Modding Synergistic Research MPC to Galileo status
I recently had the good fortune of upgrading my stock Synergistic Research MPCs closer to Galileo Status by the help of a friend who is inclined to do such work.
He replaces the Synergistic MPC's four cheap, general purpose 1 amp rectifier diodes with four ultra fast, soft recovery IXYS rectifier diodes and the 470uf 50 volt dirt cheap chinese electrolytic cap with a 680uf Panasonic FM extremely low impedance, high ripple current, long life (7000 hrs). It is now a super low noise power supply.
This mod provides better shielding to Synergistic Research cables resulting in more transparency, blacker backgrounds, increased detail and warmth with even lower noise floor than stock MPCs.
I was really taken aback by the improvements mentioned above. When considering the cost of a Galileo MPC, this mod is a downright bargain.
The cost of this mod will be $40-50. I can provide contact information for additional questions regarding components and price.
Continuing on my tale of SR power I've now received the Transporter Ultra SE and have it hooked up to all my source equipment. It makes another major step up on Michael's MPCs preserving all of the air and detail but adding much more bass depth and overall scale. Recordings sound much more dimensional and rounded with more of an impression of projecting in front of and around the speakers as well as behind. And this is with the transporter only driving half of my CD player power cords and the pre-amp (plus the PowerCell they are all plugged into). I'm waiting on new connectors which will allow me to use the transporter with my speaker cords as well. Anyway I'd strongly recommend that anyone with a reasonable investment in SR Active power kit really spend some time thinking about the best power solution for their devices.
ps I was advised by my dealer not to use the Transporter on the UEF but instead use the Galileo MPC (dual lead) -- I did the comparison and it's no comparison, the Transporter is much better
Michael modded 9 SR MPCs for me recently, a few weeks ago. In my system, which is very revealing, after about a week of being just plugged in, and another week or so, the sound is remarkably improved. The sound stage is much more 3D and wider. The improvements from the mods even compelled me to adjust my Quatro speakers slightly to get the center and side to side sound stage more accurately set. The improvement in imaging and transparency allowed me to hear how to focus my speaker setup better. Michael also was the absolute best in service, shipping very quickly the modded MPCs. Without any exaggeration, and listening to sound on a very transparent system, the mod is absolutely the smart thing to do. Happy I did it.
I also had Michael modify my MPC to Galileo status. I was very surprised with the improvement it made for such a small cost. Michael was a pleasure to work with.
My system is completely fitted with Synergistic Research active interconnects, speaker cables, and power cords. A few years back, I bought four Galileo MPCs based on Ted Denney’s recommendation. The four Galileo’s were all I could afford at the time, leaving me with two of the stock MPCs to feed the DC-powered active shields of what I thought to be "less critical" subwoofer power cords. I recall that the effect of substituting the Galileos for the stock MPCs was not overwhelming, but it was significant. I was happy with the modest improvement and stored away my stock MPCs in a shoe box in my listening room’s closet for safe keeping in case I ever sold the Tesla stuff.
I recently bought a second Classe’ Audio DR-9 amp to run them in bridged mono and I needed a second SR active power cord to match the one I already had. It so happened that Michael Spallone had one for sale, so I called him and during our conversation regarding the power cord, he told me about his V2 MPC mod. He did not exaggerate or make overly boastful claims about his mod, only encouraged me to try one for a $55 total cost including return shipping and offered me a money back guarantee if I did not hear significant audible improvement from my system. He did say that they needed a few hours of run-in to begin to bloom and that they would consistently improve from there over the first 3-5 days. Fair enough.
