Ice Age Audio Cables Q & A


This is my attempt at making everyone aware of who we are and what we actually do. I’ve noticed ongoing comments and questions in these forums over the years since we’ve been in business, most of them being assumptions and accusations. I’ve seen where some of our customers have made comments in our favor and they are all very much appreciated.

We don’t claim to be “God’s Gift” to the audio industry, and we aren’t saying that our products are the “Very Best”. But we do produce a quality product that shows very positive results at a very competitive price. Our 100.00 cable has out performed well known name brand cables costing 300.00 to 1000.00 over and over again. Not everyone wants to spend 1000’s of dollars on power cords, so we’re offering a quality product that works at a fair price, that’s all.

We not only build cables for retail end users, we also build cables for Equipment Manufacturers and High End Audio/Video Stores. Not just here in the U.S. but in other countries as well.  We offer private label programs and people continue to take advantage of them, so it’s clear that what we’re doing is working. Our local High End Store uses 100% Ice Age Audio products on their main Showroom System, along with all of their custom installs. What does that tell you???

We’re constantly being told that we don’t charge enough. One customer/reseller tried our cables and loved them. He then commented that we made his company look bad because our 100.00 cable sounded better than his 500.00 cable.

It’s a pretty simple concept. We use quality parts, and offer a large selection of products for both audio and video applications. We stock all of the international plugs so we can offer products on a global level. We offer a huge selection of C7, C13-15 Amp and C19-20 Amp IEC cables configured with U.S., Australian, EU Schuko and UK mains. All orders are produced at the time of the order. We stock parts not products, so building something custom is no different than any other order we produce. We offer a color selection so “YOU” the customer can pick what looks best in your system.  We use a Cryogenic Treatment process that is singular to us. The Cryo facility that we use is very well known for their Treatment Process, end results and improved performance. We are the ONLY wire/electronics company that they work with so that gives us an edge on the competition.

We’re here to help you in any way we can, and we’ve been doing that on a global scale for going on 8 years. At this point we have sold 1000’s of cables world wide. We have products throughout Europe, Asia, North and South America along with Australia and New Zealand. We continue our research looking for new products that meet our expectations. This past year we added RCA and XLR Interconnects along with Speaker Cables to our product line.   Both are showing very positive results. We are starting to work on USB A-B cables for 2021, we are currently in the testing stage.  Starting this year we will be offering monthly specials on our website, just an FYI.

I’m going to address an “old post” on Audioasylum. At that time we were new to the industry and still in the learning stages.  His complaints were invalid.  And if I’m correct his issue was with 1 cable only, not all of them.  It didn’t matter what I offered him in my attempt to help with his situation, nothing was acceptable. The best way to describe this particular customer is…when someone calls you and threatens to drive across country to “quote, unquote” KICK MY ASS; their overall mentality becomes self explanatory. He in turn posted negative comments EVERYWHERE. All of these Audio/Video forums have since removed his comments, with the exception of Audioasylum and there’s evidence of that on the web if you only look for it. Audioasylum has refused to remove the post. I’ve reached out too them via email multiple times and even wrote them an actual letter and they’ve never once responded to any of my attempts or communications. Where we’ve experienced ongoing positive reviews since first starting in business, it only takes 1 negative comment to scar you for life. There you have it!!!

If you’d like to read an actual review of our cables, here is a link to a published review from HiFiZine.com

https://www.hifizine.com/2017/02/iceage-audio-power-cables/

We are a legit supplier and will continue to do our best to produce products that people enjoy. As with everyone within this wonderful hobby, we are all looking for our own unique individual sound. We are lucky enough to have experienced a 99% success rate with our products, simply because you can’t make 100% of the people happy.  If anyone has any questions whatsoever, I’m very easy to find. All of my contact information is on our website.   www.iceageaudio.com  Feel free to reach out anytime.

If after reading this you’re only knee jerk reaction is to post something negative, do me a favor, keep your comments to yourself, I’m by no means looking for an argument.

 

 


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As a former hifi dealer I have experience with several brands. After buying a Puritan 156 I needed an 8ft 20amp power cord and didnt want to break the bank so I snagged an Ice Age pc. My other PCs were all much more expensive but I was very impressed with the Ice Age build and sound. 
 

Fast forward about a year and my system has evolved in a material way. In a conversation with an audio buddy he suggested that I give Ice Age a try and that Don Sachs and one of his friends uses, endorsed the cables. I thought ok… why not so I purchased XLR interconnects, speaker cables and more

power cords. Those cables have now been in my system for about 2 weeks and made a meaningful improvement in resolution but without harshness. 
 

