Cereal Killer
432
I see what you did there, firstly you were condescending and now trying to be smug and conceited. Please carry on.
Only for power cable believers
- Thread starter monya
- Start date
I see what you did there, firstly you were condescending and now trying to be smug and conceited. Please carry on.
Amber Audio
This is the Day
Likewise, once we get through COVID and I can get some sparky and joiner work done inside I’ll be finishing the electrical and lighting system changes I have been planning for a while, will look into a battery wall again for my solar too. A dedicated AV power layout has been discussed with my sparky, he’s done a fair few and didn’t give me too many quizzical looks
johnacurtis
pfm Member
I currently have an old cheap pc mains lead to my Dynavector power amp.
Do you think it would be worth upgrading to a "better" mains lead? My dealer keeps pushing shunyata power leads, but they are completely out of my price range, thinking more up to £50 or £60, or is that just buying a nicer looking lead of the same quality I already have?
Do you think it would be worth upgrading to a "better" mains lead? My dealer keeps pushing shunyata power leads, but they are completely out of my price range, thinking more up to £50 or £60, or is that just buying a nicer looking lead of the same quality I already have?
Amber Audio
This is the Day
Borrow a couple if you’re friendly enough with the dealer or if you’re diy handy make one up, then it’ll be the exact length, colour and type of plugs you want. There are kits ready to put together from various outlets like MCRU. A few off the shelf cables around at £60 if you don’t fancy making, mos5 should be on 30 day sale or return.
Cereal Killer
432
I'm actually going to have a little reshuffle soon too so will be needing to remake the power cables to new lengths, might try this stuff next. http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/710-5...0001&campid=5338728743&icep_item=391703644925
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Amber Audio
This is the Day
I like those neutrik mains plugs you use for you filter/Disti box, wonder why they never got any traction in home AV along with their speaker plugs which are really decent and chunky compared to 4mm pins/Z plugs.
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Gervais Cote
Predator
Gosh, can’t get that song out of my head now !
uncl_nigel
pfm Member
UPDATE
I have just replaced that 5€ kettle lead between the wall and my QBase8 (the 2 Frey 2 leads I already had were 1m and too short to reach the wall socket). Replaced the 5€ with a 2m Nordost Frey 2 and to quote myself "the improvement is worthwhile repeatable and incremental"
In the context of my silly-price system, room, ears and budget it was worth every Euro (financed for about 40% by the sale of an EAR834p deluxe that I haven't used since I got an Aesthetix Rhea Signature).
uncl_nigel
pfm Member
A word of warning - don't borrow what you cannot afford - returning something that works after a loan can be a big disappointment
This afternoon I was talking to a friend who took several weeks to get over returning a dCS Rossinii after loan and going back to his dCS Bartok
And the Bartok is on the great to brilliant end of the sound scale.
Salamander
pfm Member
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rod ayling
pfm Member
Used two Rega uprated ones on my Saturn/Elicit combo.
Very worthwhile upgrade . Great cost effective buy, especially second hand.
Very worthwhile upgrade . Great cost effective buy, especially second hand.
There may be several factors that contribute to the effect of power cables in the system, whether they bring a difference or not. For the past 20+ years in this hobby I have not heard a noticeable or big difference with different power cords with my equipment.
Most of my power cords are low to midrange types and come in UK and US plugs. Power cords which come in US plugs cannot be plugged directly to the wall outlet hence a power strip is used to connect these cords to the equipment. Cords which come in UK plugs that I have tried include DIY Kimber and Chord purple PowerChord. Cords which come in US plugs include Supra Lorad, Wireworld Elektra7 and Virtual Dynamics Nite II. There is minimal to zero difference between all these power cords when I compared them many years ago until I gave up on power cords. In my mind, during that time, power cords have the least impact to the system when compared to speaker cables and interconnects.
Fast forward to today, the perception has changed. Power cords now have the biggest impact to the system. The biggest change does not directly come from power cords but the interface where the cords are being connected to. More details below.
*Disclaimer : Please note that I am not based in the UK.
UK type outlet replaced to US type receptacles (Furutech GTX-D NCF). One word - massive difference with cords going directly between wall outlet and component.
Before ;
After ;
With this arrangement I can now connect power cords with US plugs directly to the wall outlet, bypassing the power strip.
Recently I acquired two Acrolink cords with factory terminated US plug. Direct connection to the wall outlet. End game.
Most of my power cords are low to midrange types and come in UK and US plugs. Power cords which come in US plugs cannot be plugged directly to the wall outlet hence a power strip is used to connect these cords to the equipment. Cords which come in UK plugs that I have tried include DIY Kimber and Chord purple PowerChord. Cords which come in US plugs include Supra Lorad, Wireworld Elektra7 and Virtual Dynamics Nite II. There is minimal to zero difference between all these power cords when I compared them many years ago until I gave up on power cords. In my mind, during that time, power cords have the least impact to the system when compared to speaker cables and interconnects.
