Nordost Blue Heaven AC Cord Review

[Doodski]

Let people buy what they want and can pay for. Produce reviews and data . If they choose to disregard so be it. Lots of morons in all hobbies. Just check their crap every time with facts .

The charlatans are ruining the hobby. So we must fight back.

 

[JimWeir]

This is a review and detailed measurements of the Nordost Blue Heaven AC Cord. It is on kind loan from a member and costs US $417 at this length (2m).
View attachment 291720
This is "third-tier" product in Nordost line so naturally, it is not going to scream expensive. That is a good thing as the cable itself is kept to less than crazy thickness. It is flexible but doesn't want to rotate which is a requirement for AC cord. Fortunately the connectors are easy to plug in and the weight was not excessive enough to yank your gear off the table/rack. I like the beefy plugs that make it easy to handle the cord. Here are the marketing claims:
View attachment 291722

I must say, I had not heard of "high-speed" as something good in AC cables. After all, high-speed means no filter or else, it would not be high-speed! We will test for its speed in the measurement section. I got a chuckle out of the claim that their claims are "proven." Naturally no such proof was provided.

While the plugs have UL/CE marks on them, the whole assembly has no mention of safety regulation either on the packaging or the marketing material. Only conclusion then is that the cable is not certified which is a sad thing when it comes to something that handles high current/high voltage and can cause safety risk.

Nordost Blue Heaven Measurements
Every time I go into one of these tests I think about how to expand our testing and come at the product from a different angle. While some of this testing may seem familiar, some are new. As usual, comparison is against a generic cable I had handy. In this case, I had a white AC cable that is marked as "I-SHENG" and comes with UL mark on the cabling. Company website says:

"Isheng Electronics is a world-class manufacturer of AC power cords. We offer a wide range of power cords including different NEMA AC power cords and different International power cord configurations. "

There is no mention of speed, or proven technologies; but they do emphasize safety which is nice.

As usual, I perform my high-voltage tests by sensing the wavefrom using a B&K high-voltage differential probe with 100:1 attenuator. Here is my AC waveform using the I-SHENG generic AC cord:
View attachment 291724

We see that the tops of the AC waveform are deformed resulting in a lot of harmonic distortion and noise. Treating this as if the power company is an amplifier, its SINAD is 31 dB. Let's swap in the Nordost Blue Heaven and see if it makes a difference:
View attachment 291725
It doesn't make any difference. Everything bad that was there continues to be bad.

Some say my power is clean. I don't know how anyone could say the above is clean but let's use my B&K AC generator to create a highly distorted waveform, simulating what a dimmer would do:

View attachment 291727

Let's agree that is one bad AC waveform! Our SINAD has now sank to just 5.3 dB! Let's pump that into the Nordost Blue Heaven and see if it does anything to it:
View attachment 291728
Once again it doesn't.

While we are here and have an AC waveform that has nice sharp transitions, let's look at it in time domain with bandwidth of the analyzer expanded to 1 MHz. Here is the comparison:
View attachment 291731
There are actually two waveforms there: one in blue for Nordost and another in red for generic cable. As you see, every pixel has landed on the other demonstrating that there is no difference in any aspect of that AC waveform including its sharp rise and fall time.

So far we have measured the AC waveform. Contrary to what Nordost claims, your audio gear doesn't run on AC. That input waveform is converted to DC and filtered heavily before use. It then drives the electronics that makes audio signal. That is all we care about as that is what we hear, not the AC waveform. So let's test for that.

Topping A90 Power Cord Measurements
Let's use the Topping A90 preamplifier/headphone amp that is on my desk to test the difference starting with generic AC cord:
View attachment 291729

Once again we get the superlative performance we expect. Now let's switch cables to Nordost:
View attachment 291730
Once again no difference.

Let's finish with a proof point of why AC tweaks don't work. I used the chopped dimmer AC waveform and fed it to Topping A90 with the generic cord. Here is the output:
View attachment 291732

Yup, there is not a hair out of place! We have the same superb performance coming out of headphone amplifier even though we nearly destroyed the AC waveform! That chopped up waveform in blue when it, and what came out was the red.

Conclusions
Both our old and new tests prove once again that power cords make no difference (as long as they are thick enough to handle the currents you need). We expanded our tests into time domain and saw no improvement with the Nordost cable. If the cable can't change the AC signal, surely it means that the output of our audio gear remains the same and that was indeed the case. We then proved our conclusions by supplying our test audio product with highly distorted AC waveform and its performance didn't change.

