Ansuz Cables & Accessories

Talking about Darkz…
After listening to the new Darkz series I still hold the DTC Darkz above even the new top dog T2s. DTC Darkz is just better at everything, under streamers, power supplies etc. So I just salvaged some more as these are out of production.

Mike
 
Just got me some 35th Anniversary SF Stradivari! Putting DTC Darkz under each spike elevated SQ beyond belief! I think Darkz have contributed price-performance the most in my system.
32 Darkz in system so far!!!

Mike
 
Mikeoo said:
Talking about Darkz…
After listening to the new Darkz series I still hold the DTC Darkz above even the new top dog T2s. DTC Darkz is just better at everything, under streamers, power supplies etc. So I just salvaged some more as these are out of production.

Mike
Click to expand...


Thanks for sharing your experience with the Ansuz D.TC and T2s Darkz Mike.

Back in August when I tried the new T2 Supreme Darkz under my modest electronics I wrote in my system thread that my perceived experience fell short of my expected experience.

I had wondered whether my AVM amplifier which is small and light simply had a better synergy with the heavier DTC Darkz?

It was a very different experience with the Borresen speakers though. Replacing the DTC with T2s here was a revelation.

Overall I am a big fan of the DTC resonance control devices. They seem to work well everywhere I've tried. Back in February I replaced the spikes on my equipment rack with Ansuz Feets and DTC Darkz footers and it was another one of those Whoa moments. It has been my consistent finding that electronics that are one or two steps below reference level when used with quality resonance controls can easily surpass the performance of the reference level.

Have you compared Darkz with resonance controls from other manufacturers? I’ve found Nordost Sort TC Kones also do a good job and their extra height can at times be useful.
 
Hi,

Thanks for sharing as well! Seem to me that the T2s has been voiced for the Börresen speakers and these speakers I briefly listened to but I think at that time there was no T2s.

Yes I tried other brands of resonance control but for me it was night and day when Darkz came and I've never looked back since then. Stillpoint did some good but is not in class of Darkz.
Please note that I also heard Darkz under some equipment where it didn't make a difference and some times actually changed tonality to the worse. Though in my system Darkz always elevated equipment 1 or 2 notches up.

Mike
 
Mikeoo said:
Just got me some 35th Anniversary SF Stradivari! Putting DTC Darkz under each spike elevated SQ beyond belief! I think Darkz have contributed price-performance the most in my system.
32 Darkz in system so far!!!

Mike
Click to expand...

So the spikes are sitting on top of each darkz direct on the writing?

Dirk
 
Hi,

As I wanted to spread the weight on the whole Darkz I have put Solid Tech floor protectors in between. See picture below! The weight of the speaker keeps them from sliding off.
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I just finished a week long in home demo of the Aavik U380. First because my U300 sits on Darkz D-TC with bearings it took about 15 min to get it to sit properly. That's when I noticed all the inputs had been reversed so I had to reconfigure the cables. First and immediate thought was a much lower floor noise which to me means a more natural/organic sound. Reminded me of when I upgraded the Mainz D8 to the D-TC. Sound stage seemed a bit wider with even more depth. When playing music and looking at the led's for volume level the U380 seems to have played louder but that is really hard to tell because you can increase/decrease the volume and not always see any change in the led's just like the U300. I did notice that the volume knob had to be turned more for volume changes compared to the U300 too. During the week all I could think is this is much better sounding but the real test was going to be when I put the U300 back in.

On the second day I decided to push the 380. Without looking at the led's it started to crank it and when I got to the point I thought the loudness was what the max the 300 could put out before the 03's would bottom out the led's were quite a bit lower. So I pushed it and I believe it played twice as loud and led's were still lower than the max I get from the U300. I didn't push it any farther because I didn't want to bottom out the 03's. Also while playing Trilobita from Uakti there were dynamics from the percussion that made me jump. That never happened with the U300. And I'll admit for me that was too loud.

When I put the U300 back in it went a lot faster (less than 5 min). I immediately noticed the music sounded thinner. The sound stage narrowed just a hair and lost some depth. Needless to say I was disappointed. It took me about an hour to get used to the U300 again. In reality it was like the difference of going from the D-TC power cord to the Supreme. A more natural/organic sound that was also more dynamic. And it played louder I think because of the lower noise floor.

So is it worth the 9K USD premium compared the the U300? IMO YES because you have to spend even more in cable upgrades to get a similar increase in total SQ. I'll also go as far to say the U300 is 85-90% of the U380.
 
Thanks for the insights George!

Of course as an U-300 owner the new U-380 is of interest and after talking to Fritz Dalmose at Aavik/Ansuz getting the technical news that lurkes on the inside it strikes me as a natural way forward. However I recently changed speakers and these are a bit more sensitive than my previous ones which has brought me to thinking about different amplifier upgrades and perhaps on the phono amp side (mostly play vinyl) and power amps. Initially I thought the U-300 with my new speakers (hours old and far from broken in) sounded a bit grey and that the U-300 finally met its capability. That was until I put 4 DTC Darkz under each speaker, and the U-300 made a surprising comeback and at the moment I am satisfied. Well, I will let the speakers break in properly and then the subject of upgrading the amp side can be started again.

Mike
 
Hi,

Very stable! The weight of the speaker helps but the friction coefficient between top cone and Darkz is not enough to slide the cone and Darkz at the same time. Though this is a minor issue as I didn't want to have any double sided tape to maximize coupling to the Darkz. Small adjustments of toe in is not a big issue as I already have the speakers on the preferred back and sidewall distances.
Without doubt the Darkz add a no brainer increase in all aspects of this speakers performance!

