Power snakes continue

Power cord is more a silent tone control device than most would believe. I was devastated by the improvements they bring to a system and hence started this power cord mania. A great power cord can bring the best out of your system, period. For those who have not tried out a few power cords to get the taste, do so. You will be amazed like I do. Price talks, and almost all good things never come cheap unfortunately. Having said that, I could no longer bear with the noise introduced by cheap power cords, the smearing, they eat up a lot of details. These power cords strangle your system. Go ask KF, he is willing to testify in the witness stand. Exit is only natural.....

Wrong cords can be fatal

Some power cords are picky at where they are used. It could sound marvelous at the front end but not elsewhere. And some unavailing. I would not recommend a thick power cord for your front end, much as you do not want to agitate Bruce Banner, "You wouldn't like me when I am angry!".

When comes to girl friend, look comes first. Come on guys. Look always come as an expense, high maintenance chick, you got to pay for it, buddies. When choose a wife, look is secondary. I know a few guys are sworn by certain brands, me choose to listen. Garden hose, psychologically give a feel good factor, like a dick to a man. Bigger is better, that's so corky ....

Dude, if only you know how thick your house in-wall wires, you might have a second thought. My first and foremost criteria for power cord is no smearing. You know what cause the smearing, right. I have heard many with smearing sound but I choose to keep mum. That's not the nicest thing to say. I hear a lot of after market power cords that emphasize the bass too. Personally, I avoid these because there will always be a trade off. Like a Canto phrase 捉蟲入屁股 loosely translated to "do not let a worm goes into your backside", asking for trouble.

My current power cords on duty are Nordost Vishnu, Wywire Silver and Reality Cable, the later being my power amp cord.

Nordost Vishnu, you got to love this cord. This cord is really clean, airy and detailed. I can almost hear the drop of tear with this cord. The ambiance retrieval is its forte. Some claimed that Nordost sounds thin but I found it to be honest. Love the speed and attack. The bass remained to be its Achilles heel, bass volume and weight could be more. Nevertheless, it was my great buy. I could not think of a better cord at its price range for front end.

Wywire Silver is the back bone of Wywire that springboard the company. Silver is noticeably warmer than Vishnu. It is not overly warmer, it has a healthy BMI. Silver is now serving my BMC PureDac. If Vishnu and Silver trade places, the whole presentation will slip to the lean side. I prefer the details Vishnu offered at YBA transport, it has adequate sheen to sound realistic. The brass demonstrates the right amount of sheen to my ears, of course. The other benefit is the superb ambiance retrieval. Silver is neutral with adequate meat to the bone, the highs remained Vishnu's forte. You got to love the highs extension. The Silver's edge delineation strikes me, the tenacity and the Q-ness of bass awed me. Almost sounds like no power cord.

And lastly, Reality Cable red cord. This is an off the shelf cord. My gamble paid off. This is a star quad cable, very quiet and capable of throwing a huge soundstage. It provides a lot of juice. The tenacity and Q-ness are magnificent. The highs might have rolled off a bit but I appreciate the bass tautness, that I would not trade for others. I love bass definition, bass weight, SET like tonal density, soundstage, clean sound, it literally stomped my previous power cord, Shunyata Cooperhead at its game. I hear no smearing bass which itself is a compliment. Cooperhead is twice the asking price, mind you. This is an off the shelf cord, good for solid state electronics, the designer warned.

Audio Research designated power cord, this alone places Shunyata on a higher ground. Shunyata Copperhead does not look as bad as one might think even though they are not the cream of Shunyata. It does everything well. Only slightly smearing comparing to Reality Cable, Copperhead's highs betters Reality Cable, only a smidgen more airy. While Reality Cable matched Copperhead in soundstage dimension, it was in low registers Reality Cable is a runaway success. It trounced Copperhead in terms of quietness and bass quality. It better be, or I will hang my neck with it!

HMS power cord is a DIY cord, that accords serious bass grunt. This cord as if power on steroid. This cord reminds of PSY, oppa HMS style. If your bass needed some help there, this cord can storm. It turns bookshelf to floorstanding speaker, seriously.

