Do we need a high quality and expensive power cord?

[greeny]

Some of the power cords I came across are very expensive, some even can reach more than 1K in price.

My question is, do we need that type cable? What are the pro and con (if any) using this to connect your gears to the house power supply.

 

[Sir Sanders Zingmore]

My question is, do we need that type cable?

No you don't

What are the pro

they might look nice

and con

They will empty your wallet and make no audible difference

 

[Killingbeans]

My question is, do we need that type cable?

No. Just... no.

Expensive power cords is one of the most blatantly obvious con jobs you'll find in the industry (if you ask me). They do absolutely nothing.

Go to any cutting edge research facility in the world and take a look behind their ridiculously sensitive measuring equipment. All you'll see is off the shelf cheap power cords chosen on the basis of actual physics rather than pseudo-scientific marketing speak.

Go for a cheap cable with good build quality and be happy

 

[maxxevv]

We do need a high quality power cord.

BUT .... high quality doesn't mean it has to be expensive.

You can get custom made to length ones of the highest (technical) standards for under US$50/ 2 meter length. No point paying anything more than that.

 

[digicidal]

If you really like the look... you can DIY or buy reasonable(ish) priced sleeved cords which are well made and don't cost a fortune. However, understand that there is actually a risk that they might not be as well made as the free ones that came with your gear. Most of them are well made though - I mean it's pretty hard to screw up a 3-lead cable termination...

Have fun, but definitely don't stress over power cords, speaker cables, interconnects, etc. Worry about affording your dream speakers instead.

 

[DownUnderGazza]

Some of the power cords I came across are very expensive, some even can reach more than 1K in price.
My question is, do we need that type cable? What are the pro and con (if any) using this to connect your gears to the house power supply.

My 2c?
Imitate the practises of the pros who record, mix and master your music, use the power cables that came with your gear!

I have a storage bin of spare IEC 'jug cords' from all my pro gear. I do admit they tend to be a wee bit heavier duty than standard domestic ones, but I'd be horrified if any cost more than US$10 each!

My philosophy is if there is ANY doubt about a fault with the jug cord, I cut one end off, throw it out and replace it without hesitation.

The reason I have spares is that sometimes I plug my gear directly into power conditioners that are designed for IEC to IEC power cables.
Oh, in case someone thinks power conditioners are a thing, the reason for them is that when going from venue to venue for live gigs, I have no idea what other noisey appliances might be plugged into the same circuit I've been given to power everything. Sometimes I've wondered about the quality of the basic wiring too...

 

[greeny]

Thank you guys for all the comments given. Will save the $$$ and buy a better headphone or other audio goodies.

 

[FrantzM]

Hi Greeny

Please do not take the following as dismissive.


Seems to me that you are in the process of building a system and are asking questions to usual Hi-Fi shops. I would suggest you to not listen to anything they say from that point on. Define a budget. Discuss it with the people here, with us.
In the meantime do know the following:

Cables have no sound, should not have any ... There are several brands that build/sell excellent cables (Interconnects, USB, Speakers, yes! Power cables too) .. They do not need to be expensive. Two brands comes to mind. Blue Jeans Cable and Ghent Audio. Those people make excellent cables. I would lean on Blue Jeans if you live in the US.

As for the Electronics... Thanks to the tests and reviews of Amir, we know that $200 can give you a headphone system capable of driving any headphones on the planet to dangerous level with vanishing level of distortion. Affectionately known here as the ASR SPecial., this combo of the Khadas Audio Tone Board ($100) + The JDS Lab Atom headphone amp ($100) rivals in performance anything ou there, drive any headphones known to men, from the most sensitive to beasts such the HE6 and AKG K1000 with aplomb. Same amp dues to low noise drive sensitive IEM as well...

Speakers/transducers are where you spend your money. Depending on your room and tastes, think about adding 2 or more subs... Difficult to pull off but well worth it. For headphones .. Same: do not overspend ... in my new book, $500 is the limit .. Think cans like Sennheiser HD650 or my personal favorite HifiMan HE560 ... There are many others. One of the best websites on the subject is from a person who post here: Solderdude... https://diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com/headphones/recommended-ones/

Stay, ask questions. The answers here, more than, any other Audio enthusiasts sites, are deeply rooted in science and/or technology, a few opinions for sure but not wild things.

Peace and Welcome!

 

[Midwest Blade]

Don't mistake marketing, fancy packaging the the looks of products (ie. cables), performance can be measured and is economically viable for all of us to afford. Much better to spend your money on speakers and good quality content to play.

 

[Martin]

I bought into the whole cables make a difference camp years ago. At one time I had PS Audio Plus SC power cables in my system. Luckily I was able to sell them for what I paid for them. I replaced them with Pangea Audio AC-14SE power cords at a fraction of the price but still not cheap. I am currently in the process of replacing the Pangea Audio power cords with TrippLite 14AWG cords purchased on Amazon for $8.50 a pop. I plan to sell the Pangea cables on eBay or one of the audiophile forums. This site has allowed me to upgrade my system while making money in the process. Thank-you ASR!