Having only $5 for shipping at risk, I sent two of my stock dual-lead MPCs to Michael for his V2 mod. A few days later, the Spallone-modded V2 MPCs arrived and I immediately set to burning them in by plugging the male active-lead connectors of a couple of sets of SR active cables that were not in use into the V2 MPC females and, of course, the V2 MPCs themselves into my QLS-9 MPC power strip. Michael emailed me shortly afterward to see what I thought of them and I replied that they were "burning-in" off line. He told me to go ahead and install them into my system, starting with replacing two of the SR Galileo MPCs feeding the active shielding to my speaker cables and component interconnects. I did so, expecting them to take hours if not days to equal the effect of the well-seasoned Galileos. There was an immediate change in the sound of my system. Macro-dynamics were noticeably bolder and the soundstage grew. There was also a reduction in the noise floor so perceived detail and micro-dynamics were improved. I was truly shocked that Michael’s inexpensive V2 mod was so much better than the Galileo MPCs that retailed for $400 each when I bought them. It even seems that the blue LEDs indicating that the active shielding was functioning got brighter with the V2s. Amazing. Listening to one reference recording after another made it undeniable that the V2 MPCs had made a major improvement in the sound of every recording I played.
I immediately set forth to get two more of the V2 MPCs from Michael. I already had a "new to me" SR Powercell 10 UEF/FEQ on the way and it arrived before the second shipment of Michael’s modded MPCs could get here. Well, the Powercell 10 UEF is a truly revelatory upgrade to any system and I thought that the second batch of V2 MPCs wouldn’t make much difference on top of the mind-boggling improvement from the Powercell. WRONG! After listening in amazement to my "new" system with the Powercell for two days, the second batch of V2 MPCs arrived. I used these to replace the remaining Galileo MPCs, including the one feeding the Powercell and its included Element Copper Tungsten powercord. Holy cow! Boy, did the Powercell and its power cord love the V2 MPCs!
Just how far can this active-shielding improvement and electro-magnetic power conditioning take my system forward in sound quality? Don’t know yet. Intending to find out, I am shipping another two MPCs to Michael for his V2 mod to complete the replacement of the remaining two SR MPCs.
I really can’t imagine the sound getting any better than it is now, but, you know, I said that not once, but twice before...
The michaelspallone mpc v2 upgrade is the best bang for the buck upgrade I have ever heard. I had 2 mpc mods done. One on a element copper tungsten and a Tesla3se. The improvements were substantial. Soundstage, air and noise floor were all improved. Communication and turn around were excellent. Thanks Michael.
I agree that Michaels work does transform the MPC to Galileo performance. It is only eclipsed by moving up to a Transporter. A while back Michael modded my Quattro with great results. It has been since replaced with a Transporter. if anyone is interested in the Quattro please let me know.
I asked Michael mod two of my stock MPCs to his v2 status and I can say that these are great mods. Although I haven't been able to do proper A/B comparisons because of some ongoing system changes, I will say that I don't notice any difference between using these and my Transporter SE for the MPCs on my Tranquility Bases. Great service and turnaround time too from Michael to ensure that I didn't have much time without being able to use my MPCs. A big thanks to him.
I just wanted to share with all of you what I have already shared with a few of my latest customers. I cannot stress enough the value of using a single dc cabled SR MPC (whether modified by me or stock) on each SR actively shielded cable. Each SR AC power cable comes with its own MPC. I have found it just as important, if not more so, to use a separate single dc cabled SR MPC on each SR speaker cable. SR interconnects also benefit if you are using longer than 1.5 meters. Having a separate power supply for each cable is most important. I liken it to dual mono. I believe SR is doing this with their Galileo line. The SR MPC is a 30-35 volt dc power supply, ultimately limited by the size of its transformer. Using one on each cable, will bring about (among the usual benefits of increased air, decay, transparency, & blacker backgrounds) much better sense of scale, dynamics along with increased bass weight.
Recently I sent my stock MPC to Michael , all the way from Malaysia . Shipping cost me more than the mod itself but it's worth it . Excellent turn around time of less than a week. Amazing how a simple mod to the adapter can bring so much improvement to the syst- quieter, denser & definitely more dynamic . No brainer upgrade . In fact this synergistic research active USB cable got me very curious abt the performance of Synergistic Research ...
