Help - Mark Levinson Owners

I agree with Stealth Dream cords, they sound better than Shunyata and Elrods in my system.

I will throw another into the mix of great power cords, Try Purist Dominus or even the Aqueous. They did wonders for my ML's. Believe me I have tried many others & these were the best for my system.

Trt the new Stealth Dream cords, better than a major component upgrade and just as costly.

Hi,

Your system is awsome, however the front end power cords are the most important cables in a system IMO and I think you really need to upgrade them. I have ML gear too although not from the refrerence series (390S/39, 331/333) and the best cables for this setup were Elrod Statements. (A big step up from EPS Sigs). I use a Statement II for the CDP, a Statement for the amp and an other Statetement to connect my PS Audio UPC 200 to the wall outlet. My other cables are Siltech former top of the line G3 Gold models. Truly amazing combination and I like it more than Tranpsarent, Shunyata, Nordost or Kimber. (BTW my speakers are Thiel CS6 and my tase is fast, dynamic, uncolored sound with no added artificial warmth, so my preference should be taken with this in mind.)

However, the new Transparent cables with MM technology are very-very good and my recommendation would be to try Transparent power cords because of system integrity. Your front end components really deserve something special. If I am right, the No. 32 regenerates power so it is not a major issue, however I would try a Transparent Super MM at least.

Good luck and please keep us posted as to how you proceed!

I use Shunyata Anaconda VXs on my 390S and AXs on my 380S and 335. The 335 has an AX from the wall to a Hydra 2 and another from the Hydra to the amp. All sourced from 3 dedicated 20 amp circuits. Overkill perhaps, but it sounds sweet.

Lots of good advice here. I have had good luck with Synergistic Research and Shunyata King Cobras on my Krell KAS 2s, 300s and various other equipment. Yes that was quite some time ago. But I do remember the shockingly good improvements a good power cable can make. Currently I have a Mark Levinson 334 amplifier and I am using a Concierto Concert Grand power cord (that I bought used) and the sound has me hooked. My feeling is that I will never part with this power cord. I used to be one that would never believe any improvement could come from changing power cords. Good luck and have fun with it! After all that is what this hobby is for, right?

I am using harmonix studo master to my ml. no. 39. That pctransformed completly the soundprint of mz system giving more body and live feeling. I sugget to try it.

Cello - perhaps you mean the Black Mamba? A "Mambo" is a dance :-)

A couple of points:

1. The Black Mamba is about five years old. Technology marches on. Using a five-year-old cord to generalize about all of Shunyata's current products is not quite fair.

2. The Black Mamba is/was a Noise Reduction power cord, designed predominantly for digital source components. I can't think of a worse cord to use on a Levinson amp. The Levinson amps are served properly with a Pacesetter cord, not a Noise Reduction cord.

So, I'm not surprised you didn't like the Black Mamba with your Levinson amp. It definitely wasn't the right match.

.
Rex,
.
I have not had good results with the Shunyata cords (specifically, the Black Mambo). It was certainly better than the stock cords, but killed the detail and left the bass very unfocused, boomy and not at all tuneful.

I have had dramatically good results with the NBS Statement PC and significantly better and terrific results with the top end of the BMI products (Shark and Whale Supreme in particular).
.
My point is that in my system, a great power cord that matches up well with your system, room and sound preference makes a huge difference in what a Levinson Amp is capable of putting out. There was a Jaw dropping difference for not a lot of money.
.
I would suggest that Piperdan experiment with used cords (they sell at great discount to the list prices)and see what works for him. A used BMI Shark can be bought for around $ 300.00 - 350.00 and a Whale Supreme for a bit more. Both of these cords were dramatically better than the Black Mambo (which did help the Levinson Amp, but was no where near as beneficial as the BMI cords).
.
Rgds,
Larry
.

Hi Cello - I'm not sure exactly what you're disagreeing with :-)

I too have found that some power cords cause great degradation on my Levinson gear. I would strongly recommend AGAINST using cords from PS Audio, JPS, or Cardas with Levinson gear - they had overwhelmingly negative effects when I tried them.

