Question about power cables (longish)

[ursus262]

[Marco]

I've been using a loom of Audioworks Revive for a year or two but have found the sound can be a bit 'heavy' Too fullsome although with a lot of depth. The Ref 5 pre sounds much more lively with the cord in the box so will stick with that. Also recently removed the Revive from the cdp for a kettle cord type and whilst the sound is a little thinner in the mid I can hear more of what's going on and the bass is better defined. Sometimes less is more!

I can relate to what you say, Robin, as in the past I've had a lot of experience with using Audioworks mains cables and their various equipment support systems.

In all instances, I've found the sonic presentation of their mains cables to be overblown in the bass, whilst at the same time, sounding a little hard and brittle in the treble, although 'tuneful'. That type of tonal presentation most definitely represents the 'house sound' of those cables - in an 'alien' system.

However, the effect is usually rather different when you adopt using their complete support/cable loom solution, as in their acrylic racks, mains cables and MIT interconnects, together with their favourite brands of equipment and speakers. The reason why ordinary 'kettle leads' improve on some aspects of the MW cables you're using, is likely because of the above and also because they're highlighting the 'house sound' of the latter.

Larry has a very definite idea on how he thinks music should be reproduced, and you either like it, and buy into the approach, or you don't. Although I like Larry as a person, I'm in the latter camp, as far as the most of the systems he puts together are concerned.

In that respect, it's rather like Linn and Naim equipment: you'll only hear from the equipment what's intended by the manufacturer, by following a certain approach or system-building methodology.

Marco.

[magiccarpetride]

Alex - have you tried feeding your filter/distribution with the Nordost cable and using the Shunyatas for the component feeds?

Good advice Martin, I tried that yesterday. With Nordost plugged into the wall outlet and driving the Belkin power conditioner, and 3 Shunyata cables feeding components off the power conditioner, the overall sonic character indeed changes. The bass became a bit more articulate, tighter, easier to follow, and more melodic, while still retaining the kick and the punch. But the overall sound appears to have hardened a bit (sounds a bit colder). Not necessarily in a bad way, because I'm enjoying a lot of 'air' and previously undetected longer decays, but it's not as lush as when I'm feeding my power amp with Shunyata plugged directly into the wall.

What amazes me is the sheer complexity of various permutations and recombinations and how many of those alter the sonic character. What amazes me even more is to learn that there are people who seem impervious to these changes, and who insist that all power cables sound absolutely the same.

[MartinT]

Shocking, isn't it?

Not that it makes it easy to devise rules about power cable choice and setup, as you have discovered. It's a minefield and when you find a formula that works for you (my system uses Russ Andrews/Kimber Powerkords), stick with it and change things only carefully, ensuring that you can go back if necessary. I have learned this the hard way - for instance, the one time I bought a Nordost power cable (a silver El Dorado) I didn't like it at all.

[magiccarpetride]

Shocking, isn't it?

Not that it makes it easy to devise rules about power cable choice and setup, as you have discovered. It's a minefield and when you find a formula that works for you (my system uses Russ Andrews/Kimber Powerkords), stick with it and change things only carefully, ensuring that you can go back if necessary. I have learned this the hard way - for instance, the one time I bought a Nordost power cable (a silver El Dorado) I didn't like it at all.

Is there a particular sonic quality to Powerkords?

[MartinT]

Is there a particular sonic quality to Powerkords?

If I could attribute a character in isolation I would say that they lower the noise floor due to good RFI isolation and improve dynamics compared with a standard cable.