Mike
 
Hi,

I never saw any reason for either adjustable as cable lifter Darkz. Regular Darkz do much better and just fine with cables and under speakers. As you mention these 'special' Darkz only have 1 layer of balls compared to the 2 layers of balls the normal Darkz has. The difference in SQ is very clear!

I run regular Darkz under all kind of equipment including cables! These are the fundament of maximizing the performance of my system.

Mike
 
I tried the same construction with my speakers, Darkz ( old A with new titanium balls)-floor protector-spike. Much better than Harmonix RF-900 Mk2 under the spikes, but sucked all the life out of the speakers. Does not work for me.
 
Ansuz Cables & Accessories

Came home 3-4 night ago from Next Level HiFi in Chicago with the X-TC PowerSwitch to demo. It replaces my trusty Cisco 2960. While I haven’t heard the need to search for something else, the PowerSwitch is quite the Ethernet Switch. I mean, I already have a Mainz D2 Power Distribution so what more could this add? After plugging it into my Mainz D2 it was like I added another Mainz to my system. Even with nothing connected to it, the depth, detail and imaging improved imho. Just like the Mainz, will be looking at the A2 and who knows after that. Can’t compare with other Ethernet Switches, but if you have an Ansuz Mainz foundation and stream, you gotta try this. Truly amazing.


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Re: Ansuz Cables & Accessories

jnelson2000 said:
Came home 3-4 night ago from Next Level HiFi in Chicago with the X-TC PowerSwitch to demo. It replaces my trusty Cisco 2960. While I haven’t heard the need to search for something else, the PowerSwitch is quite the Ethernet Switch. I mean, I already have a Mainz D2 Power Distribution so what more could this add? After plugging it into my Mainz D2 it was like I added another Mainz to my system. Even with nothing connected to it, the depth, detail and imaging improved imho. Just like the Mainz, will be looking at the A2 and who knows after that. Can’t compare with other Ethernet Switches, but if you have an Ansuz Mainz foundation and stream, you gotta try this. Truly amazing.


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Click to expand...
I replaced an audiophile grade AQVox switch with a Ansuz D2 Power Switch recently and I agree, it's like moving up to a better Ansuz Mainz distributor. The AQVox replaced a Cisco switch that a Lumin rep recommended and the AQVox was better.
I'm using Ansuz X2 and D2 Ethernet cables. Tyler advised me to put the switch on DTC DarkZ's so I've done that. I can't say if that made a difference because I've made so many other changes recently.
 
Hi guys,

I actually didn't plan to join, but after reading 112 pages of this topic, it only felt fair to join after all.

I wanted to thank to all of you for all of your irrational money spending, because I realised, that sometimes lack of it can be a blessing :).

I would be definitely crazy enough to spend a lot more on Ansuz, but it ain't happening in the near future, if ever.

I will be getting a 4m A2 PC next week from my Ansuz (drug) dealer :), and replacing P2 from the wall socket to Gigawatt powerstrip. As I actually don't need 4m, I'm thinking of splitting it in two, but I'll think about it.

I'll write my impressions when I try the A2.
 
Filip said:
Hi guys,

I actually didn't plan to join, but after reading 112 pages of this topic, it only felt fair to join after all. [...]
Click to expand...


Wow. You actually read through 112 pages on this topic? Welcome to the forum Filip.



The way Ansuz cable is constructed does not lend itself to efficaciously splitting lengths.


Look forward to reading your impressions on the 4m Ansuz A2 power cable.
 
kiwi_1282001 said:
Wow. You actually read through 112 pages on this topic? Welcome to the forum Filip.



The way Ansuz cable is constructed does not lend itself to efficaciously splitting lengths.


Look forward to reading your impressions on the 4m Ansuz A2 power cable.
Click to expand...

I don’t understand what your saying on splitting lengths?


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I posed this over in the Naim forum talking about Ethernet Cables and Switches.


I may have mentioned before that I took possession of the Ansuz X-TC PowerSwitch from my local US Ansuz distributor and dealer (Next Level HiFi) about a week ago. This took the place of my Cisco 2960G switch. Right now I’m using the Supra Cat 8 cables connected to my NDX2 and SuperNait 3. Din5 between the 2 is an Ansuz X Din5 to Din5. Power cord on the PowerSwitch is an Ansuz X 2M 15a. Power foundation is an Ansuz Mainz D2 with a 2M A2 Power cord to the wall.

Initial impressions after installing the X-TC PowerSwitch was the noise floor dropped again. It’s like I added another Mainz to the system. The musicality is so much more after replacing the Cisco with the Ansuz. I’ve heard things in songs I never heard before. Low end detail is a lot tighter and overall image depth has widened and deepened. I really had doubts whether this was gonna make a noticeable difference over the Cisco and yes it did.

BTW, I tried to replace the Supra 8 with two BJC 5ft Cat 6a and afternoon listening for a few days noticed that I lost some high frequency detail so I ended up going back to the Supras until I get some Ansuz Ethernet X leads.

Now maybe I am noticing these changes because I already have an Ansuz foundation. Would be interesting to hear from someone who is not using them as a power foundation. My gut says it will still benefit the system as a whole. Very impressed. Next stop... A2 PowerSwitch. Lord help me... [emoji15]


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