Mods for a PS Audio HCA-2?

I have to disagree about the mods offered by asi audio being too much and 75.00 worth of blackgates and cheaper wiring is not even close to what asi is doing.

The three ps caps alone that they change to Jensen [read...better than blackgates] would cost a diy'er well over 500.00 for caps alone if blackgates were used.

The jensen caps are around 50.00 each and are also a 4 pole design and no rookie diy'er should attempt to install these.
There are also custom made parts in this mod.

I am not saying Fiddlers mods are not a good thing, but rather that there is no comparison to what asi audio is offering.

Check out the wiring on the four pole Jensens in the pics at www.asi-audio.com and you will see what I am talking about.
I am guessing at least 300.00 in parts and wire for the basic mod and more than two hours time.

Ears:
Have you heard an asi-modded HCA-2? Just curious how Jensens compare to B-Gates and what the rest of the mod contributes... TIA

I have heard neither of the mentioned amp mods yet but it is not a matter of Blackgates vs Jensen as the Jensen 4 poles are used in the power supply and the other diy mod has just a couple of Bg caps in the signal path.

The jensen caps are well known to sound better than even Blackgates when used in the power supply but they are not diy drop ins and require a lot more time and effort to install than any two pole cap.

I have had Blackgates and Jensens in the power supply of two different sacd/cd players but have not done a direct comparison on the same player but I will be in a couple of weeks.
Most pro modders will tell you that the Jensen is the best for power supply applications and the Blackgates still remain # 1 for signal paths.

If your in no hurry, I plan on buying an hca 2 soon and will do the signal path Blackgates myself and will send the amp to Doug at Asi for the Jensen ps caps and the other ps upgrades.

But my point was , you can't compare putting 75.00 worth of caps and wire to custom power supply mods, signal path upgrades and custom made parts that total over 300.00 , not to mention a lot more time being involved as opposed to the diy work.

I have used the Audio Consulting wire for ic's that replaced my Acoustic Zen ic's that cost 5 times as much but Audio consulting wire is not cheap at 3.50 ft for a single 24 ga strand and you have to figure multiple strands for an amp plus that cotton sheathing is not cheap either.

Ears, I do know an HCA-2 owner who had the same mods done as the ASI mods with the only difference being Harris FREDS. He had the mods done in steps so he could compare the difference of each mod along the way.

He told me that he heard very little improvement with the Jensen caps, the rectifier change, etc.

He said changing the output wiring was a significant, but the Black Gate caps were the most dramatic change of all. Makes sense to me. And I suspect this is the case since they are directly in the signal path.

My point here is that most anything can make a difference, but to what degree and at what cost? The bang-for-the-buck with the Black Gates is exceptional IMHO.

I did receive an email from ASI informing me of all of their mods. The gentleman from ASI explained to me that each of their mods to the HCA-2 makes a significant difference, but I wouldn't expect him to say anything different. What's he going to say, "Some of the mods don't make a big difference, but ignore that fact because I make more money if I do all of them?"

Look, I'm sure ASI does a fine job and I am not trying to slam them at all. There are many other companies that offer all kinds of mods to equipment. And in the end the consumer is responsible for deciding to have the mods done or not. ASI is certainly not forcing anyone to have all of their mods done!

It's just my opinion that some of the mods probably aren't worth the money. That's just the way I see it.

Oh you just gotta love the forum concept - most educational...
OK, where do I get BGs cheap? (ie. inexpensive!)