2. cables
  3. 1071276890

Power Cords Snake Oil ??

Having been a long time audiophile living with countless high end compnents I have to wonder about the theory and practicality of high end power cords.

I have yet to hear the difference a power cord makes. Ive owned, synergistic, Shunyata, BMI and cardas. I in no way can detect any sonic signature or change. Give me a pair of interconnects and I imeadiately notice a difference somewhere in the sonic spectrum. Not the PC though. I have accomplished 4 blind tests with my friends. 3 out of the 4 they did not know their cord was replaced. All 4 were using a stock factory supplied cord. Each of the 4 tests were done on different components. Amp, CDP, Preamp & dac.

My electrical backround tells me that provided you supply the component with its required voltage bet 110vac or 220/240vac its happy. Now, change the incoming frequency from 60hz to say 53hz and watch how quickly your soundstage collapses.! This is often the case during the summer months when home air conditioners are in use and the utility company power output is taxed to the max. A really good power conditioner should however take care of the frequency fluctuations. But 110vac is still 110vac regardless of the conductor it passes through as long as its remains 110vac when it reaches the intended circuit. Does your 8k amp or preamp know the difference of the path the voltage took to reach it ? Many an audiophile will use a dedicated 20amp circut for their equipment.That is a good idea as voltage & frequency fluctuations will occur in the home circuit to to other loads on the main breaker panel but again, A power cord simply is the means of transporting the voltage from the wall to the component. IF there is a clean 110vac @ 60hz at the wall socket, no matter what the medium is to go from the socket to the component, it will still be 110vac @60hz.

Could somebody expand on this a bit more. I just dont understand it. ??
128x128jetmek
s23chang
619 posts
 
Flex, if you can make a cable say like a $10,000 NBS black series IC, are you going to tell folks how you making it?
It can only be free if everyone else already knows how to do it.

The truth about patent protection is all BS. Anyone can tweak a bit from original design and call that their own discovery.

Stop attacking people as you should respect their own company secret. That is way a lot of company decide not to publish any white paper because of people like you.

If you really want to know then fork up the dough to buy one and get it over with it and enjoy/hate the product.
zaikesman
3,017 posts
 
Ernie: No slam on Belden intended - just on anybody (not suggesting Corona or yourself here) who is making cables around OEM wire and then hiding that fact within some sleight-of-hand marketing scheme.

Speaking of which (I've read rumors about NBS around here...) S23chang, anybody can make a $10K IC (you just make an IC, and then charge $10K for it). But if I could actually *sell* a $10K IC, I would shut my mouth right there. And when NBS has advertised, this is exactly what they have done, as far as I can see: A glossy black page emblazoned with their logo, and zero product info or claims, other than maybe a lonely sentence fragment to the effect of being 'world's best' or somesuch. Maybe yes, maybe no, but whatever the case may be, the predictably gargantuan profit margin is courtesy of self-generated 'mystique' and the wisdom of P.T. Barnum. (Whether or not that approach is actually a better long-term business model than simply selling a great product at a fair price is another question, but it might work for a few in an overcrowded market.)
corona
132 posts
 
Flex:
In my 45 years of audio I have seen an endless stream of proofs or “White Papers” that had nothing to do with the performance of the product; almost all were based on educated hype. There is an old saying in audio: “If it tests good and sounds bad it’s bad; if it tests bad and sounds good it’s good.” The truth is if we won the Nobel Prize for Physics you would then be saying: “Physics theory has nothing to do with great sound”.
S 23 Chang:
It took a long time to develop this technology. As you have stated, explaining it without giving away the farm is a challenge. Another problem, the explanation keeps moving. As we learn more about how it works the new understanding it invalidates part of the old explanation, I am sure you are familiar with this part of the learning curve.
zaikesman
3,017 posts
 
Corona: I think people basically *are* saying theoretical physics has nothing to do with great sound.

Give me a jingle the next time a Nobel Prize winner decides to go into the audiophile cable business...
danlib1
819 posts
 
Uh, I think Zaikesman just wrapped this thread up.
More to discover