bypass outlet and hook wires directly to romex??

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.

Bwhite, I perceive thou art pretentious and self-elevated. At least that part appears clear. And perhaps that you had a philosophy 101 course.

I find it funny how your power cords are ranging in the $2k plus price range and yet you are performing all these tests with the zip cord you purchased from Home Depot (doesn't make sense unless you're displeased with your power cords performance). But for the sake of this thread you now pretend that it is I who performed the expirments. This is silly and should be a waste of your time and mine.

Although I've not tried any power cords retailing at the $2k plus range, I have no problem assuming there to be some to many even at that price break and beyond that probably offer no sonic improvements over the zip cord that you purchased at Home Depot for your expirments.

For the same reason one could spend $30,000 on an amplifier that may offer no sonic improvements, and may in fact sound worse than a $995 amplifier. I'm sure you would agree with this.

Based on what you claim to have spent on your system, you more than most, by now should realize that this hobby usually requires one to spend a lot of money to realize one does not need to spend a lot of money.

And, yes at this point, I'm having great difficulty believing that you have actually tried running romex straight from the service panel to a male IEC connector which plugs into the component(s).

Per your request, I forgive you.

Stehno... Sorry you took what I said as being pretentious and self elevated. I will accept your comment and bow my head to you with sincerity - I feel bad about coming across that way (understand that I may have) and do not wish to argue further.

A point I would like to make is that most people (including myself) do not jump directly into a 2000+ power cord without trying MANY less expensive solutions first. I have experimented to the point where the cost of my failed experiments actually rivals the price of my power cords. So what's better, to blow a bunch of cash (which can never be reclaimed) on projects that really aren't terribly successful or to just look the other way while paying WAY TOO MUCH for something that works better?

It isn't much different than buying a pair of speakers that sound worse and cost less because we want to save money. Only to find ourselves upgrading - selling at a loss and spending even more money to eventually get what we should have purchased in the first place. It's the audiophile trap I guess...

I wish I had someone who provided me guidance, suggestions or oppinions before I embarked upon my past experiments because it could have saved me lots of anguish.

Fortunately, today we have Audiogon - a means for people to communicate and learn from the mistakes and experience of others. This is a very valuable tool.