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Upgraded power cords or high end conditioner next?

Hi everyone,

I need advice on what will give me the biggest improvement for my next upgrade - power cords or a high end power conditioner?

My current living situation is a rental apartment, so unfortunately I cannot do anything like having a dedicated line for my system.

I already have upgraded power cords for my Manley Shrimp preamp and my CDP, but my Manley monoblocks (retubed with NOS :)) are just using the stock cables for now. The Shrimp and the CDP are plugged into a PS Audio High Current Ultimate Outlet and the monoblocks are plugged strait into the wall.

So I was thinking my next upgrade is either upgraded power cords for the monoblocks or an upgraded conditioner (passive - like a Shunyata Hyrda or a Running Springs unit that I could plug my CDP, pre and monoblocks into). Which one will give me the bigger improvement? My budget for the power cords would be maybe $500 each (used - so say $750 each new). What cords would you recommend in that price range? Also, the cords on my CDP and pre are both Lat International MK2 (budget PCs). Should I put my best PCs on the source/pre or the amps?

Thanks,

Ed
latinsamba1
lak's avatar
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lak
4,707 posts
 
Ed,
I understand your situation being in an apartment and not being able to have dedicated circuits. One important question I have for you is what else is running off the circuits that you use to power your audio gear?
That’s important to know first, before answering your question in my opinion.
Regardless of what you decide to do, if you have not done so yet, replace your wall audio AC outlets with some good ones such as my favorite (or which other brand you select) the Porter-port. You should hear a significant improvement. When you move, take them with you when you switch them out.
latinsamba1 OP
74 posts
 
Hi Lak,

My refridgerator is on the same circuit so I always just turn it off before doing any critical listening. I'm not sure what my next place will be like, but it's New York City so it's guaranteed to be compromised. The advice about the wall AC outlet seems like a cheap and easy upgrade though.
metralla
945 posts
 
I also live in an apartment, and have thought along the same lines as you. I plug CDP, preamp and monoblocks directly into the wall.

I did replace the outlets - a couple of times in fact. I ended up with silver-plated, cryo treated, Pass and Seymours from Acme Audio. The operation is reasonably easy to do and the results were impressive.

Regards,
latinsamba1 OP
74 posts
 
Hi Metralla,

Love your system :)

How do those Coincident speakers sound with your 300b SET monoblocks? I really like my single driver Omegas for their great speed and tone but some days I would prefer a larger SET friendly floorstanding speaker with a bigger soundstage and better bass.
lak's avatar
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lak
4,707 posts
 
Ed,
If your refrigerator is the only item on that line and you unplug it when you’re critically listening I think I’d be incline to upgrade power cords. I suggest this because to many times I’ve spoken to many audiophiles that use various devices to clean the AC power and in the long run they find out that they have degraded details instead. Don’t get me wrong, I have an extensive power filtration system in my home and it works well however the more I experiment the more I find that I like the AC power coming out of my outlets that is only filtered by my 5 KVA isolation transformers.
I’m sure there are pro’s and con’s to your question, and the bottom line is you have to try it yourself to decide what works best in your situation.
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