Question about assembling my own DIY AC Cable

Correction, HT speaker cables actually use PE (air-foamed polyethylene with air bubbles as the main dielectric), not PTFE, as the insulation.

I built my own power cables but didn't know of this video...and therefore didn't separate the cable as shown.....difficult to get it all neatly into the plug, but I did.....I really like the sound. I found that the plugs (I used the top Furuitech) did the most for sound quality.

I never had a wire that couldn’t be stripped using a tool like that, with the exception of cotton or silk covered wires. However, it is important to use the correct hole size matching the wire diameter. Another trick if you are having difficulty is to carefully give the tool a twist to create a cut in the insulation as a starting point, and then pull outward. You need to be really careful doing this with small diameter wires as it can be easy to break or cut through an individual wire.

In your case, with 7 wires having an aggregate area of 5.53 mm squared, your individual wires are likely somewhere between 18-19 awg. I have quite a bit of experience re-terminating Harmonic Technology speaker cables, which are similar in that they are made from multiple small gauge (20-24 awg in the HT cable) wires encased in Teflon. In the case of HT wire, I found the fingernail approach to actually be the easiest way to remove the insulation. I was usually able to strip one side of each individual wire and then pull the remaining insulation away from the wire and then use a small snippers to cut it off. It can wear out your fingers if you have a lot of wires to strip. One difference between your wire and the HT wire is that the insulation on the HT wire was foamed Teflon. Your situation may be more difficult. Good luck.

@jond 

Yep, it's DIY sounds good tho very neutral 

Nice looking amp is it DIY?

A wire stripping tool has always worked best for me, with thin coverings and even with foamed Teflon.  You should know the gauge of your wire and be careful because you can break the wires if not careful.

Tyvm I'll do that

btw, do you have some suggestions how to remove the teflon surrounding each conductor? I peeled it off like peeling potatoes with a rather dull kitchen knife but there might be better ways of doing it.

The teflon is almost like chewing gum super sticky and elastic. I tried to simply make a 360 degree cut but somehow that didn't work and I didn't want to cut with too much foce risking to cut into the copper.

I have done this many times so I probably have a better feel for what the wires can take before breaking than others who haven't made a lot of cables.  The idea is to twist them together just tight enough so they act like a single twisted wire and then you can feed them into the connector easier - they don't need to be any tighter.  Seven wires equaling an aggregate 5.53 mm square is just smaller than about 18 awg per strand.  Wires that size are more resilient than you might think, especially copper.  Just go slow and easy and you shouldn't break the individual wires.

You don't think it will create kinks or maybe even break? They are 1mm each in diamater 

thanks for the answer

You can start with the exposed, stripped ends of the wire being a bit long (like 1/4 inch or 2mm longer than you need) and then use a pliers to grip them at the end and twist them together. The very end where you gripped the wires with the pliers will be screwed up so you cut the ends off so that all three sets of twisted wires are equally long and the ends look tidy.

Or is it better if the individual strands are a bit apart from each other and just insert them like this into the connector?

What am I supposed to do with all these strands? They are solid core and quite stiff I don't think it's possible to twist them together.

Should i just bundle them together in 2 branches and use a heatshrink were the green, black and red insulation is still there to keep them bundled together?

@carlsbad said:

Do your tube amps not like shielded cables terminated on both ends (may cause ground loop) or were you saying that there is a problem if they are grounded only on one end?

For a better word a shielded power cord sucks the air out of the music.

As for grounds loops..., I must be blessed I have never experienced ground loop hum from any audio equipment I have ever owned.

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I also used the furutech contact  on the plug wires. Others have stated they don't like the rhodium plugs, only needed in a harsh saltwater environment. 

This is the neotech one I have sitting that I have not tried  yet. I just have a plug not an iec  in this one my turntable has a captive powercord and I bought this one to try on the turntable.  

https://www.partsconnexion.com/FTECH-74278.html

This is the gold receptacles I mentioned 

https://www.partsconnexion.com/FTECH-81015.html

These are the rhodium  ones I have. 

https://www.partsconnexion.com/FTECH-85538.html

This is the gold one

https://www.partsconnexion.com/FTECH-85537.html

This is the rhodium  48 I was talking about. 

https://www.partsconnexion.com/

This is the top of the line one I was referring  to 

Sorry I had the number wrong for the copper one. Lol getting  old

As your post above mine f148 and fi15 furutech.  

@rayleigh 

@retiredfarmer 

Which plugs are you talking about? The Furutech or Viborg?

