Is it all in my head??

Some folks like those MBL Speakers. I don’t. I guess tastes vary. In fact I had the misfortune to be in the exhibit at CES right next to the MBL Room. Thump, thump, thump all day long. I did take the opportunity at some point to go next door to see what all the fuss was about. But I had to leave right away. The MBLs look impressive, I’ll give you that. Would an aftermarket power cord helped? Difficult to say, but it probably couldn’t have hurt. 

Seasons greetings! 🎄

waltertexas OP9 posts12-28-2018 9:08am

@prof : I came to this conclusion after hearing the entire system perform as a whole. When I say everything matters, I mean everything in the room, including the room itself, diffusers, the exact speaker placement, chair placement, isolation racks, (and yes, even the cables). It seems to have taken everything involved to create the detailed images I "saw" with my ears. In fact, I couldn’t even hear sound from the speakers when sitting in the listening position! It was as if those speakers weren’t making the sound and it was coming from a different dimension right above the amplifiers. I cant even describe it, but i would guess if you went switching things all around, the portal to where the music was coming from would be closed and the sound would just come from the speakers (if that makes any sense).

Makes sense to me....

@ waltertexas OP

Which Kimber Kable do you have? You never said. Also what length is it? I have a 6ft PK10 with a WG330i plug and a WG350i female IEC connector.

For a listening test, if you are up to it. I assume your ears are now accustomed to the sound of your system using the Kimber power cord. You should be able to hear if something is changed.

Over a 10 day period have your wife, or someone, randomly change out the kimber with the stock power cord you were using before the Kimber. (She will need to cover the cable and wall outlet so you will not be able to see which cable she has installed.)

Have your wife keep a daily log showing which cable she installed for each of the 10 days. Also tell her she does not have to switch any of the two cables every day. It is solely her choice. She could choose the power cord of the day by the flip of a coin. Your wife will not discuss which is which until after the 10 days of listening sessions are completed.

For each of the 10 day trail you also keep a daily log of which power cord you are hearing. After the 10 days of listening compare notes. You will need a minimum of 8 out 10 correct.

Post back your results.

@roberjerman : " Now if someone snuck in overnight and replaced that new PC with the cheap original one (and you didn't notice), it is most likely that you would not hear any difference from the day before!"

" If PC's made a difference why are all the enthusiasts so unwilling to do this simple test?"

Not that I am or am not an enthusiast, but because I am not letting anyone near my stuff without me in the room and because the cops might shoot the sneaker.  ;^)

The notion that audiophiles never go back to see how the old wires sound is silly to say the least. I swap cords around often enough I know each one's sonic signature. I even have two Furutech Duplex for the amplifier. One GTX-D (Gold) and the other GTX-D NCF (Rhodium) just to change the tone slightly as I see how the system is responding.    And I have three power cords for the amp! all sitting right there to use. Though the new Pangea AC14XL seems to be the permanent cord of choice!      
To me the worst problem is the naysayers often seem to think the folks who can hear the differences are deluded idiots.And make  assumptions based on THAT premise.

elizabeth wrote:

—- lTo me the worst problem is the naysayers often seem to think the folks who can hear the differences are deluded idiots.And make assumptions based on THAT premise.”


Thats only because you refuse to read what some of us *actually* say and you continue to carry around the false equivalence of “being in error” and “bias” with “being an idiot.”   It is precisely BECAUSE the brightest person in the room is susceptible to bias-error effects that it makes sense to consider that variable.

So long as you absolutely refuse to even try to understand this point, you will have yourself to blame for your irritation with your own straw man.