bypass outlet and hook wires directly to romex??

I don't see how the Home Depot extension cord verses aftermarket pc or playing with interconnects have much to do with this thread. Except to say that some aftermarket power cords are better than zip cord.

It seems to me that Jvr's original post had to do with getting rid of the electrical outlet and male plug connections by soldering the two sets of wires together. Perhaps to minimize RF and maximize contact. Or just to see what sonic improvements may be obtained.

Albertporter does make a point that there are some to many aftermarket powercords that attempt to minimize RF but there are plenty that don't. There are very, very few that can act as some type of line-conditioner.

My only point was that by extending the aftermarket OFC romex wire from the service panel straight to the component(s) via a male IEC WATTaGATE plug attached to the other end of the romex would provide the best test for what Jvr is hoping to accomplish. IMO

-John

Stehno - The point made was that aftermarket power cords can produce a significant improvement in a system regardless of what type of conductor (romex or home depot power cord) precedes it.

From your post I get the impression that you do not believe this and have yet to be too impressed with aftermarket powercords in general. I might suggest that you actually try a few good high end aftermarket power cords before you start comparing them to zip cord. This will add credibility to your posts since your oppinion is clearly based on experiences that differ from those of the greater majority. I usually associate comments such as those you've made with a person who tried a cheap aftermarket cord and was dissatisfied with the results.

However, I must say you are partially correct, in some cases, cheap aftermarket cords are not much better than stock or zip cords.

Given that GOOD aftermarket powercords (such as Purist Audio's Dominus) truly DO make a difference we pondered the idea of replacing the romex entirely with an longer version of the power cord. OF course this was purly fantasy since few people have the means to complete such a project and its doubtful that electrical code would allow a power cord to be run from circuit breaker to a component.

Thanks for your help in getting this thread back on track!

Bwhite, you are assuming that I've not tried aftermarket power cords, and you are also claiming that I have said aftermarket power cords are no better than zip cord.

Don't be silly.

Yes, I am aware that SOME aftermarket power cords can make a positive difference sonincally over the zip cord you brought home from Home Depot. And I'm aware of what a good one can do. That doesn't mean ALL aftermarket power cords make the same sonic difference and in the case of some any difference at all.

Personally, I've chosen to go the in-line power conditioner route instead of the expensive power cord route. The retail price of my three Foundation Research in-line power conditioners (one for each component) would be the equivalent of 3 very nice power cords.

But I believe my in-lines pc's do much more than most any aftermarket power cord could ever do.

My earlier point/idea to Jvr was that if the romex had no breaks from the service panel all the way to the component itself via a male IEC connector, then RF is minimized (since no outlet, no breaks), AC noise minimized because it is obviously a dedicated line. Therefore, the positive affects of most aftermarket power cords is greatly diminished since they do not perform the same functions as line conditioners.

Would you not agree?

How about eliminating the powerline problem totally, including grunge from the street pole? I have a totally solar powered house with no hookup to the street at all. I use a large battery bank and a quality full sine wave inverter. I use a dedicated ofc run directly from my inverter to my system outlets and use quality aftermarket power cords. My amplifier(Berning MicroZ OTL) has a 12vdc optional power connection, so I use that for the amp to eliminate any AC power into the amp at all - and bypass the power stepdown transformer section as well. This can be done by anyone with a little space(basement?) as the batteries should be boxed and vented. Solar panels are not necessary as a normal person could just use the charging capacity of the inverter to keep the batteries up.(Do not charge while using, though). This is very clean power! It costs about the same as one of the expensive power cords mentioned above, and deals with the problem at the source instead of trying to correct it down the chain. Current capacity, you may ask? Mine is 2500watts continuous with 5000 watt surge capacity(15sec). A 1000 amp hour battery bank will supply even large systems for an extended evening of listening, and will be charged and ready by the next evening for your pleasure. For unusual applications, of course you can set up battery/inverter capacity tailored to your needs. Unusual, maybe. Effective? Definitely!

Hi Stehno, Glad we cleared that up. When I talk about good power cords, I usually speak of those which retail for more each than the cost of three Foundation Research LC1/LC2 conditioners so forgive me if I get defensive when I read claim that only SOME aftermarket power cords are better than zip cord - because I have personally never tried one which wasn't better.

A single run of Romex from pannel to component will not minimize RF unless it is twisted 180 degrees every 5 to 10 feet the full length of the run. 10AWG Romex sounds the best and a step further would be to bypass the pannel completely and install a fuse block with a ceramic fuse.
The Romex is then terminated with a male IEC connector (Wattagate (Marinco) accepts 10AWG conductors) and connects to the component itself.

While this is a minimalist approach and does a good job of limiting the number of breaks in current it isn't all that fantastic sounding.

Plugging a simple 5Kva Topaz Ferroresonant power conditioner in to the wall receptical and connecting the amp, preamp and another stand alone isolation transformer in to it (plug your digital in to the isolation transformer) will produce better sonic results and cost under $150 if you get the conditioner/transformer on ebay.