You mentioned "four sets of 48" and "one set of the 15"

@rayleigh 

I have each one.of those plugs. Theory one I have not bought is the first 48 plated in silver. I have a few sets in rhodium and a few sets of the very best rhodium plug as well. Lol I cheaper out and bought four sets of the 48 rhodium ones and I have five sets of the Top one as well in rhodium  plating. I also bought one set of the 15 in copper. I have a neotech gold as well have not tried that on anything yet. The basic copper plug set to me has the resolution  of the rhodium  plated ones and the musicality  of the gold plated one but not the detail of either of the other two. I bought some of the carbon fiber covers I slipped over the plug and iec ends. That did make them a bit better. Where I liked those covers the best was over the 46 gold plated plugs the resolution  got better and still had the swing of the gold plated ends. Also I have some of the best rhodium  receptacle s and some of the best gold receptacles.  Some components  I like a rhodium  plug into a gold receptacle and vise Vera. Some sound best with all gold or all rhodium  in the chain. Lol that takes lots of time and listening  to decide  which way to go. 

Regards 

Furutech replied already:

The listed products (FI-46, FI-48, FI-50) have pure OFC grade copper with no nickel plating and direct gold or rhodium plating. It is not a copper alloy.
I hope this information helps.

Kind regards,
Graeme
Furutech Co., Ltd.
Tokyo

I agree with @audphile1 @erik_squires ​​​​@jea48 - don’t overthink it.

You are almost surely plugging the plug into a wall receptacle or power conditioner with brass, phosphor bronze, or beryllium copper contacts, and depending on what was used in your amplifier, you are probably plugging the IEC into an inlet with one of those same materials, unless either the designer used a higher level Furutech IEC inlet or you upgraded it. Furutech apparently uses copper connectors in their upper level products, as shown here.

Don’t overthink it. No need to know the molecular breakdown here. Use good connectors and you’ll be fine. 
I suggest contact enhancer mainly to prevent oxidation on bare wires over time from the remnants of oils left from your fingers. Deoxit will do as well. 

If you use copper as a base metal in a connector I can guarantee you it's not pure, and that's just fine.

I sent an email to Furutech now and asked them if their copper is alloyed

Well as I said they are plated with with oxygen free copper, silver and rhodium. But also on the official website it says pure copper.

You guys raised a concern now, idk if I should send them back :(
This plug here is pure copper, FI-46, Fi-48 and FI-50 are all pure copper

Oyaide indeed uses phosphor bronze and beryllium copper for their more expensive ones. Neotech uses OCC copper.

Idk what to do now, you guys raised a serious concern. It just feelsbad to pay $200+ for 2 connectors if I don’t even have a network streamer or a DDC.

The cable itself costed me $90 for 1.5 meters.

@jea48 I think you are right. I didn’t translate terminology correctly into european plugs.

PS  Do your tube amps not like shielded cables terminated on both ends (may cause ground loop) or were you saying that there is a problem if they are grounded only on one end?

rayleigh OP

3 posts

09-06-2022 at 11:53am 

I will connect it to my tube amp here is a picture of it

FWIW, my tube ARC amps don't like shielded power cords.

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@mitch2 and @erik_squires ,

You beat me to it...

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rayleigh OP

3 posts

09-06-2022 at 11:51am

jea48 said:

Pure copper is a soft metal and does not have any memory retention properties. Copper contacts of the IEC will not hold the female contacts tightly against the IEC inlet male plug blades...

@rayleigh said:

I disagree, all audiophile IEC’s even from Furutech or Oyaide have the conductors of pure copper.

Are you sure about that? All female IEC connector contacts are made of pure copper? I see the Furutech says pure copper but I would bet the copper has some sort of a alloy that gives it memory tension.

Furutech top line grounding type 125V duplex receptacles use copper contacts but you will notice Furutech uses a non ferrous stainless steel spring clip for its’ memory tension to maintain a tight solid fit connection against the male plug blades.

Here is what Oyaide uses on the C-004 female IEC connector. Beryllium provides the memory tension.

The basic material for the Oyaide C-004 is Beryllium Copper, which provides maximum conductivity, strength, and a secure contact.

https://www.vhaudio.com/oyaide-c-004.html

I have an AudioQuest 125V duplex outlet that also uses Beryllium Copper for its’ contacts.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I would suggest you check with a credible source if the IEC connector you are looking at is just pure copper.... Pure copper alone is soft copper.

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Pure copper is closest to stranded wire.  Imaging using stranded wire to grip anything.  😁  Even if you use solid core wire, imagine using 12 gauge wire to grip something.  It's impossible unless extremely short. You must have an alloy. 

However, pure copper under pressure like under a screw in an outlet, now that's a good connection.,

Pure copper is a soft metal and does not have any memory retention properties. Copper contacts of the IEC will not hold the female contacts tightly against the IEC inlet male plug blades...

