Why an AC Power Cord cannot make a difference

[SIY]

It was a joke of course, trained musicians and concerts melomanes have really good ears, that was it was mandatory for the test. My goal was not to find how or why PC could be better (there are a lot of pseudo scientist and real scientist to explain as I'm not electrician nor specialist in magnetic fields), just if good ears will say : better, not better, not better just sound different. The result was clearly better.

Often they do, but controls are still required if they're human. Without basic ears-only controls, all sorts of nonsense like this is touted as true.

Come back with actual evidence in a good experiment and there's something to talk about.

 

[Esprit]

The best test is to pretend to change the power cord, always leaving the old one, and then see who likes A, who likes B and who says "hey, it's still the same one".

 

[SSS]

I agree that a lot of power cords are not efficient because they do not work to cure the pb of EMI and RFI activated by the power cord itself. I work with many manufacturers of audio gears (very famous) that do not believe in power cords. I made some demonstrations with on of them, may be the most reluctant about PC action. After a long explication why PC could not work (He is Engineer in electronic and designer of probably the best amplifiers), I (engineer too but mainly in acoustic and mechanical vibrations, formerly professor in a University) made a test : blind listening with standard power cord of his famous amplifier and then with a highly regarded power cord that ASR say he could not work. All the people in the room said the second listening was vastly better! collective hallucination? electric compensation of ...? In fact I know why it's better and yes I agree 90% of PC change the sound but not improve it, but some do. I also made tests (blind) with audiophiles and same result. I conducted finally the same test with skilled musicians, same result. Some PC improve music playback and not only change it for a different taste.
The conclusion: as a scientist I always try to find why and how a phenomenon occurs.
This is the same subject that power conditioners. 95% do not work well because they wrongly "depurate" 230V. 230V should be perfect sine wave with no deviation with no harmonics... even if some electronic power supply make a very good job to filter AC at the input and they store energy. Only hearing transformers "singing" without music because there is some DC or too much pollution in AC that the power supply could not treat enough. This time too, proof is in the listening.
Scientist approach is mandatory but it should be well done and not conclude to wrong judgments due to inappropriate measurements (I spent 10 years making measurements).

I can't believe this. How was better sound defined? If the power cables were electrically different (what was the difference?) then what was the interaction with the amplifier? If an amplifier reacts on different mains impedance then the design of it has flaws to my opinion.

 

[egellings]

Whenever I meet a person who says that power cords make a difference, I just smile at them and walk away. These people are the same as religious fundamentalists, conspiracy theorists, UFO believers, etc. If they have given up rational thinking and evidence, they will not be persuaded by rational thought and evidence.

Agree; once a power cord meets the ampacity requirement of the equipment it feeds, which is easy to to and inexpensive, then it's a done deal. The race is over. You've crossed the finish line. Stop running already.

 

[Keith_W]

All the people in the room said the second listening was vastly better! collective hallucination?

You hit the nail on the head right there. Well done!

 

[EJ3]

You hit the nail on the head right there. Well done!

I am not always 100% in agreement with you (mostly wiggle room, not completely out of agreement, either)..
But for this I am surely 100% in agreement with you!

 

[2tec]

Of course the power cord really matters,

just try running your gear without one. ;~)

 

[Salt]

Why should it not be (advocatus diaboli): an AC cord is a wire plus connectors.
Assuming, the diameter is sufficient, the connectors remain, and as several comments over the last years here pointed out this as possible cause for differences in personal impression for 'cable sound' (something like: you pulled out and reconnected it so might be some oxyd might be removed): why not Maybe?
Just saying.

 

[EJ3]

Why should it not be (advocatus diaboli): an AC cord is a wire plus connectors.
Assuming, the diameter is sufficient, the connectors remain, and as several comments over the last years here pointed out this as possible cause for differences in personal impression for 'cable sound' (something like: you pulled out and reconnected it so might be some oxyd might be removed): why not Maybe?
Just saying.

Perhaps an annual cleaning of power cord connections (ALL OF THEM IN YOUR RESIDENCE, NOT JUST THE AUDIO SYSTEM) should be implemented.

