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Nova Power Cord Model (M101 silver) Review

Nova Power Cord Model (M101 silver) Review.

First a little background of myself, ozzy.

I am now retired for about 6 years. Previously I was Senior Purchasing Agent and before that Senior Engineer for a large Manufacturing company a total of 42 years.

I have been a long-time member of Audiogon, and several other on-line forums. I have been in this hobby for 50+ years. Heck, I go back so far that when I was 18, I was a Manager of an Allied Radio Shack Store. Remember Allied Radio? Remember when Radio Shack bought them? I have also built many Heathkits and have experimented in many projects through the years from normal to the insane.

But I have always been fascinated about the relationship of the AC power to the sound of an audio system. As has been repeated so many times, how can 5 feet of cable make a difference when there are miles of power lines running to my house? I know I understand, but is it the last 5 feet or the first?

Naturally, I have dedicated lines terminated in Furutech NCF outlets. I have owned/tried so many power conditioners from the likes of PS Audio, Shunyata, Synergistic, Core power, and so many more. I have also owned power cables from companies such as, Purist Dominus, Nordost Valhalla, Synergistic, Virtual Dynamics, Hi Fidelity, Shunyata, Audioquest and on and on. I share this info so again; you can tell my sincerity about power cables. I have a passion (obsession?) for them!

My latest effort was a set of DIY power cords that I made using pure .9999 10 ga solid soft silver in a very high-grade oversized PTFE, braided, twisted, treated with Nano liquid and then finished with Furutech best NCF connectors. They look very similar in construction to the Audioquest Dragon configuration. They have beat all other power cords that I had tried before them. They have made me happy and content.

So now on to the review of the Nova power cables.

First off, I would like to thank Lubos (bewgow on Audiogon) for allowing me to demo his cables. My understanding is that all of his cables utilize copper wiring and Furutech NCF connectors. I will add that I became interested in these cables from a review on Audiogon that millercarbon started and was sorry to see it go off the rails.  I asked bewgow for a couple demos to try. In a few days they arrived.

The Nova (silver) power cord.

Since I am using mono block amps, I needed 2 power cables. One about 3 meters and the other about 2 meters long. Lubos was kind enough to send me these 2 lengths. The power cords will be connected to my Audioquest Niagara 7000 power conditioner.

I am not sure of the actual wire gauge utilized by the Nova, all Lubos would reveal was that it consists of using a special wire geometry. I personally didn’t think it stood a chance against my heavy gauge pure solid silver conductors.

First listen, and I must say, the Nova cable sounded better. Never would have believed it. No way. But it is. There is so much more air and life in its presentation. Instruments extend left/right front/ back. Very impressive. There is a feeling of intimacy in the soundstage that draws you into the music. Women’s voices have that “tongue in the ear” effect. You guys know what I mean…Very inviting. Listen to Linda Ronstadt sing “Blue Bayou” you’ll get it.

The soundstage is wider and deeper. Usually when the music sounds this pure there is a sacrifice at the frequency extremes. But not with this cable. The bass is tight and deep and the highs shimmer elegantly. Since receiving the Nova cables, I have been playing music that I have heard so many times in so many different formats through the years that I could probably write the sheet music. And yet, now for the first time they sound entirely different and so engaging. Fantastic!

I like listening to live recorded music. Mostly rock music. With the Nova cables there is a new found pleasure in the openness in the performance. Even some of the earlier recordings like Creedence Clearwater revival At Woodstock is highly enjoyable.

When you hear your system sounding this right, I knew I had to have this cable. Now, if only I had some more items to sell on Audiogon, hmm… Or how to convince my wife I need a couple more power cords…?

But, oh boy can I recommend this power cord.

ozzy


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Showing 9 responses by millercarbon

millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
The way I read it facten he is saying the "prices" are good for "up to" 2m, not that they have to be 2m. I bet he can make you some for 1 to 1.5m.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
For those who may have missed the news, I consulted with Lubos quite a bit in the beginning. It was one of his test cables he sent me to begin with. Turned out he was testing me as much as I was testing his cable. Smart guy. Then prototypes that came after that. He is his own man and does his own thing but I can tell you all without any doubt he is well informed, has a viable plan and it is working, far as I can tell, just fine.