My initial reaction was that of surprise. I actually had to tweak speaker positioning to take advantage of the new and improved sound. Highly recommended.

Gear:

MSB reference 

MSB m205 monos

Estelon X diamond mkII

Puritan 156

Synergistic Research switch

Ultrasonic rack and stands

 

I purchased a few months ago the ice age audio speaker cables. My system is now totally wired with ice age cables including interconnects and power cords. I have to say I believe it is the best speaker cable on the market!  They have no sonic signature at all.  Bad recordings sound bad and great recordings sound great!  If the recording has all the Sonics like bass response extended highs soundstage width and depth you will hear it. If it is not there you won’t hear it! This is not a speaker compensator cable, it adds nothing to the signal. This is a true audiophile path cable. This is the reason I claim it is the best. It is hard to compete with nothing. And that is what the speaker gives you , absolutely nothing but the signal from your amplifier! 

I have three Ice Age power cords along with two sets of interconnects. They are all copper cyro-treated and, to my ear, sound dynamic, detailed and very musical without being overly warm. The build quality is great and they are very fairly priced. Quite happy with mine.

At the present rate, by no conscious design, I may soon have an Ice Age loop in the power cord department. Why? Ice Age has multiple designs, multiple lengths, all in stock and ready to go, with free US shipping. You can even customize the cosmetics. Only Ice Age could get me an <$200, 10awg, 10' power cord for subwoofer in temporary placement inside a week. Or, for that matter, inside a month. Already holding an 8' version for the sub's permanent placement, and on order is a 5' copper/carbon to replace a costlier Zavfino for the stereo amp that sounds fine (after adding sub) but won't stay tight in the high wall outlet. Ice Agers stay TIGHT!

Only after full audition with all components in their final placements can I say for sure how Ice Age sound compares (in my system, anyhow) with others tried. What I CAN say is, for anyone doing a new setup needing more upgrade power cords, Ice Age is your obvious, no-brainer, default starting point. 

Following up on my last post. I bought the copper-silver power cord for my phono stage in hopes of making my system a little more musical.  I’ve been using a WireWorld Sliver Electra 7 and PS Audio AC5 combination on various components and it was skewing music into this weird territory of over emphasis on certain instruments at the expense of others, and causing listening fatigue.  It was as though things had become hyper detailed or too revealing and I was constantly wondering if the content or my components had problems.   

The Ice Age power cord with my equipment has what I would describe as a very clean and even presentation.  It accomplished my goal of greater musicality, and it resulted in longer listening times because my system wasn’t driving me crazy anymore.   The sound stage became more coherent as well with better focus between the speakers, maybe because the music wasn’t as deconstructed. The fact that you can get such a great looking, well built power cord that is cryo’d at their prices is pretty amazing.

I’m using a new copper/silver power cord with a Pass Labs XP17 phono stage. Just connected it today. I’ll post some impressions of how it compares to what I had before in a couple weeks.
The build quality of this power cord is excellent. 
I first heard about Ice Age Audio from Don Sachs. I had purchased his (legendary) tube preamp and he recommended I order a copper/copper power cable from Rick at Ice Age. I had not gotten on the audiophile power cable bandwagon at that point and was skeptical. But Don knows his stuff, so I decided to give the Ice Age Audio power cable a try. And lo and behold flash forward, here I am writing a testimonial because the power cable truly made an improvement to the sound. I now have 6 of the Ice Age Power cables: DAC, pre, amp, TV and two subs. Based on these improvements I decided to give Rick's interconnects a try and ordered a set of RCA and XLR cables. I was using quality BJC cables previously but with the Ice Age interconnects the sound took a big leap forward. Highly detailed, but also for lack of a better word, enchanting. As in everything just sounded more musical and enjoyable.

A few months later I upgraded to Ice Age speaker cables & jumpers for my bi-wired speakers. I was using some decent Mogami cables beforehand. But my word the Ice Age speaker cables again took the sound to even more amazing places in similar ways as the interconnects. Game-changers. And finally, having heard recommendations for running all the same wire throughout your system, I decided to try this by adding the Ice Age USB cable. I'll be honest - as much as everything up to this point improved the sound, I didn't expect the Ice Age USB to beat my current Audioqest coffee USB cable. It was expensive and in all my tests it had clearly been superior to all others I tried. But I'll be danged...I've now got an Audioquest USB cable for sale...

