Upgrading power cord.. proven upgrade? or crap?

The level that a power cord will affect a component or entire system is dependent on several factors:

1) The design of the component. Is the product prone to changes in impedance at the source of the power supply ? This can also effect how much electrical "trash" the component can put back INTO the power line.

2) How "dirty" the AC coming into the system is. After all, someone that is living in a large building with TONS of circuitry coming off of one main ( ala a condo, apartment building, hi-rise, etc ) will tend to have more noise to deal with than someone that lives out in the country with minimal draw from their specific pole transformer.

3) If you are using some type of PLC / filtering device in conjunction with aftermarket power cords. Using two different types of devices can either compound the benefits of each in an additive manner, neutralize each other or produce poorer results than a standard cord. One filter ( i.e. power cord ) put in series with another ( i.e. Power Line Conditioner or "PLC" ) can actually "detune" the performance of one or both pieces. On the other hand, you might also end up with something that compliments each other and offers greater performance than either could on their own. As usual, trial and error is about the only way to find out. I'm working on a way to measure various combinations and chart the results.

4) The overall design of the cord in terms of geometries, shielding, impedance, gauge, etc... Obviously, some cords will work better when used within a specific power range than others. In my opinion and given equal designs, you can't have too heavy of a power cord ( short of it weighing too much and making it difficult to work with ). Any reasonable sized power amp should be run with at least a 14 gauge cord at minimum.

5) How good of a connection is made between the cord and wall socket and then again where the cord plugs into the component. This can also be carried back into the cord itself and how good of a connection is made at the IEC and male plug internally.

Having said all of that, i have noticed differences by using various power cords. This is true even though i used to be of the most vocal proponents of the "there is NO way that a power cord could change the system so long as it is not current limited" school of thought. I was wrong and ran my mouth even though i had never tried various designs. Quite honestly, i found the idea preposterous at one point in time. That episode alone taught me a lot and i know better now. Sean
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Ezmerelda11, Rod presents his OPINIONS on a lot of subjects as being "facts". Simply because nobody has taken him up on some of his offers does NOT mean that he is "right" or "unchallenged" in the scientific community. There are plenty of other EE's and Audio Engineers that have points of view that differ from his. Quite considerably i might add.

I do admit that he TYPICALLY tries to cover his comments by putting in well worded disclaimers. As is the case with his dissertation on power cords, he covered himself by stating that his comments do not apply to cords using some type of "built in filter".

With that in mind, MANY good aftermarket or homebrew power cords DO have some type of "built in" filtering action taking place. This is done / can be achieved by using simple geometrical changes to the existing power cables that anybody & everybody is already using or by adding a few inexpensive parts to what is already there. One need not use "fancy" or "expensive" materials to do this.

Depending on the extremes that one is willing to go to, you can measure increased capacitance, a large reduction in the area of inductance, minimized magnetic fields around the cords themselves, less radiated field strength to interfere with nearby low level interconnects and speaker cables, lower noise levels, a reduction in RFI or susceptability to such, lower impedances & line loss, etc... As to whether or not this is audible CAN be debated. None the less, i think that most avid audiophiles are of the opinion that a small gain in one area may have a cumulative effect towards the positive when all are added up as a whole within the system.

As Rod stated in the articles that i read by him, NO cord or PLC can correct for the distortion that is a result of the generators, transformers, power lines, etc.. coming into the house. You literally need some type of power generator or re-generator ( PS Audio ) to do so. However, a well designed power cord CAN reduce OTHER outside influences to a minimum courtesy of built in shunts, traps, tuned circuits, calculated impedance mismatches, etc... If someone is paying big money for cables that do not offer any of these types of circuit innovations, they ARE wasting their money.

Having said that, i think most of you know where i stand on "fancy wires". I really AM a believer in wire & cabling having the potential to alter the performance of a system ( good or bad ). I am also a believer that there is a limit to what can be done in this area and think that there is a definite point of diminishing returns. I think that Rod feels the same way, but has MUCH lower levels of expectations from "fine tuning" wire and cables than i and many others do.

As such, I have to agree with him that most "hi-end" wire & cable companies are nothing more than con artists peddling their wares to the unsuspecting and gullible. Like it or not, that is MY perspective on things. You can love me or hate me for stating such and agree or disagree with me. Either way, we've already been down this road more than a few times with similar results to where this thread is going. That's why we have archives and the Audiogon search engine. Sean
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