 

[Mikig]

I just ask one question: why should 1 meter, 2 meters, 3 meters of cable make a difference, when they are only a small percentage of cable that goes from the power plant to our speakers? That's all I ask myself. The power cables in our homes of the electrical system upstream of the socket of our system pass through walls, are in ducts with antenna cables, other power cables, pass through electrical sockets, the current itself before reaching our amplifier may have passed through an air conditioner or LED headlights, or worse still neon. Inside our devices the wires pass attached to transformers, resistors, FETs, tubes, magnets and so on, and they are not even shielded wires. They have a diameter of a hair... Why should two meters of cable make a difference in all this? Maybe it would be better to be scared and run to fix everything that is before and beyond those two meters...

 

[EJ3]

I just ask one question: why should 1 meter, 2 meters, 3 meters of cable make a difference, when they are only a small percentage of cable that goes from the power plant to our speakers? That's all I ask myself. The power cables in our homes of the electrical system upstream of the socket of our system pass through walls, are in ducts with antenna cables, other power cables, pass through electrical sockets, the current itself before reaching our amplifier may have passed through an air conditioner or LED headlights, or worse still neon. Inside our devices the wires pass attached to transformers, resistors, FETs, tubes, magnets and so on, and they are not even shielded wires. They have a diameter of a hair... Why should two meters of cable make a difference in all this? Maybe it would be better to be scared and run to fix everything that is before and beyond those two meters...

TOO FUNNY (BUT THE TRUTH).

 

[Salt]

Perhaps an annual cleaning of power cord connections (ALL OF THEM IN YOUR RESIDENCE, NOT JUST THE AUDIO SYSTEM) should be implemented.

Just referred to posts I saw on ASR and don't see reason to shout out

 

[EJ3]

Just referred to posts I saw on ASR and don't see reason to shout out

Am, I do not know who came up with, if one capitalizes, it is shouting (I was living on islands in the Indian Ocean & Western Pacific, I presume, where computer use was & is very low & less than 50% of the people have cell phones.
If you (and BILLIONS of others think that it is, that is fine. Because, if I am shouting I will (like NOW) let you F'N KNOW that I an shouting.
I just had 3 vertebrae fused together and how I type through the pain when I hit keys, I don't give a damn.
So please pipe down with this stupidity.
Or do you actually have ZERO to say about the subject? If so, why waste (SHOUTING NOW) MILLIONS of people's time with YOUR INANE COMMENTS?

 

[Salt]

Sorry for Your situation, can see Your problems, but won't be able to help from the distance.

 

[Mikig]

roughly I think that a cable, in my opinion an essential but passive element, can bring as a maximum contribution, when right, compliant and suitable for the purpose, a contribution equal to 0 zero, on the chain. If it were perfect in materials, in temperature, and in everything you want it would simply make you hear what the various elements of the system offer combined with each other and crossed by the electric current. nothing more. Otherwise it would be an active element, and inside it at least there should be added electronic components... but that is not our case, in two meters of pure copper... so I find it difficult to think that a cable can act with disarming clarity as if it were an EQ and a DSP together, changing highs, lows, soundstage and depth to the reproduced sound. I think at most that those who continue to change cables are basically simply dissatisfied with the sound of their system, or their system is poorly implemented and installed... the real effect of what they are looking for with the cable change is with the PEQ control electronics, with DSP or with an excellent change of speakers, arrangement etc etc... it's a different story if the cable in question is unsuitable, damaged, not compliant with the purpose... but I think that at most we would be talking about hum phenomena, ground noise etc etc... however even if it were, it is very difficult to discover clearly audible differences when we are talking about deviations of 0.000... our ears are phenomenal but not so accurate to the thousandth...

 

[EJ3]

Sorry for Your situation, can see Your problems, but won't be able to help from the distance.

Thank you for being understanding. I am trying to also learn some of the crazy (to me, anyway) rules, like caps is shouting.

 

[RayDunzl]

Switching is made simply by changing the power cable because the amplifier used has a very small time to be fully operational

I have an amplifier that keeps playing after the power switch is turned off - for many seconds, depending on the volume of the material being played - higher volume shorter play time.

I could swap power cords without interruption, which might make for an interesting listening test scenario that I won't perform.

 

[Doodski]

I just had 3 vertebrae fused together

Why would doctors fuse your vertebrae together? How long where you in surgery for this?

 

[Mikig]

Why would doctors fuse your vertebrae together? How long where you in surgery for this?

It happens when the vertebrae slide forward, backward or sideways over each other.

 

[Doodski]

It happens when the vertebrae slide forward, backward or sideways over each other.

Ouch... majorly.