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Thread: Mains power leads

  1. #81
    Join Date: May 2016

    Location: Much Wenlock

    Posts: 1,522
    I'm Gary.

    Default Cables

    image.jpg

    This is the only thing I could find, I'm probably being thick, as the only thing I see is the contact material=phosphor bronze.

    The attached may be too small but I don't know how to make it bigger.

  2. #82
    Join Date: Mar 2017

    Location: Seaford UK

    Posts: 1,861
    I'm Dennis.

    Default

    No I am not functioning very well ATM, and I didn't see any mention of contact material but phosphor-bronze seems about right, and that is the page I was referring to.

    Phosphor-bronze is a bearing material, but I do not know about its Young's Modulus.

    I'm sorry if I have been inefficient but I have worked every day since the beginning of Nov on refurbing the lounge, and am cumulatively tired. I hate the work.

  3. #83
    Join Date: May 2008

    Location: Londiniumsville

    Posts: 361
    I'm Robin.

    Default

    As George47 said previously, it depends on the equipment. I bought a new amp for Stax cans recently and borrowed a few mains cables to compare. Dunno if using cans show up differences more readily or not but there were changes when swapping over. Settled on this in the end. https://www.atlascables.com/power-eos-4dd-cable.html
    Robin. mit ARC CD9, ARC ref 5 / darTZeel power + magico v2. Clearaudio Innovation wood / Phantom ll / Lyra Atlas / Aurorasound Vida,
    Stax 009S cans.KGGG headamp. all connected with wires. Auralic Aries - Aqua La Scala. Manley Absolute. Focal Stellias. HD800S Hyland headphones - Venus

  4. #84
    Join Date: Mar 2017

    Location: Seaford UK

    Posts: 1,861
    I'm Dennis.

    Default

    BTW my memory of the material was from '95.

  5. #85
    Join Date: Mar 2014

    Location: Herefordshire

    Posts: 104
    I'm Alex.

    Default

    I use Supra LoRad 2.5sq mm SPC cables for all of my mains leads. I am surrounded by WiFi points but it took me a while to realise the effects of RFI.

    It was when I was checking over my Dac and saw a lot of fuzz on the digital signal then measured 2.4Ghz on the square wave top at 2.4mv !!

    I decided that shielding was the way to go. So I changed all the mains cables over to LoRad which got rid of the sharpness on vocals and lead guitar.

  6. #86
    Join Date: Mar 2017

    Location: Seaford UK

    Posts: 1,861
    I'm Dennis.

    Default

    About 73dB down on the 5V then.

  7. #87
    Join Date: Feb 2009

    Location: Fife

    Posts: 263
    I'm Simon.

    Default

    Possibly 17/18 years ago was quite happy with my system, had a few bob and thought I'd try some Russ Andrews stuff. Sort on convinced myself it sounded better. Bought a Shunyata power cord on the net, arrived with no plugs... how do I terminate this beast? Managed and put it on my cd player, road to Damascus doesn't come close. The only way I can describe it is I was hearing musicians playing as opposed to listening to a hi-fi/stereo what you will.
    This led to some interesting buys from Audiogon, mainly cables at prices that shocked me but being second hand, manageable.. wife and bank manager notwithstanding......
    First buy on Gon was a set of HMS Gran Finale speaker cables at some ludicrous price to my mind but about a third of retail.
    Had me hooked. These made Kimber 8TC sound like the amp and speakers weren't even connected, problem was they had about 15 different settings and they were the cables I wanted for my dream system which I couldn't afford..
    By the time the dreaded redundancy reared it's head (loved being in the Field, hated being a manager) I had built up a large list of contacts through Audiogon.

    Outcome was I need an income and so for the next three years managed to get by selling used and new cables sourced from Audiogon. Was never going to get rich from people 'trialing' 3'Ks worth of Shunyata cables for 3 months then having to be forcefully reminded they were in fact on loan but hey ho it kept the Wolf from the door.

