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Power cords: does length matter?
This is a serious question, however if you don’t believe that anything about power cords matter, and you feel the need to make a joke out of the question, feel free.
Anyway: I have noted that all the stock power cords that have been provided by the manufacturers for my equipment are about six feet long. After looking at various aftermarket power cords on the internet, I note that they can be ordered in various lengths from one meter on up.
I would think that the shortest possible power cord in any given application would be desirable (meaning one meter if it would work), but I find that a lot of notions I had about things like this are often wrong (such as what I very recently posted on misc about manually tripping breakers to protect components). So am I also mistaken about selecting lengths of power cords?
TIA for any and all legitimate consideration and answers to this question, and to all others, enjoy the laughs.
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- 59 posts total
Power cord length see here! Mike |
@ditusa Thanks for the link. Regarding length, I find that 5 ft is exactly 1.5 meters which some say is the optimum length for a power cable. I also find that 2 meters is 6.5 ft. I own two manufacturer-supplied cables which are very rugged and stiff [I’m assuming due to their shielding], they each measure 9 ft 10” (+/- 1.0”). I think they each came with used McIntosh equipment purchases. I find them a bit too long. They may be stiff because of the use of heavier gauge conductors. I wish I could tell if a cable is shielded or not. I’m sure I’ve employed at least a few computer grade (16 AWG, unshielded) power cords in my system. I also wish I could tell what the conductor’s gauge is without opening it up to find out. I already make my own interconnects [Mogami fan here], now I guess I’ll have to add a new wing to make power cords —any length I want! @immatthewj Good luck on your quest. |
So, basically, dealer (Nordost) said "2m works the best for it to really filter." As much as I like the optimal design, I just think whoever states the "fact" he think it is also bears the burden of proof. I really do not want to get into the "both cords must be same length for time alignment" statement he also made subsequently. Not even worth the time to comment. |
Absolutely. Two meters is preferred. I experimented with an Audio Quest Hurricane one meter and two meter power cord on my Audio Research Reference 160s. The two meter power cord provided much better sound, doing more of what the one meter did. The rule of thumb is all cords should be two meter.
When I brought this observation up to my dealer, he said, “Yep, longer length, more power conditioning.” |
- 59 posts total