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Applications for Shunyata Hydra ?

New to powerconditioners. Did some research thru friends and dealers and the shunyata Hydra seems to get a popular vote.
My question is, considering the Guardian and the Hydra series. the price of the hydra seems to be double over the guardian series. Is the difference well worth it ?

If to use hydra /guardian, which of the components are best plugged in there ? I have a cd player, pre-amp and a power amp.

I also read that hydra/guardian has to be used with the shunyata 20 amp powercords. Which model of their 20 amp cord is best place to begin ? and does it make a whole lot difference using the higher model up which can cost as much or more than the hydra unit itself. Also if i already have some aftermarket power cord (other brands that are used in my components ) would it be compatible with the hydra ? ex. PS Audio powercord from cd player plugged into hydra 8 ?

Last but not least, what are the improvements expected from using hydra/guardian ?

Thank you for inputs.

Noli
nolitan
audphile1's avatar
audphile1
5,125 posts
 
haven't tried the new Guardian.
Using Hydra4 right now. Had 2 Hydra2 units before. Your cdp and preamp will benefit from Hydra. Your amp may or may not. My McCormack amps benefitted from Hydra but my Pass amp does not. I preffer this amp run directly from the wall.
With Hydra I noticed blacker backgrounds, reduced noise floor and overall it lets you hear a bit deeper into the music. Soundstage is improved as well.
Hydra and Guardian use 20amp power cords. The IEC inlet on the Hydra and Guardian is 20amp and is different from the conventional 15amp IEC plug, so your PS Audio cord, if it has a conventional 3-prong 15amp IEC plug, will not work with Hydra.
There are different power cords that can be made with a 20amp IEC end, so you can experiment. I used Shunyata Taipan Alpha with the Hydras and it was good.

But if you run the search on Hydra you will come up with lots of info and lots of opinions on PCs and everything else.
Have fun.
tplavas
123 posts
 
I'll second Lak's comments,

Given the cost of investing in high-end conditioners, I'd make sure your AC lines are up to snuff first. The bonus of doing so is that you won't have to guess whether or not any power conditioners you try are actually causing a sonic inprovement, or just a different sonic flavor, since you'll know you have a solid AC 'foundation' to compare them to.
groovey's avatar
groovey
125 posts
 
Lak, Warren. Toli, Tvad ( We sound like 5 oughta seven dwarves )

Hi good morning,

I realize having uncorrupted house current is one of the best treatments one can make to ensure noise free reproduction

What type of breakers and AC outlets would be considered HIgh End ? And what type of conductor would you run from the breaker to the outlet?

Another question - My house main current is coming off a powerline about 40 ft away, it enters the house about three feet away from my amp on the outside of the wall, the Breaker panel is 6ft below in the basement. Its 1/2 a mile up the road to my closest neighbor. With a dedicated line out of the box is power conditioning a wise thing or could it possibly just be another chance to degrade/enhance the signal.

Then again Warren aren't you concerned about surge protection ?
Where I live lightning does strike- sometimes twice !

thanks for your point of view

Best Regards

Groovey
warrenh's avatar
warrenh
2,299 posts
 
Well my pre amp and cdp are protected. My amp? Good excuse to shop for a new one. Seriously though, I should look for a used Audio Magic or (even) Hydra for my amp. I'd get the surge protection and a little conditioning while I'm at it. 30 yeara of this audiophooish game and lightning has never struck once. Murphy, are you there? Watch what's going to happen this year!
lak's avatar
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lak
4,642 posts
 
AC Outlets:

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?raccs&1065488253&openfrom&1&4#1
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