Outstanding Sound Improvement with Videos before-after/ VYDA Cables

[PeterA]

Vienna, do you have a video comparison with just the power cord change not including any cable changes?

Could you please describe whether the power cord or the Interconnect cables make a bigger difference and why?

 

[howiebrou]

I wish it was at my hands; as you see, deliberately I am not responding to the attacks and offensive posts.

And we are all the better for it. I, for one, would like to know more about these VYDA cables.

 

[Vienna]

Vienna, do you have a video comparison with just the power cord change not including any cable changes?

Could you please describe whether the power cord or the Interconnect cables make a bigger difference and why?

Dear Peter your question is very interesting.

Due to my engineering background, reading at forums and reviews about audiophile power cables, it was beyond my logic that a power cable of adequate sizing can offer more than just to conduct the power to the components. it was beyond my logic too, that the last meter of the power lines are making any difference.

this is the reason that I had decided to buy the Torus and the flagship power cords from WW and finish once and forever with the power. since then I had never thought again of the PCs.

On the other hand I was thinking that ICs are the only cables which can make a difference and had experienced this by changing many , always having the same PCs.

My first experience with expensive ICs were the AQ Wells. I was fascinated back then with their different presentation and pronounced detailing; and took me some time to realize the fatigue I was feeling.

on my attempt to replace them I tried Stealth ICs (I don’t recall the model) and Jorma but i preferred and acquired the Swiss VOVOX fortis with furutech xlr connectors.

These cables served me well for many years and were offering me the details in a balanced way, the bass, the spaces and the 3D sense.

Two years ago at the time, I got my new Tidal speakers i also acquired the Tidal silver speakers cables which were supposed as better than my Vovox Fortis speakers cables.

To give you an idea of my relationship with cables; and how I hate replacing them, i had the Tidal speakers cables for a year in their box at my house and hadn’t tried them. Instead I had started a thread here asking first for others experience with Tidal cables. When I tried them I felt sorry for the time lost without them.

the Tidal speakers cables superiority over the Vovox Fortis SCs was such that I realized that I had to replace the Vovox ICs too. still power cables was not even as a thought in my mind.

Since last September I have tried many ICs , of a very wide price range (From 27,000 euro per two pairs to 2,000 per two pairs) and also tried to get those whitch are being used by some members, of who I value their opinion. this wasn’t an easy task because most dealers or manufacturers were not very happy to send their products at this small country.

to find a nice IC among others I asked Gianluigi (@gian60 ) due to his quality as a character and his vast experience and @bazelio with who I am exchanging more whatsapp messages than with my best friends and was always sincere with me.

Gianluigi spoke about VYDA ICs and suggested the Power cables too. Brian suggested me JPS Aluminata and Zenwave, he had also suggested to get Zenwave power cables as those had made a dramatic sound improvement in a frustrated as he wrote me way.

I contacted both Enrico and Dave. The first accepted the challenge without any questions and prepared 2 ICs and 2 Power Cords at my custom length taking all the risks. Dave very politely and professionally advised me that the size of his workshop, doesn’t give him the luxury to prepare custom length cables with different terminations, instead he advised that he would arrange for me to get some of his cables for demo.

I had also contacted Mark of Sablon Audio to get his cables for demo.

While I was waiting for the Vyda and Zenwave cables to arrive, I had Tidal Assoluta ICs on the system (total cost of 27,500 euro) and got for a demo AQ Dragons. They came with the Dragon power cables too.

AQ Dragons fell sort in Comparison with Tidal Assoluta ICs but Dragons PCs were superior from WW PCs. The moment I listened to my system with my Mephisto powered by the two Dragons PCs I wanted to keep them and buy the full PCs set. They offered me everything I was looking for, the 3D dimensionality at its extreme, superior openness and articulated bass, in a sound that was filing all my room.

I was writing to @bazelio that he should definitely listen to AQ Dragons and that he should buy them.

And then VYDA cables arrived. It was much easier for me to replace the Tidal ICs and I did so.
Vyda ICs was the dream for me sound, that I was after for years, extreme depths and wide stage with wonderful presence and sexy highs.

At that moment I felt that my system couldn’t get any better. I didn’t want to touch anything anymore.

