Ideal power cord lengths?

OK, so how about this: you bought a great amp from a reputable company and they sent you a power cord with it... HOW ABOUT just use THAT one? 

Would Marantz send an inferior cord with the Ruby?  I don't think so.  Would Hegel or Arcam or Anthem or anybody else with any kind of engineering and reputation send you an amp with a power cord that detracts from the amps performance?  I don't think so.

@boxer12  -  Color me deeply skeptical. 

I don't believe those companies, or any mid to high enders, would scrimp on the power cord if such a scrimp degraded sound quality, especially of their top models but really mostly through the line.  Certainly somebody along the line, in the engineering team or quality control or otherwise, would have spoken up if after all the care and expertise they took in designing a product such as the Marantz Ruby... or take your pick, Accuphase 480, Luxman, whatever.. then the supplied power cord degraded all that work???  I don't think so.  They wouldn't pick a random cord and throw it on.  They would use one that works and works well without degrading the capabilities of the machine.   

If you are bothered by a 5' or 6' cord as too long or too short, well I can see swapping out the cord and making sure you get one at least the equivalent of the supplied cord, to get one of a length you need and leave it at that, if you are concerned with cable management and want to tidy everything up.  But as for sound quality upgrade?  Nope, I don't believe it. 

Some may call me naive, and some might call me critically skeptical: take your pick.

@soix 

I'm not missing the fact that an expensive power cord adds to cost.

I am extremely skeptical that the power cord supplied with a Marantz Ruby, to continue the example, is a detriment at all to its audible performance.

Hey, if it makes one feel better to swap out a cord to a more expensive one, well then do it and feel better.  That's fine, I guess...  but I don't believe it's a wise efficient use of funds when it comes to upgrading for sonic performance, unless it's the one thing that would make one feel better, sleep better, whatever, and that's on you and it's fine.

However, I stand by my overall message of high skepticism, except maybe in extreme cases of crappy or lower level products in the first place but then why would anybody invest more into an inferior poorly-designed overall product?  If the power cord is a problem, why would you trust the product or the company in the first place?  

I suppose one possibility, but it would be a relatively rare one, is if there is some extraordinary electrical weirdness in your home and you need some sort of super shielding, but I've lived in many places of this country in a variety of towns and cities and have never seen it personally except for one house where I had subwoofer hum.  And, if you do detect weirdness, try just plugging in to a different plug, which is a simple solution that instantly solved a subwoofer hum problem that I used to have when watching TV.  I just used a modest "indoor/outdoor" extension cord of adequate length to get the subwoofer onto a separate circuit in the house, a plug controlled by a different breaker than the TV was on, and voila, problem solved.

@ghdprentice

@soix

etc.

Thanks for the welcome, but it’s misplaced.  It's far from early in my journey... But thank you anyway.

Yes, indeed, ears as arbiter I understand very well.

I also understand confirmation bias.

But if spending even more money on a 20k product for a power cord is necessary for you to hear "large improvements"... well, er, then I’d call out the manufacturer on that one because the amp must have some design flaw, because with a good enough amp there’s no such thing as "large improvements" except for system synergy with speakers, maybe dac, maybe... subtle, perhaps audible or perhaps psychological, improvements perhaps... One hopes to hear "large improvements" when one drops $500 or $1000 or more on a power cord or an interconnect, and hope leads to belief leads to thoughts of even greater nirvana if only, if only...

And I also understand priorities, to each his own there, financially and otherwise.

But as an educator, and as an educated long-time audiophile on the side, I do not agree that ignorance is bliss... and I’m also aware of endless, self-imposed rabbit holes that intertwist and eventually lead to more rabbit holes and never a home. So, if that’s where people want to lead the OP down, and if the OP chooses to follow, well then that’s your priorities and the OP’s priorities.

In my considered and experienced opinion, if you’re not satisfied with the sound of your system, and if you have a well-designed modern amp, you’re better off trying different speakers that are more to your taste than dumping money into cords and interconnects.

So, yes, follow your bliss, and if that means pouring money into... cords... well, so be it. Myself, I’m not following into that questionable hole, however, and the OP will just have to weigh everything out and decide for him or her self.

@soix

Ad hominem much?

By your stridency, I do believe I’ve struck a cord... er, chord. 😉

Yes, fine, you and some others have experienced "significant improvements" in the sound of your system by buying expensive cords... great. Enjoy.

Experience = subjective, by definition

Significant = subjective, usually, unless tightly defined

even Improvements = subjective

if we do adhere to the concept of let your ears decide...

... and if the OP wants to follow you into that replacement cord tangle, that’s fine w me... we all have our hobby or hobbies, right?

This subject reminds me of finances, in more than one regard. Esoteric financial products are not superior to intelligently implemented simple products. Many people buy way more insurance than they need... including "whole life" products... because they either don’t know the research or just because it makes them feel better. High priced hedge fund or other active professional managers, or amateur active traders, do not beat the indexed market in the long run, especially once the premium fees are extracted. Any that do, do it by statistical luck, not skill. But, people who buy into all that esoterica in the face of overwhelming long-term academic research to the contrary often feel better anyway and frequently think themselves smarter than us "uneducated" schlubs with our heads in the sand of our low-fee index funds... And that’s fine too.

It’s good to have a hobby, and I’m glad you found one that gets your juices going... more power to you and your system... my hope for you, in all sincerity, is that you someday find your own comfy satisfactory hole, or if you do not, then you will be comfortable with eternal wandering. It’s all good, whatever path you choose.

Few people follow the rabbit holes I follow through Kant and Wittgenstein, so hey... and I don’t blame ’em at all.

And it’s up to the OP or any other audience member to weigh it all out, consider his own priorities, and choose his or her own path, as well.