    I had built up enough contacts I could buy 2.5K worth of Kimber Select at custom lengths, order on the Sunday from a dealer in Miami, have them in London for a party the next Saturday, he made a profit, I made a profit and the guy in London was delighted as he saved a fortune.
    A contact in California did marketing for a raft of start up companies so got numerous cheap intros, Lessloss cables, ZYX cartridges, Shunyata from Malaysia thru the States, Virtual Dynamics, etc, etc, etc.
    My friend offered to set me up with a drop shipping business that would have cost me nothing, he would provide any finance required.
    He makes about 44K dollars a year as 'pocket money', the hi-fi room is a bungalow at the bottom of the garden past the swimming pool, etc

    Long story short, made a living selling cables for 3 years to people obviously as deluded as myself.... 3K worth of Shunyata power cords for a 300 quid Denon system.. eh maybe not. I sold about 6K worth to a chap who has 5 ATC active systems in his house, fools and their money eh?

    Years later after being f----d by two hi-fi shops opening locally, fronted by charlatans who in kindness , should have passed for used car salesmen but were 'possibly' a front for drug money.. hey ho, cables, racks, isolation and room treatments were all a figment of my imagination.. till they cottoned on to the profit margin.

    By this time I had a system I could never had imagined owning, could not have dreamt of owning at retail prices and decided, sod all this crap!

    2k power cord on your CD player, nirvana.. bought to power the Hydra powering the whole system, does it beat the Shunyata Anaconda designed for the job.. no.. hated selling it. Do interconnects make a difference, unless like mine which are fibre optics and break the ground leading to silence where needed, not a lot.
    Speaker cables.. Cerious Audio liquid filled monsters and Virtual Dynamics Boa Constrictors had me in a quandry with my Pass X-250 but killed my Audiopax stone dead. Strangled the life and a cheap pair of skinny Aural thrills made them sound broken.
    A pair of 4TC cables on my new amps, after dragging them hundreds of miles to my mates had me cringing, replaved with a 1600 quid set of Cutlooose and now we are talking.

    Used to do a lot of reterminations from Kimber plugs, whatever to Oyaide plugs so a whole other set of loons payed me good money.
    Got banned from Audiogon , my crime.. I adored Ultraglide power cords, Ghenghis Khan, Ultrakhan etc, you could swap these between components to alter the sound of your system. Initially ribbons conductors in copex but boy did they work. Problem being from the States no grounds and being deranged, I took them apart to add ground conductors and furnish better connectors. Company comes back fro the abyss, pays a fortune for their new superstar, take it apart, yo, a thick kettle lead.. publish with photos... banned!

    I/C's ho hum, speaker leads, you can get really lucky, power cords, sorry if your kettle lead suffices, your ears or your system is a pile of .......

  8. #88
    Join Date: Aug 2009

    Location: Staffordshire, England

    Posts: 37,779
    I'm Martin.

    Default

    Interesting story Simon. Maybe you can answer a question that has always bugged me. Given there is no technical reason why a fancy power cord is any different to a standard one, how do the makers develop them? You can't use the standard model of physics and I'm guessing they have not made a paradigm-shifting breakthrough that they are keeping to themselves, so what are they using as a development guide? or do they just try wacky things until one works?
    Current Lash Up:

    TEAC VRDS 701T > Sony TAE1000ESD > Krell KSA50S > JM Labs Focal Electra 926.

  9. #89
    Join Date: Jan 2008

    Location: gone

    Posts: 11,519
    I'm gone.

    Default

    I'm a firm cable believer and have tried some silly-priced gear over the years, including mains cables.
    Yes, they make a difference that can be worthwhile imo.
    But I find it pointless to spend multiple hundred £, for me the sweet spot lies in the £30 (mains cables) -£150 (speaker cables) slot, and I am perfectly happy with cables that cost me in that sort of region.
    Last edited by jandl100; 07-02-2018 at 16:52.
    .

  10. #90
    Join Date: Apr 2008

    Location: Warrington

    Posts: 3,451
    I'm Neil.

    Default

    I think there needs to be some caution around power cables. They are one of the last things that should be considered, during the final tweaking of the system, and not a way to magically make your mid-range amp sound like a high-end one. They are not "game changers" and there is no "night and day" difference. If you're spending more than 10% of your budget on cables, then maybe a rethink is required...

    In my experience they can make a minor, but worthwhile difference. Some sound a bit 'edgier' and 'harsher', some sound a bit 'smoother' and 'nicer'.
    Mana Acoustics Racks / Bright Star IsoNodes Decoupling >> Allo DigiOne Player >> Pedja Rogic's Audial Model S DAC + Pioneer PL-71 turntable / Vista Audio phono-1 mk II / Denon PCL-5 headshell / Reson Reca >> LFD DLS >> LFD PA2M (SE) >> Royd RR3s.

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