NOS Western Electric wire used for power cables??

I have no particular knowledge of this wire, and so I express no opinion about its performance, aside from emphatically seconding the cautions that have been expressed about safety. For instance, if the user were to bend an assembled cable or cord, what degree of confidence is there that the insulation within will not crack or disintegrate?

Beyond that, in terms of sonic performance, I think that Elizabeth's skepticism is well justified. Given the revered status among many audiophiles of the drivers from 1930's Western Electric theater speakers, as reflected in the astronomical prices they go for, as well as some of their 1930's tubes (such as the 300B), it would seem entirely expectable that attempts would be made to capitalize on brand name recognition, by marketing other WE products that do not have anything special about them. Caveat emptor.

Best regards,
-- Al

Bigkidz - did you buy this product? If so what are your opinions about it?

For reference:

http://cgi.ebay.com/10-AWG-WESTERN-ELECTRIC-WIRE-AC-POWER-CORD-AUDIOPHILE-/320536607615?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Vintage_Electronics_R2&hash=item4aa1787b7f

or

http://mojo-audio.com/

I have heard from one purchaser that while the cables are a relatively new offering the design has been getting tweaked fairly often over a short period of time (not unusual for some manufacturers). About the only thing that has remained constant is the actual wire itself. Also, seems like a price increase is on the way once the initial introductory offer expires.

Clio09 I have purchased similar cables in the past and have also made a few back in the day. Every cable has a sound to it. Some are much better then others. The Helix design is very good at lowering the noise floor, providing details and nice soundstage. Top to nottom it will be very balanced. The cheaper cable on ebay is a different design then the one offered on the website so they will have a different sound. I have seen many manufacturers change designs quite often to as they "discover" new/better was to implement a design, and manufacturer the design. What makes Mojo-Audio's product more of a risk to by and use as Shunyata? Do they have magic wire being produced for them? My neighbors new car broke down but my ten year old Lexus has never caused me an issue. I like to hear things in my system before I purchase so that I can compare what I own and determine if the new item is better in my system. For the price of the cable it is worth a try, I know that I have spend more on cables. The Elrod comes to mind and that went through three changes in design. BTW, I don't own them any more, lost a ton of money on them and found something I prefer in my system for a lot less.

As for the price increase - supply and demand???

What makes Mojo-Audio's product more of a risk to by and use as Shunyata?

The fact that the wire and its insulation are many decades old. Perhaps that is made irrelevant by the fact that "the stranded wire used to make these power cords was engineered by Western Electric for use as an AC power conductor in high end applications like military and professional grade products" (quoting the Mojo writeup), but I would be hesitant to bet the safety of my house or its occupants on it :-)

I am an antique radio collector, and having encountered and replaced power wiring and other internal wiring in a great many 1930's radios that had brittle and/or crumbling insulation, I would advise caution.

Regards,
-- Al

Almarg - agreed caution but the WE wire being used in the cores is NOS so the designer has the ability to check the wire for what that is worth. The wire inside the radios had curent going through it along with some heat. I am by no means an expert so you can try a person on ebay called oldwestuff, I think he knows the WE wire very well.