John Dunlavy On "Cable Nonsense"

As the instigator of this thread, I'd like to point out that no one has yet responded to Abe's observation:

"With regard to AC power cords I cannot understand the logic of spending hundreds of dollars on colorful fat cables to plug into a wall outlet that has cheap wiring behind it throughout the house."

I'm discovering that the reply from true believers to a logical statement such as the above runs along the lines of, "But I can hear the difference!"

Of course, all debate stops when one side becomes completely subjective. Just as devotees of psychic hotlines swear their fortune-teller is genuine.

Do you ever get the feeling that this is the audio version of the age-old debate between rationalists and religious fanatics?

I'll be interested in seeing a coherent response to Abe's statement.

"Anyway, ABE (cont'd): I am dying to know what power cord you regard as an essential upgrade from the stock power cord, but only costs $50."

J_thunders, no where in my previous posts did I say anything about essential upgrades from stock power cords so please do not misquote me. In most cases I do not believe that it is "essential" to replace the stock power cord at all.

If you must know what power cords I have used, I use mostly the stock cord. But I have built my own using relatively inexpensive parts and cable commonly available from most hardware stores or electrical supply warehouses.

It doesn't surprise me that there are so many outfits that make mega-buck magical high-end power cords. It takes very little (or ZERO) R&D investment, just pretty wires with big gold connectors, some advertising budget, and an audience willing to believe in the magic.

If I buy a fat garden hose of a certain color at 100 times the price of a standard garden hose, will the water coming from the hose magically make my lawn more green? Or will I need a gold plated nozzle to really notice the improvement?

Abe, what a great idea. If I thought audiophiles had any money left over for lawn care, I'd go into the $5,000 garden hose business. An easy sell.

Plasmatronic, so you're the guy who started this intense debate! I wonder how many people here sell cable goods? Someone complained that this thread is hurting cable sales on Audiogon.

I'll have to agree that some high-end systems are deserving of a high-end power cord but mostly for the eye candy effect. At some point, the entire audio system becomes more than just a means of producing fine sound. It should look nice. Personally, I don't like brown zip cord. I prefer a slightly fatter black zip cord. And you?

That someone was me, and it was a joke. Your reply accusing me of misquoting you is mighty convenient, don't you think. At first you say "I agree that a good power cord is essential..." Does this not lead the average reader of your post to believe you are talking about something other than a stock power cord? Otherwise, you might have well said: "I believe a power cord is essential"--which of course makes about as much sense as, well, no sense at all.

Or, did you truly mean to try and suggest at the outset that the stock power cord is what you were talking about? If so, why didn't you just say that in the first place? Something like "I believe the stock cord is good enough, and it is essential." Or maybe, "stock cords are essential, but they are also good too." Or how about, "I believe a good stock cord is essential."

If you truly meant to say what you suggest, then please excuse me, I do not ever like to be accused of misquoting anybody and I offer my deepest apologies.