “upgrades” sometimes are higher resistance cables vs. original ones, benefiting in RC lower freq. filtering.. I still have no clarity on what (amp, power level, etc) exactly did you “upgrade” from original to “better” and how identify “improvement”? blind test, the same time of the year, sofa with different cushions, or? In HiFi every detail is matters. |
@westcoastaudiophile sorry if I misunderstood your question. Yes, I can absolutely tell the difference within each of the upgrades with my current system. I would say not so much with my original McIntosh system with the Zu Audio speakers. That system didn’t have the dynamics to hear the benefit of upgraded cabling. My current system is very revealing and has a ton of dynamics. Adding different power cables can add "color" for good or bad. Its not unlike upgrading speakers, a 6" woofer is not just a 6" woofer, there are nuances in the way its constructed and the material that is used. Same for the power cables in my experience. |
@kdoerner thanks for listing all of cables in your system! I just tried to understand if you have found improvement of replacing original power cable by “better $$$” one.. Do I understand it correctly from your posts, as You “dunno”? |
@westcoastaudiophile I listed the last run of cables just on my Pass Labs Int-60 near the start of the post. I started with the Pangea cables on my original McIntosh amp some years ago now. I upgraded that to all Zu Audio cables (power, RCA's, speaker) when I bought the original Omen speakers about 10+ years ago. From there I upgraded everything about 3 years ago to Pass Lab int amp, Hifi Rose streamer, McIntosh MP100 phono, and Mofi source point 10 speakers. I upgraded all the cables to Nordost (combo of Blue Heaven speaker cables and power, Red Dawn PC, and Heimdall v1 RCA, XLR, PC). I then upgraded the power cables to Audioquest Tornado, speaker cables to Rocket 88's. Did a speaker and phono upgrade, and bought a used Snake River Audio XLR cables and fell in love with the design and sound. Now we're at SRA PC on most my system. |
@kdoerner "I too have had many brands of power cables. Pangea, Zu Audio, Nordost, Audioquest. These are by far the most dynamic and holographic.” cables for what part/separate? compared to what, - original one? |
I'm in love with the sound. I've been moving the cables between component and finally settled into what sounds good to me. I too have had many brands of power cables. Pangea, Zu Audio, Nordost, Audioquest. These are by far the most dynamic and holographic. The Audioquest tornado come close, but can't match the low end extension I get with the SRA cables. |
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Hello, @mclinnguy. Tom |
Hey all. Unfortunately for me, I didn't discover Snake River Audio until early last year and I am so glad I did. Since then, I have outfitted most of my extensive rig with SRA cables (all of the main components are done). I can tell you that this man knows what he is doing! Jonny is top notch and he really cares about what he delivers. Everything is top notch, on every aspect. One of the greatest attributes that I cannot stress enough about, is the wonderful tone of the instruments/voices that these cables deliver. My system has never sounded so good and since the introduction of Snake River Audio cables, my enjoyment level has risen in spades. I went from listening to the music to experiencing it. Listening sessions have greatly increased in aural pleasure and length of time spent sitting in the sweet spot. Tom |
Sorry in advance @kdoerner but due to the natural progression of conversations as it were...
I would be worried about the other expensive appliances in the house also. The best thing someone can do is surge protect the whole house first, then look at individual electrical components in the home. This is the level 2 house surge protector I have- I also use a Puritan conditioner at the stereo and (of course) don't have any level 3 Leviton protection outlets in my hifi room. |
At last! A company, Snake River Audio, that can legitimately produce hifi cables whose performance can be likened to the miracles of snake oil. Hopefully they included some herpetological lubricant with the other nice things in the box, or at least some holy water from the river from which the company takes its name.
In all seriousness, however, I had not heard of this company but will now take a look. Custom cables manufacture in rural Idaho that win awards like Snake River Audio has is pretty impressive. |
Here in the U.K. the power distribution system, called the National Grid, Is going to be massively overhauled. There is no warning, but there will be hundreds of new connects and dissconnects, errors and accidents. Power drops and surges. If we don't have protection, many Hi-Fi's are going to be fried while we sleep. And there will be no recourse to the law, untill we have all died. They have not compensated the A-Bomb test troops yet. Crying in the wilderness, IAN.
