Some time ago I borrowed a Chord Power Aray Professional to try out. I had read on line that the feet should be slightly loosened off for correct performance and this did indeed prove to be the case. I’m not exaggerating when I say the performance was transformed - it was a profound improvement. You can probably see where this is going…
I own two Chord S6 blocks and an M6. I was musing today about loosening the feet on them thinking that similar improvements may be had. Not wanting to mess with expensive blocks without being sure of my ground I first spoke to Chord to enquire. They confirmed that loosening the feet on these blocks did indeed lead to an improvement in performance and was well worth doing. I was told to loosen them to the point where they were no longer rigidly coupled to the body but not so that they were actually loose. I did this with the S6 block that my TV and Blu ray player are plugged into. Being on the same ring as the M6 block that feeds the hi-fi this block improves the sound of it despite no hi-fi being connected directly to it. Anyway after loosening the feet I was surprised at the magnitude of the improvement. It’s always difficult to describe these things without it sounding like hyperbole but let’s just say it wasn’t the subtle improvement I was expecting. It was far more profound than that. Very easily noticeable after the first 10 seconds. In short - blacker background, bass tighter, deeper, faster, better pitched, more detail. Just more articulation and speed. Worth a try for sure if you own one of these blocks. Maybe you won’t be as impressed as me, I can only relate what I hear in my system and these things can be very system dependant. Tomorrow I’ll power down the system and loosen the feet on the M6. Then on the S6 that powers the BT Smart Hub/ONT box.
A lovely improvement for zero cost and a few minutes with a screwdriver.
6 Likes
Can you not just pick it up and loosen the feet while everything is still running? That’s what I’d do anyway.
How did you find the Power Aray? It’s a bit out of my league but it’s an interesting product.
Not really. It’s very heavy and the cables are all just too stiff to make it possible. I have three standard Power Arays which are excellent but the Power Aray Professional that I borrowed is just in a different league. It made everything more involving and musical. Much like, from memory anyway, the first time I heard an LP12. Strangely it had an effect even when plugged in to a mains socket on a different ring upstairs in our dormer room (we have a bungalow). I’m guessing because all the rings obviously share a common earth. I would have loved one and we had the possibility of obtaining it, as it was a demo unit, at reduced price. Sadly this never materialised and at full cost it’s just beyond our means if we want to remain sensible.
1 Like
Interesting, I had a long email chat with Chord while asking them about the C19 connectors. They did say they found the mains block sensitive to microphony so this makes sense. Will certainly try this. The other biggy I recently found was the mains lead powering the block - checking the screws in it were at the Naim suggested torque! Crazy how sensitive the gear is to the mains and I do find changes here more fundamental than the signal interconnects.
1 Like
That makes sense, it would be like wrestling with an octopus. It would be interesting to know whether these power aray things have less of an effect if the system is already on dedicated mains, which will carry less polluting noise. Dedicated mains could probably be installed for a tenth of the price of the Pro version.
Unfortunately a dedicated mains is off the menu for us at the moment. To install one would mean dismantling part of the kitchen and various other disruptions leading to substantial cosmetic damage which will obviously require repair. Not something we are prepared to do. I may look into it at some point and if a friendly electrician can offer a less disruptive solution then it may become a possibility.
My understanding is that these devices are not really intended as a substitute in any way for a dedicated mains but rather to be complimentary to it. They target high frequency noise which is mains borne as a result of noise introduced directly from various sources through their connection to the mains. Also though, and possibly more importantly, they target HF noise radiated from a variety of sources into the environment and picked up by mains wiring which acts as an aerial. Such sources are LED bulbs, wi-fi devices, radio signals, electronics such as TV’s and so on. A dedicated mains will be as susceptible to this as the normal house wiring (unless specially shielded). I can’t offer any evidence for this but my gut feeling, from long acquaintance with these products, is that they are likely to be even more beneficial and to shine more brightly when given a cleaner mains supply to work on. In a sense they are fighting a losing battle on an already very dirty mains supply. I know this may seem counter intuitive in a way but it’s a bit like saying a Powerline will likely have more beneficial effect on a £10K amp than on a £1K amp. It’s got something already better to work with.
Do you mean you are using a Powerline to connect your Chord block to the mains? Have you replaced the Powerline IEC with a C19?
Just given this a try on my Chord block - what you said! First impression- you’re right… ! I was amazed by what picking the thing up off the floor and putting it on a rack did, now I’m equally amazed by what loosening feet screws does. Ending up just staggered by the sound quality of my favourite tracks on my system these nights. Thanks.
