audiphile power cords

^^ 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!

Rockadanny, I've wrestled with the same issue. I recently took the plunge and purchased some Pangea cords. I played around for a few days and decided that my DIY cables were good enough for me. Yes, I think perhaps the AC14SE sounded slightly better when connected to my Oppo103, but the difference was slight and certainly NOT significant by any contrived definition. I use hospital grade connectors and decent wire of either 12 or 14 gauge. Another thing to keep in mind is the size of these cables. Some of these cables are so big and heavy that they need to be supported.

You might find greater sonic improvements by investing in room treatments.

Thank you Pgawan2b. I've done, some treatments (bass panels behind me, 1st reflection points, floor in front of speakers) and it has helped. Power is the final thing for me to address, thus my questions. Also going to do dedicated lines.