Digital sources best with Hydra 8's analog outlets

Just as a side note. i compared the hydra 8 to the Sound Application products , specifically the model 12 and cfx . The 8 was very close to the cfx and 12 . There was a touch more transparency to the SA products but midbass to low bass was slightly fuller with the 8. Overall, i would have chosen either over the 8. The Reference line Stage by SA spanked the 8 , hands down. .... in my system.

Sean:

You stated: "Since you also state that the max continuous current is 20 amps on your website, this device is current limiting and not by what the AC circuit feeding it is capable of."

I may have misunderstood you here...so if I did I apologize. Anyway, most duplex outlets (in most houses anyway) are rated up to 15 amperes. Moreover, most houses have 15-20 amp breakers before the outlets at the main panel which are shared by however many outlets and switches(for lighting and the like) are on that particular circuit. Which means at any given time, (AT BEST) the most current you'd have a available at a single outlet would be 15/20 amperes. So, on that sense, the Hydra is not current limiting...only because its current limit is larger than anything that should be available at the wall plug...I suppose is "non-current limiting for all practical/common purpose".

Just to step in here where i think it looks to be value added:

1) Lab test that Grant mentioned can be found at a link at the bottom of the Hydra techincal page on their website: http://www.shunyata.com/HydraScopeTests.pdf

2) Grant also does live demos of these tests up-close at audio shows - I have seen them 1st hand.

3) On a more philosophical note - much of audiophilia is not captured by science - as those who have measured two power cables will see - one cannot 'hear' the cable by looking at it on a scope. No matter how much 'lab work' is done - it all goes out the window compared to the importance of empirical field analysis.

Brb: A scope is but a single tool amongst an arsenal of test equipment. While it can be a VERY useful tool, it is also quite limited in scope.

Having said that, most all of the operating design parameters of a power cord ( or any cable for that matter ) can be easily measured / observed with the right tools. It is simply a matter of correlating those measurements with how that specific cable mates in a specific interface with other components. The more consistent the operating and electrical parameters are of the mating components, the more predictable the results.

As to the info that you linked to on Shunyata's website, that does demonstrate a portion of the info that i was asking for, albeit a very small portion. Given that Shunyata claimed that most of the money spent on this very expensive product was used for R&D, posting something like that many months after the fact hardly covers the bases. That's because there are no specific figures given so that one could produce repeatable test conditions.

On top of that, those tests could be optimized to highlight specific performance traits of their units while denigrating specific performance traits of the competing unit(s). Spectral analysis over a specified bandwidth and figure specific specifications would have been FAR more valuable. Had they gone that route, the average audiophile would be lost and they wouldn't have the pretty pictures of sine waves to look at and be amazed : )

Buy and use what you like. If it makes you happy and you think that it was worth what you paid, i guess that it is money well spent. If nothing else, you'll be helping hte economy when you decide to sell and buy something else : ) Sean
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Thanks Sean , I had sort of forgotten why AG had gotten somewhat stale as of late. Good to see you back on the puter. The site has gotten sort of non technical as of late with many of the questions and comments focused on purchasing and what goes with what and so forth. I am guilty of this as my area of contribution is not of a technical nature but from a perspective of someone very passionate and driven who has bought and sold dozens and dozens of pieces of gear in an attempt to increase my learning curve from a position of atual listening experiences that I can share with no axe to grind. Its always so refreshing to get a technical viewpoint .