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A certain online retailer asked me for a review of Pangea power cords..

Here is my response                                                                                    
"Way back when the Pangea AC9 was introduced, I bought one. My first aftermarket powercord. I didn't think a powercord could make any difference! Put it on my Forte' 4 amp, and immediately noticed better bass response. I was hooked.Since then I have upgraded everything in my system, but I stick to Pangea power cords.Just last night, listening via Rudistor RPX-33mkII headamp and Sennheiser HD800 (bought from Audio Advisor) I was, beside listening to Deep Purple "Machine Head" checking out some new outlets. And the difference was easy to hear, via the Pangea AC14SE MKII Signature powercord. The Pangea powercrds ARE GREAT, no question. Thanks Pangea dude, for creating them, and thank you Audio Advisor, for offering them to the public. I now listen to my Magnepan 20.7s, Marantz SA-10, Conrad Johnson ACT2, Kuzma Stabi Stogi S turntable. ALL using Pangea powercords.My system is no slouch, neither are Pangea powercords.
If I were to offer one suggestion, Start a line of AC14SE, and AC9SEPangea with pure copper Rhodium plated plugs.and Cryo'ed.
Thanks in advance Pangea Dude! You are a HERO.to all of us who enjoy Pangea power cords."So.. any comments?
elizabeth
mofimadness's avatar
mofimadness
4,152 posts
 
I've never had good luck with the Pangea power cords.
Post removed 
elizabeth OP
6,726 posts
 
I balk at better power cords. I know maybe... But I just am too cheap.I did spend $1,100 a pop plus $3,200 for a 7m IC. Took me a very long time to get there. Right now I did the Furutech duplex, seemed the best way to go toward better power at the moment. Those really are still breaking in.  (And some days driving me crazy. Yesterday was another all lean all the time day. since I just the day before added two key Rhodium plugs... Sucked.)            
I think the one place I might 'try' a better power cord in a few months, is the amp. If I like one there, then a few others might be possible. I am pretty hesitant about big money and power cords. It is, after all, just a piece of wire, and a couple of plugs.        
The IC I can justify to my 'el cheapo' mind since they actually carry a complex signal... The power cord only has to carry 60Hz. (Or maybe an alternative 110Hz. But nothing complicated...  (though I have to confess with the Furutech duplex, and the various ways they affect the sound breaking in.. I am mystified and amazed at what trivial alterations to the AC can do to the actual sound.. So I am 'moving' toward the notion that power cables can matter more, than I previously thought.)
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sleepwalker65's avatar
sleepwalker65
486 posts
 
Power cables are a pursuit with binary results. If you previously had the el-cheapo 79 cent receptacle and 18AWG cord to your amps, they probably had significant I*R voltage drop when the amps called for more current during peaks. The law of diminishing returns applies here especially.

All you need to do is upgrade your receptacles to spec-grade or heavy duty at a minimum, and screw-wire them to your romex. The back-stab connections are notorious for making a very poor connection. Don’t forget to pigtail all of the other upstream connections in the branch circuit.

Similarly with the power cords on your amplifiers. If they are less than 14AWG, they are a weak link in the chain. You don’t need anything more than garden variety SJT extension cord wire that is sold at Home Depot and other home centres. 60Hz (or 110Hz or 400Hz for that matter) alternating current is not affected even remotely by the skin effect. Once inside your amplifiers, the path to optimize is through the power switch, which is often a weak point, and the rectifier diodes can be upgraded with ones that have faster switching and lower forward voltage drop, to make the filtering and regulation circuitry more effective.

These upgrades are all south of $5 each, and will strengthen the power delivery to your amplifiers much more than any $300 rhodium plated silver power cord could ever hope to.
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