I have also found definite benefits and improvements with some power cords, just as you did. My point was, with the current Shunyata line in particular, that I did not need to buy the top-of-the-line cords to get these benefits. There was no need to buy an Anaconda when a Taipan did the trick.

There was another brand that I tried that showed improvements, but didn't reach the improvement level of the Shunyata Taipan until I got up into the $1000 range.

OTOH, I have other gear (source and pre) that showed continued improvements with more refined power cords.

I hope this makes what I said originally a bit more clear.

.
I have to politely disagree with Rex & Larryi. In my system, the sound from my Levinson 23.5 improves greatly and degrades greatly depending on which power cord that is in place.
.
I strongly suggest that you look for a good deal on some used high end power cords, do your own comparative listening, and decide what you like from there. You can easily resell the cords you don't want to keep on Audiogon with little or no loss of money.
.
I went through about 10 different brands and models of power cords in the process when I was looking for an ideal cord and I can assure you I am glad that I did.
.
A good power cord on a pre-amp or CD player is a relatively inexpensive upgrade that can bring a lot of improvement. For me it was a good as a component upgrade.
.
Good Luck and let us know how you make out.
.
Rgds,
Larry
.

Larryi is right on. You don't need a top-of-the-line cord with the Levinson power supplies. I currently use a Shunyata Diamondback on my Levinson DAC, and a Taipan on my Levinson amp. The Taipan is overkill for the amp.

Other gear in my system have shown much greater gains with expensive power cords.

.
I have a NBS Statement power cord that is excellent and both the BMI Shark and Whale Supreme were dramatically better than the NBS. The Shunyata Black Mambo was good but was not even close to being as good as the NBS.
.
I think that BMI Sharks, Whale Supremes and Orca's are by far the best value on the market and outstanding power cords in their own right.
.

I have found that a really top-flight power cord is not necessary for my Ref. No. 32. I use a decent Essence cord, but substituting a Shunyata did not make that much of a difference (then again, the front end is plugged into a Hydra). I may be the case that the regenerating power supply of the Ref. No. 32 minimizes power supply issues. For almost all other front end equipment, I find the Shunyata cords to work extremely well.

I've also generally heard good results with NBS power cords, but, if you think the Shunyata Anacondas are expensive. . .

Well if the newly announced Pure Note Paragon power cord is better than their old Sigma, I would check that out. I have one on order but it will be a month before I can evaluate it. Price was $375 for 2m. FWIW.

http://www.purenote.com

I have almost the same system and have used Synergistic Research cables with excellent results.

.
Look at BMI Sharks or Whale Supreme. They are terrific on Levinson and reasonable priced. Buy one used, if you like it, contact Brian Introcaso at BMI ( bmicables@aol.com).
.
In my system and for my ears, I prefer the BMI Sharks over the Shunyata Black Mambo that I had for a while and the Shark was head and shoulders better than the Black Mambo.
.
What ever you do, replace the stock Levinson cords. That is a no brainer. Make sure that you allow for sufficient break in time on a new power cords (100-500 hours +).
.
It is probably worth buying two used power cords and doing some comparative listening before diving into buying a bunch of power cords. I would suggest that you continue to try one used cord at a time and continue till you find your favorite. You can always sell the used power cords for more or less what you pay for them. Just be patient.
.
Please let us know how it all turns out.
.
Good Luck & Rgds,
Larry

with the kind of euqipment you have I would recommend Shanyata line. I have tried many and own many but foud Shanyata to be the best when it comes PC.
good luck

1. Audition the Sonoran Plateau power cords ($500.00) from http://www.audiopoints.com. Call and ask for Robert or Tom.

2. Audition the Synergistic Research Active X-2 ($450.00) or Custom Power Cord Top Gun HCF ($1050.00) from The Cable Company, http://www.fatwyre.com. Call and ask for John, he's a great guy.

Any of these three will give you a pitch black soundstage where the music just pours forth from.