You can buy an AC cord on Amazon for about $10. It won't look as fancy as the Nordost but you can sleep easy knowing that it is safety tested and costs 40 times less!

As an aside, the owner was sold on this cable by an audio salesman that made it sound like his gear would not be complete without it. He couldn't hear a difference so sent it to me for testing.

I can't recommend the Nordost Blue Heaven Power cord.

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As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/

So the underwriting question is why do Manet audiophiles swear by AC power conditioners “dramatically” improving “the sound” of their systems.
Stereophonic reproduction can be broken into three stages. The last stage is the Psychoacoustics. Stereophonic reproduction is an inherently flawed, unnatural set of two or more channels of signals that produce two dimensionless somewhat correlated pressure variations at our ears. Our mind miraculously render a three dimensional illusion of a perfomance for us. “stereos” in Greek for solid or three dimensional.
But, remember the illusion is based on a flawed set of inputs. Acoustical signals in the second stage of reproduction come from multiple loudspeakers and are convolved by the rooms impulse responses from each of those speakers. This is very different from live listening where single sources are convolved by the room’s acoustics.
Our minds can take those flaws, and lose confidence in the performance of the system effecting the psychoacoustic, while our brains assign the error to signal processing, the first stage of stereophonic reproduction.
All of us should be aware, the sound of our system can change, without the signal changing. Once you realize that you can stop messing with your gear, and just go listen to music!

 

[Ismapics]

Hospital grade sounds clinical, though.

It's what in marketing we call an irrelevant difference. A cord with same features not called Hospital Grade will do the same job on the same hospital machine. But the clear jacket looks cool.

 

[Mnyb]

It's what in marketing we call an irrelevant difference. A cord with same features not called Hospital Grade will do the same job on the same hospital machine. But the clear jacket looks cool.

As this tread proves it can be 100% of the product and be a successful business it’s a common marketing scheme in food and cosmetics and health products , wonder how much of the content of the cans and bottles are really the exact same product or tiny variations of bulk product marketed differently into different price tiers ?

 

[GXAlan]

It's what in marketing we call an irrelevant difference. A cord with same features not called Hospital Grade will do the same job on the same hospital machine. But the clear jacket looks cool.

Does non-medical grade power cord compromise the safety of medical equipment?

A tertiary care 1000 bedded hospital contains more than 10,000 pieces of equipment worth approximately 41 million USD, while the power cords supplied along with the imported equipment do not comply with country-specific norms. Moreover, the local vendors ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Actually, there are differences with hospital grade cables, which is why such a standard exists.

 

[AudioX3]

Yes, we need to keep testing them. Folks go and search for reviews of these products and if we don't test them, they will land on random youtuber singing the praises of the loaner cables they got. Whatever conclusion we have here requires hanging around and reading a lot which a lot of people will not be doing who are not members.

Thx for the response. I wish it wasn't of need but I see your point. Unfortunately we have tribalism, and. FUD perpetuating mistrusting common sense. Oh yeah and magical pixy dust.

 

[Nicky991]

The product name put me in mind of an old song named My Blue Heaven. It's about happy family life. What I remember is "Just Molly and me, and baby makes three." This may be what Nordost was thinking about. There's also a 1990 film of the same name, but I've not seen it. At least we can guess how the Nordost people entertain themselves.

 

[JaMaSt]

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4743298/
Actually, there are differences with hospital grade cables, which is why such a standard exists.

Yeah, it's not just made up jargon. There are standards that have to be followed when spec'ing and installing medical grade wiring.

NFPA 99
Access the latest knowledge and information on safeguarding lives and property in health care facilities with NFPA 99, 2021 edition.

It is critical to take appropriate measures to protect patients, staff, and visitors from dangers and ensure health care safety. NFPA 99, Health Care Facilities Code, provides state-of-the-art performance criteria for health care facilities, materials, and appliances, including medical gas and vacuum systems, electrical systems, gas equipment, and features of fire protection.


NEC Article 517
Part II of Article 517 applies to all patient care spaces within health care facilities. Part II is required to apply to areas where patients are intended to be placed on life support systems or subjected to invasive procedures and connected to line-operated electromedical devices within these limited care facilities.

It does not apply to business offices, corridors, waiting rooms, and the like in clinics, medical and dental offices, outpatient facilities, or areas used exclusively for immunizations, psychiatry and psychotherapy, alternative medicine or optometry.

Wiring methods for health care facilities are required to comply with the applicable provisions of Chapters 1 through 4 except as modified, supplemented, or amended by Article 517. See also 90.3, Code Arrangement.

