Mapletree Umbilical Cord

[Bigfish8]

Guys:

A few weeks ago I made a post over on AC seeking recommendations for an aftermarket Umbilical Cord for my Mapletree 2A-SE Preamp.  Chris Huff of Balanced Power Technologies responded that he would be willing to make a cord for me.  When I arrived home this afternoon my new Umbilical Cord was waiting for me in the mailbox.

I immediately installed the new cord and have been playing the system for approximately an hour.  Initial impressions are that I have more punch to the bass and I believe more detailed highs.  I will allow the cord to break-in for approximately 50 hours and then switch back to the O.E.M. cord to fully appreciate the value of this new cord.  I will post a follow-up of my impressions!

Many thanks to Chris for making this cord.  If any of you Mapletree Owners are looking for a reasonably priced tweak I recommend you contact Chris at contact@b-p-t.com.

Ken

[bpape]

Chris is a great guy and makes some outstanding products.  I wouldn't hesitate to buy from him.

Bryan

[richidoo]

Hard to believe you could improve that little preamp any further.. 

[Bigfish8]

Guys:

I took the Mapletree Preamp along with the stock and new umbilical cord Chris Hoff of BPT made over to Richidoo's home this afternoon.  Rich has Usher BE-20 Speakers, Manley Tube Amps and all JPS SC3 Cabling.  The new cord has approximately 8 hours of break-in time.  We switched the Umbilical Cords several times and the group in attendance judged the new cord made by Chris to be the superior cord.  The sound stage was larger, the bass tighter and I felt the highs were crisper.

I definitely recommend you give Chris a call or send him an e-mail as this upgrade is a no brainer!

Ken

[richidoo]

Nice improvement on the new umblical.   

[Bigfish8]

Guys:

I posted pictures of the latest Umbilical Cord Chris Hoff of BPT sent to me to evaluate versus the cord I purchased from him along with the stock cord in my gallery.  I am unable to post the picture here of the three cords.  http://www.audionervosa.com/index.php?action=mgallery;sa=media;id=366;preview
The latest cord is at the bottom of the picture, the cord I puchased in the middle and the stock cord is the one at the top.  I arrived home this afternoon and installed the latest cord.  No doubt it is another step-up over the first cord Chris made which we judged to be better than the stock cord.  If I can make it to Rich's on Sunday I will bring the preamp and both cords for a comparison.

Ken

[richidoo]

[Bigfish8]

Thanks for posting the picture Rich!

Ken

[Bigfish8]

Guys:

I have acquired approximately 50 hours of break-in time on the latest Umbilical Cord supplied to me by Chris Hoff of BPT and I wanted to provide my opinion versus the stock cord.  I switched umbilical cords three times to try and accurately quantify the impact on sound quality.  First I limited the comparison to following three songs:

Jennifer Warnes -- "Way Down Deep" - The Hunter

Jennifer Warnes -- "The Whole of The Moon" - The Hunter

Counting Crowes -- "Round Here" - Across a Wire - Live in NY City

No change in SPL resulted in changing the Umbilicals and I listened at 80 decibles SPL at my seat.

First let me say that changing the umbilicals definitely has an impact on the music.  The BPT Umbilical presents the music with more energy, sharper detail and I found the music to be more engaging.  I did not sense any change in the sound stage.  The BPT cord also presents the music with better tone.  For the price of an inexpensive, single, IC this is a no brainer upgrade!

System is as follows:

Source:  ModWright Transporter
PreAmp:  Mapletree 2A-SE - with BPT Umbilical Cord
Amps:    Odyssey Mono SEs
Speakers:  Usher Dancer Mini II's
ICs:       JPS - Superconductor 3's
SCs:      JPS - Superconductor 3's with JPS Jumpers
PCs:      Black Sand Silver MK -V's
Dedicated 20 AMP Circuits with JPS Outlets
Room has a substantial amount of wall treatments.

Ken

[richidoo]

Good find Ken!  I can tell you're happy with that high value upgrade.