Fast forward to today, the perception has changed. Power cords now have the biggest impact to the system. The biggest change does not directly come from power cords but the interface where the cords are being connected to. More details below.
*Disclaimer : Please note that I am not based in the UK.
UK type outlet replaced to US type receptacles (Furutech GTX-D NCF). One word - massive difference with cords going directly between wall outlet and component.
Before ;
After ;
With this arrangement I can now connect power cords with US plugs directly to the wall outlet, bypassing the power strip.
Recently I acquired two Acrolink cords with factory terminated US plug. Direct connection to the wall outlet. End game.
monya
pfm Member
Must say that if I were starting from scratch I would have a fused cord from the wall (for insurance purposes) into whatever conditioner, regenerator or distribution block you fancy but with schuko or USA sockets and therefore bypass the fused plugs and associated complexities we have to adhere to in grand old Blighty.
Cereal Killer
432
@monya - that's exactly the basis of my DIY mains distribution further up this thread. https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/only-for-power-cable-believers.249516/page-2#post-4202808
sunbeamgls
pfm Member
Was just trying to explain the sequence and thereby explain my question. Clearly there was a misunderstanding. But now its too hard.
Acrolink cords with US plugs connected directly to wall outlet.
Glad this has worked for you, thanks for sharing. I guess it just also shows how important the mains block is where an arrangement such as yours connecting directly to the wall (and, of course, with high quality components) may not be practical. I have found most mains blocks and conditioners I’ve tried (arguably nothing extortionately expensive) largely disappointing but at least have heard the significant difference they can make. They need good evaluation, come with some trade off in various aspects of sound quality and the good ones do not come cheap. So taking them out of the chain altogether can be a good solution where feasible.
Subito
pfm Member
Well, I took the plunge. Never tried changing out an AC cable before, was curious to see it it would make a difference. I ordered an AudioQuest NRG-Y3 power cable (six feet long and $160 US) for my PS Audio Sprout100. A $160 power cable for a $700 integrated amplifier seemed a bit stupid, but this is “high-end audio” so dumb kinda comes with the territory. BTW, this cable was specifically “curated” by PS Audio to be the ideal match for the Sprout...ugh.
The good news? The new cable definitely made an obvious difference in sound quality; no ambiguity there.
The bad news? It sounded worse than the el cheapo 18AWG cable that came with the amp. The most obvious problem was the weak, murky bass. Bass guitars and kick drums receded into the mix, losing both volume and clarity. In terms of the proverbial “toe tapping” criterion, the AQ cable was a total failure. On the (possible) upside, it offered a beguiling sense of air and ambience; the problem is, this seemed a bit overdone and was present on songs where it didn’t belong. Almost like adding a subtle echo effect to every recording.
The AQ cable is 16 AWG vs. 18 AWG standard cable, so the poor bass performance shouldn’t be attributable to using a too-thin cable. I dunno, whatever the reasons the AQ cable was a bust and is being returned.
FWIW, that’s my experience in the Great Power Cable Debate. Fortunately for me, the Sprout100 has its Bluetooth antenna jammed so close to the AC power input that many audiophile power cables with beefy barrel-shaped IEC C13 connectors just won’t fit. So I’ll just have to make do with the perfectly fine (and free) cable that came with the amp. How very sad...tee hee.
The good news? The new cable definitely made an obvious difference in sound quality; no ambiguity there.
The bad news? It sounded worse than the el cheapo 18AWG cable that came with the amp. The most obvious problem was the weak, murky bass. Bass guitars and kick drums receded into the mix, losing both volume and clarity. In terms of the proverbial “toe tapping” criterion, the AQ cable was a total failure. On the (possible) upside, it offered a beguiling sense of air and ambience; the problem is, this seemed a bit overdone and was present on songs where it didn’t belong. Almost like adding a subtle echo effect to every recording.
The AQ cable is 16 AWG vs. 18 AWG standard cable, so the poor bass performance shouldn’t be attributable to using a too-thin cable. I dunno, whatever the reasons the AQ cable was a bust and is being returned.
FWIW, that’s my experience in the Great Power Cable Debate. Fortunately for me, the Sprout100 has its Bluetooth antenna jammed so close to the AC power input that many audiophile power cables with beefy barrel-shaped IEC C13 connectors just won’t fit. So I’ll just have to make do with the perfectly fine (and free) cable that came with the amp. How very sad...tee hee.
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Thetiminator
Painfully virile
I’ve just changed the power cords on my subs from bog standard to home made Furutech cable and plugs. The bass was so much tighter and tuneful, so much so that I now play them 3db louder than they were set at before the change...