QSA LANEDRI Series

Hi Steven,
Very glad yo see that there is a QSA Forum on WBF.
Congratulations!

QSA : My take on their expensive products

Threre has been another WBF thread on QSA fuses for some weeks already, but I still want to share with WBF brothers my personal audition/comparison experience. Disclaimer : I am NOT in anyway in the music/hifi industry in Hong Kong. I am only an audiophile and consumer. All WBF brothers who...

www.whatsbestforum.com

I think I wrote the first QSA review on WBF, back in 2012.

QSA : My take on their expensive products

Threre has been another WBF thread on QSA fuses for some weeks already, but I still want to share with WBF brothers my personal audition/comparison experience. Disclaimer : I am NOT in anyway in the music/hifi industry in Hong Kong. I am only an audiophile and consumer. All WBF brothers who...

www.whatsbestforum.com

May I ask you two questions?

Firstly, I notice on you website that QSA-Lanedri cables are being launched.

HOME | QSA LANEDRI

www.qsa-lanedri.com

May you tell us more about them?
What metals are employed and what special features do they have?

Secondly, several frds of mine in Hong Kong have bought QSA JitterPower.


Again, please tell the WBF members more about these series of accessories.

Many thanks!

Cheers,
CK

 

As we bid farewell to another year and welcome the new one, I want to extend my heartfelt wishes for a Happy New Year to each of you. May your days be filled with joyful melodies and enriching music experiences. Our shared passion for outstanding audio brings us together, and I am grateful for this wonderful community.

 

Maybe I can give some user experience on the QSA-L GI XLR cables. I have been using them between my DAC and preamp for the past 9 months or so. I did not try it between the preamp and power amp because I need a long interconnect 3m at least as my monoblock power amps are placed close to my speakers. I would say that the GI XLR are of a slightly different character compared with the power cords. It is sort of the opposite of an analog sound. It gives a more focused sound and give you some great attacks. Instruments of the orchestra are displayed in an orderly manner and in good layering. When there is a sudden loud attack in the piece you can sense that the double bass just lies orderly in its position and giving that plug. It tends to give a more taut(in the good sense) but not tense feeling yet it is in complete harmony with the other QSA-L cables. By that I mean QSA-L cables in general gives a very sumptuous mid and adding the GI XLR helps to to give a tighter bass but does not subtract the lovely mids displayed by the other QSA-L. It actually improves the dynamics and gives you a 'faster' or more lively sound amidst the lovely mids. I would say that if there are QSA-L cables in the system then it will be a good mix to use it. If there are no QSA-L cables in the system or the system is on the lean side then this may not be the best match.

Thank you @hols , for your excellent feedback. It's very thoughtful, detailed, and incredibly helpful. I completely understand your point about the placement restrictions with the various cables and components. Currently, my primary concern lies between my DAC and amps, and any future upgrading of the speaker cabling would require a major rearrangement.

The harmony between the other QSA/L cables ties in nicely with Anas' reminder about the end-to-end effect of the QSA Lanedri setup. Your detailed description of the impact on the music is most enlightening.

In my system the QSA/L signal cables originate from the network switch dedicated to the audio system:

• SOtM to Pre-Amp via GI DAC cable
• Pre-Amp to DAC via GI Ethernet cable

When I eventually have the opportunity to upgrade to the QSA/L XLR cables, I anticipate some fascinating improvements.

I'm also curious about your thoughts on the effects of QSA/L Signal cables compared to power cables. Is there a specific post I should review for that?

 

Thank you @hols , for your excellent feedback. It's very thoughtful, detailed, and incredibly helpful. I completely understand your point about the placement restrictions with the various cables and components. Currently, my primary concern lies between my DAC and amps, and any future upgrading of the speaker cabling would require a major rearrangement.

The harmony between the other QSA/L cables ties in nicely with Anas' reminder about the end-to-end effect of the QSA Lanedri setup. Your detailed description of the impact on the music is most enlightening.

In my system the QSA/L signal cables originate from the network switch dedicated to the audio system:

• SOtM to Pre-Amp via GI DAC cable
• Pre-Amp to DAC via GI Ethernet cable

When I eventually have the opportunity to upgrade to the QSA/L XLR cables, I anticipate some fascinating improvements.