The above quote is correct and is the primary reason that many AC plugs and IECs actually do not use pure copper, although some have figured out a way to use pure copper contacts in some of their products and still provide the necessary gripping tension, like this product from Furutech. This link to Oyaide indicates their use of phosphor bronze and beryllium copper contacts, which is actually common.

I will connect it to my tube amp here is a picture of it

Pure copper is a soft metal and does not have any memory retention properties. Copper contacts of the IEC will not hold the female contacts tightly against the IEC inlet male plug blades...

I disagree, all audiophile IEC's even from Furutech or Oyaide have the conductors of pure copper.

Yarbo looks like a nice cable. Are you sure you want to use those cheap plugs on it? I’d go for something like Furutech, Neotech, Oyaide or Wattgate. 
 

Wish I could afford it. I have a Gustard x26 Pro DAC which was my biggest investment so far and a lovely dyi headphone tube amp. I am using Acoustic Revive USB Cable and RCA.

Connected to my gaming computer. 

I don't even have a network streamer yet, 

Also neither Oyaide and other big brands make male plug for my country which looks like this,

I think using an adapter gives sonic detriment. But I agree some Neotech OCC female plugs would have been nice.

Do you guys think contact enhancer makes a big difference? 
I might still have some Stabilant 22A around.

Yarbo looks like a nice cable. Are you sure you want to use those cheap plugs on it? I’d go for something like Furutech, Neotech, Oyaide or Wattgate. 

The specific answer to your question is that with Furutech plugs and IECs, the connector consist of a clamp with center set screw, as shown below.  Therefore, best practice is to split the wire so that half goes into each side of the clamp.

@audphile1 made a good suggestion to coat the exposed conductors contact enhancer before clamping.  

@rayleigh ,

Looking at the specs of the IEC connector:

Conductor: Pure Copper

Pure copper is a soft metal and does not have any memory retention properties. Copper contacts of the IEC will not hold the female contacts tightly against the IEC inlet male plug blades... A poor connection can causes micro arcing and cause harmonic distortion. I would look for a better IEC connector.

What wire gauge equivalent is the Hot and neutral conductors?

The individual insulated conductors look like solid core silver plated copper wire. Yes? That’s good...

What piece of equipment will the cord be connected to? Analog? Digital?

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@carlsbad  said:

Put the red cable and black cable in the hot pins and the green to the neutral.  The connectors are probably marked.  

Me thinks you need to reconsider your thinking...

I would terminate the black banded conductors on the neutral pin terminal of the male plug, the red banded conductors on the Hot pin terminal, and the green banded conductors on the ground pin terminal. I would only connect the shield drain wire to the ground terminal on the male plug. Float the drain wire on the female IEC connector end...

YARBO SP-1100PW Triple Shielded Power Cable OCC

Jim

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Remember that the green gets connected at both ends, but the shield connects to the green wire only at the wall.

PS - I am not a fan of Rhodium plating.  It's not that conductive and it's too hard of a surface which makes it harder to grip well. If you must do rhodium plated plugs consider hospital grade outlets to ensure a tight fit.

I also like SonarQuest rhodium plated connectors. Good quality and they sound good.

Let us know how you like the viborg.  I haven't seen anything to make me think they are better than other Chinese connectors other than they gave them a name.

TBH, I just bought the Viborg connector that goes to the wall because it was the only one for my country that uses copper for all the components of the conductor. All other brands use brass.

As far as the IEC plug, I admit I chose the Viborg one because it looks really pretty and it's a reputable brand. The conductors are made out of copper and plated with oxygen-free copper, silver, and the final plating with rhodium. It cost me like $35.

The Viborg IEC connectors with plastic housing cost much less and since the interior components are the same, they cost around $23.

There is another Chinese brand called Monosaudio. They also have an aluminum housing IEC with copper conductors and they use 4 different platings: copper, silver, palladium, and rhodium. It is about $7-$10 less expensive.

All the other Chinese brands just use brass and then plate it with gold or rhodium.

I used bare wire split in two for my Furutech FP-S055n with FI-50 NCF build connecting the wires to clamps. It’s easier to insert and clamp down. Be careful cutting thru insulation to not cut the wires. When you twist the wires I would recommend using contact enhancer or deoxit to remove oils you left with your fingers when you touched the bare wires.

I have furutech wire and use  there rhodium plated spades to connect to there plugs. It's pretty easily done but it takes longer than you'd expect.  In the video you posted a link to is simply showing you without the spades. When you stab those wires in it's hard to get them all in on both sides of the screw, and some of the shield also has to fit in the ground at the wall end only, I like the spades much better and there way easier to stab. They used to cost around 38 bucks for a 10 pack I believe. The cable went from $480 to over $550 per meter just because they can. 

I love these power cords and have about 6 of them now.