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why do power cords make a difference with transpor

I have been playing around with my Marantz SA-14. It is a great stand alone player that is made even better by a Shunyata Python. Recently I used the SA-14 as a transport with an Electrocompaniet dac. It would seem that the dac would benefit most from a better power cord because it decodes the 1's and 0's. The transport just turns the disc. However, the Python sounded much better on the transport than the dac. More bass, much better separation between instruments, and clearer overall. Why? Surprised? I am not at all technical but I would appreciate any thought you would have. Thanks
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Showing 2 responses by seandtaylor99

seandtaylor99
1,262 posts
 
My guess is that it is not that the transport benefits from the better power supply, but that the other components benefit from a reduced amount of noise injected back into the power supply by the transport. The key is isolating the power supply of the rest of the equipment from the transport.
seandtaylor99
1,262 posts
 
Thanks Sean ... I think that there's merit in the ideas in your post, and the ideas in my post. I guess my previous post suggested that noise FROM the transport was the dominant effect, and that's a bit too sweeping. However I have an old transport that actually interferes with my TV if I have it plugged in on the same circuit. Putting a couple of ferrite rings around the (very cheap, stock) power cord reduced the interference, leading me to try discover that it also improved the sound of the hifi (which initially surprised me).

I have to admit though that this is an ancient transport and it's quite possible that some of the large electrolytics in the power supply are not very healthy and contribute to noise being modulated onto the supply lines. If I didn't have an 18month old sapping all my time and energy then I might swap them out and see what difference it makes.

I like your point about cables being a patch for a poor component ... I entirely agree.
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