I'm also curious about your thoughts on the effects of QSA/L Signal cables compared to power cables. Is there a specific post I should review for that?

Your curiosity about the effects of QSA Lanedri Signal cables versus power cables is well-founded. In the audio world, I like to think of the signal cables as the 'oxygen' and the power cables as the 'blood' of the system. Just like in a living body, the purity of both is crucial for optimum performance.

Regarding the QSA Lanedri cables, both the power and signal cables elevate the music experience to new levels of music without any trade-off. The QSA Lanedri power cables have a profound impact on reducing the noise floor while transforming music listening into an immersive experience. The QSA Lanedri signal cables add a new dimension to the liveliness of the music while elevating the clarity and refinement of the sound. What is crucial to understand is that the end-to-end connection with the QSA Lanedri cable transforms each component in the chain and works in harmony to elevate the entire musical experience.

The impact of these cables transcends mere description; it must be experienced firsthand to fully comprehend their transformative effect on the listening experience. The QSA Lanedri cables are not just about technical superiority; they serve as a gateway to a new realm of emotional connection with music.

 

Yesterday, I just tried 1 Ultimatum Powercord (5 days burned-in) on my friend mid-end Dynaudio Confidence system in both Acoustic Arts CD Player and Octave V80SE Intergrated Amp position. The sound improvement effect was really impressive.
Whole system was transformed and waked up with alot of details, harmonic texture and longer decay while still maintain signature characteristic from QSA fuse: solid, focus, live energy
The bass was also very exceptional like it's produced from a much more expensive system.
Congrats Anas! I'm going to sell all my Odin2

 

Yesterday, I just tried 1 Ultimatum Powercord (5 days burned-in) on my friend mid-end Dynaudio Confidence system in both Acoustic Arts CD Player and Octave V80SE Intergrated Amp position. The sound improvement effect was really impressive.
Whole system was transformed and waked up with alot of details, harmonic texture and longer decay while still maintain signature characteristic from QSA fuse: solid, focus, live energy
The bass was also very exceptional like it's produced from a much more expensive system.
Congrats Anas! I'm going to sell all my Odin2

Thank you, @Huy Hoang, for sharing your initial impressions.

What you've experienced so far only is not yet the full potential of the Ultimatum Infinity power cable. About 300 hours of burn-in are required to experience the full impact. It's important to note that a high-wattage burn-in process is essential to unlock the tremendous potential that lies within this cable.

 

Thank you, @hols , for sharing your impressions. It's important to note that the burn-in process significantly enhances the performance of the Ultimatum Infinity power cable. What you've experienced thus far is the beginning of its capabilities. To fully unleash its potential, a thorough burn-in using components with high wattage is essential. This process will further refine and elevate the cable's performance, revealing the full extent of its impact on your audio experience.

Anas gave me yet another surprise last Thursday. He brought over an Ultimatum PC burnt-in using his high wattage burning method to compare with my Ultimatum PC which has been feeding my Taiko extreme non-stop for 2 weeks. Wow you've got to believe this. It is just way better than mine. Both are outputting the characteristic QSA-L sound but the high wattage burn-in one just deliver the character doubly more effciently. Raymond commented that the improvement when driving the extreme is like sweeping across the whole range giving a smoother sound and with immersiveness. I am more astonished by its effect on my power amp. Even though it is only applied to one monoblock it just gives a much grander sound. On comparison the sound of my low wattage burnt-in Ultimatum PC the sounds a little bloated. Once connected with the burnt-in Ultimatum PC the bass just sound sumptuous and yet in good layering and rich timbre. One really has to listen to it before you can realize the big difference. So much so I have to temporarily part with my two Ultimatum PC and let Anas do the high wattage burn in for me. Eagerly awaiting the return of my high wattage burn in cable.

 

Anas, will the high current burn offer the same improvements as described for the other PCs too? The GI and GR chords.

Will using other branded burn-in devices to our QSAL products affect the special process or is it safe to pass high currents without destroying the effect?

