Typhon QR initial impressions.

BlueFox

BlueFox

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Wednesday I received a Shunyata Typhon QR for evaluation. While I have been more than impressed and happy with my Shunyata gear, I have to admit the Typhon v1 didn’t really seem to do much when I added it a few years ago. So, while I was curious about the QR, I wasn’t $9K curious. :)

Then it occurred to me that maybe I could get a demo unit to evaluate, and if it did make a difference then I would buy it. So, I asked Mike, and he was able to get a unit from Shunyata, and that arrived Wednesday. At this point, the only items plugged into the Triton are the XP-22 pre, Lumin S1, and the SACD player, which I rarely turn on.

I replaced the Typhon v1 with the QR Wednesday afternoon, and took Thursday off so I could listen all night. My stereo really shines late at night after the neighborhood quiets down, and the air settles.

Around 7PM I got tired of working (worked at home Wednesday since I had to sign for the QR), opened a beer, and sat back to listen, and try to determine if it made an improvement.

Well, to be blunt, I didn’t like what I was hearing. The music was dry and analytical. It certainly was different, but not, to me, in a good way. Oh well, there isn’t an end date to this demo, so I may as well keep using it.

As the night wore on, the outside noise decreased, the air became settled, and the beer started to do its job, I realized the sound had greatly improved. No longer was it harsh and/or analytical, but encompassing and soothing.

All of a sudden the QR went from an annoyance to a benefit. WTF! LOL

Break in?

The audio was now more detailed, but not analytical. I can more easily pick out notes, instruments, singers in the mix. There is more of a 3D experience to the music. It seemed to be in harmony with the rest of the system, and the end result was making me smile and laugh.

So much for my evaluation idea. I PMed Mike and said ‘Bill me’. He responded right away. Not sure why he was up so early. :)

Anyway, the stereo has been on since Wednesday afternoon, and I am now again in evaluation mode. So far all is good, and I will update this thread as I acquire more subjective impressions.

As an FYI, I moved my Typhon v1 into the HT with its Triton v3. I will see later tonight if it makes a difference, but regardless of the result will contact Shunyata Monday to upgrade it to a QR.

Two thumbs up for the Typhon QR.

Now I need two more evaluation units to hear if they help the Denali on each amp. :)
 
Bud - great news! Everyone that’s tried it has bought it. Maybe Jock can weigh in. My other clients who are loving theirs aren’t on the forum. But I can tell you, they’re delighted!
 
BlueFox said:
Wednesday I received a Shunyata Typhon QR for evaluation. While I have been more than impressed and happy with my Shunyata gear, I have to admit the Typhon v1 didn’t really seem to do much when I added it a few years ago. So, while I was curious about the QR, I wasn’t $9K curious. :)

Then it occurred to me that maybe I could get a demo unit to evaluate, and if it did make a difference then I would buy it. So, I asked Mike, and he was able to get a unit from Shunyata, and that arrived Wednesday. At this point, the only items plugged into the Triton are the XP-22 pre, Lumin S1, and the SACD player, which I rarely turn on.

I replaced the Typhon v1 with the QR Wednesday afternoon, and took Thursday off so I could listen all night. My stereo really shines late at night after the neighborhood quiets down, and the air settles.

Around 7PM I got tired of working (worked at home Wednesday since I had to sign for the QR), opened a beer, and sat back to listen, and try to determine if it made an improvement.

Well, to be blunt, I didn’t like what I was hearing. The music was dry and analytical. It certainly was different, but not, to me, in a good way. Oh well, there isn’t an end date to this demo, so I may as well keep using it.

As the night wore on, the outside noise decreased, the air became settled, and the beer started to do its job, I realized the sound had greatly improved. No longer was it harsh and/or analytical, but encompassing and soothing.

All of a sudden the QR went from an annoyance to a benefit. WTF! LOL

Break in?

The audio was now more detailed, but not analytical. I can more easily pick out notes, instruments, singers in the mix. There is more of a 3D experience to the music. It seemed to be in harmony with the rest of the system, and the end result was making me smile and laugh.

So much for my evaluation idea. I PMed Mike and said ‘Bill me’. He responded right away. Not sure why he was up so early. :)

Anyway, the stereo has been on since Wednesday afternoon, and I am now again in evaluation mode. So far all is good, and I will update this thread as I acquire more subjective impressions.

As an FYI, I moved my Typhon v1 into the HT with its Triton v3. I will see later tonight if it makes a difference, but regardless of the result will contact Shunyata Monday to upgrade it to a QR.

Two thumbs up for the Typhon QR.

Now I need two more evaluation units to hear if they help the Denali on each amp. :)
Click to expand...


Thanks for your initial findings with the QR!
I'll be really interested to read any further updates about using it. Did you switch back to the original Typhon to compare at all?

At its price I really feel that the QR needs to be in a league of its own compared to the performance of the original Typhon/Triton combo. And I'm not really sure what kind of improvements that'll even mean vs what I have, now.
 
