Here's where that got really interesting: "How the Boenicke bar moved air was one of the most important changes that resulted in dynamically more capable spatially grander sound. The GigaWatt did a spot-on job on accurate renders of instruments and vocals yet the Swiss had them more physical, articulated, wilder and bolder on feisty recordings just to become utmost sensual and intimate one track later. That greater versatility and ease in differentiating music genres turned it into a higher-tiered more refined product. The PC-3 SE EVO+ did a lot as per usual but multiple clashes with the Power Gate left no room for guessing which of the two was the more potent superior performer… On foundational silencing and related behavior, both were very similar just as they should. Nonetheless, it was clear which one pushed my setup's performance higher to emerge as the more effective. To secure that win the Power Gate had to trim more grit without taking anything in return. It had the blacker backdrop and sounded physical, organic, open, alive, clear and meticulous versus the rounder, warmer, more distant, slower and monolithic GigaWatt."
These two paragraphs are essential today To learn how the LessLoss goes about its business, simply insert it in lieu of the Boenicke above and presto. Although I still enjoy my GigaWatt, both wooden champs made short work of it in a profoundly audible, highly meaningful and pretty much identical fashion. That's my key takeaway. In this context the LessLoss stood tall as yet another specimen that reinforces my take on its passive minimalist approach as being superior to active conditioners, period. Then again I'm far from first to say so. I'm merely catching up. Most credible top reviewers exposed to far more power components than I rely solely on passive means like today's. I don't think that's coincidence.
Upon comparing the LessLoss and Boenicke, most would hear them as identical performers. That's hardly a surprise given shared tech. To be honest, if they weren't alike I'd have been puzzled as an enthusiast well accustomed to LessLoss Firewall modules and C-Marc cables both standalone and built into various products. So the LessLoss distributor behaved predictably. Being geared for extensive noise rejection translated into deep background blackness upon which instrumental moisture, resolution and sensation of aural space blossomed. Listeners not particularly familiar with such action will find it a bit eerie simply because speakers, DACs and amps voiced thick, syrupy and round can't be simultaneously well-illuminated resolved spacious types. Where usually the balance slides between these opposite groups, highly effective power components are subject to different laws that allow blending. Their darkish overall aesthetic from potent noise trimming not only removes excess fuzz, bloom, grain and veiling but also accelerates the sonic MO to be more open, vigorous and alive. So products like today's know how to sound juicy, texturally generous, propulsive, informational and spatially unrestricted all at once. That makes them special, desirable and extremely universal.
There's no question that the inherently fetching dark round bloomy anchored sound of this LessLoss makes a nice first focal point to appreciate. Once that early sensation settles, the product introduces itself as a resolution fiend capable of casting enormously large soundscapes busy with easy detail and pinpoint images. Its ability to behave this velvety, smooth, atmospheric, elastic and keen on extracting tiniest particles is highly admirable. Performance of this rare all-encompassing kind registers as superbly balanced and free from trade-offs. As such the LessLoss won't steer a system's general gestalt in any particular direction. Instead it'll gracefully elevate what's already there. It won't carry out plastic surgery on behalf of witness protection. Think instead of an expert makeup artist who knows how to emphasize a system's best native assets. Above all else, the LessLoss renders music substantially more flowing and digestible which I saw as its primary attractor and most critical quality. This highly universal accomplished product should audibly improve any setup I can imagine no matter its flavor. I also think that it would hold its ground against similar opponents higher up the price hierarchy.