NOS Western Electric wire used for power cables??

What makes Mojo-Audio's product more of a risk to by and use as Shunyata?

The fact that the wire and its insulation are many decades old. Perhaps that is made irrelevant by the fact that "the stranded wire used to make these power cords was engineered by Western Electric for use as an AC power conductor in high end applications like military and professional grade products" (quoting the Mojo writeup), but I would be hesitant to bet the safety of my house or its occupants on it :-)

I am an antique radio collector, and having encountered and replaced power wiring and other internal wiring in a great many 1930's radios that had brittle and/or crumbling insulation, I would advise caution.

Regards,
-- Al

I have no particular knowledge of this wire, and so I express no opinion about its performance, aside from emphatically seconding the cautions that have been expressed about safety. For instance, if the user were to bend an assembled cable or cord, what degree of confidence is there that the insulation within will not crack or disintegrate?

Beyond that, in terms of sonic performance, I think that Elizabeth's skepticism is well justified. Given the revered status among many audiophiles of the drivers from 1930's Western Electric theater speakers, as reflected in the astronomical prices they go for, as well as some of their 1930's tubes (such as the 300B), it would seem entirely expectable that attempts would be made to capitalize on brand name recognition, by marketing other WE products that do not have anything special about them. Caveat emptor.

Best regards,
-- Al

Early in this thread I made two posts, raising what I consider to be legitimate questions and concerns, from the perspective of someone who, as I stated, has no particular knowledge of the products. Based on what has been said in the subsequent posts by Ben and many others, a follow-up seems appropriate.

One of the two issues I raised concerned the merits of the product, and whether it might simply be an attempt to capitalize on the aura that surrounds the name Western Electric. It seems to me that that question has been satisfactorily answered by the many subsequent responses -- the product obviously provides good value to many people in many systems.

The second issue I raised was to question the present and future integrity of the wire's insulation, in view of its age. Obviously, that concern only pertains to those of Ben's products which are made from many decades old WE wire, which was the subject of the original post. I raised that issue because, as I stated, I have encountered MANY cases of brittle and crumbling insulation on wiring in 1930's radios I have restored.

In many of those cases, the insulation consisted of a rubbery material, perhaps similar to the rubbery material used on the WE wires, or perhaps not.

My feeling is that the many subsequent posts have provided grounds for considerably increased confidence with respect to that issue, but obviously not 100.00% confidence. So as Elizabeth said, the issue has been discussed, pro and con, and we can all make our own decisions.

One last word, concerning the debate between Ben and Simply_q about "low resistance." It seems obvious to me that both parties have a good understanding of the electrical principles involved, and anyone familiar with Simply's post history will realize that he is exceptionally knowledgeable about many technical matters. The controversy arose because of differing interpretations of phraseology. Ben was using the term "low resistance" as contrasted with zero resistance. Simply_q interpreted the term as being incorrectly used in contrast with high(er) resistance.

I suggest that we make an effort to consider the intended meaning behind each other's words before adding unnecessary fuel to the fire.

Regards,
-- Al