Blind Power Cord Test & results

Drubin: My post was not to say that one CAN NOT tell differences right away, but that many differences are subtle and could easily be lost "in the heat of the moment".

As i mentioned above, if i had not heard instant differences when changing one power cord for another power cord, i would not have taken the time to confirm or deny what i heard via test measurements. The differences were that obvious, but then again, i was already familiar with the sound of my system and that song as played on it. Had i not been familiar with either the components or song used, those differences might not have jumped out at me quite as quickly.

Performing AB testing with a completely unknown set of variables is kind of like trying to find your way in an unfamiliar territory with a lot of distractions taking place. This is much harder than if you've been down that road many, many times before and know what to expect. This is not to say that it can't be done, only that it probably won't be nearly as quick and you might not be quite as sure-footed in the decisions that you make. Sean
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After reading the test article again, it seems there could be several different conclusions.

1) There is not enough difference in power cords to be detected, therefore don't waste your money.

2)Blind A/B/X testing is not an adequate test to determine the differences, so different testing methodology is needed.

3)There is so much psychological stuff at play here that we can't tell if the differences are real or imagined, and the testing protocol provides so much stress that even if there are differences, the people can't determine them under those conditions.

4) Some people can hear the differences and repeatedly get them right, while some people can't. It may have nothing to do with the cables, but has to do with the people.

5) The test system and room, while being termed "state of the art", mucked up the sound so much that the cord differences were obscured in the mess.

6) The use of the Exactpower line scrubber did most of the work that the cables were supposed to do, thereby negating most of the differences that would have been heard when using unfiltered AC power.

7) We now can all go out and get cheap systems now, and get another hobby. We have seen A/B/X studies of cords and amplifiers finding no statistical proof of differences, and probably the same will be true of any other audio products they test. Therefore audiophilia as a hobby is extinct. How about flower arranging, or stamps?

I personally subscribe to conclusion #2, even though I have done A/B/X testing myself in the past, many times, and had no trouble with it. I think that too many variables are at play that can cause many of the participants to be unsettled and incapable of making good quality judgments under the conditions presented.

I congratulate all participants, especially Drubin, who gave it a valiant effort.

Eldarford, call me when that happens..I want to be there...I'll bring the marshmellows...lol

Good post, TWL. I would lean toward #2 and/or #6. Since I always hear differences myself in my system, #1 and #7 are not conclusions I would ever reach for myself. Everyone wants to believe #4 because they think that they have the real golden ears. There were plenty of golden ears at this test who did not do well. Tom, maybe even you would have had a tough time of it. :-)

And Warren, here's a big sloppy kiss for you: Mwaaaaahh!

I agree with Ohlala. I think the way to test A vs. B is to try to detect differences, NOT try to identify the sound of A or the sound of B. IOW, blindly and randomly compare 2 power cords together (AA orAB or BB) to see if you can discern a difference. Your response will be : Yes, there is a difference between the two or No, there is no difference. Repeat this random pairing 10 times and see if you could detect differences when the pair tested was indeed different(AB) and see if you were correct identifying when a pair was indeed the same(AA, BB). If the results were close to 50%, then you could not detect a difference between the 2 PC's. This way you are not required to know the unique sound of A(or B) intimately enough to identify it right away. I'm not sure this makes the testing anymore valid but I would think it should make it easier to do better than chance. Subsequently, if a difference can be discerned between 2 PC's then you can try to decide if the difference was significant enough to justify any price differential. Also you can decide which PC's sound you prefer and why. This can be ascertained with long term listening tests.