Thankfully Brian was keep asking me whether I had tried the VYDA PCs and decided to install them at my small active KEF LS50w, (very easy and fast installation) which are used by my wife and kids on daily basis for long hours.

What VYDA PCs made to the the Kefs was the greatest surprise we had all felt at home. I called Kef dealer in Greece and told him to get the soonest a pair of VYDA psc and listen to what this small speaker is capable for.

that same afternoon i had them installed at my system ; and i was ecstatic of how they upgraded the sound in a new level. They made the VYDA ICs virtues more pronounced and defined with more essence and life.

so Peter to answer to your question, based on my personal experience and considering my former scepticism, I will use the Greek alphabet letters... In my opinion, Power cables are the Alpha and the Omega of my system. During my adventures with ICs cables, I experienced and could listen to the differences and or improvements, but the good power cable is the foundation for all the components and ICs to shine at their full potential

p.s. having tried OCC and UP-OCC pure copper and silver I am convinced that the future on cables are the alloys

 

[BlueFox]

Power is the foundation for a stereo. Build a good, solid foundation and any gear will perform at its best.

 

[stehno]

Power is the foundation for a stereo. Build a good, solid foundation and any gear will perform at its best.

Yup.

 

[tima]

Due to my engineering background, reading at forums and reviews about audiophile power cables, it was beyond my logic that a power cable of adequate sizing can offer more than just to conduct the power to the components. it was beyond my logic too, that the last meter of the power lines are making any difference.

Savvas, thank you for relating your experiences with power cords - it was fun to read. By the end of the story it sounds like you now believe that power cords have high significance to your system and you found the Vyda suits it well. So congratulations on that. Few of us end up where we started with audio.

I wanted to pass along some text from Caelin Gabriel of Shunyata that relates to your opening paragraph. This is not about wires that he sells, rather it is a part of his explanation of what power cords do. This is not an endorsement from me - take it or leave it as you will. I found it interesting.

There are many power cord misconceptions in the market. Here, we will address these issues and how Shunyata Research relates.

How can an aftermarket power cord, which represents the last 6 feet or so of many miles of cheap in-wall and underground wiring, make any difference at all to sound or video?

MISCONCEPTION #1: AC power is like water coming from a large power tank, flowing through several 10s of feet of power hose into a component. This implies that the component is at the end of this system.

Answer: Actually, the component sits between two power conductors: the hot and the neutral. AC power oscillates (alternates) back and forth at a 50-60hz rate. So power does not pour into the component at all. The component’s power supply is within a complex network of wires and connectors. Due to their obvious proximity, ALL of the wire and connectors can and do affect the performance of the component’power supply.

MISCONCEPTION #2: AC power can be contaminated just like water in a hose. This implies that once the water is contaminated at some point up stream, that is must be cleansed before it arrives at the audio component.

Answer: As stated in #1, the component is not a the end of the power hose. It is between two power hoses and the current is oscillating back and forth. Further, current is not like water at all. Electrons cannot be contaminated. There are two aspects to power transmission: the EM wave and the current flow. The current itself cannot be contaminated but the EM wave can be modulated with other frequencies. We usually call these other frequencies noise or EMI. Within the various parts of a power circuit there may be EMI in certain parts that are not present in others. EM energy can be transformed or redirected to lessen their effects.

Some power cords for example, use capacitors, inductors, or ferrites in an attempt to control the EM fields around the audio component. The success of such an approach is completely dependent upon the specific power supply design and its reaction to the added reactive capacitance of the power cord.

MISCONCEPTION #3: There is up to a hundred feet of wire in the walls, so the last 6 feet of power cord [PC] can’t possibly make any difference.

Answer: The PC is NOT the last 6 feet as stated in #1 and the local current and EM effects directly affect the sonic performance of the component. The power cord is not the last 6 feet, it is the first 6 feet from the perspective of the component. The further a noise source is from a component, the less of an impact it will have on the components power supply. The high-frequency noise sources that have the greatest impact on audio and video performance are the system components themselves — which are usually all in close proximity of one another and all emit radiated fields of high-frequency noise. A well designed power cord can act as a noise-isolated extension of the primary winding of a component’s power supply and will help isolate the power supply from the fields of radiated RF and EM noise energy that is ever present in all electronics systems.

The write-up goes much further. The entire article from 2016 can be found here.

