Do power cords make an audible difference?


I recently discovered the inexpensive Pangea AC-9 power cord. It was so inexpensive I decided, just for kicks, to buy one for my sacd player and my integrated amp. I was extremely doubtful I would hear any difference at all. I plugged them in, turned on the system and I was surprised. I immediately invited a non-audiophile over for a listen. She had only heard my system for maybe 30 minutes with the old cords and I asked her if she could hear a difference. After listening to only two tracks she said "it sounds more clear". This is exactly what I had thought. I also noticed the sound stage seemed bigger. Now, it's not A huge difference but it is noticeable to the casual observer, so it is significant, which is more than I hoped for.
esmith3671
Just because someone else can't hear it on their kit and/or we can't find the scientific explanation to satisfy our intellect, does not mean a thing can't exist.

Power cords have made a worth while improvement in my rig. A twenty or so amp dedicated line is a worth while improvement as well.
I added a $1,500 retail DAC in my system with another $600 retail worth of cables (but using stock PC) and saw very little improvement. It was more resolving in one way but wasn't great to listen to. As a matter of fact I walked away from it for about a week and didn't listen at all. Thought I lost my interest. But then I added a good PC and made my $2,000 purchase worth every penny.. and then some.

But as with everything audio, it is all based on your perception of good sound and everything is subjective. No test tool, no meter, and no one person with a "good ear" could ever convince me of what is supposed to sound good. When I find it, I keep it. Maybe I'll try other things but at least I'll know what will always work for me.
My take( having spent way to much time doing comparsions )is yes they do make a difference and sound different. As many have pointed out it is system and taste dependent. Notice I did not say better sounding. On my integrated I think the stock power cord sounds more open and smoother then my $200 very nice power cord. It makes the system sound more aggressive and the stage has more depth and images are tighter but it is a smaller stage
It makes me wonder about three things.
1) One would think most gear voiced with the stock power cord??
2) In an amp or CD player (or whatever) we have very small wires going to the amps outlet and then we put a garden hose on it for 4 feet that goes into a power condtioner to a smaller garden hose that leads to the wall outlet with 14 or 12GA wire. This make no sense to me.
3) If one has an amp that has a captive cord and one likes the amp is it a good idea to get an EIC installed on the amp to take other power cords??? As mentioned above wasn't the amp voiced with the stock power cord???
keith
Yes, power cords make a huge difference. Without them you won't have any sound at all.
Geph0007, You have to always remember that audio gear is built to a price point. The fact that a component was voiced with a given power cord, tube, output connector, op amp, wiring, or whatever only seems relevant from the standpoint of a designer doing the best they can with the available budget. Plus, if a designer knows that their product is affected by power cord choices, I doubt they'd want to gamble on inflating the price point of the product knowing the vast majority of compulsive audiophiles are just going to start experimenting with alternatives. Not to say that more expensive parts always improve performance though. Al spells it out very well in his earlier post.