Do good power cords have to be stiff?

i suspect that the Cables zavato is using with male ends will tend to be more on the stiff side 😂

‘Sorry.  I couldn’t resist.  We had an ice storm in the northeast and I’m suffering from cabin fever.

+1 on Triode wire labs.

Or, Dynamic designs - some of the iterations are stiff though....there's a digital Challenger listed that is fabulous (and flexible...).

Verastarr flat foil cords are incredible sounding and very flexable.

@drbond Until very recently I would have agreed with your assessment of power cords making a difference.  Out of morbid curiosity I picked up some very inexpensive (fairly stiff to address the OP) W Audio cables on Amazon.  I have three of them in my system now, but will only say with conviction that it changed the sound of my Pathos Classic One MkIII amplifier (with 1960s Mullard tubes).  I noticed the change immediately and can't imagine that any audiophile wouldn't able to also hear the difference in my system.  Based on that experience, I have added Audioquest Chicago interconnects  (replaced BJC LC-1) which also made a clear difference to my ears and was also immediately noticeable to me.  Based on that experience, I added an Audioquest Cinnamon digital coax and I can't say that I could tell any difference between it and the BJC silver plated cable that it replaced in my system.

Any power cable that is 12 gauge is sufficient. Stiffness does not matter. The metal in the Romex that supplies your outlet is either 12 or 14 gauge solid copper in the USA.

A cable made of braided copper wire with a gauge that is equal to or thicker than your main’s cable is sufficient.

Depending on the equipment you are powering and it’s current draw …you might even be able to get away with 16 or 18 gauge.

Has anyone mentioned the dps-4.1alpha furutech along with their fl-50 ncf connectors, these things are highly  unmanageable and heavy to say the least! They actually pull your gear where they want 

Black Sand Power Cables are very flexible and a good value.  Currently using Audioquest Hurricane's in my system.  Their Litz geometry makes them somewhat flexible.  The Audioquest Storm series is the only cable I have used that made a immediate and dramatic improvement in sound.  I was not a power cord believer until I tried the Audioquest cables.  I have done enough A/B now to know it wasn't that glass or Cabernet.  

Enklein Power Cords.

My Audioquest Blizzard Extremes and Tornado cords would be out, they are like wrestling with an Anaconda at times.

Wife say stiffer better.

Made me chuckle too. But when I moved my rack 6 inches out , my stiff cords became much easier to manage even though they were just as stiff. 

I’ve also read from a few manufacturers that if your power cords seem too stiff, it might be that your equipment is too close to the wall, and there are lots of nasties in wall you don’t want too close to your gear...

this one made me chuckle

i think that if a power cord seems stiff, it is simply because it is...

Yeah I have 7 Master Couplers and they’re a pain in the arse

akgwhiz

81 posts

01-26-2022 4:55pm

I’ve been using a Wireworld Aurora 7. 12 ga silver clad OFC. Its flat design makes it pretty flexible. I have it folded back with about an inch radius.

I have the Wireworld Elektra 7 which I believe is a higher model. It is quite flexible but the connection between the plug of the cord and component isn’t firm and always loose.

Performance wise, after comparing the Elektra 7 to Acrolink power cords, I figured out that the Wireworld is inferior in sound quality. It’s decent for DACs but does not sound good with amps.

+1 on Audio Envy

Morrow Audio power cords are also flexible and easy to route

I've been using a Wireworld Aurora 7.  12 ga silver clad OFC.   Its flat design makes it pretty flexible.  I have it folded back with about an inch radius.  For my DACs etc, I agree with @thomaswv that Morrows are extremely flexible at least lower in the line.  

I was using Nordost Vishnus in my mid level system. A clear improvement over stock.  But they too were somewhat stiff. Replaced them with Morrow MAP3s which sound just as good as the Nordost and are quite flexible. If I get the upgrade itch I will climb the Morrow ladder before going back to stiff power cords.

Simple answer… NO!
 

Stiffness of a power cord has no effect on the sound. It only changes the mechanical characteristics and makes it easier to handle. As long as the current rating of a cable is not exceeded, the rest does not matter electrically & sonically.

Less Loss cables, made in Lithuania use a braided construction and are extremely flexible.

I’ve also read from a few manufacturers that if your power cords seem too stiff, it might be that your equipment is too close to the wall, and there are lots of nasties in wall you don’t want too close to your gear...

+1 Pokey77, (Audio Envy)

In regard to having a power cord of heavy gauge (in the vicinity of 10, more or less), how many amps (or watts, probably easier to add up or check) do folks stereo systems require from the mains?

My own modest setup (Class A tube amp is the biggest draw card) I’m at less than 500 watts.

At 120 V, that’s a tad over 0.4 amps.

At 240 V, about 0.2 amps.

