What Power Cords for Rel S510 Subs?


I’m considering a pair of Rel S510s to go with my Diablo 300 and B&W 802 D2’s. I’ve invested quite a bit in cabling: Audioquest Dragon for my amp, Hurricanes for my source equipment, and Nordost Valhalla 2 for my speaker wire. I can clearly hear the difference between a Hurricane and a Dragon cord when powering my amp. The Dragon puts space and air around vocals and instruments with front to back depth.

There is no way I can afford anything better than two 3m Hurricanes for the Rel S510’s but my question is, how much do power cords matter for subs? Sadly for my wallet, I’ve found that higher grade cords do make a considerable difference for all my other components, verified through blind tests. Not as much as speaker cables, but still a big difference.

I also have a Innuos network isolation switch and also an Innuos USB reclocker, to support my Innuos Zenith Mk 3 streamer.

Does power cord quality matter less with subs than with everything else?

For the record I’ve seen other threads on this subject, with what seems to be consensus that power cords don’t matter with subs, but I was hoping others who, like me, appreciate the difference a top tier power cord can make, can comment on whether there truly is no benefit to using one when it comes to subs. Has anyone compared a Hurricane grade (or better) cord with a stock cord, connected to a high end sub?

 

nyev

Hello,

I know a lot of people do not have a brick and mortar shop that lends out cables. This is the best way to try cables and equipment out at home. Also, I will tell you it can take a few hours or even a day or two for cables including power cables. I am not saying you do not hear a difference right away because you should. I call it loading up the cable or letting it balance out or settle in. Interconnects and speaker cables need time because of the lower voltage and I believe it needs to become consistent otherwise it’s like an empty water hose or line that needs to get the air out. Power cords make a difference the next day because the caps in the components need to do the same. Charge up and level out. The first time I noticed what a difference a power cable makes is when I replaced my stock PC on my surround receiver with a Nordost Blue Heaven. It really made a difference. Plus, some of these receivers have 9-13 amplifiers. That’s a lot of power not to mention all the other things in the same box. I say go with a 14 ga power cord so your not starving that equipment. Try it. Take your nice power card from one of your other sources like a phono stage or CD player and put it on your surround system. The next day after you charge up all of the moss caps you will understand. I hope this helps. 

@1971gto455ho , I have known a thing or two about this forum (common sense:rare, Troll Accusations: Frequent). It is the reason that I post here rarely. Generally, I just like to look at some threads and have a laugh. 

I have a pair of S/510s, been using the stock power cords for a while.  I replaced them with an older set of Pangea cords, that I wasn't using, so far I haven't noticed any difference. I have no desire to try different cords, I am fine with the subs as is.

Post removed 

i used as good a power cable as i could on the s510 and it improved with it.  it also loved isolation.  imo alot of noise is around the bass frequencies and so removing power line noise is a priority and so is using a litz power cable that reduces noise.

 

for testing i'd suggest you'd need to leave it in for a time and assess more on that basis.  i would not at all be surprised however if you have to re-do levels.  the reduction in noise floor will elevate gain significantly.  i suggest you trial a dragon if you can (since i presume you are in the US).  however i also upgraded the speakon cable to a "blueline" from rel i think they are called.  that made a big difference and was much cheaper than a dragon.

 

in aug stereophile magazine Mike Fremer relates a story of a guy selling 4k USD speakers and demoing them with 8k worth of dragon cables (powered speakers). mf says "why the hell r u doing that".  guy says "they make the speakers sound so much better i had to" 

 

knowing what i know now, a good start to a system would prioritise power over everything else.  no fancy anything until the power is as good as it can be.