The improvements I found from Ice Age products all have a similar quality. If one was to describe a "house sound" for Ice Age cables it would be this: astounding detail with an almost intoxicatingly musical and lushly enjoyable quality; the kind of sound that just puts a smile on your face listening to the music, rather than making you ponder what to upgrade next. That is a rare place for audiophiles.
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@cd45123, @ebm maybe that bad a reader and it will take him a week to read it.


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If you I want one of the best cables that money can buy then go pay $5,000. If you want the best cable for the best price look no further. I am a audioquest user for many years since the late 80s. And I could tell you that these cables are 10 times the value of the audioquest. Customer service is second to none they're very knowledgeable about proper connections and what would sound good for your particular system. Please stop over buying with the flavor of the month brand. I advise anybody out there that want the best bang for the money without compromise to definitely look into these cables.The value is incredible the sound quality is astonishing for the price you pay.🥂
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Hi
Don Sachs here.  I make tube amps, preamps, and phono stages.   I have been using Rick's cables for  years and my system has his power cords, xlr and rca cables and speaker cables.  I bought all of them, he did not give them to me.   He makes very quality cables for a very fair price with free shipping.  His customer service is excellent.

I am in the business.  I know that now and then something fails that shouldn't.  If you send out hundreds of things, now and then there is a problem.  What matters is how you treat the customer.  You stand up, take responsibility, fix the problem or offer a refund.  That is how Rick runs his business and in my experience, you will always get a quality product from Ice Age Audio, and Rick will stand behind it!  It is not a risk to buy products from Ice Age Audio at all.  You will get very high quality cables that are far better than many costing FAR more money.  I listen to them in my system!

Not knowing Rick personally but rather by an invisible voice on the other end of the line. I personally have spoke to him with several questions that would probably make any salesman want to hang up.. never once was Rick pushy or derogatory towards another competitors products. Instead using solid facts and past customers results as examples.. This in itself spoke volumes for me.. I decided to have a very close audiophile friend try some of his power cords who had some higher end cords. (I’ll refrain from names as to not cause any insults or competitor bias ,as system synergy plays a big role)  .. Rick not only explains his availability to mix and match various material combos and their general personality ,he asks what components you plan on using it with to better match these up with 

  My trusted buddy ordered a pair to power his Rowland mono blocks .. a system I am very familiar with as I listen to it weekly 

 Rick advised him on his opinions of the speaker amp ,pre amp combo and they were made and sent out .. I told my friend burn them in for a three day 24 hrs non stop and I’ll come over and listen 
   Upon arrival I inspected them and build quality was top notch with quality ends used in the exact higher priced cables I owned .  Hmmmm..
 I listened to these and immediately was apparent that these were distinctly better than his previous power cables . I’m not sure if it was the cryo or the wire itself or the combination of IT all together SYNERGISING , (that’s a word 🙃) .. I won’t say all the typical audiophile jargon .. but they were better cables sound wise any way you cut it . 
 I don’t hang out on site to promote any products over others for my gain or to get a pat  on the back atta boy .. many of theses sites  are nothing better than a great big circle jerk of guys feeding on the immediate glory attention of someone important or in the know and hope for a shot at glory .. That being said if you are friendly enough and love all facets of audio ,you may get to know Rick and his small company’s workings as , he will tell you and is proud to.. let me tell you it’s a great back side and I’m proud to support him on his endeavors..  even if yet I have not bought anything from him.. 
  So my curiosity  got the  better of me and I dialed the friendly voice on the line again and told Rick my new project I was working on and asked if he had anything to try .. 
  boy was I met with enthusiasm and good advice... 
 I was sold and Rick sent out his speaker wire that he said was a older Randal wire type.. I had no clue who that older manufacture was but from the description it was exactly what I wanted 
  I wired a very expensive 4 way speaker that was competing against a set of watt5 and Sophia in my room. This was my own design and used top of the line parts (mundorf evo oil caps , litz ,inductors,foil ,as well as top line ancillery gear to drive them and test them 
  Krell, ps audio dsd, naim, transparent, dh labs, audience, dueland..

