The Burtman power cord


Budget Esoterica Review Magazine
August 2016 Issue

Burtman's Canadian vacation

Audiophiles who are looking for an excellent entry level power cord need to look no further than north to the Canuck 
Audio Mart. Seller, "Burtman" makes custom power cords for a very reasonable cost. Some audiophiles would consider two or three hundred dollars to be a reasonable cost for a power cord. Not so here, these power cords sell for $37 plus shipping from Canada. If you are tired of thick, unwieldy power cords that you have to wrestle like an alligator to get in place, you will be happy to know that Burt's power cords are very flexible. How flexible? Well how about flexible enough for a 5 foot power cord to fit in a tiny 8 inch by 5 inch by 5 inch box! This is not a thin wimpy power cord either. It is similar in size to the Cullen power cord i reviewed. Twelve gauge cable is used with a nice techflex jacket and sturdy tight fitting aftermarket connectors. Fit and finish is just as nice as any of my other name brand aftermarket power cords. 

For this review i would like to focus on the presentation of jazz brass instruments. The brassiness, bite and tonal color of Miles' Davis' trumpet for instance. A natural partner for this would be my favorite small mini monitor, the Paradigm Micro version one speaker. The Paradigm Micro's are a favorite of mine for jazz listening and if you combine the Paradigm speakers with the Burtman power cord, you will be in for some seriously fun jazz listening. 
I have been studying the Miles Davis cd titled, "We Want Miles", for several weeks now, and there are a few tracks on the album that left me bewitched and bamboozled. 

"Fast Track", for instance is a 15 minute manic thrill ride that is sure to get your grandpa out of his easy chair. The drum solo on this track was very nice. The bass is tight and there is a sure grip on the little woofers. The tonal color, i thought was very good with Miles' piercing trumpet staying within the bounds of being listenable without getting too harsh. Approximately 8 minutes and 32 seconds into the song there is a powerful cymbal hit that sounded  very crisp and accurate with very good dynamics. The applause at the end of the song was also very crisp sounding. There was something about the Burtman / Paradigm combination that made the performance seem a little more "lively" and exciting sounding. 

Listening to track number 5, titled, "My Man's Gone Now",  i was surprised by the vertical and horizontal openness of the sound. The bass drum was solid and tight. Pretty impressive for such small woofers! Resolution and clarity were good. You can discern the audience members ramblings pretty well. Once again, the tone of the trumpet was very, very nice. Just the perfect amount of bite to the sound without going over the top. Percussion was crisp with a little bit of a golden tone. The Burtman power cord seemed to let through all the dynamics that this system was capable of without impediment. Very impressive, Burtman!

It is sometimes difficult to find a power cord that is a good all-arounder, but that is exactly how i would describe the Burtman power cord. Very good frequency extension in the bass and highs with no restricted dynamics. Neutral and clean. It might just be the perfect power cord for the everyday audiophile. I think it would be a bargain at two or three times the price. 

Associated Equipment

Arcam 8r amp with aucharm fuse and noisestopper rca caps
Insignia NS-D160A14 dvd player with noisestopper rca caps
Jefferson Memorial T-Amp stand 
Tara Labs 3300i interconnect
Gallo Acoustics solid core speaker cable
Energy speaker stands
Paradigm Micro version 1 speakers
honda6