Ozzy is right, there is a lot of value in these just in raw parts alone. But of course the real value is in knowing how to use the raw materials. There are parts like the connectors Ozzy mentioned that are expensive, but there is a lot more going on than simply using expensive parts.

I have no idea what is going on inside either of these cables (and wouldn’t tell even if I did, as that is something Lubos worked long and hard to figure out) but whatever it is the results speak for themselves. If you can find a better power cord for the money, buy it. Good luck.

Price by the way, never will understand why people are so perpetually stumped by Econ 101. Somewhere along the way researching a cable one time I found myself talking with a guy in California. Some years back he developed a ribbon speaker cable. Ribbon construction is so inherently advantageous the cables sounded so good for such a good price he was swamped. I wanted him to make me some for internally wiring my Moabs. Then he told me his story in detail.

Long story short, he got so swamped with orders it became his life. Even then he was backlogged and dealing with complaints. Problem was, building these things called for a very specialized set of skills. Couldn’t be automated, and impossible to find anyone else to train and do it for pay. Poor old logical me says double the price, triple it, quadruple- whatever it takes to get to the point where the high price lowers demand to where he can build them and stay on top of it and feel it well worth the time.

This used to be plain old common sense. Now we have universities handing out degrees to people who know less coming out than going in. So of course no one gets it. Notable exceptions, myself and Lubos. He has his cables priced to outperform and offer greater value than anything else at that price- while at the same time paying him enough to be worth the trouble to make.

He is selling them worldwide. Most customers never bother to post, but I gather they are happy. Ozzy sure seems to still be happy with his. I think he knows his target market just fine.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
The target audience as I see it whynner is two clearly defined segments. One, people with already very good power cords they paid $5k or even more for. Those people will find they can sell them for enough to buy Nova and get a nice improvement for zero net cost. The other segment is people who have experienced good entry level power cords and are looking to significantly upgrade. Granted the "entry" level for Moneoone is $2500, but these folks will have a hard time finding better without spending a lot more.   

Bump up the scale to Supernova and the same holds true there as well, just the numbers are bigger.  

We did a comparison here with a guy who was absolutely convinced power cords cannot possibly make any difference at all. When the Supernova went in he changed his mind so fast he let out a gasp while the needle was still in the lead-in groove.   

Doesn't make him the target market, I doubt he will be spending that kind of money on a power cord any time soon. But it does show how these things sound so good even someone totally skeptical winds up changing their mind in no time flat. Thus he is a good example of someone who will probably be looking at entry level power cords and then maybe eventually progressing to Nova level at some point down the road and has his system improves.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
That's why I ask the question what power cables do you have so I know before I send the cables out. After I asked the question you withdrew the offer to audition.

I see. Now I get the jest of it.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
rh67,

Sorry but you’re missing it. Let me be clear. Both Nova and Supernova are very high performance power cords. The freebie power cord was NOT used because that is how low you have to go for Supernova to sound better. The freebie was only used because I have one handy and Dana was sure the freebie would be just as good. He found out just how wrong that is.

Now you are are saying there was not going to be a big difference with what you have, without saying anything about what you have! What do you have? Because there is no lack of confidence. Unless you have spent a good deal AND made a very good choice I am real confident either one of these will be a lot better.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
Actually ozzy it is totally the point. It only seems different to you because you are past the denial stage. You know very well how important these things are and so to you the test is comparing one against the other in order to determine first which is better, and second by how much. You are down to figuring out what to spend your money on. That is a completely different thing than what we are talking about here.

The point is there is a difference, and it is huge. The guy who was listening, to him that is the whole point, the whole enchilada, the whole shebang. He thought there was no difference whatsoever. Was sure there could not possibly be any difference. He found out otherwise. Precisely the point.  

