What Power Cord can improve clarity and bass slam?

Hi, everyone.
Waiting on delivery for a RSA-Elgar that will be used for the Sapphire. Can always add a RSA-Duke if more conditioning is need. I don't believe new speakers or amp are needed to make subtle but substantial improvements. For example 8($10-total cost) tube rings elevated the Mullards to another level. A power cord(s) is just another piece of the puzzle to maximize the potential of my system.

Jmcgrogan2:

Bass slam tends to come from bass being a bit bloated, or slower. Faster, tighter bass, that is better defined bass, many will say sounds lean, not boomy enough for some.

This is a very thoughtful observation.

I'm wondering if bass 'slam' vs bass 'definition' is mutually exclusive - not in terms of equipment but in terms of sound from the real world that a system could/should reproduce.

At first blush maybe not - the example that comes to mind is a large bass drum (not a kick drum) versus a timpani.

Elements of 'definition' and 'slam' apply to each however if forced to a mutually exclusive choice, I'd opt for definition from the timpani and slam from the bass drum. Granted the frequency range of the timpani is higher than the bass drum.

Is it the case that the lower in frequency, the less definition? I'm not sure. The visceral impact from a kick drum is probably below 90Hz. We might say the front wave does have some sense of definition - if it gets rendered as bloated does some of its impact go away? Some of the issue might be about tonality - maybe that is where some aspect of "clarity" comes in to play.

I know this may be an issue of words as much as sound - typically not the sort of thing these forums tie in to - and describing sound is not always easy. But in doing so we probably set the vocabulary for talking about what we want from the gear that reproduces sound.

In the ideal situation I want a cable or cord that adds and subtracts nothing from what is delivered by the amplifier and rendered by the speaker. So I'm inclined to agree with those who say look there first rather than at wires. Two different approaches: attempt to tune the sound of an amplifier with a wire versus asking which wire distorts the amp's output least? If the amp/speaker combo doesn't give you what you want, then trying to get there by applying distortion always brings tradeoffs - imo, etc. Unfortunately, high quality bass tends to be pricey.

In terms of sound, I want it all: slam/boom and definition/clarity though those descriptions may not apply to the same instruments.

Jtimothya,

Talk about a very thoughtful observation, your penultimate paragraph, especially, expressed what seems to me to be a very thoughtful observation. I've always thought the transduction processes are the most critical to audio quality, with the role of the speaker and its interaction with the amp being paramount.

db

db, I agree that transduction process is critical, but I would say that the speaker/room interaction is even higher paramount than amp/speaker....IMHO.

Jtimothya, I agree with much of what you say, I would only add that I think we all use cables/cords as band aids to some extent. Yes, obviously having great equipment comes before cables, but sometimes, even equipment from the same manufacturer doesn't hit the sweet spot for us. Sure, we could try 20-40-60-100 different preamps (speakers, amps, etc) in our system to find the one that is just right, but most of us only get to try a dozen or so at best. We then use cables that help to make our system sound it's best. Are we looking for a bit more speed and resolution? Are we looking for more dynamics and power? There are many different flavors to try, but from my experiences, two general directions.

I have played around with a lot of gear and cables over the years, and generally, as far as tonality is concerned, you have the warmer, richer, powerful end of the spectrum and then, on the opposite end you have the speed, resolution and articulation end of the spectrum. I have heard very powerful bass slam, but it tends to come from equipment/cables that are on the warmer, powerful end of the spectrum. What most feel of as bass slam (weight) tends to actually be an emphasized bass and lower midrange. Emphasized by the fact that the note hangs longer or is slower in speed.

I don't wish to get too long winded, but yes, I find that bass 'slam' and bass 'definition' are mutually exclusive. Just as one cannot get hotter and colder at the same time, one cannot get faster and slower at the same time. I've heard a lot of gear and cords, but I have not heard anything that I would say has great bass weight and bass resolution, you sacrifice one to get the other. Of course this is just in my own personal experiences. YMMV.

Cheers,
John

Ive been to alot of concerts. I have hearing loss to prove it.