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Yiiiiiihaaa!!! The 20'000 UKP power cable is here!

That will be it, almost certainly. You can bet somewhere in the regs it specifies that all elec equpment must have a captive lead or a "plug and socket device".

How many times have you unplugged the kettle just before it boils, say to fill a pan or add to some lukewarm washing up water because you didn't want to wait? I know I have.
 
Yep, I guess it's all due to not connecting ground first or disconnecting ground last.
 
dave said:
I believe the IEC connector is matched so it's loose in its male counterpart with the blade contact being the only bit left tight. Could be wrong though.
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Oh, so the male and female casings, being loose, are left to potentially 'chatter' when subjected to vibration.

This is bad, very bad and far worse than I imagined.

Can I be the first to suggest 'plug dampers' - like tube dampers really that fit onto the plug, condom like with the pins poking through. Nice and lossy.

Thank God for MK.
 
dave said:
I wonder why Neutrik Powercons aren't used more in this part of the industry? I understand they're quite good from a friend in the pro sector who hears a difference between connectors. Reliabilty for stage use is outstanding in his opinion so ruggedness isn't the problem. Must google cost....

...seems reasonably priced to me.

31MzW-4wH8L._SL500_AA300_.jpg


Retails at Amazon for $3.25 US
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I love em:

DAC

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Integrated amp WIP

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Big power amp before I finished it

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Bit later in the build

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Rob -Personally I stick with the power cords that came from the factory with the gear. I figure if they were good enough when the circuit was designed, they're good enough now two decades later.

I have found differences with some up-rated power cords though they all sounded a bit worse to me. (Less bass even though the aftermarket wire was thicker and recommended by my gear manufacturer. Sounds like I failed the expectation bias test ;-)

Gareth -nice photos!
 
Mescalito said:
I have heard 4 systems with ****y power leads. None were changed in any respect whatsoever by their inclusion. And yes, we did compare the system before and after the inclusion.

No difference is what the science predicts. No difference is what I experienced.

Chris
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Chris, playing devil's advocate on that for a second expectation bias cuts both ways. ;)

BTW I think £20,000 for a mains cable is absolutely ridiculous whether it improves the sound of the system or not. I wouldn't spend that on an amp either for that matter.......unless I'd won some monster Euromillions jackpot in which case I'm in the market for a pair of Hovland Stratos monblocks in black.
 
neil said:
Chris, playing devil's advocate on that for a second expectation bias cuts both ways. ;)

BTW I think £20,000 for a mains cable is absolutely ridiculous whether it improves the sound of the system or not. I wouldn't spend that on an amp either for that matter.......unless I'd won some monster Euromillions jackpot in which case I'm in the market for a pair of Hovland Stratos monblocks in black.
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I agree, Neil, opn one occasion, at a friends house, we did it blind. There were four of us, the kit was a top end Linn set up at that time (Ikemi/Kairn/Klout/Isobasrik DMS. He had got some mega-power chord on loan from his dealer & asked us to come round & have a listen.

The trick lead was connected to the pre-amp, & one of our number kept swapping it out for the Linn supplied one. We all agreed nothing changed when the chords were swapped.

He didn't buy the chord, by the way.

Chris
 
dave said:
I wonder why Neutrik Powercons aren't used more in this part of the industry?
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Which begs the question why better connectors are not used more in general - for instance, BNC in lieu of phono, Neutrik speakON etc.

The cynic in me says that this is because, in an ideal world, the domestic hifi "industry" would rather have connectors that did not exist at all outside hifi shops. This would enable the "industry" to charge what it liked and BS to its heart's content.

With widespread adoption of connectors proven in serious applications, in no way could the hifi retail trade sustain the level of BS on which it appears to feed.
 
I dare an audio manufacturer to produce a range of separates connected by non(hi-fi)-industry standard connectors that work better than RCA phonos and IECs.

They could call the iFi Range. By using a connection format not used by anyone else in that particular industry they can force consumers buying into their range of products to buy leads and power supplies made only by them at higher cost.

Remind you of a certain computer company?
 
stevec67 said:
.

In any case, the point still stands, in the UK it IS legal to do this and if £20k is at stake, why not do it?
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martin clark said:
$20K would pay for a tech to fly-in next-available flight, first-class worldwide and convert your equipment to , say, Neutrik Powercon and still leave a substantial profit on a couple of metres of cable - at the very least. And it'd still be a waste of time & money.
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What the point in paying $20,000?

That would only buy you one.

My system needs 6 of them.

Thats $120,000 if you please.

If you only bought one which piece of equipment would you put it on for the best result?

(please don't answer that last question .. )
 
Steven Toy said:
By using a connection format not used by anyone else in that particular industry they can force consumers buying into their range of products to buy leads and power supplies made only by them at higher cost.
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Unless you use connectors and leads that are entirely standard in every walk of life except hi-fi.

A business that attempted to sell consumers a double-ended BNC lead for more than a few bucks wouldn't exactly last long...
 
Steven Toy said:
I dare an audio manufacturer to produce a range of separates connected by non(hi-fi)-industry standard connectors that work better than RCA phonos and IECs.

They could call the iFi Range. By using a connection format not used by anyone else in that particular industry they can force consumers buying into their range of products to buy leads and power supplies made only by them at higher cost.

Remind you of a certain computer company?
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You could call it Niam or something like that.
 
They're damned if they do and damned if they don't.

If they think out of the box they're called charlatons if they don't provide evidence (and if they provide evidence they'll be giving up their competitive edge.) Seems like a no-win situation to me.
 
No, if they think out of the box and come up with a load of bull they will be called charlatans. Plenty of them do this.
 
Mescalito said:
I agree, Neil, opn one occasion, at a friends house, we did it blind. There were four of us, the kit was a top end Linn set up at that time (Ikemi/Kairn/Klout/Isobasrik DMS. He had got some mega-power chord on loan from his dealer & asked us to come round & have a listen.

The trick lead was connected to the pre-amp, & one of our number kept swapping it out for the Linn supplied one. We all agreed nothing changed when the chords were swapped.

He didn't buy the chord, by the way.

Chris
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Had similar experiences myself (not blind tested I hasten to add), but I've also experienced changes (both good and bad) with mains leads. To my ears the MusicWorks leads sucked the life and emotion out of the music played through Naim system I had when I tried them.

Didn't win the lottery so the Stratos amps will have to wait another week :-(
 
stevec67 said:
No, if they think out of the box and come up with a load of bull they will be called charlatans. Plenty of them do this.
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True but some are called charlatans simply because they can't provide documentation. In the end, all that matters is if the product meets the claims.
 
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