For someone who's experienced at installing an IEC socket in the chassis so that you can use a removeable cord, that's probably not much more work than hardwiring a cord. I've hardwired cords into amplifiers I've owned... and yes, I'd agree that hardwiring tends to produce better sound quality. (But it sure is inconvenient to spend big $$ for a power cord and then have it bound to one piece of equipment.) If you do have an IEC socket installed, you might make sure the installer also runs good wire within the chassis between the IEC socket and the power switch.