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This is getting off topic, Again. Please, lets leave the opinions to another (other) thread. I've started the break-in and will add a thread in the future about my impressions of these beautify cables. We can debate in that one, lol. A big shout out to Jonny at SRA for such an amazing design. The cables have weight, and yet, pliable where they need to be and ridged at the ends. Just an overall wounder of construction. Plus, they look amazing, giving a pop of color to the system. So far, I'm happy with my purchase. |
westcoastaudiophile I'm not sure my last post was clear in my intention. I meant to point out that I (at the time) was driving affordable speakers with much more expensive speaker cables.....which makes no sense to me now. System at the time: Buchardt Audio S400 MKIIs, Denafrips Hades preamp, Denafrips Thallo amplifier, custom Neotech 3001 UP-OCC and Neotech spade connectors......I think they are 2.5 meters each I have not reinstalled the Neotech cable with my new system, as I am still partially disassembled waiting to finish my listening room in my basement. New system: Aric Audio Motherlode XL preamp, Aric Audio Transcend "Push Pull" EL 34 tube amp, CODA S5.5 SS amplifier, and Clayton Shaw Caladan OB speakers. |
@vthokie83 "I was driving $2,300 speakers with .$1,200 speaker cables" please help me, being adv. analog circuit designer, to understand your point, would be awesome if you can provide more details, such as amplifier type, speaker details, length of cable etc. speakers are driven by the amp, cable only adds few mOhms/uH/pF to interconnect parasitics.. |
kdoerner I certainly do understand, and I've been on both sides of that argument......I was driving $2,300 speakers with .$1,200 speaker cables I also own about $8,000 worth of very high end bulk cable and connectors, that I'll get around to building next year. My current stance though has changed, my number one concern is getting the highest quality components in the price range I can afford.....as my budget allows. This year I've bought a new preamp, two power amps, and a set of speakers. Next year will be the streamer, CD transport, and then later the DAC. |
@vthokie83 appreciate you. I completely agree, is a cable that is half the value of the streamer really going to make a difference? Not sure. I'm a strong believer in system synergy. When I first upgraded my streamer to a Nordost Blue Heaven PC, I could hear the increase in dynamics and added spaciousness. When I had an opportunity to get an Audioquest Tornado HC for my amp I also upgraded the streamer to the Tornado, Immediate impact. Now, I bought the Tornado when Sunny Audio was running a sale on the cables, so a $1000+ tornado cable was only $700 (only, lol). Will I get that same return on investment going up to the SRA? I don't know. I will say, SRA are end game cables for me. I'm not under any impression that my system will benefit from spending any more money on cables at this point. |
This is NOT an attack on the OP, just another thought I am a believer in cables for sure, and they can definitely make a difference in how a system sounds......if the gear is high enough quality. My only question here would be, is it worth installing a $1,500 cable on a $2,000 streamer? For the OP it certainly is, and I'd love to own Snake River cables or the like in the future, but only after the gear is up to snuff. Right now I don't think my Anti-Cables and Zavfino power cables are my limiting factor......it's getting an audiophile streamer to put a high end cable on. So saving for an Aurender/Lumin/Innuous streamer for now |
You're also kidding yourself if you don't think those reviewers get paid. Steve Huff pushed a $20 amazon speaker cable. Its sales went up 1000%. I even bought a pair.. Did it sounds the same as my Zu Mission cables? YES. Did it sound as good as my Nordost Blue Heaven? NO. Did it sound as good as my Audioquest Rocket 88? Not even close. |
@lordrootman you are proving the point. 2 different cables, 2 totally different sounds. So how can anyone say cables don't matter? Just because, to their ear's, they preferred one over the other, how is that wrong? At the end of the day, there was a difference! So please people, stop saying their isn't What you're willing to spend on cables for your ears, IS NOT, the same as what I'll spend to what I hear. |
