... abit confused: how does a power cord affect the presentation of sound...


Hello to all...

I was shifting around components in my system, trying to squeeze out better controlled bass, more definition within the soundstage, and better define the "voice/midrange" presentation...

I presently have a tube preamp (hardwired with a wall wart) into an HT Receiver; source is a Marantz SA-8001 CD Player

Swapped out a Yamaha HTR -5550 (hardwired) for a Parasound HCA-750A (which needs a power cord).

CD Player is powered with a PS Audio Statement SC power cord, so I went in my closet and pulled out another PS AUDIO Statement SC power cord, hooked it up and expect to give it at least 5 days continuous re-break-in before serious listening.

Took a minute to lookup reviews about this power cord - and I read some rather confusing reviews: some luved 'um, some liked 'um, but some thought them " ...slow... " (?), and giving a veiled presentation...

I'm gonna listen and decide myself - but I'm abit confused: how does a power cord affect the presentation of sound - I know that interconnects and speaker cables would/could/Do affect sound presentation - but how could a power cord?

Explanation/thoughts please...
insearchofprat

Showing 1 response by clearthinker

Let's be logical.
It is possible that active power conditioners affect the sound of the system.

But if you are talking about 6 feet of power cord with no active component, this can have nil effect as long as it's large enough to carry easily the power being drawn by the system.

Think about it.  Behind the 6 foot power cord there is a (usually) much longer connection to your meter.  Won't that foul up the power?  OK you can up-specify that and many of us do.  But probably not with wire costing $1,000/foot.

The meter is connected in the street to the local transformer that may be 400 yards or more away. A quarter a mile of wire fouling up your system.  You don't own that wire so there is nothing you can do about it, even if you could afford the $400,000 to improve it.

Even if you improve the power cords local to the system, there's a lot more wire carrying your power that you can't touch.

Like bits are bits, in the digital domain at least, power cord is power cord, as long as it's thick enough for the job.

And snake oil is snake oil.