Last month I had Michael upgrade my stock SR mpc. I now have around 100 hours on it and am very pleased and happy with the results. More dynamic and clear with much darker background. A definite must do. Turnaround was exactly one week.
fazee, I am very much looking forward to modifying your stock SR MPCs for your SR Galileo Universal Cell RCA ICs, and your SR CORE SE speaker cables. As member folkfreak may have told you, his stock SR MPCs that I modified for him to my latest V2 status, improved the performance even over what he was getting from his Galileo MPCs that came with his Galileo LE speaker cables. They even improved the performance of his SR Power Cell SE line conditioner. As a matter of fact since I recently switched to a different main power supply cap in my V2 mod, (even more dynamic, with a greater sense of scale) I have been told the difference between my V2 modified MPC and an SR Transporter SE is negligible when used with SR Power Cells and some of SR's various active accessories.
Hi Michael, it's been a long while since I was on A'gon and if there's a way to privately e-mail another user I've forgotten it. I'm interested in your upgrading 3 regular mpcs and also wondering if you can improve a Galileo mpc? But how do we establish more practical contact? Thanks! Andrew
I recently sent my SR Galileo Universal Interconnect Cell and SR Core Active Speaker cables halfway across the world to Michael for the MPC mod, not really having high expectations considering the cost of the mod.
It's been close to a month since I got them back and when I put them back into my system, starting with the Interconnects, there was an immediate improvement to the SQ, with enhanced details and clarity.
After a week or so, I re-introduced the Speaker Cables into the system and was pleasantly surprised when the soundstage, air and noise-floor bettered my Cerious Technologies Graphene Extreme cables, albeit just slightly. Bass slam was much improved too and the SQ seems to be improving day by day.
I couldn't understand the improvement my ears were hearing on such an affordable mod, but I am not complaining ;)
It was a pleasure dealing with Michael and I was pleasantly surprised when he sent me a refund for the price difference when delivering the MPC's back to me via regular postage.
I’ve improved my system and room over the years with constant, uh…”research and experimentation." You know, audiophilia nervosa. Each beneficial change made it more challenging to focus on my work, or even reading, with the music playing. With Michael’s V2 MPCs in the system (on Power Cell SE and T3SE PC) it’s decidedly tougher. There is more of almost everything I enjoy about my system. The soundstage is larger, with more air and decay; the noise floor is lower, resulting in better microdynamics, detail and texture across the spectrum, and macrodynamics are improved, with bass sounding clearer and more powerful. In short, the sound is more engaging. Now, if I can just find more hours for sleep…
Michael recently modded MPCs for my Syn Res Element Tungsten SC and PC, a Telsa T2 SE PC and Tesla Accelerator LE IC and Accelerator LE IC.
The sonic improvement was noticeable - and not subtle. Expanded sound stage, greater depth to the sound and clarity in voicings. I cannot compare to Michael's to the Galileo upgrade, but for my ears - and my wallet - it was a great upgrade.
Easy to work with. Great service. Thank you, Michael
Many thanks to you all for your thoughts and impressions. I just wanted to mention that I currently have a few of my latest V2 modified SR MPCs in stock ready for audition. Out performs SR Galileo MPC and in some applications SR Transporter SE, but please don't take my word for it try one for yourself.
Here’s one more testimonial, to the efficacy of Michael Spallone’s MPC upgrade. The turn-around was amazing: from the time he received my SR Tesla Apex(pre to main amps interconnects) MPC, to his delivery to UPS = 2days(that included a day of burn-in). In the three days I’ve had it plugged back in and been listening, I’ve noticed a greater sense of individual voices(vocal and instrumental), a more enveloping, cleaner sound stage and better dynamics. Everything just POPS, in a GOOD way(apparently, typical for his work). According to Michael, it should get even better, as time goes by(eargasms in my future?). My system was no slouch before his upgrade, but there’s always room for improvement, in this game. I generally do all my upgrading/tweaks myself, but- at his prices, why bother? My SR AC Master Coupler’s MPC is next. Highly recommended. Thanks, Michael!!
I just wanted to remind all of you SR active shielding cable owners with non working MPCs, that I also repair them. I can in most cases repair most non functioning MPCs by replacing the thermal cutoff. A small fuse like device that opens should the transformer within overheat.
