Shunyata Research Everest 8000 Power Distributor & Sigma XC PC Upgrade

[exupgh12]

Last week, I upgraded and replaced the power distributor (Nordost QB8 Mk2) that had served my system for several years with a Shunyata Research Everest 8000 model, and also added a Shunyata Sigma CX cable between the wall outlet and the distributor itself. The result surprised me.

The first thing that jumps to the ear is the absolute silence in the background. It's not that my system ever suffered in this area, but here I'm talking about how the noise floor didn't just drop - it completely disappeared. This allows me to hear every small detail in recordings as if a filter I never knew existed has been removed. The tones and textures that were always there have improved further, and now the instruments stand out and sound clearer, with plenty of air (separation) between them.
In the dynamic range, the impact and feeling is that the system received a refresh and energy boost and operates effortlessly when transitioning from quiet passages to noisy and/or multi-instrument sections, all accompanied by tonal richness, organic sound, and an expansion of the soundstage width and depth.
In the lower range, the bass is tighter, more detailed (depth and layers), and more defined than ever. It's like rediscovering the low-end capabilities of the S5 all over again.

For me, upgrading to the Everest 8000 and Sigma CX didn't "just" address the power treatment issue; these are components that enabled the release of audio and music potential in my system.

 

[Mike]

Congrats. Nice upgrade indeed.

 

[Puma Cat]

Great write-up. Your experiences of the improvements the Everest 8000 provides mirror mine.

Just a note in the interests of accuracy for folks: the power cord you're using is designated a Sigma XC, not "CX". XC stands for Extra Current, and as power distributors need to able to pull as much current from the wall receptacle as possible, the XC was designed specifically for use with power distributors.

Just a tip for your consideration: you'll also gain some notable additional improvement in audio quality if you get your Everest off from resting directly on the tile floor, and resting it on a quality board to damp vibrations imparted by your floor (and produced by your speakers). Here's some info that may be useful for consideration: in homes using drywall construction, drywall actually resonates at 70Hz. This resonant energy couples directly to the floor, thus imparting vibration to the audio equipment resting on it.

Also, many folks inaccurately think that a concrete slab floor cannot vibrate. This is also untrue and inaccurate: at a specific frequency, concrete actually rings like a bell. Here is a video by Norm Varney of A/V Room Service (whose business specializes in building acoustically quiet rooms) proving that with a simple music box mechanism on a loudspeaker with a concrete cabinet:


Another useful video by Norm:


Mine is resting on a 2" rock maple board from Butcher Block Acoustics. Here's a link to one that should fit: https://shorturl.at/HoIMt

The Butcher Block Acoustics board is resting on some Tenderfoot footers from Herbie's Audio Labs: https://shorturl.at/IxIjv

Even better would be to use some of Norm's EVPs described above: AV Roomservice EVP

Cheers and thanks for sharing your experiences.

 

[exupgh12]

Congrats. Nice upgrade indeed.

Thank you Mike.

 

[exupgh12]

Great write-up. Your experiences of the improvements the Everest 8000 provides mirror mine.

Just a note in the interests of accuracy for folks: the power cord you're using is designated a Sigma XC, not "CX". XC stands for Extra Current, and as power distributors need to able to pull as much current from the wall receptacle as much, the XC was designed specifically for use with power distributors.

Just a tip: you'll gain some additional improvement in audio quality if you get your Everest off from resting directly on the floor, and resting on a quality board to damp vibrations imparted by your floor (and produced by your speakers). Mine is resting on a 2" rock maple board from Butcher Block Acoustics. The Butcher Block Acoustics board is resting on some Tenderfoot footers from Herbie's Audio Labs.

Cheers and thanks for sharing your experiences.

Thank you for your kind words, the correction, and the advice. I appreciate it.

Have you considered using isolation footers, such as those from IsoAcoustics, beneath the Everest before installing the board?

 

[Puma Cat]

Thank you for your kind words, the correction, and the advice. I appreciate it.

Have you considered using isolation footers, such as those from IsoAcoustics, beneath the Everest before installing the board?

I've considered it, but the SSF-50 footers that Shunyata uses for the Everest were specifically designed for this application. Shunyata's R&D has shown that for their power distributors, draining the imparted vibration as quickly as possible from the power distributor works and sounds best. Regardless, the surface that the power distributor rests on plays a notable role, and you don't want a wood, laminate, or concrete floor imparting vibration (e.g. from the sidewalls) to the power distributor. This is why I have mine on the Butcher Block Acoustics maple board. If I have some spare discretionary funds at some point I may replace the Tenderfeet under the maple board with Norm's EVPs, but they're now about $100/each, so doing this would cost me about $400. The setup I'm using is working fine for the time being. Again, in my experience, getting the power distributor off from resting directly on the floor is the most important factor. Cheers.

 

[exupgh12]

@Puma Cat thank you so much for the detailed answer.

 

[Puma Cat]

@Puma Cat thank you so much for the detailed answer.

You're very welcome, good sir.

 

[brodricj]

I have Everest 8000. What made a significant improvement in my installation was a Typhon QR plugged in to the same wall socket (i.e. in parallel to the Everest).

 

[exupgh12]

I have Everest 8000. What made a significant improvement in my installation was a Typhon QR plugged in to the same wall socket (i.e. in parallel to the Everest).

Interesting as the Everest 8000 have QR/BB technology and 2 high current outlets (zones 1,6)