best powercord for atma-sphere amps MA 1

12-01-10: Snook2
Sayles, Which wires make or break a HiFi?? Specifics please

...If your goal by this query is to dismiss my remark by specificity or flavor i.e. a personal like or dislike, I'll choose not to enter that trap with you.

My point was never meant as some kind of all encompassing, universal absolute, sorry. True enough, Romex or clothing hanger wire will transmit the majority of an electrical signal, that said, I prefer a modest boutique Hifi wire, if you will ;^)

What was intended though, was that I think we have all had a truly transformative experience by incorporating "wires" that seemed to allow a tonal balance, blacker background, sound stage placement, timbre correctness, or whatever that musically was far more fitting in its portrayal than something other in juxtaposition. Would you not agree? I most certainly have had too many to count and would prefer not to appear to be running down or damning anyones hard work and livelihood based on a synergy issue in a single configuration. Far too many things said in text here are taken without the needed, grain of salt.

Wire is a component after all, and by design or choice is an art as much as there is science, yet just because there are so many practical variables, does not make it merely serendipitous or arbitrary.

Happy Listening!

I agree with TVAD and recommend looking upstream from the amp and preamp for the problem. At first, I thought the MA1s were weak in the bass too, until we identified the real problem as my phono cartridge. Changed cartridges and the bass was great. In general, I've also heard noticeable differences with different cables, including PCs.

I am in the same quest...I am in the process of purchasing MA-1's and hooking them up with a MP-1 Mk.3...I have noticed the following comment on another forum. here is what the poster wrote:

''After trying a few experiments between the MP-1 preamp and the MA-2 amps we determined that there are differences between cables and they are significant. The good news is that the best sounding cable we have been able to find is regular quad-shielded mic cable. Cheap, cheap, cheap! In fact, anything that we have tried which would be considered an audiophile cable does more harm than good.

Save your cash and spend it elsewhere. I know Ralph says this and it's not that I don't believe him, I just wanted to have some fun and see if I could hear any difference. Yes I can - it just doesn't mean the sound is better.

There was a fellow on Audiogon a few years back who was using the same pre-amp and amp and he had some SUPER expensive, highly regarded cable and he did the same test and arrived at the same conclusion. Mic cable is the way to go. ''

I am wondering who this audiogon user is and would love to have his feedback on this...

Sayles, Which wires make or break a HiFi?? Specifics please

...everything has an effect, from the source,
be it mains or music format.

I would agree that the idea of trying to basically correct with wire is fundamentally incorrect as a purist approach to true high fidelity reproduction but, to dismiss its tonal effect or the contribution to synergy of the kit by its connections is equally misguided in my humble opinion.

Wire is a component. I've heard it make or break a HiFi.

So with that said, how does one create a system void of the cable loom???

It is a question as easily answered as, what is the sound of one hand clapping?

Happy Listening!

Try a Wywires "Juice" power cord. They are affordable in the relative scheme of things, have yielded phenominal improvments on the componts I've used it with.

Atmasphere and VMPS are also going to be using their wiring exclusively at THE SHOW/CES, so it would appear Atma-Sphere's designers themselves tare fond of the pairing.

I agree wit Tvad. You should not be looking at cabling or PC as tone controls to fix problems in your system. Most likely your fundamental issue is upstream.

Thank you for your suggestions. My question was spurred by reading "power cord shoot-out" of 22 cables available on the internet.It took the author 5 years to come to his conclusions, and I share his sentiment that powercables are very system or component dependent. At this point, my experience indicates that at least low powered tube amps appear to benefit from unshielded power cables - less veiled/smeared/restricted. In regards to choosing copper versus silver iec and wall plugs:the copper ac wall plug appears to provide a bass with more bite, whereas the silver appears to make vocals more organic and smooth. I have not hooked up my MA's yet but I want to make sure that I make an informed decision as I will select specific PC and IC preferrably based upon MA1 owners practical experience. On that note: Is there a consensus in regards to preferred IC's? Thank you once again!

Atma-Sphere amps reproduce low end strings as whole and correct as I've heard.

Power cords make a nice difference with Atma gear, but not as much difference as I've heard them make on other amps. I use Shunyata Anaconda CX cords on my MA-1 monoblocks.

Try a couple pair of Ken-Rad VT231 6SN7s; they help with mid- and lower bass tonality and articulation.

Also, depending on your speakers, a set of Speltz autoformers can help with that last bit of weight and tonal completeness.
 

Do you have a dedicated line for each amp?

Elrod Signature cords on my MA-1 Silver Edition/Coincident Total Eclipse combo and it did improve bass in depth and firmness. What a happy surprise it was, and well worth the money.

for what it's worth, I use Cardas Golden Reference PC with good results. But as Tvad said, the MA-1 presented deep tight bass with all PC's i have used. The bigger issue is the speaker/amp interaction