 

[Hieukm]

Believe it or not. Power cord decides the tonal and soundstage and harmonics and bass extreme frequency of a DAC. Power cord at pre amp also seems to have certain weight on a system sound contribution. In my experience and contrary to popular belief, power cord usually has much more impact than IC or SC.

 

[Tango]

And we are all the better for it. I, for one, would like to know more about these VYDA cables.

I sense you are starting to itch.

 

[howiebrou]

I sense you are starting to itch.

Fortunately not. I think I have enough cables to last me a lifetime.

 

[nirodha]

Believe it or not. Power cord decides the tonal and soundstage and harmonics and bass extreme frequency of a DAC. Power cord at pre amp also seems to have certain weight on a system sound contribution. In my experience and contrary to popular belief, power cord usually has much more impact than IC or SC.

Truth! Power management is a prerequisite to getting the best sound from your system. That is also why I chose the Furutech Pure Power NCF 6E over a Zanden 3000 upgrade.

 

[Lagonda]

And then VYDA cables arrived. It was much easier for me to replace the Tidal ICs and I did so.
Vyda ICs was the dream for me sound, that I was after for years, extreme depths and wide stage with wonderful presence and SEXY HIGHS.

I am not much of a cable guy, but your description somehow resonates with me .Please elaborate on SEXY HIGHS ! I want my system to have sexy highs. We have spent many posts discussing NATURAL, lets talk sexy !

 

[Hieukm]

I am not much of a cable guy, but your description somehow resonates with me .Please elaborate on SEXY HIGHS ! I want my system to have sexy highs. We have spent many posts discussing NATURAL, lets talk sexy !

Please post this sexy high, prefer a track on violin please.

 

[Vienna]

I am not much of a cable guy, but your description somehow resonates with me .Please elaborate on SEXY HIGHS ! I want my system to have sexy highs. We have spent many posts discussing NATURAL, lets talk sexy !

Please post this sexy high, prefer a track on violin please.

Gentlemen be patient you will have some videos with Violin tracks to see what i mean

 

[PeterA]

Vienna, thank you very much for that long post describing your cable journey. I appreciate the effort you made to share that story and that the thread may be going back to the original topic.

I asked about the difference between the effect of the power cord and the signal cables because I agree with others that the difference in the various videos you have so far posted is quite dramatic and I was simply curious whether cords or signal cables are more responsible for the differences we heard.

Over the last year or so I changed my power cords and signal cables and the delivery of power to my system. For me it was about getting rid of power cords and signal cables from which I could clearly hear identifying characteristics in the sound. The products I had in my system created an affect which I preferred for years but then realized that I needed a fundamental change and that started with the power cords.

Thank you for sharing your story with us and I look forward to future changes and videos.

 

[gian60]

Aha..The secret sauce reveals . Do you have the power cord or the phono cable? My Italian buddy will be sending me the phono cable to try.

I have been bored of audio lately. Will have to get back to buying your wonderful records soon.

My dear friend Tang,sold to me the SAT at a very good price,very friendly,so the minimum i can do is to gift to him a phono cable and a power cable that he can put,i think on EMT phono.
I already ordered to Enrico,and will be ready around 7/10 february,after he will finish his orders
Curious of Tang report

 

[Lagonda]

My dear friend Tang,sold to me the SAT at a very good price,very friendly,so the minimum i can do is to gift to him a phono cable and a power cable that he can put,i think on EMT phono.
I already ordered to Enrico,and will be ready around 7/10 february,after he will finish his orders
Curious of Tang report

We all trust Tangs magic ears !

 

[Rhapsody]

For anyone in the US that wants to try the VYDA Cables, Rhapsody.Audio is a VYDA dealer and we have a full loom of phono cable, IC's (XLR and RCA), power cable, and sp. cables. If interested in trying out the VYDA cables it can be arranged.

 

[Gemini]

May I ask what the pricing for PC’s and IC’s looks like?

 

[Rhapsody]

May I ask what the pricing for PC’s and IC’s looks like?

Pricing for the US or for Euro? It's different of course with the Euro/USD conversion. I have US pricing but you should probably check with Enrico a VYDA for the Euro pricing.

 

[Gemini]

Pricing for the US or for Euro? It's different of course with the Euro/USD conversion. I have US pricing but you should probably check with Enrico a VYDA for the Euro pricing.

Will do!