Power Cord Recommendation for Bryston 4B SST2

Bryston's take on power cords for their amps and preamps...

It's the email response an Audiogon member received after inquiring about power cord he lost while moving.

"In general, Bryston has seen no reason to use anything other than a high-quality AWG 14 cord with an IEC connector and three-prong plug. We can supply these (which are original equipment) for $15 each + a small shipping charge.

Some customers seem absolutely determined to spend insane amounts of money on "special" power cords; after spending that money, can their assessment of what they gained be trusted?

If you can't find AWG 14 standard cords in your area, contact us to order one.

Following was his email question,
-----------------------------------
Hi

I'm using 3B SST and 5B ST for stereo and HT.

While moving, I lost the power cords supplied by
Bryston, so I'm currently using some cheap unknown
power cords. I was thinking about getting some nice
aftermarket power cords, so I didn't bother to find it
hard.

What do you reccomend?

The one I'm considering is PS Audio Prelude.
www.psaudio

Will using good after market power cords imporve or
reduce the amp performance?

Is the power cord supplied by Bryston supposed to
perform the best for the amp? Should I try to get
power cords from Bryston if they are lost?

Thanks.

James Tanner of Bryston has said several times to use whatever you think sounds best. He's also said its stupid to tell someone what they hear or don't hear. I'm paraphrasing a bit. With that being said, he's also asked how the last few feet of power cabling will make a difference when there's far more in the wall and outside your home. I read all this at the Bryston Circle on Audio Circle.

Bryston has a relationship with Torus. I think they're Torus's distributor. Torus is made by Plintron, which is who makes Bryston's (and I believe several others') power transformers. The Torus units have a power transformer inside them; they're not a bunch of resistors and other components that suck the life out of your music.

I use a Shunyata Diamondback Platinum with my Bryston B60. It's not a jaw dropping difference like hifi rags claim cables are, but I easily like it enough to keep in my system. To my ears, it was an across the board improvement with no compromises. That doesn't mean it transformed my system by any means though.

I tried the Shunyata Venom3 on my Bryston B100,heard better high end and detail,nothing dramatic but pleasing in long listening so I kept it.I also treat the ends with Deoxit gold as all other cables which for $30. is very cheap upgrade.You may like to try that first with your old cable and see if you hear a difference and try a new cable with return policy.

I use Totem URTH power cords on both of my 4B SST2's. I preferred this to PS Audio Statement which I've since sold.

I used to use an array of heavy gauge 20 amp Belden power cords that I made up myself from a 100m drum that I managed to get via a client. It's the same stuff that Krell supply (or used to supply) with their amplifiers (none of which I ever owned myself) so I figured it was a pretty safe bet and I used it for many years. But, once I started using Bryston amp's, I found myself forever trying to eliminate a nasty transistory edge to the upper registers.

Eventually, after much frustrating and protracted experimentation with every other power cord I could lay my hands on, I decided to try the stock cord that Bryston supply with their amplifiers (why it didn't occur to me just to start with those I really don't know). For some reason, the first component I plugged the Bryston-supplied cord into was my Wadia CD transport and hey, presto that made a surprisingly positive difference.

The next logical step was to use the two others I had with my Bryston 7B-SST's and that produced further noticeable improvements. Progress at last.

The other three Bryston components in my system are the BP26 pre-amp (bought pre-owned without its stock power cord), a BDA-1 D:AC (which comes with a much lighter weight cord of different provenance, though as it's what's in the box I guess it must be okay) and a 10B SUB crossover (the cord from which is presently assigned to the CD transport).

So, if I'm to have the same power cords for every component in the system (which seems like a good idea) I needed to source a supplier of those 2.5m Mega Electronics cords (HO5VV-F 3G) that come with the Bryston amp's. This I've managed to do by way of Major Electronix in Ohio, who sell them for just $5.81 apiece, so I've ordered three (with an extra one for my Lyngdorf SDA-2175 power amp driving the sub's) which, as I write, are on their way, though there'll probably be a bit of delay whilst they clear UK customs.

As a friend suggested quite some time ago, when it comes to interconnects, speaker cables and power cords the surest recipe for good results is to use what the manufacturer recommends, the logic of which is unassailable. If Bryston weren't happy with the way their amp's sound using these Mega Electronics power cords, they wouldn't include them as standard. They certainly have to be the benchmark against which to judge any other alternatives.

So that's my take on the subject.