The fallacy of ac treatment

Keep reading white papers and you will figure it out eventually. But whatever you do, don't contaminate the data by actually listening. Also include "the basic table of elements," theories of super conductivity and the effects of electromagnetic fields on sine waves and harmonics as well as shielding techniques in your research. And please do - get back to us.

PS: Were you wearing a sign on the back of your pants that read "KICK ME" when you started this thread? Or are you open to intellectual discussion?

Snowgoblin: The sign remark was merely rhetorical and was in poor taste - I apologize. Your comments remind me of the white paper trolls that exist at "another" audio site, just go there and click on the SET forum and you will see similarities to posts by people who critique products that they have never owned let alone listened to. Have you ever tried an upgraded power cord yourself? Do you own a stereo or HT system? Do you listen to music other than when in a car/elevator or when placed on hold on the phone? Other than your employment with an electric utility what have been your personal experiences on the subject that you have such an interesting opinion on? If you want to hear what I have to say on the subject I then think that is only fair that I know where you are really coming from. I will start my personal experience off with that, yes I have found that cords do make a difference. I have only tried three cords in my system and they have only been used on the source which is a CD player. Each cord sounded different, and one (a Harmonic Technology Pro 11) sounded better to my ears than the others. Different is not always an improvement, but I will point out again that they all had different sounds that even my wife (who knows nothing about any of this) could easily distinguish. Why they sounded different, I do not know as I only understand the basic principals of the (to me) big word theories that I mentioned above and not the exact science of how they all work. I have also not yet tried the more expensive PC's that are in the talk now. I started out with the stock cord, which was loose fitting and had oxidized contacts. I cleaned the contacts and it sounded better but it was still a pain because it needed the use of a support to maintain good contact (the support that I used interfered with the isolation devices that I use on my CD player). Next I used a generic cord off of another piece of equipment (that I cleaned before installing) and it sounded more muted than the CAL stock cord, I did not like this sound as my player is already pretty laid back in its tonal character. I then purchased the Harmonic Tech, cord which sounded completely different and better. It seemed to increase the amount of detail that I was hearing by no less than 20% and my whole system just sounded better and more musical with increased dynamics (it sounded like I had doubled the power output of my amp). Their were also a few Wow's by friends that stopped by that are both musicians but not into this hobby. If I had better equipment or a different source I do not know if the change would have been as drastic as system synergy is always a big part of the equation, but the comments from the people that I see at this site that do own better equipment and that do actually try upgraded cords make me think that there is a difference or improvement to be had as well and that it may be even more more noticeable in their systems than with my midfi equipment. It does make sense in theory though I doubt if I will ever own such equipment to test it myself. The HT cord was $130.00 used FYI. I also have a very bad power supply to deal with in the area (LA) that I live in. It isn't just the building that I live in it is every building/house that I have lived in for the past 23 years within this local grid system, I have had better juice when I have lived outside of this area. Light bulbs have a tendency to last no longer than 30-40 days. The voltage checks fine per an electrician that installed a new breaker box in my apartment so I assume that the amperage must drop to very low levels (even Halogen lights burn out in 3-4 months). Though I do not believe that my inexpensive Monster power conditioner boosts the amperage it does make an improvement in the sound of my system that is very noticeable during the day when playing light spacious music. I would guess from this that my power is not very clean. So what do you have to say? What walk have you walked?

Joe_coherent: What simple and relatively inexpensive products are you referring to? Are these from personal experience and/or from a technical website? Please share them with us. I am not against DIY or cheap tweaks at all though I don't think that I will be designing my own electronics any time soon.

On the subject of shielding which in a way pertains to this thread, does anyone know of a commonly obtainable material, hopefully sold in sheets that is good for this purpose? My amp has a separate power supply which is easy to place away from the other box that contains the rest of the amp (the input/output sections). However I would like to place my amp directly above my CD player (on a separate shelf) and would like to shield it from the power supply of the CD player below in which the power supply is self contained. I feel that this will help maintain the design philosophy on which my amps were designed. They are the Musical Fidelity X series. I also have two other monoblocks on order (that also have separate power supplies) that I will place on this upper shelf. I have to custom build the shelf myself anyway (out of MDF with a piece of fruit wood trim (persimmon) on the front) as the equipment is in an old Tansu cabinet and would like to include this shielding feature into the design. I do not know if their will be an audible difference, but I figure why not cover all bases when I am constructing the shelf.

Fpeel: Excellent cheap tweak, thanks. I have also seen sheets of thicker aluminum at the lumber yard.

Jeffrt: You may be able to locate him on the "All SS Amps Sound Alike" thread at that other site.

Snobgoblin: A $500.00 or $1500.00 cord is only worth it if you are willing to spend the money and can live with it (and hear it). You would of course want to audition the cord or have a return policy in writing. And you need not start with such an expensive cord. My cord retailed for $250.00 but was purchased for half of that. If the price is what you find upsetting then join the club, you will not find any arguments on this issue. Most IC's and speaker cables are horribly overpriced as well IMO. But some of the more expensive ones sure do sound pretty good and some do not, it is a matter of taste. I view PC's as a form of equalizer or tone control (the same with other cables). They all sound different because of their varied design philosophies which includes not only the materials from which they are made from but also the manner in which they are constructed. Synergy with the associated equipment is also a factor. With all of the talk of solder less connections on IC's it stands to reason that assembly alone can make a sonic difference, and why wouldn't this be true of a PC as well? After all these changes all alter the signal whether it be music or current. Your reasoning that there is a maximum level of quality that can be achieved in a PC that makes any further changes useless, is interesting. Who decides what this level of achievement is. If you cannot hear further improvements or any differences between the cords then I guess that that is the end of the road. But you first need to listen to the cords to get to that point. If I can hear an improvement in my midfi system then you should be able to as well. Try something with a return policy, it need not be expensive (like a LAT), but try something. PC's also require break in like any other cable. I would also suggest that you read "Son of the Circus" if you haven't already.

I trust Voudou, I'm just out of practice.

Whatjg: No pain - no gain. We should probably add a disclaimer as well. "Do not try pins in the power cord yourself at home, ask for a store demo by a qualified professional."