What's a good power cord for conrad-johnson CT5?

Richard,

I've never tried either of these cords but reviews indicate they're quite good. I'll start looking for some to audition. The Thiels are demanding but really reward good component selection.

CJ equipment like McIntosh, usually doesn't respond to well with aftermarket power cords. I've read and heard that if CJ and McIntosh wanted one to have a better pc then they would have supplied one. I know when my dealer would demo CJ the stock pc's were used. The same with McIntosh. To me both companies equipment are so well designed and engineered with well built power supplies maybe the supplied stock pc is only needed. For what it's worth the Kimber PK 10 Palladian's with WattGate AG connectors see the current flow throughout my system but the stock pc is good but not like the Kimber.

I used the Shunyata Taipan with my cj 17LS but ultimately went back to the stock PC. I couldn't hear any discernible difference. In talking with other cj owners/dealers over the years, there seems to be the consensus that with cj amps, in order to realize significant results through a PC upgrade, you will likely have to move way up the PC quality chain.

I have a Cardas Golden Reference on my CJ power amp and it is warmer than some of the other cables that I have tried by Nordost, Electraglide and Virtual Dynamics. In my system it works well and I was looking for a little warmth. However, I have seen many posts by others that
claim the Golden Reference lacked dynamics and was slow and muddied in their system.

I appreciate all of the responses! They're all instructive and helpful. My experience is that the effectiveness of power cords is very system dependent. That said, I think various pc manufacturers have a "house sound" whether they want to admit it or not. Shunyata's emphasis, according to my ears, seems to be on microdynamics and soundstage...whereas another company, like PS Audio seems to striving for warmth and balance. All of these worthy goals come with associated compromises which some systems will emphasize and others will downplay. As to the stock power cord for the CT5...in my system it doesn't compete well with the Shunyata cords because I LOVE a wide, spacious, cinematic soundstage...for others it's not so critical.