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Is a Hydra the real deal? How do you know?

yeah, I know it sounds wierd. A friend of mine recently suggested one of the pieces in his system is a Hydra conditioner. . .and a valued item.

I'm not disagreeing with his information.... my question is this... "As the Shunyata Hydra's need to have a cable specially made to fit/operate the conditioner, and most folks choose to use one made by shunyata, how do you know if it's the conditioner or the power cord doing the job?

I spent some time recently asessing various power cords. Right off I saw the need to buy some adapters for the cords to decrease the wear and tear on my gear, and speed up the process (run in time of the cords). I put the cords + adapters onto some other gear in a secondary system... things changed sonically almost immediately... as it would have with use on my main system. No other items in the mix. Just the adapter, power cord, and the unit (s).

I'm wondering how one can determine the advantage of the hydra's if no cord - even a cheap one - comes supplied with the units? Apart from the ability to plug in more items than a single adapter gives... it just seems like a lot of money to spend for a multi outlet center..... if of course I was told wrong about the Hydras not being supplied with cords.... I apologize profusely. But a dealer told me Shunyata does not provide a cord with their conditioners.... it must be purchased separately. I guess he's correct as I see many questions about which cord for Hydras for either this or that applicaton... and that different Hydras' have different sonic attributes... Well how do you know if right off the bat you gotta add a Shunyata cord to it... Oh, by the way... I own a Shunyata Python VX, and I do dig it. ...just curious about adding a Hydra elsewhere in the system for one or two other pieces that are not 'conditioned'..

Thank you very much for your time.
blindjim
tvad
9,467 posts
 
Grant from Shunyata gave great advice.

Regarding plugging the conditionier into the same circuit as the amps or into a separate circuit, this is something you'll have to try yourself.

I would not recommend using an outlet extender with the Hydra. If you need more outlets for the less critical components, use your Powervar on the remaining wall outlet.
mdhoover
690 posts
 
Thanks guys. (Grant, I also left a message on your company's answering machine.) I THINK I understand what you're recommending:

It sounds like the monoblock amps should be plugged into the dedicated line, and probably nothing else. However, the limiting factor is the number of available outlets.

So, now there are even more questions:
Would it be okay to plug the Rel Storm 3 sub bass unit and the preamplifier into that dedicated line along with the two monoblocks, or would that screw up the isolation? If the preamp and the Rel were plugged into that same line with the monoblocks, then at least all four of its outlets would be being used.

Then there'd be two wall outlets remaining, one on either side of the entertainment center. Neither of these would be from the dedicated line. Would it be okay to plug the Hydra into one and the Powervar into the other? {The reason I was trying to ditch the Powervar is because it appears to be transmitting transformer hum through the system.} Thanks.

-Bill

tvad
9,467 posts
 
Would it be okay to plug the Rel Storm 3 sub bass unit and the preamplifier into that dedicated line along with the two monoblocks, or would that screw up the isolation?
Yes, it would be okay since these are all analog components (your preamp is analog, and there's no digital amp in the Rel, right?). Also, you might consider purchasing a Hydra 2 (remember to ask for the supplied Shunyata power cord), and plug your Rel and preamp into the Hydra 2, which is plugged into one of the four outlets in your dedicated circuit. This would leave one outlet on the dedicated circuit into which you could plug your Original Hydra. At least this way, you could play around. One other idea is to purchase a used VH Audio HotBox 4 Outlet extension box to use in lieu of the Hydra 2. This could be used for your Rel and preamp, too. I saw one for sale recently on Audiogon.

Couldn't a second dedicated line be run next to the one existing dedicated line? After all, you already have a four outlet gang box in the wall. Plugging all that equipment into the same line as your amps seems like too much to me, although I'm sure the line has sufficient amperage to avoid tripping a breaker. Still, it's nice to have extra juice for those dynamic transients.
warrenh's avatar
warrenh
2,286 posts
 
The Hydra 2 is good. I personally am not into good. The Audio Magic Mini Digital is hands down the best conditioner for a cdp, that I have ever heard. I have a Hydra 2, so I have been able to compare both. I'm waiting for delivery for my brand spanking new AM Mini Digital for my new cdp. That, a dedicated outlet, two great cords to hook this whole baby up= electric nirvana. Now, if you are not happy with your sound: look to the source...
tvad
9,467 posts
 
I owned both the Audio Magic Stealth Mini and Digital Mini. Neither did a thing in my system. Then again, my system was completely different back then. Now, the Audio Magic conditioners might be the Holy Grail. One never knows.

Also, I'd offer the point that what a conditioner does on one digital player might not be appropriate for a different digital player. For Warrenh...you initially used a Mini Digital on an Audio Aero Prima, yes? Have you heard the Mini Digital on an Exemplar 3910? I expect the sound of these two player is quite different, with the Exemplar being much more detailed (this opinion according to a friend who is an owner, and on my past ownership of an Exemplar Denon 2900). What the Mini Digital did on the Prima, may not be correct for the Exemplar. Not a criticism, just a relevant observation.

All this stuff is system dependent, and all the varying opinions demonstrate that one can never know which unit will be preferable in one's system until each unit has been auditioned. PITA, but true.

Everyone I know who has tried the Sound Application units say they are the best they've heard. In my opinion, that's sayin' something.

Can you tell I want to try one? Yup.
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