Please comment on both AC and DC cables. What is the best way to extract the best QSAL effect from them. Thanks Kin

 

Anas, will the high current burn offer the same improvements as described for the other PCs too? The GI and GR chords.

Will using other branded burn-in devices to our QSAL products affect the special process or is it safe to pass high currents without destroying the effect?

Please comment on both AC and DC cables. What is the best way to extract the best QSAL effect from them. Thanks Kin

Our findings so far on using commercial burn-in machines on our QSA Ultimatum cables are discouraging. At this point, we advise against using these machines on QSA cables, as the effects can be irreversible and potentially detrimental.

The impact of the high-wattage burn-in on the Ultimatum Infinity power cables is tremendous. Given this, we've decided to implement this burn-in on all these cables prior to dispatch. Additionally, for clients who have already received these cables, we are pleased to offer this service at no additional cost.

As for our Gamma power cables, testing is still underway to determine the impact of this process. We will share our findings as soon as we reach definitive conclusions.

 

Our findings so far on using commercial burn-in machines on our QSA Ultimatum cables are discouraging. At this point, we advise against using these machines on QSA cables, as the effects can be irreversible and potentially detrimental.

The impact of the high-wattage burn-in on the Ultimatum Infinity power cables is tremendous. Given this, we've decided to implement this burn-in on all these cables prior to dispatch. Additionally, for clients who have already received these cables, we are pleased to offer this service at no additional cost.

As for our Gamma power cables, testing is still underway to determine the impact of this process. We will share our findings as soon as we reach definitive conclusions.

Anas would you advise against using even QSA's own cooker?

 

Anas would you advise against using even QSA's own cooker?

We utilize the QSA unit for low-current burn-in, but it does not replace the essential burn-in achieved through playing music.

Although low-current burn-in is beneficial, it cannot fully unleash the tremendous potential of the cables that is achievable through high-current burn-in for the Ultimatum series.

 

Will the Ultimatum speaker cable benefit from high current burn in too?

If so, what’s your plan for existing customers?

 

Will the Ultimatum speaker cable benefit from high current burn in too?

If so, what’s your plan for existing customers?

Currently, we are offering the high-current burn-in process exclusively for the Ultimatum Infinity power cables.

Concurrently, we are conducting extensive testing on the Ultimatum speaker cables. We aim to complete these tests soon and will promptly share the results and any relevant updates.

 

By my estimation, it’s been about exactly one year since the QSA-Lanedri brand was launched, and what an unexpected year for my audio system.

Here’s my sequence of QSA-L acquisitions thus far:

1. Ultimatum Infinity speaker cables (May 2023) – Right away, I was smitten. What a spectacular introduction to QSA-L, I gushed to another friend. Connected between my Gryphon Diablo 300 integrated amplifier and Vivid Kaya 45 speakers, these cables were immediately transformative in just about every conceivable way. Most noticeable to me at first was how much more energy was pouring forth from the speakers. Now what I value most is the sheer transparency and how much easier it is to hear the difference when I add or subtract something from my system. Even as these cables evolved with use, not a day has gone by that I wasn’t utterly impressed with them.

2. Spectra Infinity King power cable (July 2023) – This was originally a Sablon King power cable that I already owned and then sent to Anas for treatment. To this day, I think I’ve underappreciated this cable quite unfairly. It had the misfortune of being evaluated right after the Ultimatum (such a tough act to follow!) and it required so much burning in before it surpassed its pre-treatment performance. How odd that a fully burned-in cable needs multiple weeks of additional burning in after QSA treatment? But since I’ve connected it to my Taiko Extreme, it has not moved from what I deem my most important audio component.

3. Gamma Infinity DAC cable (July 2023) – Although I received this cable in the summer, it wasn’t until November that I was able to actually put the cable to use and get my first taste of Gamma Infinity line. About two weeks in, this sneaky cable lulled me into thinking it had fully settled at a level that was less than astonishing. But then during the third week, it finally blossomed and added palpable richness and density. The resulting sound acquired a tube-like lushness without the familiar drawbacks like weak bass or blunted transients, reminding me of Roy’s earlier comment about how these cables help his system fully capture all the things he loves about both tubes and transistors without the downsides. I feel exactly the same way.

