AudioMeca vs. AudioAero vs. Electrocompaniet

Farhad, Grounding is an interesting subject. While manufacturers are required to have their components built to specifications which allow for grounding, grounding itself in not necessary with every component. The one component in your system which SHOULD be grounded is the preamp. Every component connects directly to the preamp via interconnect cables so...in essence, every component is truly grounded as long as one is. Make sense?

I have dedicated lines in my house with a dedicated ground for audio. The Mephisto sounds the same with and without the ground and I notice no additional hum or noise.

Bwhite..Among all the power cords you have tried the shunyata king cobra, NBS and others. Which do you think will be the best solution for the Mephisto to make it jump to a whole new level, giving it more dynamics and realistic presentaion, better separation between instruments, holographic and better tonal accuracy, more bass definition and last but not least, live and musical than ever..

I'm talking about hi fi nirvana

Fahad74, For the characteristics you speak of - the NBS Statement power cord is the best I have listened to. If you really want the HiFi Nirvana - the NBS Statement plugged into a Shunyata Hydra should do the trick. This will ad a degree of musicality that the NBS lacks (to some extent) and Shunyata is so good at.

I wouldn't use the Shunyata Hydra on any other component however - just the digital

Bwhite..Remember when you mentioned the list of different power cords, and how each of them has it's own sound character and signature. They produce magic when they are connected to the Mephisto. But, some of us can not afford to buy such expensive power cords.

I'm sure that the Mephisto is an extremely excellent player. But, when the Mephisto is connectted to it's own cheap PC power cord, can it still sing naturally and can it still perform magic as well.

Farhad - I understand. But most people who look at a CD player which sells used for around $4,000 wouldn't think twice about using the stock power cord on the unit. NBS Statement power cords sell for around 500.

In my system, I used the Mephisto for a LONG time without an aftermarket power cord. In some ways, stock power cords are pretty decent in the sense that they do not color the sound. Of course aftermarket designs are very good at adding dynamics and various "effects" but the true test of a component is how it performs without the effects. While I have never heard any digital component sound better with a stock cord vs. a carefully selected aftermarket design - I must say the Mephisto is the least likely of ALL PLAYERS MENTIONED ABOVE to react harshly to a stock power cord. For example, the Electrocompaniet EMC-1 sounds lousy (to me) without an aftermarket power cord and can produce too much digital hash and noise which some perceive as "detail" until its gone. The Mephisto seems to produce the least hash and digital artifact of all the players I've ever tested and is by far the easiest to listen to.

Does this answer your question?