Nordost Valhalla 2 Power Cord Worth It? Over Audioquest Hurricane?
I am wondering about the performance delta between the Nordost Valhalla 2 PC versus something more "reasonably priced" as the Audioquest Hurricane PC. Is there anyone with some experience with both of these cords able to comment on the sonic differences as you go up to the Valhalla 2? I'm certain the answer will depend what I am connecting the cords to. It will be one cord for a Gryphon Diablo 300 integrated amplifier, and another cord for an InnuOS Zenith MKIII music server. In other threads, I've seen some people note that a high-end PC with the Diablo won't yield much difference from the stock cable, but I'm not sure if that is true? I'd conduct some tests but I unfortunately don't have the gear quite yet, and I'm planning out the cabling.
Have not heard the AQ Hurricane but my local Nordost and AQ dealer let me recently take home a used Valhalla 2 PC and it’s a great cord but even used I had a hard time dropping $2K on it but tempting. I instead picked up another WyWires Platinum HC PC for a lot less used and couldn’t be happier. Not saying the two are the same in sound quality but the WyWires was less than a third of the price and I don’t feel I am missing anything. Maybe in a better system than mine the Valhalla 2 would have pulled away but nonetheless it was great.
using NORDOST V2 PC on my Pandora, TAD D1000MK2 and Colosseum. V2 has super speed and provokes you to crank up and its ended you leaving listening loud. FIND joy with listening through Valhalla2. Speaker cables still V1 which pumps white blood to my beloved BASS heavy Pantheon. TAD to Pre is V2 RCA and Pre to Power amp is V2 XLR, ALL 1m in length. Qb8MK2 feeds by Gryphon VIP PC IEC, where my power conditioner feed by SILTECH Ruby Mountain2(waiting to remove it soon). My Gryphon system with Nordost valhalla 2 shines like RAZOR without leaving you bleeding. AudioQuest? yes i do have only a Dimond XLR AES/EBU for my MBL 1621A transport.
Same for Nordost; I have Tyr 2 that has the same technology and configuration as Valhalla; on the conditioner has a good medium bass and a good sound ventilation; more air and separation of the instruments; I also listened to Valhalla 2 which goes further than Tyr 2, more space and air but not much; now Tyr 2 he worked on my DAC and did a good job; but now on the conditioner I prefer Audioquest Firebird; is another deeper sound and clear sound , a bass with much lower frequencies ; depends on what you prefer...
I tried Purist Corvus; more 3d, space, but not so deep and a bass sound a bit lower compared to the Hurrican; so it depends on what we want to listen to in a system...
I agree. 15 years ago if someone would have told me that a power cord makes a system sound different, I would have told them they were crazy. I’m a believer now though.
I never tell my friends what I spend on audio equipment or cables. They wouldn’t understand.
rshad I hear you..... I’ll probably go with the Hurricane for the Gryphon too, for the same reasons. I’m sure marketing folks will be using our posts to validate their assumptions on the mindset of HiFi enthusiasts. I felt very self-conscious when my non-audiophile friends found out what I spent on a AQ Diamond USB cable. And that’s not even an expensive cable relatively speaking. IMO USB cables are the most embarrassing thing for audiophiles to buy, but power cords are a close second. But in many cases the differences are so blatantly obvious, and the effects are not even always positive.
nyev, Lol...good question. I did not hear much difference--the low end seemed to be more robust. However, unfortunately, I am one of those crazy audiophiles, that has an issue with spending $16k on a component and then have a $40 power cord stuck in the back. So I went with the Hurricane...
Thanks rshad0000. Did you hear any difference at all between the stock Gryphon cord and the Hurricane for the Diablo? Do you think it is even worth getting the Hurricane, or are you suggesting I should not bother and just stay with the stock Gryphon cord and upgrade the PC for my source? Thanks again.
I have a Diablo 300 and tried multiple different power cords on it(ended up using a Hurricane). Honestly I heard minimal if any difference between any of them.
For my source components, in particular my chord Dave, I found some pretty major differences between cords.
Personally I would spend the money on the PCs for your sources and interconnects/speaker cables.
Thanks ron17, that’s a good idea. I was hoping to get the cables the same time as the rest of my system which I don’t have yet. That way, everything will burn in together. However I agree with you - I should probably be patient and do some testing of cables AFTER my new amp and music server is burnt in rather than buying cables up-front.
Your closest Nordost retailer should be able to loan you a Valhalla 2 power cord to try in your system. If they don't have one available Nordost has loaner Valhalla 2 cables that they will send to your retailer for you to demo in your home. I've done that and it's the best way to hear if it right for your system.
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