4 & 5. Gamma Infinity AC power cables (January 2024) – The latest QSA-L additions to my system, I chose to put both to use at the same time, one powering the Gryphon integrated amplifier, the other powering the Lampizator Pacific DAC. By the next day, the magic had arrived early, with even more of the seductive lushness that the DAC cable provided before. Another shining example of how additive QSA-L cables are. Since these cables have only been run for a little more than a week, might there be additional goodness to come? Fingers crossed.

Next up are: (6) a new and improved Gamma Infinity DAC cable which is far shorter (0.5m vs 7m) and already in my hands, (7) an Ultimatum Infinity power cable, which should ship soon and is meant for my Shunyata Everest, and (8) a Spectra Infinity combo ethernet cable, hopefully within the next few weeks.

To me, the QSA-L experience is beyond words. All the praise here and elsewhere, I read it all and I can relate to it all, and yet it’s still woefully insufficient to describe everything these extraordinary cables bring. Each and every QSA-L cable has substantially elevated and become essential to my system. But perhaps the best testament I can give isn’t in words; it’s in my determination to continue adding QSA-L cables to my system as my funds allow.

 

Is there a QSAL Ultimatum wallet which has a thick gauge and continues to flow like a horn of plenty?

 

By my estimation, it’s been about exactly one year since the QSA-Lanedri brand was launched, and what an unexpected year for my audio system.

Here’s my sequence of QSA-L acquisitions thus far:

1. Ultimatum Infinity speaker cables (May 2023) – Right away, I was smitten. What a spectacular introduction to QSA-L, I gushed to another friend. Connected between my Gryphon Diablo 300 integrated amplifier and Vivid Kaya 45 speakers, these cables were immediately transformative in just about every conceivable way. Most noticeable to me at first was how much more energy was pouring forth from the speakers. Now what I value most is the sheer transparency and how much easier it is to hear the difference when I add or subtract something from my system. Even as these cables evolved with use, not a day has gone by that I wasn’t utterly impressed with them.

2. Spectra Infinity King power cable (July 2023) – This was originally a Sablon King power cable that I already owned and then sent to Anas for treatment. To this day, I think I’ve underappreciated this cable quite unfairly. It had the misfortune of being evaluated right after the Ultimatum (such a tough act to follow!) and it required so much burning in before it surpassed its pre-treatment performance. How odd that a fully burned-in cable needs multiple weeks of additional burning in after QSA treatment? But since I’ve connected it to my Taiko Extreme, it has not moved from what I deem my most important audio component.

3. Gamma Infinity DAC cable (July 2023) – Although I received this cable in the summer, it wasn’t until November that I was able to actually put the cable to use and get my first taste of Gamma Infinity line. About two weeks in, this sneaky cable lulled me into thinking it had fully settled at a level that was less than astonishing. But then during the third week, it finally blossomed and added palpable richness and density. The resulting sound acquired a tube-like lushness without the familiar drawbacks like weak bass or blunted transients, reminding me of Roy’s earlier comment about how these cables help his system fully capture all the things he loves about both tubes and transistors without the downsides. I feel exactly the same way.

4 & 5. Gamma Infinity AC power cables (January 2024) – The latest QSA-L additions to my system, I chose to put both to use at the same time, one powering the Gryphon integrated amplifier, the other powering the Lampizator Pacific DAC. By the next day, the magic had arrived early, with even more of the seductive lushness that the DAC cable provided before. Another shining example of how additive QSA-L cables are. Since these cables have only been run for a little more than a week, might there be additional goodness to come? Fingers crossed.

Next up are: (6) a new and improved Gamma Infinity DAC cable which is far shorter (0.5m vs 7m) and already in my hands, (7) an Ultimatum Infinity power cable, which should ship soon and is meant for my Shunyata Everest, and (8) a Spectra Infinity combo ethernet cable, hopefully within the next few weeks.

