2. cables
  3. 153442-5418

Which of these power cords ?

I'm looking to upgrade my sound with upgraded power cords. Given I've got a tube preamp, 2 mono block tube amps, Aurender DAC and 2 Martin Logan speakers - we're talking up to 7 power cords so I'd like to keep the total cost for all of them to $1000ish. 

And some suggest going with one brand, to get the biggest benefit.

Brands on short list include:
Suggestions?

cdc2
lak's avatar
Ag insider logo xs@2x
lak
4,550 posts
 
@cdc2, If you want to keep the price of power cords between $100 - $150 per cord I'd recommend looking for used Cerious Technologies Graphene line of their Blue, Red, or Yellow power cords, assuming you can find them in your price range.
Although you did not include the following power cord, I also believe the old original Synergistic Research Reference A/C Master Coupler power cord would work very well also.
calvinj
2,283 posts
 
Clarity Cable Vortex. I have tried 30 different brands in 10 years. They only ones that beat them were the mega buck cords that retail for 2k plus. They give great soundstage. They provide more air and space at the top. Open mids and full lower mids with good bass. 
julianstevens
6 posts
 

A good place to start, as a low cost reference, is a DIY power cord using something like Belden 20A (the same stuff that comes as the stock cord with Krell amplifiers).  It's sufficiently stout to be a bit of a challenge, but not impossible.  I bought a 250m drum of it for about $200 (admittedly many years ago), made up my own cords and used them as a benchmark.  I've not tried many costly alternatives since but none of those that I have tried has produced significantly different let alone better results.  I even sold a few of my home made cords to local hi-fi dealers who were impressed with the quality of my workmanship as well as the quality of the cords themselves.

The prices of far too many "specialist" power cords (and many other cables of varying types) are just crazy and not remotely worth the money.  Strictly for those who don't know what else to spend their money on.

kcokeefe
2 posts
 
For anyone interested in an explanation regarding why power cables make an audible difference, please read https://www.gcaudio.com/tips-tricks/why-power-cables-make-a-difference. Granted, the source of the information is from the founder of Shunyata Research (which is a manufacturer of power cables) so it should be taken with a grain (shaker?) of salt. However, the logic is sound and I have heard the difference myself. I too was once skeptical, but I am not anymore.

The derisive argument often given (see the earlier post by chinook9) is that since the electricity has already traveled 500 miles through all sorts of nasty wire, replacing the last 3 feet with something better cannot possible fix the damage already done. The flaw in that argument is that from the AMPLIFIER's perspective the power cord is the FIRST 3 feet, not the LAST. The alternating current does not flow (like water) from the power company into your amplifier. It oscillates with the current entering and leaving your amplifier via the power cord. The power cord is basically an EXTENSION of the amplifier's transformer which can eliminate EMI/RFI before it enters the amplifier's transformer.
robert53
420 posts
 
Transparent and ESP make very good power cords and have affordable models. 
More to discover