Shunyata Z-tron Alpha Series
- Thread starter GuidoCorona
- Start date
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
What were you disappointed in? I have a pair of AHC driving my amps and alpha digital. I have to tell you that my sound is IMO pretty damn good
Having said that I have 4 Anacondas and agree how spectacular they are
I wouldn't give up on the Alpha. For the price it can't be beat
Having said that I have decided to take a ride up the Shunyata cable ladder so now have the Anaconda Digital in AES/EBU and S/PDIF. also have 7 Sigma PC's on order
I have noticed that my Alpha Typhon umbilical appears to be unshielded, unlike the CX series I have elsewhere; this is not good.
ACK, I have found no evidence this far that the Shunyata CX series PCs are shielded... Am I missing some authoritative information source?
G.
G.
Try a test with a simple device like http://www.homedepot.com/p/Klein-Tools-Non-Contact-Voltage-Tester-DISCONTINUED-NCVT-1/203578320 - simply run it over your power cords; I had to shield my Alpha. The other thing I don't like about the Alpha is the rise time which is FAR higher than the CX for the same amount of current, as per their specs and the famous AudioBeat article that measured the CX HC (see my most recent update to my own system's thread for the links).
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
I just bought and installed a brand new (not burned in) Alpha HC. I installed it from my power strip to the wall receptacle. I wanted a big and high quality power cord on the power strip, because of its importance feeding current to every component. It certainly is heavy! When I picked it up by the connectors in the store, it almost felt like I had a robust steel chain in my hand (in terms of weight). The Zitron Cobra that I auditioned this last week, although a very robust cable itself, seemed almost like a lightweight compared to the Alpha HC.
I tried out a Cobra for a week to replace my Copperhead from the power strip to the wall. I really liked the Copperhead. It did not sound like it was doing anything wrong; quite the contrary! The Cobra I had for a week was a demo (it has a few hours on it) and improved nicely upon the Copperhead. The music sounded "bigger" for lack of a better term. The soundstage was wider and deeper. Nuances were more present and vibrant. Bass was also more detailed, musical and tighter.
I was very happy with the improvements brought by the Cobra. It was the most I had ever spent on a power cable. But, I knew the Alpha HC was even more suited for the task of providing current to my power strip, and thus the whole system. I also did not want to ask myself in a few months "what if? So I opened my wallet and exchanged the Cobra for the Alpha HC.
It's only been plugged in for 3 hours. But so far, wow! It does everything the Cobra does and improved over the Copperhead, but bigger and better! It's too early to make definite judgments, but the jump from the Cobra to the Alpha HC, seems just as big, or even bigger than from the Copperhead to the Cobra. I'll make more observations in the coming weeks.
Usually cables get better with burn in. If that's the case, this cable will be something great
I tried out a Cobra for a week to replace my Copperhead from the power strip to the wall. I really liked the Copperhead. It did not sound like it was doing anything wrong; quite the contrary! The Cobra I had for a week was a demo (it has a few hours on it) and improved nicely upon the Copperhead. The music sounded "bigger" for lack of a better term. The soundstage was wider and deeper. Nuances were more present and vibrant. Bass was also more detailed, musical and tighter.
I was very happy with the improvements brought by the Cobra. It was the most I had ever spent on a power cable. But, I knew the Alpha HC was even more suited for the task of providing current to my power strip, and thus the whole system. I also did not want to ask myself in a few months "what if? So I opened my wallet and exchanged the Cobra for the Alpha HC.
It's only been plugged in for 3 hours. But so far, wow! It does everything the Cobra does and improved over the Copperhead, but bigger and better! It's too early to make definite judgments, but the jump from the Cobra to the Alpha HC, seems just as big, or even bigger than from the Copperhead to the Cobra. I'll make more observations in the coming weeks.
Usually cables get better with burn in. If that's the case, this cable will be something great
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
I found these quotes recently via Google search and they sent me down a rabbit hole. I wanted to share my findings.
The Audio Beat screenshot at issue is:
The link to the Shunyata site no longer works as it was for the now-discontinued, original Alpha line. However, the same link is available on the web archive here: https://web.archive.org/web/2014070...ooter/84-alpha-pwr-cables/307-cobra-digital-4. This link states, in relevant part:
I believe that in your original posts quoted above you have conflated the rise time measurement in the Audio Beat image with a measurement showing how long 200A of current could be sustained through an Alpha cable (rated for 20A continuous).
Per the Audio Beat image above, we see that the Black Mamba CX has a rise time to 200A of roughly 11.5 microseconds, while the Venom 3 has a rise time to 200A of approximately 33 microseconds. Were one to extrapolate the 800ms (milliseconds) measurement from the Alpha cable specs as rise time to 200A, it would be 800,000 microseconds once converted! This is of course an absurd result.
To avoid any confusion, I did reach out to Shunyata on this exact question. They confirmed that each new generation of cables subsequent to the Black Mamba CX meets or exceeds the standard set forth in those rise time measurements above. I wanted to share this to correct a misconception and in case other users found these threads via Google like I did. All the best.
Similar threads