I am eagerly awaiting the return of my update MPC from Michael. Should be here Tues or Wednesday. I will post my thoughts when I get it though I understand from Michael it will need time to fully break-in. Ian
Got the modded MPC back on Tuesday. It has improved each day since then. It’s more dynamic than the stock unit and has a blacker background. Makes everything sound more like music and less like equipment. I highly recommend Michael’s mod to anyone with a stock MPC.
I've had the pleasure of experiencing Michael's mods in his own system and they are nothing short of revelatory. The air, soundstage and immersion in the whole experience are amazing to say the least. A no brainier for any SR owner.
Yes, an10490413 I am still V2 modifying and repairing all SR MPCs to now of course much better than Galileo MPC status. I realize that SR has moved on from using MPCs, but there are still quite a few owners of SR's previous excellent Tesla, Element, and even older actively shielded lines that can greatly benefit sonically from my V2 modification performed on their MPC. rodman99999 I do pop in from time to time and very much appreciate forwarding contact info.
The following is a message that I received from Audiogon member (millercarbon) aka Chuck about his thoughts & impressions of my V2 modified SR MPC
Michael,
Got home last night eager to unpack and have a listen. Running out of quality conditioned outlets I decided to just plug them into the wall. Which is a really crappy outlet, barely holds a grip, not even on the dedicated line. Plugged em in but didn't connect yet. Turned my amp on to warm up a few minutes. Usually hit all the wires with anti-static spray then run a demagnetizer over them and finally the record just before each side. Well I have noticed this removes a layer of grain and grunge. Anyway, skipped that. Went straight to Nancy Bryan, but just for a minute, just to get my bearings.
Then without even pausing I got up and swapped the leads. Immediately noticed somewhat greater depth and a bit more presence but not much else. Well, I mean come on, its only a few minutes out of the box. I have for more than 20 years now enjoyed listening to the fascinating changes things go through as they settle in. So here we go...
Within a few minutes the sound was a lot fuller and smoother and present. By the end of the first side it was already far beyond anything I'd ever heard from the CTS with Galileo MPC. Even before the side was over I was all "are you kidding me?" enough to get up and swap back to the Galileo. Because it seemed incredible to be so much better so soon. But with the Galileo the sound was so flat and dull and unconvincing I could only take it for a few seconds. Back to the mod. Ahh! That's the ticket!
With CTS it is impossible to say what it does best, bass, imaging, etc. Its all fantastic. With this its much easier. Your modded MPC unveils an incredible wealth of inner detail, the most subtle shadings, dynamically and tonally, that really lets the music breathe. I mean it just brings it to life.
Listening to Holly Cole "Temptation" I was repeatedly blown away by the vibrato and tremolo. What a voice. But before, compared to this it was like she was singing monotone. Now she is right there and full of emotion. Just crazy amazing. Plus there is a real presence, and not the hyped etched exaggerated leading edge BS that so many call detail but the real thing, smooth and natural yet palpably present. Kind of thing most people hear and say wow good speakers. Nah, same speakers.
Another thing that hit me, this is exactly like what I heard the first time when I swapped out the diodes in my old Aronov integrated. Same across the board improvement in reducing noise and grunge, revealing dynamic detail free of grain, greater depth and layering, everything top to bottom just so much more effortlessly there.
And this is with less than an hour- and plugged into an ordinary crap wall outlet!
pmboyd, to answer your question. I think you would very much enjoy the improvements made by my V2 modification done to your MPC for your SR Resolution Reference digital cable. It will help to bring out even more air & sustain and create a more wide open 3D soundstage.
I sent to Michael three synergistic research tungsten power cable and one speaker wire element copper for mod.2.
The mod.2 upgrade is great!
The noise floor of my system went down significantly and now I can hear more details and layers in my music. The Soundstage became more naturally with a bigger 3d presentation. The sound is smooth and very pleasant , I enjoy the music much more then before the upgrade.
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