Are manufacturer AC cables good enough?
As part of moving equipment from one rack to another I at last connected a Pangea AC 14 to the Ayre VX-5 Twenty amp -- I've misplaced the PS Audio AC 3s and the other AC 14 in the mess I've made during the change over. I have a bunch of similar looking black cables I grab as needed so I'm not sure what cable came with what piece of equipment. I think I do hear a bit more detail with the AC 14 installed. I'll continue to search for the AC 3s and other AC 14. db |
My "thinking" and experience have been at odds when it comes to AC cords. Thinking tells me that "wire is wire" and so long as it can carry enough current, it can't possible sound any better. My experience is the polar opposite. In every case, no exceptions, upgrading from the stock power cords has dramatically improved my enjoyment of music. Maybe my "system" was no better, but the music was most often far move involving, emotionally engaging and just more real. Switching AC cords worked on a Rotel CD player, ARC Ref 3 preamp and perhaps most dramatically, on a McCormack DNA 1 Platinum revision amp. I have seen vastly better picture quality on a plasma TV, heard more detail from an ARC LS9 preamp and on and on. There is science (better understood then in the past) as to why good AC power cables do what they do. The merits of all sorts theories can be debated. I have decided just to ignore the science, for the most part, and the debates, and simply enjoy the music. |
It's 2020 and people are still arguing if cables make the difference. Unbelievable. Regarding Ayre and Cardas, it makes perfect sense to me. I used to have Ayre CDP many years ago. It had a clean, sterile sound. In the end I used it with Cardas Cross and then GC, which made it a bit better, warmer and more, well, human. But I never came to liking the Ayre sound. I am not trying to imply that all Ayre sound like that, I have no idea how their current line of products sound, probably they have some fantastic amps, but that old CDP somehow deters me from looking back at their products. Probably the worst CDP/DAC I have ever had, apart from, obviously, some cheapo stuff. I sold Ayre and bough a used Burmester, which btw came with their Burmester power cable. The CDP is gone, but I still have the cable. The sonic picture of that cord I would describe as "hard-hitting" with a pronounced presence range, and this effect was pretty consistent with every CDP I tried. It is so different from Cardas, it's not even funny. I should try with my current DAC just for the sake of it, but since I am not too much into cables, it will probably keep gathering dust in a cupboard. |
nsgarch2,520 posts05-08-2020 12:50am"....You need to "lift" (disconnect) the ground at the EQUIPMENT end of the stock cord." Very poor advice from a safety standpoint. Can you name one manufacturer (audiophile-grade or otherwise) that does this? |
