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Power cords at ridiculous prices?

Seems to me there's no shortage of "black magic" out there, people spending $1000 on power cords? If the equipment you own is well designed with hefty power supplies and adequate capacitive filtering on-board, the grunge from the AC lines will be dealt with. I'm not discounting upgrading stock cords with something of a little better quality, but it seems to me spending the equivalent of a mortgage payment, on a piece of wire, makes us audiophiles the subject of ridicule by any reasonable person. Okay, I'll stand back now and take my lumps....
jeffloistarca
carl_eber
1,425 posts
 
I disagree. A quality power cord is still going to yield an improvement that is worth its price, without "upgrading" all the lines upstream from it. Mine has.
nhorton's avatar
nhorton
81 posts
 
One other thing worth pointing out is that part of the importance of the last bit of power cord is that it comes closest to your other wires and gear. A high quality power cord is well shielded so that interference stays out and so that the power cord doesn't interfere with OTHER parts. Personally I am not fond of 60hz signals on my speaker cables.
megasam's avatar
megasam
798 posts
 
Carl is oh so right, that expensive 6ft cord dosen't just transmit electricity, good cords use elaborate metals, sheilding, special conductor windings, other special conditioning elements or materials to clean and condition electric current.......if you analyze the current entering the cable and exiting the cable it should be much cleaner and more stable, making it much more useful to component it is attached to......if you think this is a bunch of BS you shouldn't be buying aftermarket cords, regards Sam
south43
386 posts
 
All the above statements have their merits, but no one has mentioned power conditioners. If you could have a device between that the gunk coming out of the wall(emi,surges,etc) that can keep current at a stable medium and then connect that aftermarket cord with all that it is offering what differences could you REALLY hear. I use a changlightspeed conditioner with my gear and I really believe that this unit makes a difference when using a aftermarket cord. Good listening
onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
4,163 posts
 
Carl, I readily admit a power cord can make a difference, but I take the position that they should be used as part of an overall electric service upgrade. Doing so will maximize the effect of the power cord. Megasam, power cords are passive, at best they provide some filtering. They cannot enhance the electricity. You need a power line conditioner, an active device, to accomplish that. "elaborate metals", "special conductor windings" -- don't believe the hype!
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