DIY AC cable...which bulk cable?

Tboooe - I can't comment on the cables you mention, but I tried something similar....

My setup is as follows

Imac(running Audirvana) --- DH Labs USB cable --- Schiit Bifrost Dac

I first tried a furutech power cable on the imac, which sounded better than the cable that came with it

The furutech was a little too thick and hefty, so I tried a 14 gauge power cable from home depot on the iMac with a quality IEC connector one end and the standard moulded mains connector on the other - much more manageable at the back of the iMac.

I found there was no difference in sound quality, probably because the demand on the supply is satisfied sufficiently by the home depot cable

Audirvana is setup to stream the actual audio file without modification

I stream up to 24/192 and the sound is exceptional with the cheaper cable

Also tried the same thing with my apple TV with the same results

Seems computers do benefit from a certain amount of power cable/supply "augmentation", but are maybe not quite as finicky as audio

Hope this helps

Tboooe - I think you misunderstood - I found the home depot cable to be as effective as the furutech cable, but only in this instance

So, for computer power cables I think you can used a much cheaper cable.

My findings for all my other hi-fi components was exactly the opposite - quality power cords are essential as you well know

Regards

Heyimderrick - FYI you can also find the Red Wave cable in bulk on ebay - source is in the UK

Howver the price is up there with all the other "established" brands, so I think I would go for them first

Also - beware of fakes - I've seen Acrolink 6n for $20/half meter on ebay - seems a little too good to be true? Sourced in Hong Kong :-)

I've also tried DH Labs Power Plus and Encore and like you found them both to be very good - but my Favourite is still Furutech.

Back to the tunes

Heyimderrick - since you seem like a handy guy - are you game for a
simple cable tweak ?

Once the cables are burned in, instead of just inserting the bare cable into
the connector, crimp small spades onto the conductors and then insert
those into the connector.

I first tried this on my 10 gauge cable - it was quite cumbersome, but the
spade made installation of the connectors easier.

The effect however, was immediately noticeable.

I found this improves detail, image and dynamics, especially on my source
components.

I used inexpensive spades ($1.20 for 10) from an electronics hobby store -
just make sure the spade is a fairly tight fit on the wire. The spades
normally have the gauge on them.

Why does it make a difference? The only reason I can think of is the spade
provides a larger area for the connection.

BTW, I also have pretty good crimping pliers - the crimp width is about
6mm.

I have tried this on DH Labs Encore cable and it worked well.

The spades take about five hours to burn in completely, but you should
notice some improvement right away..

Something to try on these long winter nights :-)

Lacee - I initially thought the same as you, but I tried the spades on the 10 gauge cable because it was very difficult to install the connector.

The improvement was so noticeable I did the same for the rest of my cables, which resulted in the same improvements.

All of the spade connectors I have used are copper - the plating is very thin and probably does not have much effect on overall resistance. They also more than double the contact surface area, which will halve the overall resistance of the joint.

I've now tried this on both Furutech and DH Labs cables with the same results - a deeper more precise sound stage, improved dynamics and enhanced details.

Bottom line - with the spades I have used, it pays dividends

We all know - not everything in this hobby always makes sense :-)

Heyimderrick - I can't guarantee the result, since our systems will respond differently, but if you construct your own cables it is worth trying.

I think the smaller spades are pressed from sheet copper and may not be the absolute purist copper - but it's much better than brass.

Before adding the spades I filed off the plating to make sure it was in fact copper - that nice bright pink colour.

Please be sure to allow at least 100 hours burn in if the cable has not previously been used - that's about how long mine took for the improvements to be apparant - and after about 200 hours they were at their best. If adding to a used cable the spades take about 5 hours to burn in.

I think my most immediately noticeable improvements were on my DAC

If it works, be sure to let the rest of us know your findings :-)