Interesting comments, Photon 46 and Jimman, thank you both. Let me react in kind, I hope, in the spirit of healthy discussion.
I'd never just buy cords that reviewed well, but if I found one that truly elevated my sound I would be inclined to replace the rest of the cords too. I accept that the results might not be uniformly better since it is conceivable that effects on amps are not the same, or of the same magnitude, as on cd players etc. However, I would think that the science that went into producing the original improvement should have some carry-over benefits to other parts of the system (and it may be that the designers understand the underlying science so well that they can produce specific cords for specific components (cable A for high power amps, B for tubes, C for digital etc) which I would need to take into account in purchasing the remaining half dozen). The alternative seems to be a view that each component in each specific system will react in such a unique way that general engineering improvements in cables are not possible - only custom designing for that system can work, and I don't believe any cable company would argue for this -- rather each believes it has some general design breakthrough that works for most uses.
My outlets are hospital grade but nothing fancier, and I agree that there might be some value in upgrading these since ultimately every component draws on the current flowing through here -- indeed, it makes some intuitive sense to me that these would be more important than changes downstream (GIGO) but again, if your stylus is dirty, clean it first, don't imagine conditioning the power or adding a new cord to the table will help resolve that problem.
I joined this discussion late and I gather lots of you are testing the VD products so please, let us all know what you are experiencing and what you are comparing it against. I am impressed that the company is willing to state simply what they think is happening with their designs but I am not so quick to disregard testing, there's a lot of evidence that people are less able to distinguish sonic differences in cables than is claimed but I don't imagine many of us have the time to set up real blind tests, they are a pain to conduct. But changing back and forth a couple of times with other people to bounce your impressions off can also be very helpful. I would like to learn though what you find changes sonically, and if the cable works better in some components or combinations than others.
Ultimately, here's to audio -- where would we all be without it?
Best
I'd never just buy cords that reviewed well, but if I found one that truly elevated my sound I would be inclined to replace the rest of the cords too. I accept that the results might not be uniformly better since it is conceivable that effects on amps are not the same, or of the same magnitude, as on cd players etc. However, I would think that the science that went into producing the original improvement should have some carry-over benefits to other parts of the system (and it may be that the designers understand the underlying science so well that they can produce specific cords for specific components (cable A for high power amps, B for tubes, C for digital etc) which I would need to take into account in purchasing the remaining half dozen). The alternative seems to be a view that each component in each specific system will react in such a unique way that general engineering improvements in cables are not possible - only custom designing for that system can work, and I don't believe any cable company would argue for this -- rather each believes it has some general design breakthrough that works for most uses.
My outlets are hospital grade but nothing fancier, and I agree that there might be some value in upgrading these since ultimately every component draws on the current flowing through here -- indeed, it makes some intuitive sense to me that these would be more important than changes downstream (GIGO) but again, if your stylus is dirty, clean it first, don't imagine conditioning the power or adding a new cord to the table will help resolve that problem.
I joined this discussion late and I gather lots of you are testing the VD products so please, let us all know what you are experiencing and what you are comparing it against. I am impressed that the company is willing to state simply what they think is happening with their designs but I am not so quick to disregard testing, there's a lot of evidence that people are less able to distinguish sonic differences in cables than is claimed but I don't imagine many of us have the time to set up real blind tests, they are a pain to conduct. But changing back and forth a couple of times with other people to bounce your impressions off can also be very helpful. I would like to learn though what you find changes sonically, and if the cable works better in some components or combinations than others.
Ultimately, here's to audio -- where would we all be without it?
Best