June 23, 2012

  • Simaudio CD3.3X, Part 8

    You guys already know that I saw Vicious Rumors several times during the early-90s.  And in June 1992, I bought Vicious Rumors' new and excellent album, Welcome To The Ball.  At the same time, I started my very first job, Instructional Aide at Golden Gate Elementary.  So to me, Welcome To The Ball and that Instructional Aide job go hand in hand, especially with the song, "Children."

    Yep, that CD is now 20 years (!) old.  So is the photo below it.  That was on a field trip to the San Francisco Zoo.  I was put in charge of getting the students out of that big tree.  You can judge for yourself, if you think I was successful.

    Those Vicious Rumors concerts were held in small clubs.  Attendance was smaller still.  I easily made it to the front.  One time, lead singer Carl Alpert handed me a Budweiser.  But since I don't drink, I immediately passed it to the guy behind me.  Well, except that there wasn't anyone behind me!  The beer fell to the ground.

    I don't know.  That Instructional Aide job made me feel empowered.  Plus, I loved the students.  The photos above show the class in Golden Gate Park, in front of the Academy Of Sciences.

    In summer 1992, I had two CD players, the NAD 5000 and Sony CDP-520ESII.  Both had skimpy fixed powercords.  As you know from reading my previous posts, the Simaudio CD3.3X has an IEC jack.  The first thing you need to do is scrap the throwaway powercord.  That thing absolutely kills the CD3.3X's performance.  But what, then, should you get?  Dummy.  No one but YOU can answer that.

    Versus the throwaway powercord, the Acrolink P/C-046 makes you feel like you're "getting somewhere."  Images tighten up, become more visible.  More resolution is available.  Nevertheless, you see that the sound ain't right.  The music is scrunched up, there are high levels of grain, and dynamics and movement are curtailed.

    If you just want to blow the CD3.3X to smithereens, get the Pranawire Satori with Acrolink CF carbon fiber plugs.  Yep, at $2950 for a 1-meter piece, the Satori CF costs almost as much as the CD3.3X itself.  But damn, with the Satori CF, the CD3.3X has a big, bold, detailed, kick-ass sound.

    An interesting and sometimes preferable combination is the Pranawire Maha Samadhi and CD3.3X.  The Maha Samadhi opens up the top 1/3 of the soundstage.  With such air and transparency up top, Welcome To The Ball sounds like it's summer '92 again.  You'll have to sacrifice some power, body, and bass control, but the Maha Samadhi has an interesting influence over the CD3.3X.  If you have the typical audiophile system which rolls off the top, you may have no choice, but to go with the Maha Samadhi.

    I'm sorry I do not have any appropriately-priced powercords for the CD3.3X.  I am curious as to how the more affordable Shunyata Taipan Alpha and Tara Labs Air AC work on the CD3.3X.    

Comments (3)

  • Some, perhaps most, of the after market power cords have large and heavy female ends that plug into the source component. Do you ever have any problems with these power cords coming loose as a result? If so, do you have any tips on compensating for that?

    Thanks.

  • @JDA1951 - When I used the Nordost Thor, some stiff powercords would sag. I used old toys or cell phones to prop up the powercords. The audiophiles ranted how the old cell phones would "introduce interference." But did anyone hear a difference? No.

  • Okay, thanks.

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