Thanks for the write up on your experience. Glad to hear you like the Shunyata.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Rnrmf said:
Thanks for your initial findings with the QR!
I'll be really interested to read any further updates about using it. Did you switch back to the original Typhon to compare at all?

At its price I really feel that the QR needs to be in a league of its own compared to the performance of the original Typhon/Triton combo. And I'm not really sure what kind of improvements that'll even mean vs what I have, now.
Click to expand...

I didn't switch back to the original Typhon. That is in the HT on its Triton v3. Black Panther did seem to sound better last night with it, but I need to test more. Unfortunately, my neighbors are having an all day/night party, and the bass from it mixes with my noise.

The QR definitely stepped up the performance of the Triton, but I agree the price is high. The upgrade price for the Typhon v1 is a better deal. I probably will do that a little later for my Typhon v1.
 
I did find that the QRs needed a little breakin. I know Shunyata has their pre breakin thing that they are doing and it helps A LOT!! But I did find that a couple of days they really settled in. Yes, they are expensive and should IMO be the last thing you do with your power set up because they are so expensive. But I think they are certainly worth the money if you have it to spend on your system.

Now on another subject - I needed a little more length in my power cord going into the QR so I just replaced the Sigma HC with the new Sigma NR. I wasn't expecting much of a change since every time I talked to the Shunyata folks they said yes, it was a little better but . . . . mostly the same, just one type NR instead of three Digital/HC/Analog.

Wholly shit! It really made a big difference. Who knew! Now I feel I need to change out my other Sigma's to the Sigma NRs.

Sigh.
 
the professor said:
I did find that the QRs needed a little breakin. I know Shunyata has their pre breakin thing that they are doing and it helps A LOT!! But I did find that a couple of days they really settled in. Yes, they are expensive and should IMO be the last thing you do with your power set up because they are so expensive. But I think they are certainly worth the money if you have it to spend on your system.

Now on another subject - I needed a little more length in my power cord going into the QR so I just replaced the Sigma HC with the new Sigma NR. I wasn't expecting much of a change since every time I talked to the Shunyata folks they said yes, it was a little better but . . . . mostly the same, just one type NR instead of three Digital/HC/Analog.

Wholly shit! It really made a big difference. Who knew! Now I feel I need to change out my other Sigma's to the Sigma NRs.

Sigh.
Click to expand...

Same experience, here. The Sigma NR performance is not what I'd call a small difference from the Sigma HC.
The change wasn't entirely positive for me, at first, but I've become accustomed to the more neutral sound of the Sigma NR because it doesn't sound bright, to me.
 
the professor said:
I did find that the QRs needed a little breakin. I know Shunyata has their pre breakin thing that they are doing and it helps A LOT!! But I did find that a couple of days they really settled in. Yes, they are expensive and should IMO be the last thing you do with your power set up because they are so expensive. But I think they are certainly worth the money if you have it to spend on your system.

Now on another subject - I needed a little more length in my power cord going into the QR so I just replaced the Sigma HC with the new Sigma NR. I wasn't expecting much of a change since every time I talked to the Shunyata folks they said yes, it was a little better but . . . . mostly the same, just one type NR instead of three Digital/HC/Analog.

Wholly shit! It really made a big difference. Who knew! Now I feel I need to change out my other Sigma's to the Sigma NRs.

Sigh.
Click to expand...

Great to hear Jock. I have all Sigma NR’s in my system at home. Fantastic. Big improvement over HC.

I’ve had two Typhon QR’s come into the store and they sold faster than you can blink. I’ll take that as affirmation that its good!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
BlueFox said:
Wednesday I received a Shunyata Typhon QR for evaluation. While I have been more than impressed and happy with my Shunyata gear, I have to admit the Typhon v1 didn’t really seem to do much when I added it a few years ago. So, while I was curious about the QR, I wasn’t $9K curious. :)

Then it occurred to me that maybe I could get a demo unit to evaluate, and if it did make a difference then I would buy it. So, I asked Mike, and he was able to get a unit from Shunyata, and that arrived Wednesday. At this point, the only items plugged into the Triton are the XP-22 pre, Lumin S1, and the SACD player, which I rarely turn on.

I replaced the Typhon v1 with the QR Wednesday afternoon, and took Thursday off so I could listen all night. My stereo really shines late at night after the neighborhood quiets down, and the air settles.

Around 7PM I got tired of working (worked at home Wednesday since I had to sign for the QR), opened a beer, and sat back to listen, and try to determine if it made an improvement.

Well, to be blunt, I didn’t like what I was hearing. The music was dry and analytical. It certainly was different, but not, to me, in a good way. Oh well, there isn’t an end date to this demo, so I may as well keep using it.

As the night wore on, the outside noise decreased, the air became settled, and the beer started to do its job, I realized the sound had greatly improved. No longer was it harsh and/or analytical, but encompassing and soothing.

All of a sudden the QR went from an annoyance to a benefit. WTF! LOL

Break in?

