Change's

Everyone in the hifi world knows that one of the cardinal rules is to only make one change at a time, therefore allowing you to judge if it has made a difference, better or worse. Making several changes at once renders it impossible to tell what has done what. I have made the biggest blunder, even though I know this rule, although it was really unavoidable.
About 2 years ago I decided to install a dedicated main's supply for my hifi, I know a lot of people will think bah humbug to this idea, but I wanted to do it because I thought it would be a worthwhile thing to do and relatively easy and cheap. I purchased 80 mtr's of 20amp screened cable and installed 3 separate run's, my intension was 1 for each monoblock amp and the 3rd for the CD player and preamp. This all went fairly easily. I have a house with lot's of oak beams and panel's etc so it wasn't too hard to hide most of the cabling and the rest I boxed in. Now I was ready for the electrician to install a second consumer unit, fed directly from the incoming power supply through a splitter. 18 month's past before I managed to find a spark's to do the job, not because it was going to be a difficult job, just that it was a case of someone reliable or, “what do you want to do that forâ€Â. In the end it was an old mate, who I didn't ask in the first place, because I thought he would take the p for wanting to waste my money, but he has mellowed and did it with no question but with interest and constructive ideas.
It had been a long time from the cable install and I had changed my Canary 303's (300b WE valves) monoblock's to solid state Bryston 7 bsst's and then had traded all 4 amps for a pair of Mcintosh 501's. I had also bought 2 Ben Duncan 1KV power plant's, 1 for each monoblock, but was waiting for the dedicated supply before using them. At this stage I was still not connected to the separate supply and had a Resolution Audio Opus 21 and an Audio Research SP11, both of which were for sale, a pair of Krell Resolution 2's, plus the Mac's (not for sale).
Now enter the electrician who did a marvellous job, but it necessitated a bit of upheaval in my music room, which incidentally is our living room. At the same time we decided to fit a new carpet and I made a panel about 60mm from the wall behind where the hifi was to go, to cover the cabling, plus some other alterations to the room. The hifi was out of action for several weeks after the dedicated supply was hooked up. While all this was going on, I had sold the SP11 and the Opus 21, used the money from both to buy a Krell KCT preamp. Stay awake please! I was going to have to use an old Rotel CD player until I could afford a good transport. ( I'm looking for an Audio Synthesis transcend)
So the situation was that when all the work was done and I was ready to connect it all up, I had made several changes ie, new preamp, 2 B.Duncan power supply's, new dedicated power supply's, a Dax Decade dac, which I had not been using and a Rotel cd player.
The point is that I never got the benefit of hearing the difference that the dedicated supply made to the original setup if any at all, so I will never know if it doe's make a discernable difference or not, well I suppose I could plug it all back into the ring, but that's not the point. I must say though that it doe's sound very good even with a cheap cd player as transport.
If you are interested, the Ben Duncan power supplies and the regenerator I use for the cd, dac, and preamp, are all hard wired into fussed outlets, same as storage heater's.
So, only make one change at a time, then you can appreciate, or not, what that change has done for you. Hi-Fi who need's it?

 

Now there's a man who likes an apostrophe!

 

I gave up counting.

 

As i have heard it said and after changes new gear and all the silly things i have done to find out what you have done is the very first listen thats when you hear the difference after that it
sort of grows on you Noel W.