[Patrick82]

After I hardwired other ends of Valhalla power cords I'm able to hear what vocalists are singing, it's very relaxing to listen. Before that I had to struggle and try to figure out the words, but not anymore!

 

[NotJeffBuckley]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patrick82 After I hardwired other ends of Valhalla power cords I'm able to hear what vocalists are singing, it's very relaxing to listen. Before that I had to struggle and try to figure out the words, but not anymore!

Ah... You couldn't make out vocalists before you did this?

 

[tourmaline]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patrick82 The SPM doesn't have the same shielding as Valhalla. It looks like a flat speaker cable. SPM could become better than Valhalla with external shielding because of the faster speed. Try toilet paper rolls and wrap them with ERS paper. Valhalla has paper inside and thin silver wires for the shield. That's why speed is slower. It should become faster if the shield is further away. Speaker cable + toilet paper roll shield should be best, I will try it in a week.

Lets face it, 97% of lightspeed or 87% of lightspeed; both are much faster then real life speeds anyway, so it doesn't matter.

Both cables don't restrict the speed of fast trancients.

 

[Patrick82]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NotJeffBuckley Ah... You couldn't make out vocalists before you did this?

That's right. It was a subtle improvement but it was enough to hear the endings of the words to make out what they say. There is more low-level decay.

 

[Chiliman]

is it still different to understand vocalists?

 

[Patrick82]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patrick82 Valhalla has paper inside and thin silver wires for the shield. That's why speed is slower. It should become faster if the shield is further away. Speaker cable + toilet paper roll shield should be best, I will try it in a week.

Nevermind, I didn't bother trying because it would have taken too long time to unsolder everything.

I wrapped the power cords in ERS paper. I didn't need toilet paper rolls for it because the paper was so stiff. I have the bottom half of the ERS paper hanging from the cord with scotch tape. The paper is half inch away from the cord, it should be fine.

I also went overkill inside the amp, DAC1 and Power Plant. I made some "chambers" inside. I also wrapped the DAC1 afterwards.

First impressions: Deeper bass. Vocals don't sound like before, there is more low-level detail. It sounds calm and relaxing. The improvement was bigger than I expected.

PS Audio xStream Statement power cable used to have deeper bass than Valhalla, but not anymore. I'm hearing some of the Statement sound signature with the speed of Valhalla. I need to do more testing to see if there is something missing.

 

[Patrick82]

ERS Paper is crazy. I try to hear weaknesses but can't, it made it better in every way. Bass is so deep and sharp I can feel it in my stomach. Transients from top to bottom are amazing, I didn't know it could sound this sharp.

I would have expected this improvement from a $20 000+ component upgrade, but instead got it for a few hundred bucks. It is weird everyone doesn't have ERS Paper. Most complain of it sounding lifeless and dull because RFI doesn't compensate for their muddy cables anymore. But with Valhalla that isn't a problem.

My body is vibrating from the deep bass now, every album has deep bass I didn't know was there! I didn't think pieces of paper would improve bass this much. Valhalla power cord owners should try it. I didn't bother experimenting to find out where the paper makes the biggest improvement, just cover the whole system and be done with it.

 

[Patrick82]

I think I know now why there is silver plating on Nordost cables. All systems have background noise that masks transparency so the silver plating boosts up the whiteness in the highs. But fixing the background noise in the first place is better because the highs automatically get more transparent because of a different contrast. It's like putting a brighter monitor into a bright room instead of closing the curtains to keep sunlight away. ERS Paper are those curtains.
Making the cable fatter also makes it blacker, it hides detail and noise and changes the contrast to get fake transparency. The fat cable also compensates for vibration in the system, vibration makes it thin and lifeless, using multiple conductors makes it heavier which gives fake body. If all the problems are fixed the fatter cable is worse in every way. 1 conductor per signal is clearly the best.

Valhalla gives fake dynamics, transparency and body in a crappy system, it's great for low-fi gear. It compensates for problems in the system. Everyone should buy it.

After the ERS Paper shield treatment the highs are whiter and more transparent because of a different contrast. It sounds weird, real life doesn't sound this distinct, everything is separate. I wonder if Tara Labs Zero is a better cable in a noise free system. Problem is I don't have $13k to find out. I guess I need to do like skeptics do and make myself believe it sucks, then I can stay ignorant and make myself believe Valhalla is better for the rest of my life (Bigshot's Radio Shack cable style). I only paid $800 for my Valhalla interconnect. Do I choose $13 000 + truth or $800 + ignorance, gee let me think

.................. Ok, I'm saving up for the Tara Labs. In 75 months I will post back here. Mark this post!

I still love the Valhalla power cords though. Power supply manipulation is great from the silver plating, I think it's better than neutral cable. But for analog signals, I'm not sure anymore. It's great for electronica though, the silver plating makes it sound crazy, in a good way. Transients are all over the place and each one is distinct. I wonder if neutral cable would blend the multiple transients together. I can focus on one sound and it sounds very clear, then I can shift my focus to another sound and it's equally clear. It doesn't fade away anymore when multiple sounds are playing.

