Lavry & Black Sand (or another other)

[spraggih]

I have just got a Lavry DA10 and after a day replaced the stock power cord with the Black Sand Violet Z1. I cannot say I notice a difference although it has only been two days or so. Does anyone with the Lavry and a higher end power cord notice a difference (better blacks, more definition, more controlled highs/lows)?

Thanks.

 

[grandenigma1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by spraggih I have just got a Lavry DA10 and after a day replaced the stock power cord with the Black Sand Violet Z1. I cannot say I notice a difference although it has only been two days or so. Does anyone with the Lavry and a higher end power cord notice a difference (better blacks, more definition, more controlled highs/lows)? Thanks.

Nope.... I just use my 16awg shielded cable with Wattgate plugs.... others I have tried have done nothing or made it a bit worse...

 

[spraggih]

Quote:

Originally Posted by grandenigma1 Nope.... I just use my 16awg shielded cable with Wattgate plugs.... others I have tried have done nothing or made it a bit worse...

Now that I have a couple days of listening in I am going to change back to the stock power cord and see if there is any true difference.'

Thanks for letting me know your experiences.


Anyone else?

 

[Scrith]

The differences you are going to hear with an upgraded power cord are definitely not going to be big ones. I would listen for greater bass impact (which might be the easiest difference to detect).

By the way, if you are looking to improve the sound of your Lavry DA10, I highly recommend upgrading the fuse. I changed mine to one of the PS Audio Critical Link fuses (the Lavry uses the 2.5 amp version) and noticed a significant improvement in bass and liveliness (kind of like what I noticed when I upgraded to Black Sand Violet power cable, but to a much greater extent). The critical link fuse is $30.

 

[grandenigma1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scrith The differences you are going to hear with an upgraded power cord are definitely not going to be big ones. I would listen for greater bass impact (which might be the easiest difference to detect). By the way, if you are looking to improve the sound of your Lavry DA10, I highly recommend upgrading the fuse. I changed mine to one of the PS Audio Critical Link fuses (the Lavry uses the 2.5 amp version) and noticed a significant improvement in bass and liveliness (kind of like what I noticed when I upgraded to Black Sand Violet power cable, but to a much greater extent). The critical link fuse is $30.

I highly recommend you stop talking about said stupid fuse in every post

... that is unless you work for BS Audio in which case its ok I suppose

 

[Garbz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by spraggih Does anyone with the Lavry and a higher end power cord notice a difference (better blacks, more definition, more controlled highs/lows)?

No. I did use a higher end cable to silence a critic. It made no difference. The arguement came it was because I wasn't filtering my power. So I built a power filter out of mains inductors from work and some mains rated capacitors. Still no difference.

I have experienced what I long expected, which is unless your machine somehow has a powersupply that does not work properly, any changes you make to the mains that don't fall outside of normal operating conditions will NOT make an audible effect. Best of all, armed with this knowledge you can save up money for some real gear, rather than playing around with useless and expensive tweaks.

 

[nichifanlema]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scrith The differences you are going to hear with an upgraded power cord are definitely not going to be big ones. I would listen for greater bass impact (which might be the easiest difference to detect). By the way, if you are looking to improve the sound of your Lavry DA10, I highly recommend upgrading the fuse. I changed mine to one of the PS Audio Critical Link fuses (the Lavry uses the 2.5 amp version) and noticed a significant improvement in bass and liveliness (kind of like what I noticed when I upgraded to Black Sand Violet power cable, but to a much greater extent). The critical link fuse is $30.

wow....sounds improve from changing a fuse??

 

[smartins]

Quote:

Originally Posted by spraggih I have just got a Lavry DA10 and after a day replaced the stock power cord with the Black Sand Violet Z1. I cannot say I notice a difference although it has only been two days or so. Does anyone with the Lavry and a higher end power cord notice a difference (better blacks, more definition, more controlled highs/lows)? Thanks.

When you have some time please let us know how the DA10 compares with the X-DAC V3.

Thanks!

 

[spraggih]

Quote:

Originally Posted by smartins When you have some time please let us know how the DA10 compares with the X-DAC V3. Thanks!

Will do - the short of it is - the Lavry is better - mostly in subjective terms like it better synergy with my CD3000s and sounds smoother. Also it plays more effortlessly - meaning the X-DAC sounded like it was pushing / extending itself on complex tracks - the Lavry seems to have no issue with complexity. Also the sound is much much more "natural" (not necessarily neutral) sounding - the music sounds like it is trying to express a natural set of emotions while the X-DAC seems a little artificial and technical (did not notice this until I received the Lavry)- but this is very very subjective.

All is not better though - with the X-DAC and tube buffer, bass and ambiance are much stronger. Of course I could hook up the tube buffer to the Lavry and use an external amp (which I plan to do shortly). Also depending on your goal the X-DAC was more in my face.

Also for some the Lavry may be too laid back or soft on notes. Since I have CD3000s as my headphone this works out for me.

I will try to quantify differences more but for now I would say the Lavry is worth the price difference assuming you add in the price of a built-in amp.

Lastly - keep in mind I did not have the PSU - all reviewers (exception MusicDirect.com who said the PSU is not a major difference) say the PSU is mandatory for better sound. Also Kool Bubba Ice says the PSU really steals the show.