I dig the layout…nice, clean, and fast!
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Thank you very much. l deliver everywhere. 
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Thank you for the nice feedback. 
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Fantastic stuff Tom. Really great Writeup.
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Anybody here have experience with Aqua DACs?
Found a used aqua la voce s3 for a good price and thought it was an interesting piece of kit.
Any thoughts appreciated!
I haven’t heard one, but they seem to have a good reputation for NOS DACs. You might want to compare them to other NOS DACs such as Holo, Metrum, and Sonnet. I believe Aqua, Metrum, and Sonnet are modular allowing for upgradability. Also consider if you will do your own oversampling via software such as HQ Player.
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Yeah, I was aiming for a Holo Spring 3 but I saw this used and it’s around the same ballpark as the May, so that had me rethinking a bit…
This is one of those brands that isn’t as mainstream so comparisons are a bit sparse.
I had an S2 a few years ago and liked it a lot.
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Aqua is more known in the 2-channel world so you may find more impressions and reviews there.
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Are you able to compare Aqua and Holo sonics?
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Thank you so much. Much obliged.
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Can someone recommend me a well-built, reliable power cable for around $200 or less?
I see a lot of budget models from brands like audioquest, pangea, dh labs, etc…so I would appreciate it if a specific model/version were to be mentioned.
Thanks!
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I really wish I could, but feel like I could lead you in the wrong direction. I owned the S2 in 2016-2017. I don’t really remember the specifics of the Aqua, I just remember liking it a lot and really feeling the music. I used it with an EC ZDS and was just blown away. But to compare the two, beyond the fact that I enjoyed them both, would be more guesswork than anything else. I will say, however, that I don’t think you could go wrong with the S3 and I wouldn’t feel bad with one in my rack.
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Got it and understandable. Appreciate your discretion and restraint.
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I bought mine from Cullen Cable, mainly because I wanted a custom power cable with a right angle connector for my Pendant. But I chose him because I’d read a few good reviews of his work.
The owner, Patrick Cullen, recommended that I buy the Gold cable, but I decided to upgrade to the Crossover. I’ve never done an A-B comparison, so I can only tell you that they are well built and it was a pleasure to do business with him. He was very good about answering my questions via email.
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To add to my other reply, I have also used these two hospital grade power cables with great success too. And they’re less than $20.
Trying to A-B power cables is just too much hassle for me to find out if the audiophile cables are worth the extra, and since I could afford the “nicer” cables, I decided there was no downside in using them with my more expensive equipment.
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Good stuff, thank you for the suggestions!
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I just got this Pangea AC-14 ($40) for my RebelAmp. It’s much thicker than the cables that ship with most stuff, but still flexible enough that it won’t stress the device socket. Some speaker power amp cables are massive and extremely difficult to use. I’m very happy with the Pangea, but I buy basic “good” cables (e.g., World’s Best Cables).
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0030ERR9A?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details
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I would take a look at Maze Audio.
They have a wealth of beautifully made, very solid, AC cables. They start at about $65 for a four-foot cord, and go up to about $225 for their Ref4 cable with Krell Cryo billet connectors (I have about a dozen of these). If you want longer they can do it for incremental cost.
Used them since, I think, 2015, never had any issues with the cables.
They have a noise-rejecting design using heavy-gauge conductors and massively over-built plugs. Whether any of that really matters with a properly designed PSU is another matter, but they’re the best build/value I’ve found and look and feel fantastic.
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I too use these. Monoprice Hospital Grade Power Cord - NEMA 5-15PHG to IEC 60320 C13, 16AWG, 10A/1250W, SVT, Black, 3ft - Monoprice.com
Last time they went on sale for $0.68 each, I bought 60 of them.
I love that I can get them as short as 3 feet to keep things neat and tidy instead of coiling up longer cables which potentially increases electrical fields/noise around my gear.
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