I still can't hear any weaknesses from ERS Paper, it made it better in every way! I can now hear the signature of Valhalla cable easily. Highs are white and smooth, bass is deep and sharp because of a blacker background. I don't hear any grain from Valhalla cable, it is smooth as silk. There's no brightness or sibilance at all, there's just whiteness, it's hard to explain. With other cables the whiteness can't be heard, with cheap cables the highs are just veiled and dark. With Valhalla you get more detail than real life, it's like looking at the highs through a microscope without any fatigue. It seems like this is what silver plating does, it gives a higher contrast, I don't think it's a bad thing either.

 

[phergus_25]

Have you ever thought that perhaps the high back of your chair is reflecting some sound and causing reverb problems, or something of the sort.
-greg

 

[Trogdor]

I absolute love this thread! I think we should have more Valhalla appreciation threads. I get more entertainment out of the "Valhalla changed me life" threads than any other...hands freak'n down...

 

[Patrick82]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trogdor I absolute love this thread! I think we should have more Valhalla appreciation threads. I get more entertainment out of the "Valhalla changed me life" threads than any other...hands freak'n down...

Yes, only good things happen from Valhalla. It made me lose fat as well, if they sold Valhalla for 10 bucks then there would be fat people all over the place, imagine elevators falling down from too much weight. Valhalla is a life saver!

 

[Patrick82]

I pasted the interconnects with QuickSilver GOLD which I haven't used for over half a year because I have been busy tweaking.

I turned on the system expecting to hear better sound but instead horrible sound came out, everything was blurry and I couldn't hear what vocalists where singing. It was like taking many steps back in resolution. It's sort of like adding muddy tubes into the path. It sounded bright, harsh and sibilant, but after 5 hours of burn-in it was almost gone, and after 6 hours I didn't hear any sibilance anymore, highs sounded too dark! The difference was so dramatic I could hear it while listening.
QuickSilver is great if you want to hide problems in the system, is it low-resolution in a bottle? I suspected it before because a year ago I couldn't listen to my system without it because of so much sibilance, it seemed to tone down the brightness. But now I have fixed the problems instead and it sounds good with the clean Valhalla.

Those 6 hours of QuickSilver burn-in brought the detail only 5% closer to the clean Valhalla. It seems like I pasted a too thick layer, I tried to make it as thin as I could while still being able to see it. I guess I need to invest in a microscope to find out how the surface of the connector looks like and fill in the imperfections with my vibrating hand. I don't like connectors, I will get nightmares now.

The attack of the big blocky plugs...

 

[yo2tup2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patrick82 I pasted the interconnects with QuickSilver GOLD which I haven't used for over half a year because I have been busy tweaking. I turned on the system expecting to hear better sound but instead horrible sound came out, everything was blurry and I couldn't hear what vocalists where singing. It was like taking many steps back in resolution. It's sort of like adding muddy tubes into the path. It sounded bright, harsh and sibilant, but after 5 hours of burn-in it was almost gone, and after 6 hours I didn't hear any sibilance anymore, highs sounded too dark! The difference was so dramatic I could hear it while listening. QuickSilver is great if you want to hide problems in the system, is it low-resolution in a bottle? I suspected it before because a year ago I couldn't listen to my system without it because of so much sibilance, it seemed to tone down the brightness. But now I have fixed the problems instead and it sounds good with the clean Valhalla. Those 6 hours of QuickSilver burn-in brought the detail only 5% closer to the clean Valhalla. It seems like I pasted a too thick layer, I tried to make it as thin as I could while still being able to see it. I guess I need to invest in a microscope to find out how the surface of the connector looks like and fill in the imperfections with my vibrating hand. I don't like connectors, I will get nightmares now. The attack of the big blocky plugs...

I noticed that the the quicksilver gold has always needed a full two weeks to settle in and sound good. The first a couple days would sound dark and vield like you described...the next few days after that it'd sound a little bright but with a smaller soundstage. After about a week the soundstage starts to come back and highs start to sound more natural. And finally sound best after a little over two weeks. I used quicksilver gold 3 times, and I always noticed that same thing in terms of settling in. I believe its from the stuff having to dry and harden up.

 

[Konig]

i think jorma design prime burn more fats
GET IT!!!

 

[Patrick82]

[size=medium]OH MY GOD![/size]

I cleaned off QuickSilver and it's like there is nothing in front of the music, it sounds very clean and sharp. The subtle hairy transients are back! Bass is sharp and vibrating. There is crazy speed and transparency. Everything sounds louder again, I thought I had hearing damage or something, but QuickSilver made music quieter.
With QuickSilver I was listening to smooth, dark, romantic and emotional music

. With clean Valhalla I'm listening to real life.

Quote:

Originally Posted by yo2tup2 I noticed that the the quicksilver gold has always needed a full two weeks to settle in and sound good. The first a couple days would sound dark and vield like you described...the next few days after that it'd sound a little bright but with a smaller soundstage. After about a week the soundstage starts to come back and highs start to sound more natural. And finally sound best after a little over two weeks. I used quicksilver gold 3 times, and I always noticed that same thing in terms of settling in. I believe its from the stuff having to dry and harden up.

I didn't have patience to wait a couple weeks. Everytime I listened I wanted it back like it was before. I lasted 20 hours this time, I will try it again another time.