2. cables
  3. 184479-2231

The weirdness of it all

Power cables and power conditioning seem the next focus components.  While I struggle, as I'm sure many do paying premium for a chunk of wire, it seems that when done well, that chunk of wire is now an influential component in the chain allowing everything to shine.

I've slowly been upgrading all PCs with Furutech 4.1 with appropriate connectors and it has been nothing short of revelatory moving the needle of performance for the whole system.  I can liken it to completely refining a fuel injection system which in turn allows everything to work better producing better performance.

I've capped my insanity with the Furutech and do not see myself moving beyond that.  While certainly real capital, not hide the women and children capital like some products left unnamed.

celtic66
bugredmachine's avatar
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bugredmachine
431 posts
 

I never put much stock into power cabling as I never had a system able to reflect the improvements they may have provided.

Now I have a system that is super revealing and I have spent the last 4 months auditioning and running experiments with a multitude of cables:

JPS Aluminata

Elrod EPS-2, -3, -3Sig

Hijiri Nogamo

Harmonix XDC Studio Master

Harmonix XDC - 350 Studio Master

Harmonix XDC2

Sablon Robusto

Signal Cable ?

NRG Custom The Five

ED 316

Kaplan HE MKII

Puritan standard line

and a Masterbuilt Reference is on the way.

It's crazy how the bass can be adjusted up or down and the sibilance can be tamed (or worsened), or you can really blur the sound with the wrong cable.

brunomarcs's avatar
brunomarcs
297 posts
 

I too have bought in to the Furutech brand connectors, power cord wire and even their speaker wire. A 1 1/2 meter power cord is about 1500 and then you have the fun of putting it together. Great for diy guys as myself.

The speaker wires are about 4,000 for four 1 meter lengths with appropriate parts. Two full range pairs. Nothing short of revelatory as you say.  

williewonka
3,075 posts
 

@celtic66 and @brunomarcs I started with Furutech bulk cables/connctors and have graduated to making my own DIY cables from scratch.

But if you are not into DIY, the brands that I like are

  • Audio Eden (on the budget concious end of the scale)
  • Zavfino (middle of the price/performance curve
  • Hijiri - the pinacle of the performance curve, but at a price

If you want to understand some of the technical aspects of what goes into a good cable, take a look at this link

But I agree with @bugredmachine ...

It’s crazy how the bass can be adjusted up or down and the sibilance can be tamed (or worsened), or you can really blur the sound with the wrong cable.

 

Regards - Steve

ghdprentice
6,967 posts
 

Yep, welcome to the world of high end audio. Interconnects, power cords and cables are the bread and butter of getting a system to peak performance: a critical one.

digsmithd
913 posts
 

Well said...its odd how a simple connector can make such a difference...they look the same...dont cost the same 😢.Steve is onto the "what its all about stuff"...bet its super rewarding to listen to your some wires come alive.The newest of my wire tweaking is the audioharma.I did my conditioner cable/new along with 6hr refresh of my v twist/eti/aeco inteconnects...im sold on it.

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