Martin

 

[Rockfella]

I bought into the whole cables make a difference camp years ago. At one time I had PS Audio Plus SC power cables in my system. Luckily I was able to sell them for what I paid for them. I replaced them with Pangea Audio AC-14SE power cords at a fraction of the price but still not cheap. I am currently in the process of replacing the Pangea Audio power cords with TrippLite 14AWG cords purchased on Amazon for $8.50 a pop. I plan to sell the Pangea cables on eBay or one of the audiophile forums. This site has allowed my to upgrade my system while making money in the process. Thank-you ASR!

Martin

Hehehehe nice!

 

[eliash]

Some of the power cords I came across are very expensive, some even can reach more than 1K in price.

My question is, do we need that type cable? What are the pro and con (if any) using this to connect your gears to the house power supply.

My 2 cents: DIY or check for the below
- Connectors: Look for compatible plating (i.e. nickel) to the wall or extension plugs (branded articles).
Different materials (metal plated surfaces) will build-up insulating layers due to humid air and dissolved pollutants therein. This may cause problems over time in the earthing line.

- Cables: I made good experiences with shielded industrial cables (2 + shield or 3 + shield) as power cords. The near field mains noise crosstalk (electrical field) of unshielded power cables, e.g. next to barely shielded low-capacitance phono cables is significant in the rear cable mess.
Looking at below -100dB levels in analog DAC-to-Amp connections crosstalk may become critical as well, when accidently routed close and parallel...

 

[Speedskater]

My 2 cents: DIY or check for the below
- Connectors: Look for compatible plating (i.e. nickel) to the wall or extension plugs (branded articles).
Different materials (metal plated surfaces) will build-up insulating layers due to humid air and dissolved pollutants therein. This may cause problems over time in the earthing line.

They might and it could be a problem for a portable pro on location system. But for hi-fi system in a home, not very likely.

 

[digicidal]

I suppose there are cases where this problem is not easily solvable by decent cable management... I can't come up with any, but perhaps. In almost every home application... if you don't have enough room to organize your cables enough to prevent it - then you probably don't have enough room for speakers at all. If you don't have a ton of components, and you put at least a little thought to layouts... you should be able to have a fairly significant distance maintained between all of your power cords and your signal cables. At least I've never had any problems with this.

 

[eliash]

They might and it could be a problem for a portable pro on location system. But for hi-fi system in a home, not very likely.

...it is all about applying RF-design rules to the complete system, the multiple power socket outlet is shielded (extruded aluminum profile) and capacitor blocked as well...good against noisy PLC and PV-inverters - we desire Hi-End not just HiFi, don´t we...

 

[Blueacewe]

Do thick power cables have any impact? A HiFi dealer once recommended me to use 2.5mm power cable on my subwoofer (I think that's 14AWG). He wasn't recommending a specific cable, just get to get any DIY cable and that it would have a positive impact.

 

[eliash]

Do thick power cables have any impact? A HiFi dealer once recommended me to use 2.5mm power cable on my subwoofer (I think that's 14AWG). He wasn't recommending a specific cable, just get to get any DIY cable and that it would have a positive impact.

Depends on your in-house wiring, in case it has that wire cross section, it could make sense in principle to continue in that strength for long cables.
I think here in our house in Germany (@230V), it has only 1.5mm² from line fuses to outlets, don´t know how it is dimensioned in a 110/120V system.
For my power amp, consuming <1KW, I have chosen 1.5mm² cable, for the low power devices even only 0.75mm², still on the safe side to blow out the line fuse in case of a short-circuit.
Anyway, Ohms law applies, the total cable and connector resistance matters for the overall performance...

 

[March Audio]

Do thick power cables have any impact? A HiFi dealer once recommended me to use 2.5mm power cable on my subwoofer (I think that's 14AWG). He wasn't recommending a specific cable, just get to get any DIY cable and that it would have a positive impact.

Nope, just use the one that came with the unit. It will be correctly rated for the current draw of the sub.

Its up to the design of the power supply in the sub (or other component) to have adequate regulation. If this is adequate then you have no issue. If its inadequate then the cable is not going to save the day.

 

[pozz]

I suppose there are cases where this problem is not easily solvable by decent cable management... I can't come up with any, but perhaps. In almost every home application... if you don't have enough room to organize your cables enough to prevent it - then you probably don't have enough room for speakers at all. If you don't have a ton of components, and you put at least a little thought to layouts... you should be able to have a fairly significant distance maintained between all of your power cords and your signal cables. At least I've never had any problems with this.

@Ethan Winer posted a video where he wrapped the power cable for a very high wattage light around a balanced signal cable and measured no degredation. This was at his home.

In a dedicated studio, you have hundreds of snaking power and signal cables. These installations are not simple and sometimes require installing a dedicated subsystem within an existing building or complex. Middle Atlantic has written a very lengthy and detailed guide on the subject which can be accessed for free.

 

[eliash]

Nope, just use the one that came with the unit. It will be correctly rated for the current draw of the sub.

Its up to the design of the power supply in the sub (or other component) to have adequate regulation. If this is adequate then you have no issue. If its inadequate then the cable is not going to save the day.

Not exactly, in a traditional class A/B amps the max. output voltage of the amp is app. proportional to the line voltage. Of course it should not matter too much in audibility. Assuming 1dB are an audible difference in loudness, also at max. undistorted power, it would relate to some 11-23V voltage drop on the line below the rated voltage. Sounds already like an unhealthy electrical situation...Class D amps may behave differently, depending on design...