MY Sidewinder AC cord progress:

No doubt! It is amazing how much difference power cords make. I'll be real interested to hear what you think of the SR Reference - I hear it is a big improvement over the Master Couplers it's also twice as expensive. Hey, what's your final take on the MIT cord on your CD player? Is it a keeper or what. Later.

So far, it's a keeper, yes. I bought it, and have had it six months.

Treble was very extended, and detail retrieval was very good. Low level details from the presence region, and upward, were quite amazing. However, some of the "analog ease" quality that the reverse cord combo had, was missing. The upper mids could be very slightly "hard" on rare occasions. Another strange tonality was that occasionally, the "chest range" of both male and female vocalists could turn overripe. But the biggest problem was the lack of ryhthmic drive and pace, especially when compared to any combo that included the Shunyata Sidewinder cord (although it kind of exagerrated pace). And compared to most of the other cord combos, the images of instruments did lack solidity. The treble could almost be "wispy", but was very liquid. Stage depth was good (but ultimately U-shaped), and fatigue factor was very low. Layering of depth, especially in the treble, was intoxicating (the U-shape notwithstanding). My attention kept being drawn to instruments whose range occupied it, and away from the instruments in the rest of the range. Stage width was slightly beyond "average". The air between/around instruments was very clear, and the background was kind of medium black. Attack transients were only slightly hyped, and midrange timbre was almost too transparent; or at least not "juicy" enough, lacking warmth and tonal color...but wasn't really cold either. Bass was very extended with good weight, but lacked focus; had a good "round" quality, though. And yet somehow, I COULD CRANK THE VOLUME TO ELEVEN, and wasn't overly bothered by the problem with the lack of pace. It was there in abundance, but it didn't scream at me...kind of a sin of omission. Tonally, overall the presentation was strangely reminiscent of my Sennheiser HD-600 headphones (except for the bottom octave, of course).................About the U-shaped soundstage: I noticed it the most on the RCA UV-22 remastered Rimsky-Korsakov "Scherazade" gold CD, Fritz Reiner conductor. I realize the Chicago concert hall was wide and shallow, but somehow the Proteus/Black Mamba combo missed what little depth there was in the back corners. I freely admit that the ac cords don't deserve 100% of the blame here, but....while listening to this CD, I was nowhere close to believing I was back in that 1960 concert hall, especially during "The Young Prince and Princess"........My quest continues.

It had the neutrality I was expecting ahead of time, and the loss of resolution (mostly in the treble range) was also what I was expecting. The "analog ease" factor was noticeably diminished, but overall, I THINK I PREFER THIS COMBO MORE THAN ANY OF THE REST OF 'EM. The soundstage was very deep, with instruments way in the back in natural focus. The background was just shy of absolute black. The treble was slower and less liquid (than the previous Proteus/Black Mamba combo). But, and here's where it really makes me want to keep this combo, IT'S MUCH FASTER THRU ALL OF THE REST OF THE RANGE, and images are more naturally solid. The 3-d soundspace did have a "continuousness" that was very intoxicating, even though the air between and around instruments wasn't maximally clear........................To compare the Z-Cord 2, to the Shunyata Sidewinder (when either is used on the CD player): The Sidewinder was noticeably more liquid and detailed, but that detail was HYPER delineated. The Z-Cord is COMPLETELY tonally neutral, where the Sidewinder had an upper bass hump, along with the upper mids and treble being shelved up. To me, the MIT seems to have 95% of the Sidewinder's upper bass speed/snap/focus, and 100% of its upper bass punch (and without the "hump" and the forward treble). Also, the MIT had 98% of the Sidewinder's soundstage depth, and about 90% of its width. I may have found a winner combo with the Black Mamba on the amp, and the MIT Z-Cord 2 on the CD player, but I have a couple more AC cords I need to try, before i make the final decision on what to buy.......................................................I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE ENJOYED MY LONG WINDED REVIEW OF THESE AC CORDS, and wish you all the best when it comes time for you to decide on your next AC cord upgrade.....Carl

Hi Carl, Thanks for passing along all your experiences in such detail. It really helps others with their decisions. Do you know of a replacement power cord that would fit my Pioneer DV-05? It has two little "pitchfork" holes in it and is quite thin. Regards to all.