Do power cords make an audible difference?


I recently discovered the inexpensive Pangea AC-9 power cord. It was so inexpensive I decided, just for kicks, to buy one for my sacd player and my integrated amp. I was extremely doubtful I would hear any difference at all. I plugged them in, turned on the system and I was surprised. I immediately invited a non-audiophile over for a listen. She had only heard my system for maybe 30 minutes with the old cords and I asked her if she could hear a difference. After listening to only two tracks she said "it sounds more clear". This is exactly what I had thought. I also noticed the sound stage seemed bigger. Now, it's not A huge difference but it is noticeable to the casual observer, so it is significant, which is more than I hoped for.
esmith3671
Simple answer is it is system and person dependant. Get you dealer to let you do an in home demo. I have had a positive result. Others will say not. In the end please your ears as much as your budget will permit. As Danib1 states this subject brings all the (blank) out of the woodwork. Cables in general cables IC's PC's etc are really a "must try" item.
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Auditory memory is not reliable. You really have to A-B to have any basis for comparison.
The ability of a system to resolve information is key for decerning cabling changes as they do or do not influence or alter the audio product when put in place of the orig power cords.

I feel it depends on which power cord as well. I’ve a Bedroom system which is undeniably mid fi or lower. Sony ES receiver, Oppo DVD, HD cable box, Phase Tech & Canton speakers, Velodyne sub, Panasonic 50 in. plasma. PS Audio Duet.

I put a Voodoo Black Dragon III on the feed for both the HD CABLE BOX & OPPO DVD player via a double IEC to NEMA plug.

The diff is easily noticeable when the Black Dragon is installed…. And when it is not. The audio becomes smoother, clearer, and the sound stage expands a bit, providing a more enveloping sound field in the multi ch array. Bass too is improved upon… albeit it becomes a bit more bloated and warmish sounding than precise and defined. In the confines of that room… with some adjusting of the x over on the receiver, it’s more than acceptable now, following those tweaks.

So yeah… they make a diff… but the value of the noticed change does correlate with the cord itself. If I use my Elrod, Voodoo Tesla II, or Shunyata Python VX or some other more upscale cord I own, the diff is still more noticeable…. As they are still more expensive than the Black Dragon cable too.

I’ve been there and done that add a power cord of great expense on a high end piece of gear, and at times the cabling on it simply can not be justified as to it’s cost vs. performance levels. At times I’ve had $2K worth of PC on a $6K amp…. Very nice. But that’s as far as this guy is going to go with pcs on amps. I’ve also got a $1K pc on my $2.5K DAC. A $1.5K pc feeding my $1.3K power filter.

Those wires are as far as I’m going.

Albeit performance was substantially increased as the price per wire moved upwards, I no longer will take that tact as a general rule of thumb. Expensive cables reside on expensive gear… ONLY… around here anymore… despite the noticed improvements. I can’t justify the costs anymore, personally. Those days are gone. Some others might be able to add cables of likewise value or cost onto a thing and reap greater benefits still by so doing. Hooray for them! I’ve had to make sense of it all and act accordingly and sanely as of late.
Yes I have noticed a difference, I found that with my xlo reference pc on my amp it made an audible difference the background noise was quiter, but on my cd player it didn't seem to make any difference at all. I then put a locally made Cawsey pc on my cd player and I did hear a difference. The sound seem to open up a bit more, it was a bit more airy. Sorry for my discriptions, not very good at discribing what I hear, hope this is of use, cheers