Most eye-opening upgrade and what you learned

THE SHUNYATA HYDRA. Big bucks but worth every pennie.

The greatest audio revelation I have experienced was the moment I replaced my generic speaker cables a few years ago with a fine pair of (used) Tara Labs. I was, simply stated, stunned by the sonic difference. I heard highs and lows in my B&W CDM7s that I'd never thought them capable of. Before this, I had always thought speaker cable was, well... just a piece of copper. That first moment totally converted me to a believer.

For me it was q-tips, what a difference!

The biggest eye (or ears) opening upgrade I made was ading Bybee Quantum force filter to my interconnect, I never tought my system could do restitution like that!

A minor epiphany occured when I upgraded from Kimber 4tc speaker cable to Analysis Plus Oval 9. Then, I tried bi- wiring the Magneplanar 1.6's using both the Kimber & Oval 9's. Even better. Swapping the 9s & 4tc between woofer & quasiribbons changed things, each is different & equally interesting. Now the epiphany was this: synergy is everything. With every previous upgrade, you wonder just how much better can things sound. If the component doesn't gel synergistically, it's just different, not better. But when it clicks, eureka! However, it's both depressing & exhilarating. After the sonically enabled release of endorphins, the realization kicks in that this could be a never ending quest for the holy grail of audio euphoria. Like you, my wife & I are in the field of education & must go for "high value" products.