DIY Power Cables Instead of Used

@sfcfran If by DIY you actually mean attach plugs onto a piece of bulk power cable - then I agree with @elizabeth - there are many choices from cable vendors that will retain resale value and perofrm better

However, if you are willing to take DIY to a "higher level" take a look at the Helix Power Cable.
http://image99.net/blog/files/category-002ahelix-power-cable.html

It may look a little daunting, but it is pretty easy after the first one

Follow the "recipe" in the link and you will have a power cable that

"outperforms most others on the market!"

And those are not my words, but words from several people that have tried them.

Personally, I have compared them to cables up to $1500 and even had one person report that this power cable outperformed a Nordost cable he owned. He has since sold the Nordost cable

I have tried bulk cables from Furutech and DH Labs, but even braiding the conductors from a simple piece of Home Depot 12 guage extension cord outperofrms both of them - don’t believe me? I didn’t believe it either until I tried it.

The Helix Power Cable improves the resolution of any component, but the amount of improvement is not quite so apparent as the power supply of the component get larger and more sophiticated - i.e.
- improvements in large amps is initially not as noticeable
- whereas improvments in source components with smaller power supplies will reveal the biggest improvement

The latest word is - the Helix power cables even works on componentns that use DC power - that was a surpise.

Anyhow - got questions - ask away

Good luck with your quest - Steve

@sfcfran - 

I recall bumping into a discussion on that quite some time ago

You are correct - I added the Power Helix design in 2015 and made a couple of refeences to it elsewhere on the forums here at that time

I have been promoting more actively the Helix range for the last few months onseveral threads - so you will see them from time to time.

Another fellow DIYer on Audiogon is also developing a "ribbon style" cable - where the conductors are held apart by a "ribbon" of tape. The seperation of the two conductors has the same effect - i.e. much less induced noise, which improves clarity.
- The advantage of the design is that the two conductors are of the same length - unlike the spiral of the helix
- the disadvantage is that the cables can get quite wide when compared to coventional geometries.

Other developments - i have been talking with fellow DIYers in several counties about theHelix geometry. One person has shared an interesting finding, so I have to update the design of all Helix cables on the site

Please check back with the site in a couple of days before building to find out the latest construction details - it's a small change pertaining to the how the helix is wound in, but it takes some explaining without the images

BTW - also take a look at the HELIX speaker cables and IC's - the same geometry is used - i.e. the neutral is a helix spiral wound around the live/signal. The speaker cables proved to provide exceptional improvements across the board over other speaker cables I have tried.

@elizabeth - the silver plated Mil-Spec wire is indeed a bargain and as you pointed out, makes great power cables and speaker cables. 

I am about to try 24 gauge Mil-spec on a pair of IC's as the signal conductor, i.e. in place of the solid silver wire I currently use.

I'll post the results here in a couple of weeks

Stay Tuned - Steve

@sfcfran - here is the update to the helix design - got it done today.

Just waiting on some feedback from Yordan on his findings, but other than that it is complete

http://image99.net/blog/files/b4d5249616a56bdabfd28b5580db6cec-79.html

As for the frail nature of the ribbon style - yes a little tweaking to the design can solve that.

Just about to start on the cables :-)

Regards - Steve

@sfcfran -  Well last evening I installed the "revised" helix speaker cables with the helix being wound in the opposite direction and it appears that as indicated on my web site - it made a discernable improvements - across the board.

So if you are planning on building the Helix design please ensure you follow the instructions on my site

So far I have only tried the speaker cables, but based on their level of improvement i would recommend taking the same approach on all Helix cables

Regards - Steve

@sfcfran -  you have reached the same conclusion I have also come to.

If you need two runs then use 2 runs of 12/2 and NOT 1 run of 12/3.- there is just too much noise in a 12/3.

BTW - I tried an experiment with mains cables - turns out - as long as you have at least three feet of Helix mains cable between your component and the outlet then what is between the outlet and the breaker panel is of little consequence.

I tried different lengths of helix...
- I currently have a 10 ft HELIX extension cablle feeding the amp and a distribution panel for other components
- replacing the 10 ft helix with a 12 gauge home depot extension cable makes little difference - other than the fact that the conductors in the Helix are of a higher quality and conduct power faster 
- removing the 10 ft cables makes little difference also.
- The shortest power cables I currently have is three feet and there is no difference in SQ  if I replace it with a 5-6 ft cable 

This leads me to believe that a Helix cable of at least three feet can provide relatively noise free power to a component, regardless of what type of "cable geometry" preceeds it

Hope that all makes sense? - Steve