Benchmark AHB2 Power Cable Upgrade

Your post intrigued me as I didn't know Benchmark was using better connectors.  I moved my crossovers external and used speakon connectors from the crossover to the speaker.  I agree they are superior.

I then looked at the Benchmark power cord.  The locking plastic tabs on the power cord are not a bad idea.  but to add a 50c piece of plastic and try to say it makes a 14 awg cord adequate doesn't cut it for me.

So if there isn't room for an upgraded power cord I'd say benchmark screwed up pretty bad.  

Audioquest and some generics make 90 deg adapters that seem to be slimmer.  While they may not be perfect they are likely better than a long small power cord.  Reistance is additive.  The longer a piece is the HIGHER the resistance.  So this short piece, even if of mediocre quality,  should add minimal resistance.  It isn't like a water hose where a kink acts as an orifice.  

If it were mine, and I really liked the amp, I might pull the female IEC out, replace it with a strain relief to pass the cord through, and hard wire my upgraded cord inside the amp.

Jerry

Hi Jerry,

There’s a lot to like about the Benchmark AHB2 amps but the compact chassis makes for very tight connections for everything around back.  Used as mono blocks with the Speakon connectors really limits power cord choice.

Voodoo Cable makes an adjustable right angle IEC adapter that might work, and I believe that cables terminated with a Furutech FI-C15 slim body might also work.  I did try an old Cardas Hexlink 5C that has an integrated IEC, and it fits but I didn’t listen since I have just one.

I’d be interested in hearing if anyone has found significant improvement using a upgraded cord with my configuration and what fits.

T

I'm using DH labs "Power Plus" cables with my AHB2 and other Benchmark components (LA4 and DAC3B). They are a very tight fit in all cases!

I noticed some beneficial results with the new power cable installed in the AHB2, but not nearly as significant as when I upgraded my interconnects.

If I had the chance to do it over again, I'd pursue other upgrades before the power cables.

Thanks for the comments they are helpful.  To be clear, do the DH Labs "Power Plus" fit when using the Speakon connectors?  It looks to be a large IEC fitting.

@timothy_m Good question. I moved one of the Speakon connectors to the center (monoblock) position and then tried to install the Power Plus cable. No success, it wouldn't fit!

Hope you can find power cables with less bulky connectors. I'd be interested to know what you find.

@ho249 Thanks for checking it out.  If comments are like yours where there's not much bang for the buck I may stick with the OEM cords.  I've found significant improvements upgrading PC's with some pieces of equipment and not so much with others and that's why I'm looking for user experiences as well as figuring out what fits.

@timothy_m Glad to help. I'm thinking about going to monoblocks, so it was good to find out now about a potential problem. I ran a quick scan for cables that might work, and it appears some of the Audioquest cables could fill the bill.