WE power cord Model IV has a coquettish quality, the perverts first choice. It is like Sandra Bullock, an innocent girl who lives next door. The vocal has the flirting properties, melting you in your chair. Rounded note, very lovely sound that trade for transient and attack. To sum it up, Model IV is easy on ear. I know some fi are craving for the coquettishness, the least you are straight.

If budget is your concern, no worries. Get Viablue X25 and go DIY. This is very good power cord for the money. Baby Vishnu, I'd recommend it for front end, its performance will pop your eyes. Fast and airy power cord, detail like dropping from the sky.

If you favored ultra pure copper power cord, dense tone, I suggest you listen to HiDiamond P2 power cord, third from the line up. Not dull, I found this cord amazing on dynamic. Very nearly smitten by it.

BrunsAudio AC Soundstage Enigma, a DIY cord that share similar construction with the red hot Loosless, at least from the aesthetic point of view. It uses German copper and braided locally, presents a similar presentation with WE power cord Model IV, but with a broad bandwidth. Inoffensive and a unique flavor like English candy. Sweet, rounded with no rough edges. A warm performer that favor a smooth and easy on ear presentation.

PS Audio xStream Statement SC is a thick, stiff and heavy cord. The problem with all heavy cords is the sagging connection at the wall socket. You will have to think again if you have limited space because it didn't like bending that much. If you system thirst for fluid, this is the cure. This cord has a mellow and with a soaking wet presentation.

The problem with power cord purchase is you never get to test them, unlike in the States. Risk is inevitable. To help you in power cord purchase, I have gathered the following reviews from av-forums.net.

Accustic Arts Ferrite II - quiet, fine resolution, refined highs, neutral, spot on focal point, tight bass, lack of color.

Acrolink 4020 - quiet, good resolution, smaller focal point, slightly lack dynamic and punch.

Acrolink 4023 - good for CD player, good resolution, quiet, warm. Quieter and more highs than Acrolink 4020.

Acrolink 4030 - quiet, good resolution, relax, good vocal, bigger focal point, not lacking dynamic and punch.

Acrolink PC 7100 - muscular, slightly grainy.

AET HCR - neutral, quiet, detailed, lean. Excellent choice for subwoofer.

AET Hin - forward mids, transparent, detailed, fine vocal, smooth extension.

Belden 83803 - not quiet, prominent highs, hard, quick to raise, quick to retract, transparent, powerful.

Belden 15A - more balanced than 80803, good value.

BMI Orca - balanced, quiet, very smooth and attractive sounding, limited bandwidth and shorter decay.

Cardas Golden Reference - forward mids, slow sounding.

CSE L7R -  punchy, neutral, good resolution, spot on focal point, sounds similar to AET but quieter.

CSE L30R - good density, good tonal balance, strong bass, fairly highs extension.

DDL Revolution - good drive, warm, slightly less transparent, stiff cable.

Ensemble Megaflux - punchy, slight pacey, quiet, lean, highs eccentric, low tonal density.

Fisch P0 - good punch, quick to raise, quick to retract, thin mids, fairly quiet.

Fisch P2 - quiet, highs eccentric, quick to raise, quick to retract, dark highs.

Fisch P5 - very quiet, quick to raise, quick to retract, balanced but harden highs, small focal point, good value.

Fisch P7 - very quiet, quick to raise, quick to retract, balanced but harden highs, small focal point, good value.

Furutech 3TS20 - quiet, slow sounding, weak low bass, forward, slightly bigger focal point, lustful vocal.

Furutech 3TS762 - poor resolution, thick, slow, bloated upper mid.

Furutech Reference III - smooth, good vocal, sumptuous, soft bass, fair imaging.

Gutwire Power Clef - neutral, average dynamic.

Harmonic Tech Magic - delicate, rounded, easy on ear.

Harmonix Studio Master - warm, smooth, less punchy, fair resolution.

