Shunyata Hydra

There were references to the Hydra over a month ago when the subject of great powercords came up. Several members had just received new Hydras and said that they would be burning them in. ...So where are you folks at? What has your experience been? ...Contrast to PS Audio products -PS300/600/1200? More info. on the Hydra in general would be welcomed. Thanks

Sure, I fired off a post early on and all I can say is wow! The unit has delivered on its promise. One of the rarest of audio components in that it fits into an existing system (mine of course) without any deleterious effect--at least none that I can hear and object to. I've heard several others including a mod'ed P300, but none has lifted my system this much without compromising some area of the sonics. Overall, I'd venture that most of the improvements I'm hearing are the twofold result of noise reduction and improved power factor (something Caelin can explain better): thus dynamics are now startling and detail is more natural. Music is as it should be with the Hydra--poised yet energized. By the way, the supplied cord while detachable is not easily substituted due to the use of a special socket. PS plans to offer their own cord upgrades in the future so I hear--though the supplied cord is already custom. Another point I will add for those concerned about coexisting with other power tweaks--it tolerates Quietlines, Quantum Symphony, and Noisehound (BC-86). Each of these in their own way are super too.

I was playing with both the Hydra and Whales today. I can tell you that with just stock cords, every aspect is a little less crisp and less detailed. Depending how fanatical you are, you could easily say it sounded
dramatically muttled. When I added the Hydra with the stock cords, sounds cleaned up. When I added the Whales + Hydra, sounds cleaned up even further. I have spent about 60K on all new equipment which arrived all at the same time, except for the Hydra. I was very happy when I plugged in the Hydra for the first time. I cannot imagine the PS Audio sounding any better, and for the amount of electricity that I am using, I would have to purchase the PS 2000 at $4995, I paid $1600 for the Hydra. I paid $400 each for the three Whales, and they are suppose to sound very similar to the Cobra V2 at $2300 each.

The best way to sum up my opinion on these two products is if you asked me this question. If I could get a full refund on my money, would I do take it? No. I enjoy the sound much better with these two products in my
system. In the grand scheme of my system, it was only $2800 more. My burning question is how does the Whales sound compared to the Cobra V2? For me to do a fair comparison I would need to purchase 3 Cobra V2's. Even if I
purchased them used, it's still allot of money.

Chris, what equipment did you use the Hydra with? Tube or SS? I was thinking of the PS product, but I too was concerned with the amount of power I needed without laying out that much money.
Thanks

I tried the Hydra with my EVo amp and linn CD player. The EVo sounded better plugged into the same wall outlet as the Hydra than pluggied directly into the Hydra. The cable that sounded the best was the TG Audio HSR A, I did not try the Whale Elite. The soundstage was huge but it seemed to have a curtain over it that masked inner detail and transients. The curtain was slight and without the Hydra, the soundstage shrank in width and depth. Maybe it wasn't broke in but it was a demo that I had to wait quite a while to receive.

Chriskh, to answer your question on the Whale vs King Cobra.
Like yourself I have 3 Whales and use to own a King Cobra. When I bought my first Whale I did some major comparing with my other top notch cables inlcuding the King Cobra. Both the Whale and King Cobra do a great job in black background and detail. The King Cobra is more forward and aggressive sounding in the mids than the Whale. The Whale has a more neutral and natural sound than the King Cobra. Also the Whale has a tighter bass and control.

Hope this helps you out Chriskh. In past forums I did a review of the Whale in details.