Thanks, Al. Hearing that from you has pushed Black Boxes up and up on my list, once finished my network journey and grounding adventure, this should be my next rabbit hole!
The Puritan GroundMaster City was plugged into Puritan PSM-156 ground terminal for the last hour or two. At first, I was not sure I heard anything different (very sure there was none at beginning), However, now it is obviously doing something.
What I got is like the PSM-156 received a turbo booster. It sucks out even more noises than before, and every music note is delivered with more weight and with incredible clarity. This little wall plug hooked up with Puritan conditioner is simply amazing, and it is a must add-on considering its cost. Mind you I only have M1200s and DS MK2 plugged in it, and the improvement is not subtle in my system.
The RouteMaster is unused at this point. I will enjoy this setup for a couple of days to see if I will hear further improvement.
Then I will switch to RouteMaster. It came with three cables, so there are a few combinations I can try:
P15 plus M1200, or BHK pre plus M1200 for an analog tryout. Then, PST, Lumin U2 and MK2 for a digital tryout to see which one is better.
But what it ends up with will be I ordering more cables, more than likely without even trying anything yet
Is the chassis and signal ground actually separate? For example, isnāt an RCA Jack grounded to the chassis/earth via its mounting to the chassis? Is there an isolation layer?
It seems that you can eventually add another City, just to connect the RoutMaster and the PSM-156 at the same time. Or even two: one RouteMaster for Signal Ground (or digital) and another one for Chassis Ground (or analog). Lot of combinations.
Iād start from noisier components, server/streamer, switch and DAC,
Enjoy!
My City is still on the way (or lost) by a local courier, bah!
Iām starting to prefigure a sort of grounding strategy for my system:
Mains Earth
GroundMaster City connected to the Puritan-156
Noisy digital components plugged into the same conditioner
Stealth Dream power cords feeding these digital components
Amp and DAC connected by a proprietary ground wire (following MSB recommendation)
Signal Ground (lifted from chassis)
One CAD Ground Control GC1 for each single component, using only 1 wire connected to unused ports better if closer to noisy main board/chip/oscillator (BNC port of MSB DAC)
Signal Ground - Chassis Ground (not lifted)
CAD Ground Control GC1.1 for each single component, 1 wire connected to an unused port + 1 wire connected to the PSM-156 ground lug
(IUSB port of Innuos Statement and RJ45 port of Innuos PhoenixNET)
CAD USB Control dongle
(USB ābackupā port of Innuos Statement)
I checked Stealth site and their 20-20 cord is designed to be used with their upcoming power conditioner, and Dream 18 uni. Is the one to be used with amps (and adjustable for others). Are you using 20-20 with amp now? I know you mentioned it before but there are too many new things in your system so I already forgot. Did Stealth recommend it over 18?
Yes I do. Dream 20 only for amp while Iām thinking to purchase during next months Dream UNI 18 for digital sources and maybe Grande Cloude (copper) for DAC.
Reading from your post. I know the part that confuses me is that how do you decide which component chassis is lifted, and which is not? Youāre using two grounding devices for each digital components right? Is that needed?
Stealth Audio is not a well known brand. I would not have heard of them without my involvement with George at Kyomi Audio. They donāt do well in resale do to the lack of awareness. AQ Dragons are much easier to sell. I am very happy to not have a reason to sell my cables.
I put two Black Boxes in my SUV and went for a very long drive. I could not believe what it did for the sound of my system in it. Good God, I need Black Boxes in my ride!! Fortunately they are easy to move. In the tightly sealed cabin of the SUV it is really obvious what they do. I am at a friends house right now and just one of them transforms the sound of his system. We are listening to Tool and itās perfect. One does the job, Centered between the speakers, Inline between them. Weird.