Cardas Clear Beyond XL PC vs The Rest

@kennyc 

I have always been interested in the Cardas, especially because the Clear Beyond interconnects are so highly praised. I do prefer a warmer presentation. Yet the XL PC's do not appear to have a big following. I would love to hear the AQ Dragon also, but I think the biggest bang for the buck would be the Dragon from the wall into my Puritan 136 conditioner. I know you are interested in the AQ Firebird, but I was told by a dealer to go Hurricane or Dragon. The Firebird's performance is a small increment above the Hurricane and not worth the price of admission. 

@ghdprentice 

Thanks for the advice! I do love AQ, but I hate how inflexible they are. I do agree that the AQ Hurricane's presents one of the best values in PC's today. They are truly outstanding.

I’m a Cardas guy but never owned the CBXL primarily because my amps are not high current enough to really justify them.  I do use the Clear Beyond cords and I have always been extremely happy with them on my amps and preamp.  They are neutral for the most part but do have that very slight touch of warmth, which I like.  If you do try the XL be sure to post your findings.  

The better power cord should sound closer to the original music. With my Wavetouch power cords, my system sounds closest to the original music than any other audio systems in the world. 

I tried some AQ, SR, JPS, Zentara, and other power cords in my system and they all sound confused and unclear.

There are 100 live recordings of "Liberty by Anette Askvik" of world great audio systems. In Youtube, search for "Anette Askvik Liberty" and compare them to my system recording below. Alex/Wavetouch

Liberty - Anette Askvik, Wavetouch audio, Live recording

Original music  Anette Askvik - "Liberty"

https://youtu.be/OdDJBBxrzY8?si=Oajs-JoEi-EF58bH
 

https://youtu.be/2T2NmbYvACM?si=X81M0qOrJxkatIDu

https://youtu.be/6HZ1C_9o3gU?si=50QXlakZEwE6MUbB

https://youtu.be/PW3QHfH9Nho?si=IVJ0Imqos-Y10gXp

OP,

One thing to consider visa vie the inflexibility of the Hurricane is that they sound better longer. So a two meter sounds better than a one meter. I have had both and tested them. Say maybe 20% better for the two meter. With two meters I find flexibility less an issue.