To me, the QSA-L experience is beyond words. All the praise here and elsewhere, I read it all and I can relate to it all, and yet it’s still woefully insufficient to describe everything these extraordinary cables bring. Each and every QSA-L cable has substantially elevated and become essential to my system. But perhaps the best testament I can give isn’t in words; it’s in my determination to continue adding QSA-L cables to my system as my funds allow.

​

@QSA-LANEDRI Any further details on a new and improved Gamma Infinity DAC cable ??

 

​

@QSA-LANEDRI Any further details on a new and improved Gamma Infinity DAC cable ??

We're offering a free upgrade for the updated Gamma Infinity DAC cable. If you have the previous version, please PM me for the upgrade instructions.

 

My apologies to Anas. He sent me an early prototype of the Ultimatum PC some months ago but it is only now that I am finding the time and proper frame of mind to post my impressions of it. Because of severe exhaustion and burn-out, I quit my job in California and have moved to Hawaii. I am currently unemployed and will intentionally remain this way for awhile. Much of my day-to-day presently involves surfing and little else. It has been weeks since I've shaved. Because surfing requires fitness, I am running every day, lifting weights, and doing yoga. I have intentionally not kept up with what's going on in the world. I am finally sleeping better, feeling fit, and more like myself again. Yesterday, I finally felt well enough to jump back online.

Our new home presently sits largely empty as we await our belongings to arrive from California but as our home sits across the street from the beach, it's hard for me to complain. This new house is quite a bit smaller and so I will need to reimagine my audio setup. I don't know what that will look like but one thing is certain, the Ultimatum PC will be at its foundation. Before I left California, I tried this PC on several pieces of equipment including my router, the Taiko Extreme, dCS Vivaldi Apex DAC, and one of my Block Audio SE monoblocks. In every instance, this PC was transformative. This thing is incredible.

Anas deserves all the credit here. I have championed the idea of ultra large gauge conductor from the beginning and with speaker cables, you can't go too large but with power cables, I had safety concerns. Actually, you have bigger safety concerns with conductor that is too small. For example, if you drew 20A on 14awg wire, you risk burning down your house and so my concerns had more to do with equipment safety. Given how large and heavy a 6awg Sablon Prince or 5awg Sablon King with their giant Bocchinos are, when Anas suggested he wanted to experiment with a 0awg PC, I was concerned something this big and heavy could rip the IEC inlet out of the amplifier or DAC that this PC was plugged into and so I discouraged it. Having played around with this PC, as expected, it is large and heavy and so one does have to take care with it to make sure it is properly supported but Anas cleverly designed the plug and IEC to be fairly compact (more so than the Bocchinos) and the cable as a whole is quite flexible. All I know is as soon as I plugged this thing into a component, I knew I had to have it. Even compared against the already spectacular 6awg Spectra PC, the step change was dramatic. It was just "wow."

I wish I had two of these on hand to try so I could power each monoblock but even on only one of the amps, it's impact was quite obvious. Dynamics and sound stage improved very satisfyingly but was it enough to justify it's price tag compared to a Spectra? It would be easier to confidently answer this question if I had one powering each monoblock but for now, I'm not so sure. Not completely surprising, it was not the amplifier where this PC had its greatest impact. The greatest impact by far was on my digital gear which supports what I have believed for some time now, that low impedance power benefits digital more than analog gear.

Impact on the Taiko Extreme? Simply HUGE. Based on how the Extreme scales to large gauge PCs like the Spectra, I was expecting it to be huge but it was surprisingly HUGE, nonetheless, and the step change is somehow bigger from Spectra to Ultimatum than Gamma to Spectra. If the budget is there, this upgrade recommendation is a no brainer. Just do it.

Impact on the SR7 powering my Ubiquiti router and modem? I have to say that I was perhaps even more shocked since I wasn't expecting the impact to be this large with a modem/router. Definitely more impactful than any audiophile switch or power supply for a switch that I've heard and a much bigger impact than with this PC on my amplifier. The overall impact rivals the impact with the Extreme and that is saying a lot. While it sounds ludicrous to spend this much money on a PC for a router/modem, I could argue that this is where one should start when building a new digital system from scratch. The results here speak for themselves and would benefit any upstream server and DAC.

