I also have a Hydra 8. I've used it with 3 Shunyata Pythons, which I no longer own. I also used to own the same speakers, Focal 1027be's.
While I cannot agree with you that the effects of Shunyata products are "nil," I will say that, in my particular application, the effects were subtle. Whether subtle gains are worth that kind of money is a subjective question, of course. Personally, I kept the Hydra 8 but sold all of my Pythons, replacing them with the same cords Elizabeth mentioned, the Pangeas.
One thing to keep in mind is that the effects of power conditioning and power cords is dependent on factors that vary considerably from system to system, things like...
1. Noise on the power line.
2. Voltage fluctuation on the line.
3. Robustness of the power supplies of your equipment.
4. Resolution of the system.
If your lines are quiet and stable, you are less likely to hear large effects from power conditioning. My line is dedicated (and therefore fairly quiet) and perfectly stable at 120V, which may very well be why I never heard a huge difference from the Hydra 8. Of course, that is a speculation.
Also, the more robust the power supplies in your equipment (in terms of voltage regulation and filtering), the less likely you are to hear large effects from power conditioning.
Finally, the less resolving the system, the less likely you are to hear large effects from power conditioning, simply because you are less likely to hear ANY effects. But I very much doubt that is the problem in this case, as your system is very good, and the Focal 1027be's are quite resolving.
So perhaps the reason you didn't hear much of a difference was because your power line is quiet/stable or your equipments' power supplies are robust, or both.
Of course, it's also possible that the effects of power products are exaggerated. Personally, I've never experienced a *major* improvement in SQ from a power product, but other people around here have reported major improvements, and some of those folks are quite credible.
Bryon
