Shunyata Research: Professional Endorsements



Most companies in the home-entertainment product industry use a review or two to promote their products, or they make a series of self-proclamations that they are "the world's best," or other unsupportable claims. Shunyata Research prefers to let its unanimous reviews and the endorsements from those at the forefront of the Music and Film industry speak for us. "As studio owners, we are regularly exposed to numerous 'quality enhancement products' and have naturally become cautious and very selective; you rarely achieve an audible improvement without somehow adversely affecting another element in the audio chain. We have been using Shunyata power cables at my studio for some time now. Careful placement of the cables has resulted in reduced distortion, improved clarity, better low level detail and richer 3-dimensional depth in the soundstage. The Anaconda PowerSnakes, for example, have transformed our Sonoma system, used during the mastering process for the new 5.1 mix of 'The Dark Side of The Moon'. I look forward to trying the Hydra AC distribution next. Highly recommended." James Guthrie, Grammy award winning Producer/Engineer (Pink Floyd) "Shunyata Research power cables and interconnects made a remarkable difference in my reference system. The PowerSnakes power cables added effortless muscularity, control and wide-open clarity to the amps driving my speakers. These are not subtle tweaks. I would guess the amps sound 15 percent better -- a far bigger difference than any speaker cables have made and in many cases, as unbelievable as it may seem, a greater improvement than changing the whole front end. I could not recommend them highly enough." Rick Rubin, Five-time Grammy nominated Record Producer "As you know, I have personally evaluated the Hydra power conditioning system along with your PowerSnakes power cables. I was very impressed with the results. Shunyata Research products are now part of my equipment set up. Especially, with my 2 track tape machines, the sound with your system was definitely more transparent and clear. I would highly recommend Shunyata Research products to any professional audio/video facility." Vlado Meller, Senior Mastering Engineer Sony Music Studios New York "For many years, I've tried and tested power conditioners by major manufacturers with varying results. I'm pleased to say that I can now put my search for the elusive optimal AC conditioner to rest. The Hydra Model-8 and Hydra Model-2 power conditioners coupled with Shunyata's power cables have provided me with an extremely clean and transparent foundation by which I can check and approve test pressings with full confidence." Steven Epstein, 12 time Grammy winner 6 time Grammy winner: "Classical Producer Of The Year" Record Producer for Yo Yo Ma, Wynton Marsalis, Isaac Stern and many others. "I have been very skeptical of power related tweaks above and beyond good basic engineering practices like wire sizing, proper grounding and good solid connections. That said I tried to be open to the merits of the Shunyata approach regarding power management. After living with various power cables, outlets and Hydra AC distribution systems for several months while working on my DMP Archive Project, I can honestly say that Shunyata Power Systems do contribute to a more solid, focused and accurate sonic picture." Tom Jung, President Digital Music Products Inc. "I've run out of words to describe the effect Shunyata Research has had on the SACD experience in our studio. From the mass and quality of the Hydra power distribution center with it's dynamic openness, the clarity gleaned from the Anaconda Alpha/Anaconda VX, and the direct detail obtained from the interconnects and speaker cables. Shunyata Research has put a very positive signature on Crest National's, Hollywood reference listening experience." Jon Truckenmiller, Sr. VP Engineering Crest National Studios "I've just spent a very informative morning listening to our reference system. I have to say that the results with the Hydra are extremely interesting. Everything has become clearer with greater projection, but at the same time smoother. Stage depth is also greatly improved, something which I was not expecting as this is normally dominated by mechanical/acoustical constraints. Very impressive. Last night I had similarly impressive results at home with my Barco. Noise is dramatically reduced (my electrical installation is very old so there was plenty of room for improvement) and the image is now far more punchy and better defined. Being an engineer I tend to be a little skeptical when it comes to cables etc, so this was a very pleasant surprise. I'm so impressed with the results that I would like to order your Hydra Model-8 straight away for my own use which will feed my whole HT ensemble." Dominic Baker, Chief Engineer Focal/JMLab "To put this into context, I am a trustee of the Philharmonic Orchestra of New Jersey. I have played several instruments and now frequently listen to live jazz and classical instrumental and vocal performances. My goal in a stereo system is to reproduce the actual performance and its environment as closely as possible. I am a skeptic about power cords (and other wirey stuff) and I rely on my ears to tell me what is real. So I plugged the Shunyata power cords (Taipans and Copperheads) into my system, put on a choral disk and sat back anticipating the effort that may be required to hear any subtle difference they might make. I was shocked with amazement. It took no more than listening to the first few bars of the opening chorus to hear the dramatic difference in sound quality these power cords allowed within my system. I tried another disk, same impact, then another, same impact... and they were not even broken in yet. Here is what I heard: The most dramatic effect was an improvement in transduced acoustics. Previously I heard vocal or musical instruments that sounded excellent but were missing something relative to a live performance experience. Now I heard harmonic depth within and between voices and instruments that provide the richness and stage presence of a live performance. Now the individual voices and instruments interact with one another as in real life. Now I easily heard the small echoes, reverberations and other cues (some people call this inner detail) associated with a live performance space that were previously absent. The speed of dynamic changes in percussion instruments (attack) were also improved to better resemble a live performance. All in all, the system now produces an audio hologram that much more closely approximates a live performance. Thanks for your recommendation of this excellent product." Doug Munch, Philharmonic Orchestra of New Jersey "We conducted a series of listening test to both the Shunyata cables and the Hydra power conditioner. Our comparison point included both standard mains cables and other esoteric cables. We found that both the Shunyata cables and the Hydra gave the best results by some margin." Phil Taylor, Studio Manager Astoria Studio UK "We were particularly impressed with the sense of phase coherence that Shunyata products delivered, giving noticeably better imaging, depth and clarity. We tried many different areas of our signal path, all benefited. With digital sources it was almost as if we had switched from 44.1k/16 bit to 96k/ 24 bit. We now run all our analogue machines, workstations and the mixing console from the Shunyata equipment." Andy Jackson, Senior Mastering Engineer Astoria Studio UK “We first put the Hydra to test on a monitor system that had problems with noise and clarity. The result was less noise with an improvement in overall sound quality. We now use the Hydra's on our Model 2 converters, AES router and main monitor system consisting of B&W 802 speakers and Chord Amps.“ Clayton Wood, Senior Engineer SkyWalker Sound "We are using various Shunyata products to further our quest for the best signal path in tracking, mixing, and mastering. The Hydra Model-2 and Hydra Model-6 on various vintage guitar amps and vintage analog keyboards have made a world of difference in clarity and punch. We are using the Python line for our 24-track tape machine, DACs, tube preamps, and tube microphone power supplies. On the power amps we have the Taipan line. Again I have noticed more definition in the transients. Overall I think that Shunyata products are an integral part of taking the critical listening system to the next level." Brett Allen, Studio Manager LookOut Sound Studios “After trying numerous top shelf brands of power distribution and IC's for my mastering facility, only the Shunyata Research Hydra's and PowerSnakes remained as a vital part of my signal path and playback system. It's never been so easy to achieve the great sound that I have been striving for -- I no longer have to reach for my equalizers to find space for the details that I now have in spades. Lower noise levels let me get deeper into a mix without sacrificing power to my equipment. No anemic sounds here! Just music that always sounds right. I want to re-master my whole discography now!” Phil Demetro, Mastering Engineer The Lacquer Channel Toronto "All of us associated with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra are extremely pleased with the results gained from using the Research Hydra and power cords in our reference recording studios. These outstanding, musical products have enhanced our recordings and made it easier for our musicians to hear the detail of their instruments!" Peter Poltun, Vienna Philharmonic