Perhaps the most satisfying overall impact was on the dCS Vivaldi Apex DAC. This DAC really scales to this PC in ways that I was not expecting. As I went from Gamma to Spectra with the Vivaldi, the main improvement I heard was air and space. It was as if I had gone back to tubes while retaining the drive and dynamics that the Vivaldi is known for and so I really had no desire to try and improve upon this. Before I received the Ultimatum PC, I thought to myself that if I ever upgraded to an Ultimatum PC, it would be only on the Extreme. As I went from Spectra to Ultimatum on the Vivaldi, I was expecting that air and space would be the beneficiaries and maybe these things improved a little bit more compared to the Spectra but this was not too disappointing since these qualities were already so good. What really took large leaps forward were dynamics, scale, density, and tonal saturation. Just amazing!

While it was important and eye-opening to hear the contribution of the Ultimatum PC on each of these components individually, I can only imagine the cumulative impact they would have powering each of these components. That is now the goal. Well done, Anas and Steven.

 

View attachment 123793

My apologies to Anas. He sent me an early prototype of the Ultimatum PC some months ago but it is only now that I am finding the time and proper frame of mind to post my impressions of it. Because of severe exhaustion and burn-out, I quit my job in California and have moved to Hawaii. I am currently unemployed and will intentionally remain this way for awhile. Much of my day-to-day presently involves surfing and little else. It has been weeks since I've shaved. Because surfing requires fitness, I am running every day, lifting weights, and doing yoga. I have intentionally not kept up with what's going on in the world. I am finally sleeping better, feeling fit, and more like myself again. Yesterday, I finally felt well enough to jump back online.

Our new home presently sits largely empty as we await our belongings to arrive from California but as our home sits across the street from the beach, it's hard for me to complain. This new house is quite a bit smaller and so I will need to reimagine my audio setup. I don't know what that will look like but one thing is certain, the Ultimatum PC will be at its foundation. Before I left California, I tried this PC on several pieces of equipment including my router, the Taiko Extreme, dCS Vivaldi Apex DAC, and one of my Block Audio SE monoblocks. In every instance, this PC was transformative. This thing is incredible.

Anas deserves all the credit here. I have championed the idea of ultra large gauge conductor from the beginning and with speaker cables, you can't go too large but with power cables, I had safety concerns. Actually, you have bigger safety concerns with conductor that is too small. For example, if you drew 20A on 14awg wire, you risk burning down your house and so my concerns had more to do with equipment safety. Given how large and heavy a 6awg Sablon Prince or 5awg Sablon King with their giant Bocchinos are, when Anas suggested he wanted to experiment with a 0awg PC, I was concerned something this big and heavy could rip the IEC inlet out of the amplifier or DAC that this PC was plugged into and so I discouraged it. Having played around with this PC, as expected, it is large and heavy and so one does have to take care with it to make sure it is properly supported but Anas cleverly designed the plug and IEC to be fairly compact (more so than the Bocchinos) and the cable as a whole is quite flexible. All I know is as soon as I plugged this thing into a component, I knew I had to have it. Even compared against the already spectacular 6awg Spectra PC, the step change was dramatic. It was just "wow."

I wish I had two of these on hand to try so I could power each monoblock but even on only one of the amps, it's impact was quite obvious. Dynamics and sound stage improved very satisfyingly but was it enough to justify it's price tag compared to a Spectra? It would be easier to confidently answer this question if I had one powering each monoblock but for now, I'm not so sure. Not completely surprising, it was not the amplifier where this PC had its greatest impact. The greatest impact by far was on my digital gear which supports what I have believed for some time now, that low impedance power benefits digital more than analog gear.

Impact on the Taiko Extreme? Simply HUGE. Based on how the Extreme scales to large gauge PCs like the Spectra, I was expecting it to be huge but it was surprisingly HUGE, nonetheless, and the step change is somehow bigger from Spectra to Ultimatum than Gamma to Spectra. If the budget is there, this upgrade recommendation is a no brainer. Just do it.

