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Power Cords Snake Oil ??

Having been a long time audiophile living with countless high end compnents I have to wonder about the theory and practicality of high end power cords.

I have yet to hear the difference a power cord makes. Ive owned, synergistic, Shunyata, BMI and cardas. I in no way can detect any sonic signature or change. Give me a pair of interconnects and I imeadiately notice a difference somewhere in the sonic spectrum. Not the PC though. I have accomplished 4 blind tests with my friends. 3 out of the 4 they did not know their cord was replaced. All 4 were using a stock factory supplied cord. Each of the 4 tests were done on different components. Amp, CDP, Preamp & dac.

My electrical backround tells me that provided you supply the component with its required voltage bet 110vac or 220/240vac its happy. Now, change the incoming frequency from 60hz to say 53hz and watch how quickly your soundstage collapses.! This is often the case during the summer months when home air conditioners are in use and the utility company power output is taxed to the max. A really good power conditioner should however take care of the frequency fluctuations. But 110vac is still 110vac regardless of the conductor it passes through as long as its remains 110vac when it reaches the intended circuit. Does your 8k amp or preamp know the difference of the path the voltage took to reach it ? Many an audiophile will use a dedicated 20amp circut for their equipment.That is a good idea as voltage & frequency fluctuations will occur in the home circuit to to other loads on the main breaker panel but again, A power cord simply is the means of transporting the voltage from the wall to the component. IF there is a clean 110vac @ 60hz at the wall socket, no matter what the medium is to go from the socket to the component, it will still be 110vac @60hz.

Could somebody expand on this a bit more. I just dont understand it. ??
128x128jetmek

Showing 4 responses by foster_9

foster_9
1,638 posts
 
But all is not lost when you buy that upgraded power cord. It will still improve whatever component it's attached to. 11-25-13: Lacee

Your assertion is inaccurate. Every aftermarket (upgraded) power cord does not improve the performance of whatever component its attached to. There are those times when the wrong aftermarket power cord can muck things up worse than the original stock cord. I've witnessed this.
foster_9
1,638 posts
 
Hard for me to be more specific. There's been too many components and different setups in my house to remember. It has not been often that an aftermarket power cord on a component compromised the sound of the system compared to the stock cord, but there has been 1 or two occasions where I've tried multiple aftermarket cords on a component and went back to the stock cord after a period of time and heard an improvement. This taught me that you can never say never and there are no absolutes with audio gear.
foster_9
1,638 posts
 
One of the pieces I think was a PS Audio Premier Power Plant.

Lacee, as we age, the memory is the first thing to go.

I tried the Tekline Reference Master, Silver Audio Wattmaster, VH Audio Flavor 4, PS Audio Statement, Lessloss, DCCA Musical Essence, Purist Audio Dominus Ferrox Synergistic Tesla.

As far as other power cords I've used as I've changed components and speakers, the list is longer.
foster_9
1,638 posts
 
Lacee when you state I don't hear the benefits of upgraded power cords you have misunderstood my previous posts. I have owned many different aftermarket power cords over the years as I mentioned. I have heard the benefits of these cords. In fact, I don't use any stock power cords in my system because of that. I hear the difference they can make. Where I commented on your previous post was when you said that an upgraded power cord always improved the sound of whatever gear it is connected to. I have found that is true in many cases but not in 100% of cases. There have been a few cases where aftermarket cords did not improve a particular piece and the stock power cord was better. In most every case a stock cord was not better than an aftermarket (as you say "upgraded") cord, but in my experience there have been a few isolated exceptions. Now it is true that I had no way to try every power cord out there to find one what cord would worked best, but among the aftermarket power cords I had in my collection, I did not have one that outperformed the stock cord on the (Power Plant Premier). This is an example of what I was referring to when I said there are no absolutes in this hobby. In fact, as I was typing this post, I just thought of another piece I owned besides the Power Plant Premier where this anomaly was true, the Bryston 7B SST. So these are 2 cases in my experience where the stock cord was not bettered by the aftermarket cords I tried.
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