Does your McIntosh benefit from fancy power cables?

[62caddy]

Originally Posted by Mouse

... I'm essentially taking an informal poll from people with similar gear.

Unfortunately this is a topic on which there are few neutrals on the matter.

If you do decide to pursue this, my suggestion is to purchase from a seller where you can demonstrate the cables in your own home who will allow you to return the item for a full refund within x days if dissatisfied. This will put you in an ideal position to form your own judgment as to whether or not you experience improvements, and whether any improvements are justified by the cost.

[Msegal]

Originally Posted by Mouse

I have an electrician coming to my home soon, so I'm going to piggyback wall power outlet receptacles first too. And that 1,600 power cord was in the middle, that doesn't even come close to the tippy top of power cable costs (and it's pinkish purple ) .



https://www.audioaficionado.org/showthread.php?t=40854

Make sure the electrician hooks all your cables up in phase to reduce the risk of hum.
I would also recommend trying to keep all power lines to your system the same length.
Finally, if you are running new wire run the heaviest gauge you can. Vince B. at MSB recommended 10 gauge but this s will not fit through most standard outlet boxes. I ran 12 gauge with 6 separate lines to the fuse box on two walls. This allows for various equipment and speaker locations as well as extra power hookups for unforeseen needs( subs, biamping, new digital sources,etc. ).

Good luck and enjoy.

[Mouse]

Msegal, thanks for the advice, but it's roughy 20 years old. I don't know the gauge, but it's likely nothing special.

It looks like standard 15 amp wall outlets, and I beleive the breaker is on a 20 amp switch. For all I know the whole room is ganged on one breaker

[Mouse]

Originally Posted by 62caddy

Unfortunately this is a topic on which there are few neutrals on the matter.

If you do decide to pursue this, my suggestion is to purchase from a seller where you can demonstrate the cables in your own home who will allow you to return the item for a full refund within x days if dissatisfied. This will put you in an ideal position to form your own judgment as to whether or not you experience improvements, and whether any improvements are justified by the cost.

This dealer offered to hook up Nordost cables (or a second brand I can't remember), come back in 7 days to see if I want to go back to my old ones. Before I met these guys no one was interested in a demo.

[eljr]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Ed.......Here's my story on how I came to install premuim power cables on my audio components. At the time my system consisted of a C2300, MCD500, MR85, a pair of MC501's and PMC EB1i speakers. I was happy as a lark with the the way the system sounded. Then Ivan offered to send me a pair of two meter Wireworld Silver Electra power cables to try on my amplifiers. Since it was just a demo and I didn't have to write a check I thought why not. The two Silver Electra PC's arrived and I proceeded to demo them against the stock McIntosh power cables. I had no preconceived notion about what to expect because I had always used stock power cords and had never auditioned any upgraded power cords.

To make a long story short, I played Brian Bromberg - Choices CD first with the stock PC's, then I replaced the stock PC's with the WW Silver Electra PC's and played the same CD again. To say I was startled at the improved bass response and midrange clarity would be an understatement. Brian's acoustic double bass took on a richness to the tone of bass strings and the instrument's vibrating wood that I had not experienced before. To be certain I was not suffering from a placebo effect I returned the stock PC's to the MC501's and played the title track "Choices" once again. The sense of deeper, more robust texture and depth of Brian's acoustic double bass vanished. That's not to say the sound was bad with the stock PC's, just not as fully rendered and solid. I could hardly believe what my ears were telling me. I returned the Wireworld Silver Electra power cords to the MC501's, played "Choices" once again and was immediately captured once again at the overall improvement, particularly in the lowest frequency range. At that moment I became a believer in premium power cords. To be honest I did not want to believe it because it meant I was going to have to let go of some cash to keep the two power cords in my system. I really wasn't looking forward to that, but there was no denying the worth of the Silver Electra PC's on the amplifiers. I wrote the check and several more as I continued to upgrade the remainder of my component power cords. Today I have two separate sound systems and all components are powered with Wireworld Silver Electra power cords.

From that first experience demoing the Wireworld PC's I never once considered that somehow I was deluding myself or hearing what I wanted to hear. I had no idea what to expect until after I first experienced it. There was verifiable auditory improvements in my sound system when performing A/B comparisons between stock power cords and the Silver Electra power cords. Like I said, I was hoping I would not hear a difference because I had no burning desire to be writing checks for power cords. For me, the results of improved low frequency depth, robustness, and texture, along with a more focused midrange, justified the expense and made the upgrade worthwhile.

What about for your sources/preamp?

What power cord and/or line conditioner?

[Mouse]

I saw the video that Grant posted. It was fascinating to see that a stock cable cuts the available juice in half, and the meter showed to be more stable on a premium cord.

[Formerly YB-2]

Originally Posted by crwilli

+1. Call me vein, paranoid, whatever you want, but after investing $X0,000 in my music room/system, I couldn’t live with the stock PCs.

On, Craig......... you're so vain.

My 3 epiphanies in this hobby are: 1.) high-end ICs/PCs. 2.) MC cartridges. & 3.) high-end phono-preamps. All many years ago. Get the best you can afford and that sound the best to your ears.

[Timobi]

Count me in the camp that also has never spent a dime on aftermarket power cords. I make a decent living like most here who have expensive mac gear and other high end gear. Guess it comes down to me not being a believer. My non believer status is 100% due to never having the opportunity to demo them though.

But that will change soon...I'll be able to listen to some very nice gear next week and plan on doing some PC listening. I'll report back!

Good discussion and nice that its' been pretty decent. This is a good forum. Although it sure has made me spend more on my components!

Think its referred to as Lu Flu? Dan's Wonderful Review Syndrome!

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by eljr

What about for your sources/preamp?

What power cord and/or line conditioner?

Ed.......I have WW Silver Electra power cables on all source components, music servers, and power conditioners, as well as my power amplifiers and preamplifiers. I drank the whole pitcher of Kool-Aid.




I have re-posted my signature so you can see what the systems include.

[jameslrock]

For me, changing out the stock power cords to WireWorld Silver Electra had such a profound difference in my listening experience that I now have a full loom of Silver and even Platinum power cords for the amps. Back when I decided to go this route, I had a buddy of mine who is a drummer and singer and we tested my stock verse WireWorld. At the time nothing else was changed from the basic low-end interconnects that I had on hand at the time. We literally heard the vocals rise and snap in place. At that time I, we, became a believer. I understand some folks have problems with this, but I know what I heard and it was enough to commit over the next year to slowly change out all my cables to the best I could afford that was the best value / performance point for me. I also had a great time in doing so. I hope you have as much fun as I have in enjoying this great hobby / discovery, as I have.