Off topic, I know, but kinda related.

The new ifi powercords nova and supanova are very flexibel...

a great power cable that is very flexible: e.g., VH AUDIO Airsine.

I get that 12-14 awg should be enough wire for most components, but when I plugged in my 650 wpc monos using the 7 awg WE PCs it was one of the few times  I perceived that cables went beyond simply making a difference to making a definite improvement.  The 7ga cables are 6 runs of 10ga wire into each Furutech FI-11 connector, 2 runs each for pos, neg, and ground.  The 10ga version are more flexible and certainly big enough to handle any audio related load, but for some reason it seems the bigger 7ga cables sound even better on my big amps.

The Puritan sorta reminds me of a wet noodle.

I don't think you could find a PC more supple.

Triode Wire Labs.  Pete's cables are flexible, but more importantly sound great.  Open, transparent with tremendous PRAT.

Audio Envy. Both the P series and the M series are very flexible and sound quite good.

@carlsbad

12G or 14G should suffice for most: 15A outlets have 14G single strand copper, whereas 20A outlets have 12G single strand copper providing power to the outlets. That’s your bottleneck: having 10G power cable feeding from a 14G wire shouldn’t do anymore that a 14G power cable.

@dekay 

I added my components to my virtual system, if that's what you mean. . . 

Look at Furutech they are pretty flexible and sound great.

Well if you want stiff, I've got two 6" wide Passion Masters by DCCA that will pass a ton of current for sale. No Viagra needed.😁

I see no issue with the Puritans as the actual amperage most of us would draw is pretty low and I think the one I have is pretty darned good. I am using Verastarrs presently and will experiment some more with the Puritan.

@jjss49 -

                            "zu’s are very nice cords and very flexible"

     It’s amazing to me: they were able to configure two 9 AWG conductors, plus an 8 AWG ground, in a 3/8" diameter PC, that’s even more flexible than the typical, stock IEC cord.

@ryder 

I use 6N PC4030 Acrolink power cord on my Esoteric UX-3. 

@rodman99999

i agree

zu’s are very nice cords and very flexible

i’m not crazy about sean casey’s speakers, but his cables are excellent, i have a lot of them, great value and performance

I see LOTS of power cables speced at 14 Ga.

     Don’t know if Zu has replaced the Mother, in their lineup, but: I found it an excellent PC and VERY flexible (critical, given my present component/cable configuration).

     Currently: they supply my BAT VK-D5 CDP, phono pre, TacT 2.2X, Cary SLM 100 main amps and I can’t imagine ever needing further upgrade.

     All my other PCs and interconnects are either Synergistic Research or Kimber Kable Selects, so: it’s not like I’m a strict brand-fan.

     They can be hard to find, in the used market, but: well worth the effort.

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/51dd8a95e4b0ff2f7c9874ae/t/56438a03e4b0b66656c31f7f/1447266819018/Mother-2B_CPS.pdf

https://forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/150487/zu-mother-power-cables-1-meter-4

                                             Happy listening!

+1 Puritan.. almost feels like water

Cardas power cords (lower level, which I what I know) seem flexible compared to most (as do lower level Nordost, though I haven’t handled those myself0

Just look at some of the Puritan videos on youtube.  The epitome of flexibility, combined with great performance.

Good power cables are often solid core and hence stiff by nature: to wit: Nordost, Acoustic Revive et al…

I've gone mostly to DIY power cords which are quite unwieldy but, back in the day, I found the offerings from Wolff and 6Sons Audio to be both very good and quite flexible.  6Sons Audio Golden Eagle is the best power cord I've heard.  Neither come up very often but usually are a bargain at used prices.

I have made PCs with Oyaide Tunami V2 bulk cable that sound good but are quite stiff.

I have also made PCs from NOS Western Electric 10ga wire, both in 10ga and 7 ga configurations that sound good and are reasonably flexible too.  The NOS Western Electric 10ga wire is also used by TWL in their American 10 and 7 PCs, and was used by previously by Mojo Audio in their well-regarded PCs. The stuff makes nice speaker cables too.

I am using Furutech cables made by VH Audio with 12 gauge S-032N wire and they are fairly flexible also not total garden hoses. And they sound good.

The Shunyata power cords I use are very stiff, the Acrolink  power cord is very flexible.

May I ask which Acrolink. I have 7N-PC9700 and 8N-PC8100 and both are very stiff.

Based on my limited experience with different power cords, the stiff and heavy ones sound better than the flexible and light ones

Kimber PK series are a good mix of flexible w decent gauge…..Ditto for the lower range Isotek.

DRBond...

How about listing your system (preferably with pics that are not "stock" photos)?

DeKay

When I drink too much whiskey my power cords get limp. Has anyone else ever experienced this phenomena?