2 Likes
No I am using a short bespoke lead made with Belden 19364 and it’s the plug screws in that I adjusted. See below.
1 Like
Have you tried tightening the screws again to see if it reverts?
Ah, I see. Thanks for that. It’s amazing sometimes how little things which may seem inconsequential can have such a big effect on performance. As the saying goes, “the devil is in the detail”.
Just out of interest and for possible future reference, during your discussions with Chord did they recommend any particular C19 IEC to use?
I haven’t. I suppose I should really as a sort of double check, but usually when I do something like this and it sounds much better I just accept it and leave it alone. If the improvement was very subtle then I would have gone back and forth a few times to compare, and that to be honest was what I was expecting to happen. However the improvement was much more obvious than that - so much so that there really isn’t any question over it in my mind.
If I find myself having to go back and forth to compare things then my wife usually says to me “if it’s that difficult to decide which is best then does it really matter?”. It’s difficult to argue with that logic - so I don’t!
No, I had intially asked about a standard kettle version! In reply to that they said they found the C19 much better. The rest of the conversation was about plug ordering but I have now tried loads and settled on my own! Since getting a 555 for my ndac I ran out of sockets and now plug my power amps in the wall and go (from the C19 end) up towards source at the other end (final one being klimax rad). I intend to try your slightly slack feet thing soon.
1 Like
Mine just sits on the carpet as there’s no room for a rack to put it on. I suppose I could add another level to my Quadraspire SVT rack but it’s at just the right height so I’d rather not. I feel sorting this out should my my next move. Maybe a DIY solution or getting something custom made. Other than that the only thing would be to put the M6 on a single level rack right in front of the system rack! This would look rather odd but since it’s in the corner of the room maybe it could work. Your experience of putting your block on a rack has spurred me on to do something about this.
Thanks. Regarding plug ordering, as I’m sure you know, with the M6 Chord say to plug the noisiest components in nearest to the IEC. With the S6 it’s the opposite. That’s what I’ve done with my blocks and it sounds great. I haven’t bothered to experiment though as you have so it’s just possible that another configuration might prove to be superior.
1 Like
I did experiment a bit and dont really know about noise profiles of all this but I go in the block from the C19 - Supercap (SNAXO) - supercap (52) - 555 (dac) - DAC - nd5xs2 - klimax rad. I dont think thats noisiest at all but works best for me. its a bit like towards final source last where that last element (the klimax rad) is the system ground as well. if you have say a streamer on “chassis” I would play with that being the last element rather than first (perhaps technically noisest). I do have a dedicated spur BTW so your setup may vary a lot.
1 Like
A rare day off with very little to do but nurse a mild hangover has given me the chance to give this a go. Managed to do it without powering down by flipping my S6 on its side. Well yes it certainly does something positive. Still loving and getting into 3.12 but so far I’m hearing even more subtle details in voices especially. Thanks for sharing this most cost-efficient of tips!
1 Like
Glad you like it. What I’ve found through trial and error is that it’s important to only loosen the feet so that they are no longer rigidly held against the body of the block. Don’t loosen them to the point where they can actually be moved.If they are loosened too much then, in my system at least, the bass becomes thinner and lightweight. I did speak to Chord about this and they said that there’s no specific setting as it were for this - it’s just a matter of trial and error. But they had already told me to only loosen them so that they are no longer rigid and my own experience backs this up. Well worth doing though.
I’ve a M6 PowerHAUS and tried this a week ago.
It’s on a carpeted area with an underlay. Not thick carpet, but still carpet. So that made me curious as to WHY or WILL it work.
Just nipped the screws off a bit from factory tight, so the feet can’t swivel with a slight turn (will still turn with much more force..)
I’m leaning towards what Pete had noticed, more / better bass - but not flabby and a nice punchy / nimble drive.
I did have a NA Origin PS that’s new’ish and didn’t listen to my system for a bit over a week. So I’m unsure if it’s just the PSU and the Mundorf CAPS finally bedding in or the M6 tweak…
The PSU had well over 300 hours, so I’m leaning towards the tweak that has bumped up the performance a little bit.
Either was the session I had went into well over 5 hours of musical bliss.
It’s just more engaging now, it’s very noticeable.
1 Like
This is what I found with trial and error to be the best setting. In my set up, loosening the feet too much, so that they will easily swivel, gives a lovely dynamic and clear midrange but the bass becomes too light for my liking. It’s quite critical. I did speak to Chord about this and they said there’s no official best setting, it’s just a matter of experimenting to see what suits you best.
1 Like
