To me it is a quandary how so many knowledgeable people don't understand the current needs for an amp. I use 10ga power cables (not expensive ones) on all my amps. I recently bought an amp and the seller provided the "upgraded" power cable he had been using. I looked it up and it was more expensive than any power cable I have ever bougth. It was 17 awg. I am confident this power cable is why he ended up selling a fine amp. Also, I recently bought a small tube amp (differtnt amp), 10 wpc push pull, 14lbs total. It had poor bass performance and I assumed that was because it was such a small, low power amp. I was powering it with a 14awg power cable. After several days a friend suggested putting a 10awg cable on it. Bass fixed immediately. I'll never use anything smaller than 10 awg on an amp again. It is not a big expense to put a generic 10awg power cable on your amp. And if you still have problems, bypass any filter or regenerator. Plug directly into the wall and do a test. If that makes it sound better, then replace whatever you have powering your amp. Power to an amp in very, very, very important.
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If 12 ga wire can carry 20 amps or 2400 watts, and your equipment uses only a fraction of that, please explain why a bigger cable would provide any benefit. It's kind of like having a 500 HP engine in your car at the same time the maximum speed limit is 30 mph? Sure, you've got a big engine but it serves no prupose? I've never understood the logic of the oversize cable but I'm happy to learn some science behind it. |
The power cable zealots will tell you that it is not only the gauge but the materials and the construction/weave that matters, plus the termination/plugs. I remain an agnostic and leave the stock captive power cords on my gear alone. I did buy a $99 Pangea to use experimentally on one amp that requires an add-on cord. The cable zealots will tell me that I will have to spend $500 at least to hear an improvement. Go figure! |
+1 @jasonbourne52! |
- 57 posts total