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Shunyata Research Designing Silent Systems for recording, film and music |
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#1
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Segmented Altairas for the Constellation Integrated Amp
Just added a second SG hub for the Constellation Inspiration integrated amp.
So, currently, there's a hub dedicated solely to the Lumin streaming/DAC/preamp "front end" and now, an SG hub for EACH channel of the Constellation Inspiration integrated amp. I should add that the Constellation is fully-dual mono internally, so this the type of component that can benefit from an Altaira SG hub for each channel, L and R. You can see the two hubs on top of the Lumin P1, the bottom SG hub is for the R channel of the Constellation, and the top Altaira is for the P1 (and Lumin U2, which is in for review). The L channel for the Constellation is resting on top of the Constellation, itself. I simply did not have the height between shelves to put the other SG hub on top of the L channel Altaira. All I can say is....F*CK ME!!! Holy smokes! I implemented this more "fully-segmented" set-up a couple days ago and it has been getting better and better as it settles fully, but EVERYTHING is better: tonality, rendition of timbre, bass, "power and weight" (what I call "gravitas"), instrument and vocal body, plus the soundstage is wider, deeper, taller and yet more refined and the individual instruments are more focused and 3-dimensional within the soundtage. Whatever "attributes" audiophiles care about...is BETTER. Actually, I am still trying to wrap my head around the nature and scale of the improvement. Bottom-line: if you have fully dual-mono components e.g. Constellation, Esoteric, etc., etc. and have the budget, all I can say is: You GOTTA try this out. Put a "dedicated" SG Altaira hub onto each channel, Left and Right, of your dual-mono gear. INSANE.
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Lumin P1 streamer/DAC/preamp, Constellation Inspiration integrated TT: Michell Gyro SE MkII, SME V, Koetsu Urushi Vermilion, EAR324. Harbeth 30.2s, REL R-305, Shunyata Alpha V2 ICs, Alpha V2 SPs, Sigma XC, Sigma NRv2, Omega QR-s & Alpha NRv2 PCs, segmented Altaira SG stack w/ Alpha & Omega CGCs, Everest 8000 PD. Remote Server Room: Uptone EtherREGEN, AfterDark Master Clock & LPS, Alita, Battle Angel, (Akasa NUC Roon Core), iFi DC Purifiers (for SMPS used for Alita & router), Shunyata Gemini combo power distributor & Altaira-type CG GP-NR hub, Venom & Alpha CGCs, Shunyata NRv14 power cords for digital components. Last edited by Puma Cat; 11-21-2023 at 04:05 PM. |
#2
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Absolutely stunning! Are those new speaker cables fro
Shunyata as well?
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Main System: Sf Amati Tradition, B&W DB1 sub, McIntosh C2300, MC501s, MA12000, MCD500, HiFi Rose RS150B, Oppo 105, Niagara 5000, AQ Tornado/Thunder/Blizzard PCs, Robin Hood BiWire (zero+bass), Gibraltar SCs, Water ICs, Cinnamon RJ/E, Solidsteel HF-3 racks. 2nd System: Sf Cremona Auditor M, McIntosh C50, MC275(VI), MA6600, Node 2i, Oppo 95, AQ NRG-4 PCs, Robin Hood Zero SC, Cobra/Nordost Heimdall ICs. |
#3
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Those are the current Alpha V2 speaker cables. I've had them for a coupla three years or so now, IIRC.
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Lumin P1 streamer/DAC/preamp, Constellation Inspiration integrated TT: Michell Gyro SE MkII, SME V, Koetsu Urushi Vermilion, EAR324. Harbeth 30.2s, REL R-305, Shunyata Alpha V2 ICs, Alpha V2 SPs, Sigma XC, Sigma NRv2, Omega QR-s & Alpha NRv2 PCs, segmented Altaira SG stack w/ Alpha & Omega CGCs, Everest 8000 PD. Remote Server Room: Uptone EtherREGEN, AfterDark Master Clock & LPS, Alita, Battle Angel, (Akasa NUC Roon Core), iFi DC Purifiers (for SMPS used for Alita & router), Shunyata Gemini combo power distributor & Altaira-type CG GP-NR hub, Venom & Alpha CGCs, Shunyata NRv14 power cords for digital components. |
#4
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I think I’ve said it before, but it bares repeating. That’s a beautiful room Steve.
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Jazz Junkie Magico M3s; Vitus Masterpiece Components; TechDAS Air Force One; 2 x SME 3012-R; Airtight Opus 1 and MSL Platinum Signature; Taiko Audio Extreme + Switch; Albedo Metamorphosis Signature cables. |
#5
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Altaira, Lumin, Constellation, and Harbeth…these are brands I keep reading about and advertised every where in print media. Gotta listen to these and demo one day.
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Main System: Sf Amati Tradition, B&W DB1 sub, McIntosh C2300, MC501s, MA12000, MCD500, HiFi Rose RS150B, Oppo 105, Niagara 5000, AQ Tornado/Thunder/Blizzard PCs, Robin Hood BiWire (zero+bass), Gibraltar SCs, Water ICs, Cinnamon RJ/E, Solidsteel HF-3 racks. 2nd System: Sf Cremona Auditor M, McIntosh C50, MC275(VI), MA6600, Node 2i, Oppo 95, AQ NRG-4 PCs, Robin Hood Zero SC, Cobra/Nordost Heimdall ICs. |
#6
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Heck of a nice system!