Impact on the SR7 powering my Ubiquiti router and modem? I have to say that I was perhaps even more shocked since I wasn't expecting the impact to be this large with a modem/router. Definitely more impactful than any audiophile switch or power supply for a switch that I've heard and a much bigger impact than with this PC on my amplifier. The overall impact rivals the impact with the Extreme and that is saying a lot. While it sounds ludicrous to spend this much money on a PC for a router/modem, I could argue that this is where one should start when building a new digital system from scratch. The results here speak for themselves and would benefit any upstream server and DAC.

Perhaps the most satisfying overall impact was on the dCS Vivaldi Apex DAC. This DAC really scales to this PC in ways that I was not expecting. As I went from Gamma to Spectra with the Vivaldi, the main improvement I heard was air and space. It was as if I had gone back to tubes while retaining the drive and dynamics that the Vivaldi is known for and so I really had no desire to try and improve upon this. Before I received the Ultimatum PC, I thought to myself that if I ever upgraded to an Ultimatum PC, it would be only on the Extreme. As I went from Spectra to Ultimatum on the Vivaldi, I was expecting that air and space would be the beneficiaries and maybe these things improved a little bit more compared to the Spectra but this was not too disappointing since these qualities were already so good. What really took large leaps forward were dynamics, scale, density, and tonal saturation. Just amazing!

While it was important and eye-opening to hear the contribution of the Ultimatum PC on each of these components individually, I can only imagine the cumulative impact they would have powering each of these components. That is now the goal. Well done, Anas and Steven.

Welcome back @romaz ! I'm delighted to learn that the challenging times are behind you, and it's wonderful to hear about your current residence in the dreamy location of Hawaii. Your feedback and ideas have been truly inspirational and motivational, and I'm thrilled that you are back.

Regarding the Ultimatum Infinity power cable, it has surpassed all expectations. I can confirm that the transformational impact of this cable on the router is, at the very least, on par with the Taiko Extreme. While it may sound like a sales pitch, the cumulative effect of using this power cable to supply every unit elevates the overall impact to new heights, it transforms every component in the setup.

Our recent experiences align with your findings that the magnitude of impacts on amplifiers didn't initially take the top spot. However, a significant discovery was made with the high-wattage burn-in, dramatically unlocking potentials that were previously undiscovered. The high-wattage burn-in not only amplifies existing impacts but reveals entirely new ones that low-wattage burn-in couldn't unlock.

To quantify the impact of high-wattage burn-in, it's safe to say it doubles the effect of the Ultimatum cables, entering a new realm. The magnitude of impact extends to all units, with the most surprising revelation being its impact on amplifiers—surpassing even the Taiko Extreme!

We recently had a listening session with @hols , incorporating high-wattage burn-in on the Ultimatum power and speaker cables. The experience was nothing short of jaw-dropping, leaving us all in a speechless state.

 

View attachment 123793

My apologies to Anas. He sent me an early prototype of the Ultimatum PC some months ago but it is only now that I am finding the time and proper frame of mind to post my impressions of it. Because of severe exhaustion and burn-out, I quit my job in California and have moved to Hawaii. I am currently unemployed and will intentionally remain this way for awhile. Much of my day-to-day presently involves surfing and little else. It has been weeks since I've shaved. Because surfing requires fitness, I am running every day, lifting weights, and doing yoga. I have intentionally not kept up with what's going on in the world. I am finally sleeping better, feeling fit, and more like myself again. Yesterday, I finally felt well enough to jump back online.

Our new home presently sits largely empty as we await our belongings to arrive from California but as our home sits across the street from the beach, it's hard for me to complain. This new house is quite a bit smaller and so I will need to reimagine my audio setup. I don't know what that will look like but one thing is certain, the Ultimatum PC will be at its foundation. Before I left California, I tried this PC on several pieces of equipment including my router, the Taiko Extreme, dCS Vivaldi Apex DAC, and one of my Block Audio SE monoblocks. In every instance, this PC was transformative. This thing is incredible.

