Power Cords-Sonic impact by component?

[skids929]

I am going through the maddening exercise of listening to power cords..I swore I would not do this but alas..

What I am curious about as I experiment and move these cords around is what component others have found the most sonic impact occured with aftermarket PCs. I have two UPOCC silver cables in 14 and 11 gauge, they sound very nice, smooth and transparent overall. I was told it would impact front end source components the most, but I am finding is both cables to varying degrees is effecting my amplifier the most, without any shadow of a doubt.

Just wanted to put this out there and learn what others have experienced and learned from PC experimentation. Part of why I ask this is because I am trying to step my way through this as an upgrade and place them in the place(s) that make the most difference, rather than just put them on everything because they are expensive as some components.

 

[Cellcbern]

I am going through the maddening exercise of listening to power cords..I swore I would not do this but alas..

What I am curious about as I experiment and move these cords around is what component others have found the most sonic impact occured with aftermarket PCs. I have two UPOCC silver cables in 14 and 11 gauge, they sound very nice, smooth and transparent overall. I was told it would impact front end source components the most, but I am finding is both cables to varying degrees is effecting my amplifier the most, without any shadow of a doubt.

Just wanted to put this out there and learn what others have experienced and learned from PC experimentation. Part of why I ask this is because I am trying to step my way through this as an upgrade and place them in the place(s) that make the most difference, rather than just put them on everything because they are expensive as some components.

Audio Exotics matches different brands/models of power cords to each component in the systems they show and sell-independent of the rest of the loom. That’s because power cords have a bigger impact on sound quality than interconnects and speaker cables. Pursuing a similar approach, I have ended up with a different brand of power cable on each component. The PC between the wall outlet and your power conditioner/distributor is critical to get right because it influences the sound of every other component. Very important that it not restrict instantaneous current draw. Of course it really is “trial and error”. You have to listen to different PC’s on different components to discover which work best while also promoting system synergy. In my experience power cables have a significant impact on amplifier performance, while noise filtering cables specifically have the biggest impact on digital sources. The LessLoss CMARC Entropic PC for example (which filters out high frequency noise) is the most natural and musical I’ve ever heard on a cd/sacd player or other digital source. If you can borrow one to listen to try it on your amp too. I have never heard an all silver conductor cable that didn't sound tipped up in the treble, lean lower down, and "light" overall so I don't use them. On the other hand, to my ears silver-gold alloy conductor power cables, in particular Echole and Fono Acustica, surpass all of the copper and silver conductor cables I've heard in sheer musicality.

I've owned several different Class A (hybrid - I have to have tubes in the chain) integrated amps in the same power range as your Sugden, and currently have two, both heavily modified/upgraded - A Pathos TT RR which is my main amp, and a Unison S6 which is my backup. The power chords that stand out for me as stellar performers with these amps are the Hemingway Z-Core Beta which I am currently using, the Echole Omnia which I switched to the power supply for my sacd player when I got the Hemingway, and the Verastarr Grand Illusion (copper foil - there is also a silver foil version) which I used for nearly a decade. The Verastarr Grand Illusion is in my opinion one of the great values in high end power cable history, and can still be found used at a reasonable price. I should also note that upgrading the AC connectors on a Grand Illusion PC (e.g., to ETI Legato or Oyaide Armored AP-004 and AC-004) takes it to another level. The Sugden IA4, it doesn't need a PC that increases resolution (e.g., Ansuz, Nordost) but would benefit I think from one that tempers its slight brightness and spotlighting resulting in a more natural sound. Besides Echole, Hemingway, and Lessloss I think the new Shunyata Sigma PC's might be a good match.

FYI:

(scroll to the bottom)
https://6moons.com/audioreview_articles/best-of-2021/

C-MARC Entropic Process power cords

6moons.com

LessLoss C-MARC Entropic Process power cord – HiFi Knights

This is the www.hifiknights.com review of LessLoss C-MARC Entropic Process power cord. Author: Dawid Grzyb. Enjoy!

hifiknights.com

Hemingway Audio Cable Z-core Alpha, Beta, and Sigma Power Cords

Verastarr Grand Illusion AC Power Cords

Verastarr Grand Illusion AC Power Cords

positive-feedback.com

Shunyata Research Sigma NR v2 Power Cord - The Absolute Sound

Shunyata Research Sigma NR v2 Power Cord - Stephen Scharf weighs in on a remarkable new power cord from Shunyata.