The audio was now more detailed, but not analytical. I can more easily pick out notes, instruments, singers in the mix. There is more of a 3D experience to the music. It seemed to be in harmony with the rest of the system, and the end result was making me smile and laugh.

So much for my evaluation idea. I PMed Mike and said ‘Bill me’. He responded right away. Not sure why he was up so early. :)

Anyway, the stereo has been on since Wednesday afternoon, and I am now again in evaluation mode. So far all is good, and I will update this thread as I acquire more subjective impressions.

As an FYI, I moved my Typhon v1 into the HT with its Triton v3. I will see later tonight if it makes a difference, but regardless of the result will contact Shunyata Monday to upgrade it to a QR.

Two thumbs up for the Typhon QR.

Now I need two more evaluation units to hear if they help the Denali on each amp. :)
Click to expand...


Thanks so much for the write up.
By the way, did you make any experiment on the grounding (ground typhon QR to Triton v3) ?
 
Gondo101 said:
Thanks so much for the write up.
By the way, did you make any experiment on the grounding (ground typhon QR to Triton v3) ?
Click to expand...

Not yet with grounding, but I did think about it. I am still mentally debating if I should make up two more ground cables, and attach each Denali to the Triton. I might experiment over the July 4th break since I am taking Thursday and Friday off.
 
Gondo101 said:
Thanks Bud,
looking forward to hearing your experiment with grounding
Click to expand...

I asked this question on another forum, and GrantS from Shunyata replied that the umbilical power cord between the QR and the Triton handles grounding the two chassis together.
 
Congrats Bud on your new Typhon QR! I honestly couldn't tell from your initial post if you thought the Typhon QR provided a significant improvement in sound quality or not. So, do you think it's worth the money?

Best,
Ken
 
Alpinist said:
Congrats Bud on your new Typhon QR! I honestly couldn't tell from your initial post if you thought the Typhon QR provided a significant improvement in sound quality or not. So, do you think it's worth the money?

Best,
Ken
Click to expand...

I didn't make my impression clear in the original post?

"As the night wore on, the outside noise decreased, the air became settled, and the beer started to do its job, I realized the sound had greatly improved. No longer was it harsh and/or analytical, but encompassing and soothing.

All of a sudden the QR went from an annoyance to a benefit. WTF! LOL

Break in?

The audio was now more detailed, but not analytical. I can more easily pick out notes, instruments, singers in the mix. There is more of a 3D experience to the music. It seemed to be in harmony with the rest of the system, and the end result was making me smile and laugh.

So much for my evaluation idea. I PMed Mike and said ‘Bill me’. He responded right away. "

If it wasn't worth the money then I wouldn't have bought it. That is the point of an evaluation unit. :)

However, it is a pretty steep cost, but now I am at the latest in Shunyata products, and this is probably where I will be the rest of my life. The $3900 price to upgrade a Typhon v1 to a QR is a better price, and I
 
QR follow up.

I don’t use my stereo during the week since it is a Friday treat for me after busting my head working all week, so it has sat quiet since I turned it off last Sunday morning. So, as usual, I turned the amps on Thursday night so they would be ready Friday.

Well, now it is Saturday night, and, just like last night, I am being impressed by the performance of the QR. The music is coming from a sonic silence zone. It just appears out of no where. One song even startled me as it started. I thought something happened outside, but quickly realized it was the music. I swear I am picking up on little details I never heard before, or they just stand out more now.

Based on my audio memory, I think the system sounds better now than it did last weekend when the QR was only a few days old. It appears that even though no music was playing during the the week the little current needed by both the Pass pre and the Lumin helped burn-in the QR. Now it is really earning its keep. :)
 
BlueFox said:
QR follow up.

I don’t use my stereo during the week since it is a Friday treat for me after busting my head working all week, so it has sat quiet since I turned it off last Sunday morning. So, as usual, I turned the amps on Thursday night so they would be ready Friday.

Well, now it is Saturday night, and, just like last night, I am being impressed by the performance of the QR. The music is coming from a sonic silence zone. It just appears out of no where. One song even startled me as it started. I thought something happened outside, but quickly realized it was the music. I swear I am picking up on little details I never heard before, or they just stand out more now.

Based on my audio memory, I think the system sounds better now than it did last weekend when the QR was only a few days old. It appears that even though no music was playing during the the week the little current needed by both the Pass pre and the Lumin helped burn-in the QR. Now it is really earning its keep. :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the update. Everyone who has the Typhon QR is smitten with the results.
 
the professor said:
It's really an amazing piece.

It's simply amazing in front of the Diablo 300.
Click to expand...

With all the positive feedback on the Typhon QR. I wonder if shunyata will release a scaled down Denali version of the technology at a more accessible price point.
 
mdp632 said:
With all the positive feedback on the Typhon QR. I wonder if shunyata will release a scaled down Denali version of the technology at a more accessible price point.
Click to expand...
I'd definitely be interested in that!
 
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