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Still mystified by mega expensive power cords

AC travels miles from the substation, enters my house, goes into a panel, then runs to my hifi equipment. Once inside the equipment it goes through whatever wiring the manufacturer used. I don't understand how the few feet from the outlet to the back of the gear can make some of the dramatic changes claim (low end goes down another octave, deeper wider soundstage, etc). My thought is that as long as the power cord is shielded so that it's not working like an antenna, properly grounded, and of sufficient guage so that you're not loosing juice to heat, and has contacts that make a solid connection, any power cable should sound like the next, especially since the AC coming in is rectified and smoothed.

I'm not looking for flames, but for those that believe in power cables, enlighten me. Or said another way, can that $11,000 plus power cable I saw today possiblet do more than fatten the manufacturer's wallet?
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rja's avatar
rja
2,370 posts
 
It's hard to argue with Phusis, $11,000 could buy a nice pair of speakers, a great DAC, turntable, pre or amp. I would definitely consider any of those before plopping down that sum on a PC.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,180 posts
 
Different power cords may well make a difference in sound as a result of their build quality and electrical properties.

But my mindset on this is that this part of getting good sound is not rocket science, and most differences are splitting hairs. Just get a good quality power cord from a reputable vendor, not necessarily and audio "boutique" or high end audio specialist that talks about "the sound of their wires" as if that is anything that you could bank on, and you should be in pretty good shape. SHould not cost very much. Then move on to bigger fish to fine tune the sound as needed. Other power tweaks may or may not help as well but the results are hard to predict, so address the things that are known to result in good sound first, and deal with the bigger gamble factors later.
lacee
811 posts
 
Just replacing the molded connectors with something better usually results in better sound.
So it's mostly the fault of the cheap connectors,the wire is mostly OK, so this is a cheap fix and a small investment for those who maybe on the fence.

The difference good power cords, or improved power cords can make isn't hard for most folks to hear.

BUT...if you can't hear any difference doing this, then no amount of money spent on a pricey power cord will make a difference to you either.

If you do hear an improvemnt after a bit of DIY, then move on to the manufactured stuff and try them out.

Arguing about the why and how's of power cords making a difference can go on forever.You have to make the effort to try them for yourself and decide.

Until you do you'll never know for sure which camp you'll end up in.
bander's avatar
bander
503 posts
 
I second the Triode Wire Labs recommendation. Try the 7's. Most wire is overpriced, some outrageously and shamefully so. I've been the sucker on more than one occasion. I'm in the 'believer' camp because of my own listening experience time and time again. To repeat many of the above postersÂ…listen for yourself and be the decider.
foodchain11
3 posts
 
It's complete insanity. I am a fairly serious guitarist and for really giant tube power amps, we usually use an oversize power cord with 14 AWG wire. And it needs to be shielded because obviously RFI can be a huge problem with a lot of gear and wireless stuff around. But you realize that 14 AWG can easily handle any amperage that a household electrical system can _possibly_ throw at it. Hospital-grade power cords would be fine, except they aren't typically shielded. You might want to spend a whopping $16 and get a 14 AWG cord from Mercury Magnetics, which is ugly red but is shielded. I can't under any circumstance see why that will be inadequate for any home audio system no matter how esoteric. And you'll have so much more money left over for beer, it's not even funny.
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