 I listened to this design with three different internal wiring , and one done with cheap lamp cord .. each one having benefits but I wasn’t decided yet as my curiosity wanted to try Ice Age Speaker wire 
 I ordered and it was here in two days .. I cut soldered and turned them on.. as usual with anything new, ITS DIFFERENT, (big problem with audiophiles is they confuse better with different) .. 
 I realized I wanted to do a double run to the woofers as I felt it would help tighten the bass and immediately it was apparent that my calculations were correct .. 

 I immediately was drawn to their detail and dynamics but they had some uglies all new wire does.. now Rick recommended 100 hrs burn in before you will get the best out of them.. 
 I ran them 24 /7 for ten days sitting in every night for 1 hr doing serious listening and taking notes ..
  After over three months of owning these wires i will not be removing them as they are the best internal wire I have used for this design. . You know the typical jargon, depth width, detail airy ..

  I am also using this wire as jumpers from my x overs to the speaker posts for continuity 
  I will be ordering three power cables next to compare against some much more costly products .. if I’m a betting man ,I think Ice Age may have a place in my system too ..best part is if you don’t like them Rick has a great return exchange program

  Those who are interested in any more information on the build or use can e mail  me direct as Pom poming here or my stuff or bashing others does no good for anybody 


 Got to support our made in the USA business now more than ever 
thanks Rick and keep up the great work .. 
  

I have been a customer of ice age for about 5 years. I have replaced my  all of my synergistic research power cords and recently all of my balanced interconnect cables.  even though my synergistic cables are 22 years old, the ice age new cables were far less expensive than what I paid 22 years ago!  The ice age cables do out perform  also. Rick Parker is one of the best people to deal with in the audio industry! He is a audiophile just like us. We became friends over the years, and he even sends me new products to audition along with some other people also. So you see ,he doesn’t just throw out a new product for sale before doing his homework, confirming how the product performs so he can assist customers!  All my future cables , including a usb and HDMI will be coming from Ice Age Audio!  Keep up the great quality and craftsmanship you always provide! God Bless Rick and Brody Parker!
I'm posting this for a customer at his request.  He is not on any of these forums.

My experience with Ice Age Audio started in the Summer of 2019 as an experimentation to see if Rick's power cords could out do DH Labs' entry level Encore power cords. I requested an 8 ft. C19 Copper Silver 10 AWG power cord for my studio's trustworthy Furman IT-Reference 20 followed by a 2 ft. for my preamplifier and a 4 ft. identical style for my own custom built and heavily tweaked Windows 7 only audio playback PC.

The results were astonishing at first with a thicker low end, smooth as I'd ever heard lower and upper midrange from any cheaper power cord sound and a very pleasing treble. I have since ordered a 15 ft. for my living room's Niagara 1200 and a 3 ft. identical style cord for my Playstation and the results have been superb. Additionally, I was using a JBL soundbar and sub for a few months last year and I had Rick's son assemble two shorter length C7 Silver Silver power cords which both livened up the sound over the JBL stock power cords as well.

For whatever it's worth, and after some very fine tuning of my Sony KDS-60A3000, I am getting beyond astonishing results with not just my living room television system but more pleasing than previously experienced the past 2 years playback in my studio and I have to attribute that a whole lot to Ice Age Audio.

We are in a world of evil extinction currently and Ice Age Audio is the perfect name for an audio company.

I have sent Rick some emails since first hearing his power cords and eventually some additional ones thanking him as kindly as I possibly can for his and his son's work and assembly techniques.

I hope this will continue to be a growing audio company and more and more righteous people will get to experience great sounding playback without the elitist prices.

Long live Ice Age Audio.


I've been using Ice Age Audio power cords for over 5 years in both of my audio systems and I've always been very happy with their products. It's especially helpful to be able to get custom products, such as my REALLY long power cord for my REL subwoofer. Always great value for the money. 

My Ice Age power cords sit alongside my Shunyata cables that cost much more. How much? My Zitron Python retailed for $2,000; my King Cobra sold for $3,500. Not being "Rockefeller" I bought these on resale for "only" $850 and $1,500 respectively. My Ice Age PCs are "cousins."

I know good value, and Ice Age Audio power cords are tremendous value for the money. I got rid of my $700 Shunyata Sidewinders and replaced them with Ice Age power cords, which I prefer.

Most recently, I bought an Ice Age XLR interconnect, which now sits next to my Nordost Valhalla interconnects. (Retail price: $4,500; resale price: $1,500.)

If you can get 75% of the sound quality of a top-quality, unaffordable cable at a small fraction of the cost, then that is the smart purchase. That's why I've been a loyal Ice Age customer for years.