@rbstehno , I totally get that you can go way overboard on the gimmick boxes. Even my dealer who sold me the Phoenix reclocker rolled his eyes when I asked him about it! He said “another box, and if I hear one more customer going on and on and on about how much better the sound is with the Phoenix…. I wish they’d just shut up sometimes…I can’t stand all these extra boxes…” Then he followed up with “But whatever, everyone who buys one is just over the moon so I guess it must be good.” Not a very motivated salesman I guess. I have a suspicion he smokes weed at work… He’s a funny guy.
Anyways count me in that camp now of amazed totally happy customers. This gimmick box certainly doesn’t have gimmick results. Between my recent Nordost Valhalla 2 speaker cable, my AudioQuest Dragon power cord, and this “gimmicky” Innuos Phoenix which is actually incredibly good, it’s just stunning how it’s lifted my system. Before all this I always thought my system really sounded good and I enjoyed it a great deal, but I never really felt the sound was high end. That’s changed now. Difference is in the level of transparency and soundstage depth and imaging precision, with more texture and dynamics. And as counterintuitive as it might seem, it makes all material easier to listen to. When I’m trying to focus on critical listening I just end up getting caught up in the music… Pretty cool.