Do powercords make a difference in sound?

Mrtennis,

"one would expect that as a cable becomes less and less "colored", its performance would become more similar when placed in stereo systems."

How does a cable become less and less colored?

Maybe the stock power cord is the least colored since that is the cord the equipment was voiced with and all aftermarket cords are colored since they are adding or subtracting from the original sound.

Mrtennis,

"there are many ics and ac cords, so it is a bit presumptuous to make such a statement which includes the word "undeniable". obviously, it's your ears and your opinion."

It's your ears and your opinion providing you have a clue. There is one thing I have noticed. When something sounds good everybody knows it.

To the OP: Powercords do have noticeable and reliable effects: they noticeably and reliably start threads just like this one!

Although I won't presume to say what you *should* do, I'll presume to say what you *will* do. If you stay in the hobby, you'll fool around with powercords, simply because it's fun to play, and wire is a comparatively low cost way to do so: much easier to get a $300 PC past the home administration than a $3000 amp.

The wire skeptics have all played with powercords (if they haven't, they shouldn't be posting about powercords). Why shouldn't you have fun too?

Enjoy!

John

To answer the original question: based on my experience, and assuming the proper gauge for each application, *some* competently constructed power cables can affect the sound by:

a) lowering noise (line, RFI, etc); and
b) reducing impedance from the wall to the power supply vs other cables (thus improving impulse response, where required).

The audible effects can vary based on the resolution of the connecting component and the quality of its power supply, as well as affect the sound of components not necessarily directly connected with said cords (because said competently constructed cords radiate less noise, especially at the basic frequency of 50-60Hz; components that benefit so indirectly are usually phono stages)

hi rrog:

when something sounds good, where audiophiles are involved, there is usually some disagreement. what constitutes "good" sound is subjective, so, i repeat, undeniable and opinion are oxymorons.