JPS AC+ - quiet, sumptuous but grab attention, weak mids, quick to raise, quick to retract, wide soundstage, powerful.

JPS K - quiet, sumptuous, weak mids, quick to raise, quick to retract, wide soundstage, powerful.

Kimber PK 10  - punchy, neutral, good resolution, slightly coarse sounding.

Kimber PK 10 Gold - punchy, neutral, good overall resolution, slightly warm vocal, good value.

Kimber PK 14  - balanced, good speed, solid imaging, right image size, good value.

Kimber PK 14 Gold - extended highs with sheen, pacey,  punchy, solid imaging, right image size.

Kharma KPC-R2A - polite, refined, warm but not thick sounding.

M5000 - very quiet, balanced, highs eccentric.

Mogami - balanced, smooth highs, average quietness, neutral.

NBS Monitor 2 - excellent bass.

Neotech 3003 - extraordinary resolution, fine, long decay.

Nickle Signature - good highs, slightly less bass, laid back.

Oyaide 2.6mm - neutral, slightly thick sounding, not slow, quiet, good resolution, generous bass volume, taut.

Oyaide Tunami - quiet, warm sounding, muscular, good soundstage width, caution to space constraint, this is a stiff cable.

PAD 20th Aqueous - average quiet, slightly thick mid, slow to raise, slow to retract, wide soundstage, smooth highs, strong bass but fair edge delineation.

PAD Dominus - punchy, average pace, extraordinary quiet, balanced, extraordinary tonal density, slightly flavored, good layering, smooth highs.

PAD Ven - average quiet, slightly thick mid, slow to raise, slow to retract, wide soundstage, smooth highs, strong bass but lack edge delineation.

Power Snake Viper V2 - high resolution, not hardened, detailed, big soundstage, grandeur.

PS xStream Statement - good bass delineation, quiet.

Python Helix VX PC - balanced, relaxed but good grunt, good compatibility.

Siltech G6 Ruby Hill SATT - excellent strings and vocal, sounds faster than older Siltech, good mids focus, very quiet, good resolution and control.

Sine Coliseum - balanced, very quiet, average dynamic, long decay.

Stealth Dream - dynamic, fast, neutral, quiet, good extension, sumptuous, good bass control, holographic.

Stealth M7+ - punchy, fast, quiet, balanced, refined highs, high tonal density.

Supercryo 30A - punchy, slight pacey, quiet, lean, highs eccentric, low tonal density.

Tara Labs Prism - rounded highs, huge soundstage, fast, clean bass, thin vocal, weak upper bass.

Tara Labs Prism AC Special - fast, punchy, clean bass, weak bass.

Transparent Power XL - extraordinary quiet, forward mids, good density yet good resolution, less vigor.

Van den Hul The Mainstream Hybrid - prominent highs, sumptuous, thin vocal, weak bass.

VH Flavor 4 - balanced, tight sounding.

XLO Reference 2 - nothing in particular stand out.

We always complain that there aren't many choices, but when there are plentiful to choose from, we get headache. Even with new power cord, some dealers does not allow testing in the showroom, home trial is a long shot unless it is flirty expensive.

Now, I do not recommend you guys to use what I use. The power cords are there for a reason. Suitability of power cord and your sonic preference supposed to your major concern. 

Consclusion
錢要花在刀口上, spend when it matters. Typically, 1.5 to 3.0 meter is the sweet zone of any power cord to really impart its sonic signature. I know some who overwork the math, buying a 2 meter length wire, cut into half to get 2. Like I always say, if you are unwilling to spend reasonably to get good sound, go fly kite. It is cheaper to fly a kite too.

How you coil the power cord also changes the sound. A joke?

Despite my current cords, I still have an urge for one specific cord. Keep you in suspense. A word of caution, used power cord prices may sound too good to be real but beware there is a lot of fake power cords around. They are copied but not equal like your night market Rolex Submariner. Some were so cleverly copied that the dealers would not able tell the authenticity. You may need to exercise cautions there.

Until then, Happy Lunar New Year.