www.theabsolutesound.com

Search for Echole at the WBF forum

 

[rockyboris]

On another forum Ted Denney of SR said and I am going from memory that power cords were the most important component of your system. Again from memory, he said the mistake people make is they use a collection of different power cords. He talked about a loop I don't know what a loop is but what I got out of his post is that to get the best results your cables and IC's should be at least from the same company. Maybe synergy, I figure Ted knows more about this than I do so I am giving it a try and I am almost there and I hate to admit it but I think he is right.

Mike

 

[BlueFox]

I consider power to be the foundation for a stereo system. Build a good foundation, and any piece of gear will work at its best.

 

[Cellcbern]

On another forum Ted Denney of SR said and I am going from memory that power cords were the most important component of your system. Again from memory, he said the mistake people make is they use a collection of different power cords. He talked about a loop I don't know what a loop is but what I got out of his post is that to get the best results your cables and IC's should be at least from the same company. Maybe synergy, I figure Ted knows more about this than I do so I am giving it a try and I am almost there and I hate to admit it but I think he is right.

Mike

Of course Ted Denny would say that buying different power cords was a mistake - he'd like you to use all SR stuff. This is easy enough to test. Start with a full loom of Synergistic (or some other) cables and then borrow individual cables from other brands to substitute one at a time. That will tell you whether or not there is some synergy from having a full loom that is being violated by substituting a different brand. I have done this several times (e.g., with full looms of ASI Liveline, Cardas Clear, and Verstarr Grand Illusion) and have always ended up with a mix of cable brands because the substitutions resulted in improved sound quality.

 

[skids929]

Of course Ted Denny would say that buying different power cords was a mistake - he'd like you to use all SR stuff. This is easy enough to test. Start with a full loom of Synergistic (or some other) cables and then borrow individual cables from other brands to substitute one at a time. That will tell you whether or not there is some synergy from having a full loom that is being violated by substituting a different brand. I have done this several times (e.g., with full looms of ASI Liveline, Cardas Clear, and Verstarr Grand Illusion) and have always ended up with a mix of cable brands because the substitutions resulted in improved sound quality.

I agree..And Ted isnt actually known to provide stable opinions either.

 

[skids929]

I've settled in with one cable on my amp and one on my DAC. The one on my amp is an 11 gauge and the other on the DAC is 14 gauge. Both cables are UPOCC Silver from Zenwave, I plan to get one more for my server eventually. I can't say enough good things about these cables now that they have settled in completely into my system. Dave's cables are really an incredible value with huge sonic impact, my system feels totally optimized with these powering it.

 

[microstrip]

I consider power to be the foundation for a stereo system. Build a good foundation, and any piece of gear will work at its best.

Easy to agree instictively with your first sentence. But how do we define technically a good power?

 

[ozzzy]

To me, unless all the equipment was purchased from the same manufacturer of the same vintage different power cords react differently to different equipment. Or vise a versa.

I have tried the single manufacturer cabling route in the past and I found that each component has its own needs.

ozzy

 

[Cellcbern]

To me, unless all the equipment was purchased from the same manufacturer of the same vintage different power cords react differently to different equipment. Or vise a versa.

I have tried the single manufacturer cabling route in the past and I found that each component has its own needs.

ozzy

Which is why Audio Exotics matches power cables to individual components.

 

[skids929]

To me, unless all the equipment was purchased from the same manufacturer of the same vintage different power cords react differently to different equipment. Or vise a versa.

I have tried the single manufacturer cabling route in the past and I found that each component has its own needs.

ozzy

I don't disagree, but I've dealt with this handily by using varying gauges/materials offered by Zenwave. He offers copper cables, silver cables, copper litz cables etc. All have different sonic impacts. I felt there was enough in his product range that allows flexibility for one to tailor for each component to some degree, this is part of why I chose Zenwave. Well that and the fact he uses ribbon cables and UPOCC (pure silver & copper) and top notch terminations, those are HUGE difference makers IMO. It met my criteria for cable evaluation (because I generally hate the cable rabbit hole) which is as follows: Material quality, geometry, terminations, home auditions.