Power cords - a BASIC question

While I would agree that power cords seem ridiculously expensive for what you get, I would also suggest that you don't really need to have a megabuck system to get a major improvement out of power cords. I've purchased used/demo cords throught this site in the $200 range that have really changed the character of my system for the better and I'm not really using super high end equipment. I use a cord that I'm extremely happy with on both my Audiolab 8000A (purchased 12 years ago for about $275 U.S.) with phenomenal results and the same cord on a budget, very non-audiophile DVD player (I had an Arcam Alpha 8SE which I sold because I felt the DVD player to actually sound better) with excellent results. I also experimented with a number of less expensive cords and always felt that something was not right. You can also buy just one cord at a time for about $200 and it's pretty difficult to upgrade a major component for that kind of money. I guess my point is that, IMO, power cords are a very effective upgrade if chosen carefully, even with decent budget equipment.

You'll never know the true capabilities of your present components until you find the right cabling to optimize them. Learned this from much experience, after being a "cable skeptic" for too many wasted years.

Bob hat Recht mit allem was er sagt. To my ears and experience he is right on the money. So do be curious and experiment, it's www.highendmarkt.de of course, not wwww, put one in too many. One word of caution with very expensive power cables at $1000 plus, the law of diminishing returns sets in rather early here. Since you are probably operating with Schukostecker, you can order those also from most US manufacturers, but some will rip you off for this special service, charging a ridiculous extra. So what I have done is to get the PC's in their original configuration and have installed US high grade receptacles in some of my wall outlets. It ain't exactly legal, but it is safe if you do it right and it saves you money. I even tend to think to have heard an improvement in sound with my preamps. Viele Gruesse!

Wow, no nay-sayers yet. Fritz, after playing with designing power cords, it seems that good power cords need to have decent guage, good purity of conductor, good dialectric, shielding and a geometry that provides common mode rejection. The effect seems to be similar to a power conditioner, yet without the limiting of dynamics that you get with most conditioners. If indeed there is a conditioning effect then this might explain why there is a beneficial effect when changing the last meter. Either way, the effect is noticeable and as reported above, not always beneficial.