Now if you want to ask is it necessary to use a $10k PC to prove the point, that is yet another question. Now you are talking about how much of a difference does it take before someone will notice. The answer is: no one knows. Because you are talking hypotheticals. My example was an example. Nothing hypothetical about it. Actually happened.

There are by the way two ways of finding out the same thing. One is you can change and try lots of different power cords. Another is you can change and try lots of different recordings, and different systems. Generally the best recordings and systems will make it a lot easier to discern differences between things like this. But there is yet another way, and this time we stumbled upon it quite by accident.

When Dana exclaimed he could hear the improvement even while the needle was still in the lead-in groove, well that goes beyond recording quality. That goes beyond system quality. When all you hear is a freaking blank groove and yet the power cord is so good it extracts detail even from a smooth blank groove - AND does it so obviously even a guy who is in total doubt and denial is forced to say WOW! - well now folks you know you are talking a very high level of high end power cord.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
I had a guy over Saturday, he couldn't believe a power cord could ever make any difference. So I replaced the Moneoone Supernova with a freebie rubber power cord. Let him listen to a little Steve Miller, Space Intro. Then put the Supernova back in. 

The needle barely hits the groove when I hear him exclaim, "Wow! That is amazing!"

Yes, the improvement was so vast even the lead-in groove sounded better! Ha! 
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
Some background on this since the guy is so new, when Lubos first reached out to me it was largely because I was on the record as being down on DIY cables. So he knew I would be tough. Also my system is all tube and analog, most of his testing was SS and digital.   

The first one he sent me, I assumed it was his best but it turned out to be a test. That first one got no review from me because it just wasn't review-worthy. It did throw a captivating sound stage with awesome imaging, but it was lean and hyped and not that balanced a presentation. Turns out he tells me later he KNEW this was the case, that one was focused on imaging. 

This has been told before but it bears repeating, because how often do you find a DIY'er who not only acknowledges the flaws but knows why they are there and what he is going to do about it?  

I have never heard the Nordost Odin2, but I have heard other Nordost and I am familiar with listener impressions and would not be surprised to be throwing the same criticism at Odin2 if i had one. Fast lean and hyped is the curse of our times, but a lot of guys seem to like it. Fine. Just bear in mind where I am coming from. When I say his first was lean and hyped, probably a whole lot of audiophiles would be saying what are you talking about this thing rocks! 

It also helps to understand what it means when I reviewed both Nova and Supernova and said Nova had some edge and grain, or a sense of hardness, that is not there with Supernova. Without Supernova to compare against I would be talking about how fast and liquid smooth Nova is. Especially once it fully burns in.  

Does not look like anything special. Ozzy has had a lot more high end power cords to look at, would be nice to know what he thinks about these from a purely appearance point of view. To me the Nova looks like a Master Coupler with clear plastic instead of the usual black mesh. You can see the braid inside. The whole thing is kind of tight, nothing like the air dielectric used on Supernova. So two completely different geometries and designs. Yet they both work extremely well. 


millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
What I said. "Never would have believed it" should have been "everything I was expecting based on millercarbon’s review." But all the same, good to hear it is everything I said it was, and then some. A beautiful description of what I heard. Thank you for corroborating.

If you think Nova is fantastic, which it is, you should hear Supernova. Also if you like the way Nova sounds now, just wait. My review was focused more on Supernova. That was the one I happened to try first, that was the one with the most hours, and Nova never really had as much time to fully come into its own.

Because of some other things I was reviewing Nova was put aside a while. I wanted to get a better handle on Supernova, and also of course the Townshend F1 speaker cable and interconnect.

Once I was sure those had stabilized then Nova went back in. That was about 2-3 weeks ago. Now with more hours this combination of Nova and Supernova is truly spectacular. Had a local audio bud over the other night, as he said, "How much more detail can you get??!" This from a system that to look at it no one would ever expect it to be right up there with the very best astronomically expensive SOTA. It is. Thanks in large part to exceptionally fine wire.


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