Congratulation on the new set of cables! I find it funny about people who think that cables and power conditioners don't make a difference. People who say, how does the last 3 or 4 or 5 feet matter. These folks need to understand why water is not just water. Water flows hundreds of miles from glaciers, through jungles, streams, rivers, etc and yet we have a water purifier or a water treatment system before it enters our homes for drinking. I just hope that they nay-sayers just do not go directly to a great lake, put in a straw and sip straight from there. |
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Look, at the end of the day. I agree, 110v is 110v. It will all travel the same through a conduit (PC). However, this is saying a knife is a knife, "it cuts". Wrong! Metallurgy is a thing in case you've never heard of it. Like knifes, different compositions of metals and the way they are layered together will 100% effect the structure and how it behaves. In these cases, layers of different metals are mixed together to, yes present 110v, but to alter the wave lengths of sound traveling through them. This is what I "hear". |
"Louis Pasteur's theory of germs is ridiculous fiction." (Pierre Pachet, Professor of Physiology at Toulouse , 1872) "The abdomen, the chest, and the brain will forever be shut from the intrusion of the wise and humane surgeon," (Sir John Eric Ericksen, British surgeon, appointed Surgeon-Extraordinary to Queen Victoria 1873) "The super computer is technologically impossible. It would take all of the water that flows over Niagara Falls to cool the heat generated by the number of vacuum tubes required." (Professor of Electrical Engineering, New York University) "There is no likelihood man can ever tap the power of the atom." (Robert Millikan, Nobel Prize in Physics, 1923) "Man will never reach the moon regardless of all future scientific advances." (Dr. Lee DeForest, Father of Radio & Grandfather of Television) "Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible!" (Lord Kelvin, president, Royal Society, 1895) "The bomb will never go off. I speak as an expert in explosives." (Admiral William Leahy, re: US Atomic Bomb Project) When the steam locomotive came on the scene; the best (scientific) minds proclaimed, "The human body cannot survive speeds in excess of 35MPH." Until recently (21st Century); and the advent of the relatively new science of Fluid Dynamics, the best (scientific) minds involved in Aerodynamics, could not fathom how a bumblebee stays aloft. Often; Science has to catch up with the facts/phenomena of Nature and/or, "reality" (our universe). I haven't been in school since the 60's, but- at Case Institute of Technology; the Physics Prof always emphasized what we were studying was, "Electrical THEORY." He strongly made a point of the fact that no one had yet actually observed electrons (how they behave on the quantum level) and that only some things can really be called, "LAWS." (ie: Ohm, Kirchoff, Faraday) PERHAPS: that's changed in recent years and I missed it?
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@classicrockfan I believe the OP and I am curious what your system is. Also check this out: https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/an-electrical-engineer-on-how-power-cables-can-impact-sound-quality |
I've built over one hundred and have owned over 30+ brands of power cords and the differences are easily discernible if you have a revealing system and you have been in the hobby long enough to pick out subtleties within the soundstage. Depending on the component, the difference can be dramatic... Wig |
@classicrockfan "I'm an active EE and don't believe what the op claims "a power cord can make such a huge impact on sound" nothing but a waste of money Have you tried the Snake River in your system to actually have formed this conclusion? BTW , what comprises your system? |
@ktarver I appreciate that. I'm all for discussions, I just know this is a heated topic and I really just wanted to show off the skill and care Jonny over at SRA put into his craft. Once the cables are broken in, I'll create a proper impressions thread. Please come over and join the conversation :) |
@baylinor LMAO. The SR purple sounds amazing with my Pass Labs. |
@tkrtrb125 so true, lol |
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@ktarver I believe in my ears. Again, you should find someone who has a highly resolving system to A/B test factory cord vs a premium cord. You will understand. As for the wall socket, I hear what you're saying. In every system, the weakest link will always be the homes internal wiring and plugs. The cool thing is, if a power cord from that plug can make such a huge impact on sound, imagine what a difference if you could upgrade the entire power path. |
