Power cord for MHDT Havana

There should be a significant difference between the Technics and the Havana. It's possible your system isn't resolving enough or your ears aren't trained to hear the difference. I really doubt a power cord will change much.

I was in a similar situation years ago when I compared a $50 Sony CD player with a Rega Planet 2000. I couldn't detect a difference after weeks of comparison. It wasn't until I upgraded the rest of my system that I eventually heard an improvement.

You might want to consider some other gear changes. I don't know anything about B&K equipment, but your Paradigm should be fairly revealing speakers.

Sandhya - bypass the SL-MC7 altogether with a Squeezebox Touch (or borrow from a friend?) and enjoy 24 bit / 96 kHz digital streaming jacked into the Havana with a descent digital cable. See how it sounds...

Yes I agree that if you aren't hearing an improvement with the Havana (I own one and think it is great sounding digital) then don't waste your money on a power cord. That said, I think the Electraglide Synapse II sounds really good on the Havana. They have a ridiculous list price but can be had for a fraction of that used.

Mingles,
Can you give more details about your upgrades. Also let me know the configuration of your system.

I am pretty sure Paradigms are pretty revealing. Could that be the jitter problem. Is it possible that Jitter introduced by the external dac is compensating the improvements provided by the external dac.

Thanks
Pandu

Mingles,
Can you give more details about your upgrades. Also let me know the configuration of your system.

At the time, I had a Yamaha receiver and Dahlquist speakers. Switching to separate amp and preamp improved resolution, but the most significant change came when I had the right amp driving my speakers. If you don't get that synergy right, you'll waste a lot of time and money upgrading source components. In my system, resolution really came into focus with: Promitheus TVC preamp, Quicksilver Mid Monos, Alon Model I speakers, Rega Planet 2000. It wasn't an expensive system, but it was extremely satisfying.

You might want to take the advice of Notec and Ejlif to use a different transport to see if things improve. If you have a computer, try connecting it to the Havana and see how it sounds. When you import into your computer, use the highest resolution possible. If using iTunes, import as AIFF or Apple Lossless. Using your computer will be the cheapest way to test things. If you have questions on how to set that up, this is a good place to ask for help.

Well, I have strongly agree with Mingles. There is something in your system (or room/setup) that is not allowing it to show its full potential. I recommend doing a little experiment; pick up an inexpensive passive preamp (e.g., creek, CI)-even better if you can borrow one, and see what happens when you take the B&K preamp out of the chain. That might be your answer, or if not, move you one step closer to the cause. Good luck!

I tried to connect it to Computer using a USB cable. I didnt like it at all. It was lot worse than now.

I am out of budget right now. For the DAC I spent close to $1000, Dont see much improvement.

May be I need to learn about listening tests. How they need to be done. Can you suggest any reading material related to it.

I dont have any room treatment done. My house is built with Brick and cement and not wood. It is a rigid structure.

ROom treatment is difficult subject, hard to understand and predict.

My room is 17 X 13 X 10 fts.

One other thing I am contemplating is change the interconnects or Power cords. Havenot decided on any of them. These are also pretty expensive.

Let me know your thoughts.

Thanks
Pandu

Quite strange you're not hearing much of a difference with the Havana, I noticed a difference between my cd player and an inexpensive dac like the Maverick. Granted my cd player is a POS but the techincs your using isn't exactly reference material either, the rest of your gear isn't too slouchy though and you should definitely hear a difference. Are you sure there isn't some type of setting on your pre that may be bypassing the havana somehow? If not try swapping out or borrowing another pre and then experiment with another cd player. It's all process of elimination. FWIW I don't think a PC is going to make much of a difference. Good luck

Sandhya,

It might be your room and setup. It sounds like you have no treatment whatsoever done, amd your room might have a lot of hard surfaces.

I've been reading A LOT about acoustics and its's paying off nicely. Without changing my electronics or cables I'm getting a lot better sound. It is true it's time consuming and oftentimes confusing/frustrating, but it does pay off. And is so cheap compared to upgrades (especially if you DIY).

Try reading some. Many websites with info. Real Traps sells stuff and also has info in it's website. Also Ethan Winer, Real Traps owner, has info online. Maybe try: http://www.ethanwiner.com/acoustics.html

I hope this helps!

Lewinski,

I guess you put it right. I need to work on the room treatment. It is altogether a different subject. I will start going thru material and start working on each of the components.

For example My floor is made of smooth marble. I have covered 30% of it with thick carpet. Rest we have some openspaces and some furniture. I will first try to carpet the whole room and see the improvement.

Thanks
Sandhya