Power Cord Length


Here's one for the electric wizards to kick around. Whilst attending Axpona this weekend I was doing some power cord shopping. At one particular display I was being told by a very well known cable company representative, I'll not mention the name so it doesn't influence any responses, that the rule of thumb is that in order for the pwr cord to be effective it needs to be at least five feet long. This allows the current to be in the cord long enough for it to be effective. Ok, I'm really dumb when it comes to this sort of thing so maybe I said that in the most simpliest of words but that's pretty much how it was explained. Anyone care to elaborate on this good or bad?
jackcoke

Showing 2 responses by lp2cd

I'm sorry, but as far as I'm concerned, exotic AC power cords are pretty much a silly waste of time and money. As a simple general rule, the shorter the cord and the heavier the gauge the better. Both result in less resistance/better current flow and reduced potential for EMI and RFI effects. And if one is really plagued with RFI (I have 2 FM transmitters within 1 km of my studio), clamp a ferrite choke around the end of the cord where it plugs into your equipment. My studio system is dead silent and clean as can be.

That said, I never thought I'd be buying power cords. I have a bushel basket full of them. Nevertheless, a while back I bought a whole box full of 14 AWG 3 prong male NEMA 5-15P to 3 prong female IEC C13 cords in 1, 2 and 3 ft. lengths from our good friends at Monoprice. They are very well made, help clean up the mess of cables behind the equipment rack, and reduce the potential for problems. Prices start at $1.10 for a 1' cord and go up proportionately. Here:
http://www.monoprice.com/category?c_id=102&cp_id=10228&cs_id=1022801

So save your money and spend it where you'll get far more benefit, on, say, more LPs or an early retirement or whatever.

Ahem. "I just thought somebody could explain why this company rep said what he said, other then to just make you spend more money on a longer cord." I believe you answered your own question quite well enough. There is no reliable, double-blind, independent research *that I am aware of* that clearly shows any significant difference among reasonably well constructed power cords. What HAS been clearly and significantly demonstrated, repeatedly, over the years is the placebo effect. If you *think* it will sound better, it *will* sound better, at least to you, and for the ridiculous money it bloody well ought to! A little confirmation bias helps one along, too.

Well, good luck. For me, just spending money is NOT a hobby. I’ve rather better places for it.