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Source: Antipodes K30> Shunyata Omega USB > Gustard X26pro DAC < Shunyata Sigma v2 clock cable < Mutec REF10 SE-120 Amp & Speakers: Spectral DMA-150mk2 > Aerial 10T Foundation: Stillpoints Ultra, Shunyata Denali v1 and Typhon x1 power conditioners, Shunyata Delta v2 and QSA Lanedri power cords, QSA Lanedri Revelation XLR interconnect, MIT Matrix HD 60 speaker cables, Stillpoints Aperture panels, Quadraspire SVT rack, PGGB 256 |
#7
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Quote:
Thanks, gents. It's really a wonderful-sounding system. By implementing this system, I was able to significantly simplify it. For example, I was able to remove 15 bits of gear the from the main rack alone, including 7 power cords. Not counting the phono stage and turntable, I now only need 1 pair of ICs and two power cords for the main system. Simple is good, because simple...always works.
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Lumin P1 streamer/DAC/preamp, Constellation Inspiration integrated TT: Michell Gyro SE MkII, SME V, Koetsu Urushi Vermilion, EAR324. Harbeth 30.2s, REL R-305, Shunyata Alpha V2 ICs, Alpha V2 SPs, Sigma XC, Sigma NRv2, Omega QR-s & Alpha NRv2 PCs, segmented Altaira SG stack w/ Alpha & Omega CGCs, Everest 8000 PD. Remote Server Room: Uptone EtherREGEN, AfterDark Master Clock & LPS, Alita, Battle Angel, (Akasa NUC Roon Core), iFi DC Purifiers (for SMPS used for Alita & router), Shunyata Gemini combo power distributor & Altaira-type CG GP-NR hub, Venom & Alpha CGCs, Shunyata NRv14 power cords for digital components. Last edited by Puma Cat; 11-24-2023 at 11:32 PM. |
#8
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Quote:
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Glenn... Canton Reference 9 Clearaudio SM Pro Focal Bathys JLA 10" Dominion Kuzma Stabi S w/MC & MM Magnepan 1,7i McIntosh MA8950 & MR88 Oppo 203 Roon Nucleus Rose Hifi RS150B Shunyata Gemini-4 Sony ST-A6B, TA-F6B, ST-J75 & PS-X75 Sorane SA1.2 & TA-1L Stillpoints LP1v2 WW Pt, Au & Ag |
#9
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I estimate probably >$12K of GR and SR hubs plus cables in your gorgeous system. From your description you fully feel it was worth the cost of admission. I still need to add the single GR hub to my system, so looking fwd to the result once done.
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“Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans” |
#10
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Quote:
Yes, I do fully feel the the Altaira system is well worth the price admission. Actually, I consider it to be foundational. More on that below. BTW, just for info, the two hubs are deginated "CG" and "SG", though I'll acknowledge that the terms "Chassis Ground" and "Signal Ground" may present as being somewhat "misleading'. As for cables, when funds allow, I've "standardized" on Alpha for great performance/dollar for making the key component connections to Altaira (i.e., the Lumin P1 and Inspiration integrated amp). I'm using 3 ground cables per Altaira hub for each channel of the Inspiration; the RCA inputs' ground cables are Venom), and 5 ground cable connections for the Lumin P1 (these are a mix of Venom, Delta, and Alpha). I use Omega CGCs to connect the Altaira hubs to Everest's GP-NR terminals as I want the lowest impedance from the multiple connections at the Altaira hubs to the GP-NR system of Everest. As I only have two Omega CGCs, I connect the Inspiration integrated's L-channel SG hub to the R channel SG hub at it's 7th terminals with a short Alpha ground cable, and then use an Omega CGC for the Inspiration's R channel SG hub to connect to Everest's GP-NR terminals. I use the other Omega CGC to connect the "Lumin hub" Altaira (which is the "source stack" hub) to Everest. I have some Venom and Delta ground cables I use for making additional connections to other unused interface inputs, e.g. RCA, S/PDIF, USB, etc. I bought these back in the days before Altaira was released for making connections to my Everest's GP-NR system. From my experience, I now consider the Altaira hubs to be foundational. I'd actually go down on the specification of the preamp to put those funds towards an Altaira ground hub; it's that important, in my experience. Here my top 3 priorities for a system, based on experience: 1) Room Acoustics 2) Power distribution: both incoming and also "outgoing" (from the components themselves). Remember, one of the biggest sources (measured as the "sums of squares" of the total noise components) of noise in a system are the full-wave bridge rectifiers in the power supplies of system components themselves. 3) Ground-plane noise reduction And yes, I feel the benefits are fully worth the price of the hubs. The Altaira ground-plane noise reduction system fundamentally changes the intrinsic qualities of the presentation as a whole. Cheers!
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Lumin P1 streamer/DAC/preamp, Constellation Inspiration integrated TT: Michell Gyro SE MkII, SME V, Koetsu Urushi Vermilion, EAR324. Harbeth 30.2s, REL R-305, Shunyata Alpha V2 ICs, Alpha V2 SPs, Sigma XC, Sigma NRv2, Omega QR-s & Alpha NRv2 PCs, segmented Altaira SG stack w/ Alpha & Omega CGCs, Everest 8000 PD. Remote Server Room: Uptone EtherREGEN, AfterDark Master Clock & LPS, Alita, Battle Angel, (Akasa NUC Roon Core), iFi DC Purifiers (for SMPS used for Alita & router), Shunyata Gemini combo power distributor & Altaira-type CG GP-NR hub, Venom & Alpha CGCs, Shunyata NRv14 power cords for digital components. Last edited by Puma Cat; 11-30-2023 at 03:10 PM. |
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