90.3 Application Example

In Article 517, the equipment grounding conductor requirements for branch circuits serving patient care locations is amended to be more restrictive. Two equipment grounding (protective bonding) paths are the goal and rule.

Section 517.13(A) modifies the general requirements in Article 250 by requiring an insulated, copper equipment grounding conductor and installing this conductor in a metal raceway that qualifies as an equipment grounding return path in accordance with Section 250.118.

The amendments/modifications are as follows:

• Insulated, copper equipment grounding conductors
• Installed in metal raceways that are identified equipment grounding conductor return paths.

These are two more restrictive requirements than what is normally acceptable in Section 250.118.

 

[JSmith]

What I remember is "Just Molly and me, and baby makes three."

Whippoorwills call, evenin' is nigh
Hurry to my Blue Heaven
Turn to the right, there's a little white light
Will lead you to my Blue Heaven
You'll see a smilin' face, a fireplace, a cozy room
Little nest that nestles where the roses bloom
Molly and me, and the baby makes three
We're happy in my, in my Blue Heaven
You're gonna see a smilin' face, fireplace, cozy room
And a little nest nestled where the roses bloom
Just Molly and me, and the baby is three
We're so happy in my Blue Heaven
We're happy in my Blue Heaven
We're happy in my Blue Heaven!

Does this cable take one to Blue Heaven?


JSmith

 

[Bruce Morgen]

With unsurpassed power handling..

...but dubious insulation resistance in the context of AC mains voltage -- after all, it was designed for an automotive starter circuit, with at most 15VDC!

 

[Jimster480]

No surprises here... a power cable delivers power.

 

[DACs_Lover]

Nail it again and again. Thank you Amir.

 

[Mathijs Kok]

Given those custom connectors, I have to believe whoever makes the authentic parts is also supplying them for these fake ones.

Amirm, you really should put the two next to each other.... if they are the same, it would blow these crooks out of the water.

 

[AudioSceptic]

If you don’t care about safety certification and you just want the aesthetics of fancy cables (which is totally valid IMO) aliexpress has thousands of replicas of these. For 1/10,000th the price.

I have a couple pairs of “nordost” XLRs from aliexpress and they look identical, and check out fine on my scope (at least, not broken, and no excessive interference even when held next to EMI nightmare devices)

I don’t like to condone supporting replica markets but in this case I have no empathy towards a company scamming consumers with lies, support the factories that probably make all of the parts that go into them anyways.


View attachment 291745

I'd love to see:-

1. One of these fakes measured to see if there's any difference compared with the "genuine" article;

2. Both to be disassembled to see if there's any difference in construction.

I have to say, I'm tempted to buy one of these fake Odin cables...

 

[AudioSceptic]

yes but does this have the edge over GR Research's $400 version?

also the Nordost copies on aliexpress seem to be $40-$60? so 10% actual and there's still margin for the chinese maker?

Nordost is making some pretty decent gains.

You need to compare like with like. The Nordost Odin cables are in the $10k-$20k range, not a few hundred.

 

[AudioSceptic]

I roll my eyes whenever I see Nordost (or Audioquest).

they are not stupid. how can they charge 400$ for a power cable? make it looks good!

$400 is cheap. Look at the ones higher up in the Nordost range.

 

[AndreaT]

A well written paper comprising the 'speed of light 'argument is here, unfortunately it's in italian, and a pdf.

https://www.audioreview.it/documenti/tecnica/AR263_SUONO_DEI_CAVI_DI_POTENZA.pdf

The experimental setup for the measurement session is however clearly explained.

I have read it. The most reliable finding is: flatwire(s) on top of each other like plates of a capacitor have a high…capacitance (!), while flatwires side by side (along their shortest dimension) have a low capacitance (but the highest inductance). The values are in micro-H and pico-F…How a difference of speed of conduction, variable in different cables between 50 and 98% of c, translates into more (or less) desirable performance is not explained.

 

[Mathijs Kok]

You need to compare like with like. The Nordost Odin cables are in the $10k-$20k range, not a few hundred.

So you assume it is not just a (the?) cheap cable sold wayyyyyy overpriced. I would not take that assumption as this has been shown more than a few times.

 

[AudioSceptic]

The best cables I ever tested.

Actually, remove the alligator clips and you have excellent speaker cables with very low resistance.

 

[AudioSceptic]

So you assume it is not just a (the?) cheap cable sold wayyyyyy overpriced. I would not take that assumption as this has been shown more than a few times.

I have no idea if the actual conductors are the same or not. I just assume they must at least look different, and maybe cost *slightly* more to make.