audiphile power cords

It always amazed me when I hear a pseudo-engineer say "cords can't make a difference if they are adequately sized". No engineer would argue that the following things can indeed make a difference, and are measurable:

- different gauges
- different dielectric materials
- different configuration (twisted, braided, side-by-side, etc.)
- different metals
- stranded vs solid
- shielded vs unshielded

So of course cords make a difference. But the art is in figuring out how a particular type of cord will interact with any given component, let alone why, and what effect is to be expected in the resulting sound. That is not so straightforward.

So Ralph, it sounds to me (and please correct me if I am wrong) that you are saying the connections are by far the most important factor at play. Wire, insulation, etc., is not as important. Correct?

^^ They are all important. I have to say I have not studied the matter enough to know how they all weigh out. I do know though that its harder to build the cable to have good HF response and also keep it flexible, which is required by law (you can't use ROMEX in a power cord for example).

I have seen the conductors heat up too. So its pretty obvious that every part of the cable has to work correctly!

I am wrestling with this issue: I don't have the money to buy an expensive wonder cord. I am trying to determine how to maximize my expenditure. Hypothetically speaking, let's say I had $250. Would it be best for me to spend it all on the best $250 manufactured power cord I could find? Or DIY and spend on the best $200 connector and the remaining $50 on the wire?

@ atmashere, By all means, prove what I agree with by theory of science, I will learn something here, I can say the Tara labs cobalt power cord with Oyaide Top IEC and plug beat out much more exspensive power cords by a large margin that I have tried on my system, The cobalt has a built on RFI/EMI cerelex devise developed by Tara that to me, has had me re listening to my music collection in awe because I am hearing music that was not there before, what a revelation, wow!, for the asking price, well worth it!, No regrets!