Anas deserves all the credit here. I have championed the idea of ultra large gauge conductor from the beginning and with speaker cables, you can't go too large but with power cables, I had safety concerns. Actually, you have bigger safety concerns with conductor that is too small. For example, if you drew 20A on 14awg wire, you risk burning down your house and so my concerns had more to do with equipment safety. Given how large and heavy a 6awg Sablon Prince or 5awg Sablon King with their giant Bocchinos are, when Anas suggested he wanted to experiment with a 0awg PC, I was concerned something this big and heavy could rip the IEC inlet out of the amplifier or DAC that this PC was plugged into and so I discouraged it. Having played around with this PC, as expected, it is large and heavy and so one does have to take care with it to make sure it is properly supported but Anas cleverly designed the plug and IEC to be fairly compact (more so than the Bocchinos) and the cable as a whole is quite flexible. All I know is as soon as I plugged this thing into a component, I knew I had to have it. Even compared against the already spectacular 6awg Spectra PC, the step change was dramatic. It was just "wow."

I wish I had two of these on hand to try so I could power each monoblock but even on only one of the amps, it's impact was quite obvious. Dynamics and sound stage improved very satisfyingly but was it enough to justify it's price tag compared to a Spectra? It would be easier to confidently answer this question if I had one powering each monoblock but for now, I'm not so sure. Not completely surprising, it was not the amplifier where this PC had its greatest impact. The greatest impact by far was on my digital gear which supports what I have believed for some time now, that low impedance power benefits digital more than analog gear.

Impact on the Taiko Extreme? Simply HUGE. Based on how the Extreme scales to large gauge PCs like the Spectra, I was expecting it to be huge but it was surprisingly HUGE, nonetheless, and the step change is somehow bigger from Spectra to Ultimatum than Gamma to Spectra. If the budget is there, this upgrade recommendation is a no brainer. Just do it.

Impact on the SR7 powering my Ubiquiti router and modem? I have to say that I was perhaps even more shocked since I wasn't expecting the impact to be this large with a modem/router. Definitely more impactful than any audiophile switch or power supply for a switch that I've heard and a much bigger impact than with this PC on my amplifier. The overall impact rivals the impact with the Extreme and that is saying a lot. While it sounds ludicrous to spend this much money on a PC for a router/modem, I could argue that this is where one should start when building a new digital system from scratch. The results here speak for themselves and would benefit any upstream server and DAC.

Perhaps the most satisfying overall impact was on the dCS Vivaldi Apex DAC. This DAC really scales to this PC in ways that I was not expecting. As I went from Gamma to Spectra with the Vivaldi, the main improvement I heard was air and space. It was as if I had gone back to tubes while retaining the drive and dynamics that the Vivaldi is known for and so I really had no desire to try and improve upon this. Before I received the Ultimatum PC, I thought to myself that if I ever upgraded to an Ultimatum PC, it would be only on the Extreme. As I went from Spectra to Ultimatum on the Vivaldi, I was expecting that air and space would be the beneficiaries and maybe these things improved a little bit more compared to the Spectra but this was not too disappointing since these qualities were already so good. What really took large leaps forward were dynamics, scale, density, and tonal saturation. Just amazing!

While it was important and eye-opening to hear the contribution of the Ultimatum PC on each of these components individually, I can only imagine the cumulative impact they would have powering each of these components. That is now the goal. Well done, Anas and Steven.

Just to put your mind at rest, here in the UK 2.5mm2 (14 AWG) is the standard specification for mains cable designed for a maximum continuous load of 13A and a 1.9x overcurrent i.e. 24.7A for 30 minutes. So unless you have some batsh!tcrazy hifi system, 14AWG are perfectly safe.

This cable is rated at 375A. The conductor is probably similar to the mains feed into most people's house, though for safety reasons those cables are armoured (over here at least).

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This cable is actually design for car audio, not home audio.

The safety issue with 14AWG is both resistance as well as heating. The earth loop impedance must be low enough to meet regulated timing in fault conditions.

The actual safety issue with these cables seems to be some form of resin or epoxy used in their construction.

 

@romaz
Congrats on your move. That takes a lot of balls but in the end, you have to take care of yourself. I was wondering what happened to you. You are probably surfing now. Your insight helped me make a deep investment in QSA Lanedri and I appreciated your opinions. Thank you. QSA Lanedri has been a game changer.