Pick one:Shunyata Hydra or PS Audio


If you had to pick one PLC Shunyata Hydra or PS Audio P 300/ P600 which one would you pick and why? Thanks
jcb2000
Check out a professional review of the Hydra at the link below. The reviewer had been using the PS Audio and makes some comparisons. He was convinced the Hydra was better.

http://www.soundstage.com/revequip/shunyata_hydra.htm
Anyone compare the Hydra with 3 Richard Gray Power Company 400S devices in series?? I have been looking at this aspect of my system, and have RGPC at home for trial...
As a little background, I own (and use) the Hydra, the P300, and the P600. However, which unit is "better" depends on the particular application and the quality of the power in your home. For example, using the P600 with CJ Eight XS's produced a whitening of harmonic textures, a reduction in soundstage depth, and most annoyingly a muting of dynamics and transient attack. Thus, if you plan to use the power conditioning for larger power amplifiers, I would prefer the Hydra. However, for both digital equipment and turntable power supplies, I find the Power Plants win hands down. For digital front ends, the Power Plants produce a significant reduction in the noise floor (which the Hydra did not), improved bass definition, and a more transparent window to the recording. As a caveat, though, I live in a condominium complex with terrible power (voltage ranges from 95V to 120V, all kinds of garbage on the line). As a second caveat, some users have indicated on AudioAsylum that they experienced transformer noise problems with the Powerplants. I have (fortunately) not experienced any such problems.

Thus, without knowing more about your system, I think the best thing you can do is see if you can arrange a home demo of both the Hydra and a Power Plant. I believe several dealers carry both units, and would possibly be willing to arrange an in-home demo (if you definitely plan on buying one or the other).

On a side note, I also tried a Richard Gray Power Company 400 in my system, and was not impressed - either the P300 or the Hydra would be a better choice.
One more note:
The power plant uses a prodigious amount of power.
The Hydra and the MIT Z center do not.
That said, has anyone compared the MIT line vs the other 2 contenders?

JD
The Power Plants draw less than many believe, but it is a consideration and one of the reasons why I've never been completely comfortable owning one, although I do (I also have a Hydra).

The Power Plant 300 draws about 40 watts with nothing connected to it, about 43 in multiwave mode. My Pass Aleph 3 draws around 200 watts at idle (196 acutally, although I think the Pass docs say 250). Plugged into the PS Audio, the total draw is just under 300 watts. Which suggests that there is some additional overhead in there somewhere (more than 200 + 40), but not a doubling as some reviewers have suggested. By the way, I don't normally have the Pass amp plugged into the Power Plant; I just used it for this measurement.