Results with Shunyata Venom Defender
I’ve started my battle with noisy AC and while I’m waiting for my new Audioquest Dragon HC 20A to come in (for my TBD conditioner) my dealer loaned me a couple of Shunyata Venom Defender plugs, which are supposed to filter out noise on your AC line and provide surge protection. You simply plug these in on the same circuit as your gear. They are inexpensive buy audio standards.
Do they make a difference? Yes! Sound became noticeably more focused, more higher frequency detail, cleaner treble. But….. Unfortunately the tonal balance shifted. Bass was more reserved and too polite (but well defined). I’d say all frequencies below upper midrange became quieter, and all frequencies upper mid and higher got louder. All frequencies got clearer. Also, the overall volume was very slightly quieter with these devices plugged in. Maybe quieter by 1/3rd of one volume setting increment on my Diablo 300.
The improved focus and clarity really did improve the experience when listening to a lot of material - it was easier to follow what was going on. But bass guitars lost some presence and even some nuance because it was quieter. I was thinking I could live with that for the sake of the improvements, but then I tried listening to some leaner recordings, and it sounded better without the devices plugged in.
All of these effects were subtle, but after going back and forth and pinpointing the differences, the changes became readily apparent.
I’m not going to end up using these, but I’d highly recommend them for anyone who might want to tighten up their system’s focus and detail, and doesn’t mind a very slightly leaner sound.
Also, I suspect those with lower end (less resolving) systems may not hear any difference when using these devices.
I tried up to two of these devices. The “lean” effect was increased with two, and noticeable with one. It’s possible this is specific to my setup. My Diablo 300 draws a lot of current. And all my gear is on one 15A circuit. This is not ideal, and maybe adding the Defender was an added strain on the circuit… Remember the defender had the effect of lowering the volume in my system very slightly.
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I forgot to note one other anomaly - my sound cut out for a second on three occasions when I plugged in the Defender. Most of the time plugging in the Defender this didn’t happen. Might be a sign my system is strained to it’s limits with my one circuit? Not sure. My Gryphon amp is high A/B bias and draws a lot of current, even when idle. It gets rather toasty. So again, my results with the Defender might be unusual. I also tested a Niagara 5000 and noticed a lot more bass energy and rhythm. In fact, quite the opposite of my experience with the Defender, where the top end detail actually diminished with the Niagara (however I suspect it was because I was using a low end power cord to power it). With the Niagara this increased bass drive effect is a result of their “power correction” feature as this effect only occurred when I had the power correction switch set to on. Again, maybe a sign my circuit does not have the current reserves my system can benefit from. |
One of the things that Nordost warned me about when I asked them about conditioners (I have Valhalla 2 speaker cables) is that all filters / conditioners / regenerators have an impact on tonal balance. They also warned that you cannot predict how a particular conditioner/filter/regenerator will impact a particular system, so you need to test yourself. I’ve seen this message repeated on YouTube conditioner shootouts too. Basically saying that their results are for interest only but not to take their results too seriously because the effects will be different in each system. I suspect my experience with the Venom Defender is an example of this, possibly influenced by my shared 15A line (that is soon to be replaced with two dedicated 20A lines). |
@andrewkelley , I don’t recall exactly how long I had it plugged in prior to my listening session, but it was definitely a good while. I had it for a few days. Funny you should revive this thread. I was just now thinking that I have pretty strong bass in my system now with a rich and full bodied sound. And as such it had just occurred to me that a Defender might not be a bad thing in the context of my current system. |
