Power cables are important, simply upgrading the lead on my kettle, has improved the flavour, depth and ambient temperature of my tea, I'm now saving for a lead for my toaster!

@tannman357

15 күн бұрын

lol

Next time you go to the hospital check out the cable of the thingy that measures your blood pressure. Grab it and read the label. Or when you go to your next EKG do the same. Nurses leave that equipment in the room. Those cables cost few $ per foot and if they are good to read, amplify and register your weak bio signal with no error they are more then excellent for your audio equipment.

@wisehippo3072

21 күн бұрын

Funny you should say that because Shunyata Research makes power distribution systems for medical applications.

@cengeb

16 күн бұрын

@@wisehippo3072 I worked on million dollar analytical lab equipment, that measured to the micron level...it used standard SO SJ etc. type of cords. this audio grade AC line cords is such a line of crapola. It's to sell junk to the cluless

@cengeb

16 күн бұрын

@@wisehippo3072 not for any of the stuff I've seen, what brands use Shunyatatatatatatatatatatatatatatata, nonsense?

I've been working with sensitive electronics since the '90s and I can easily say the overwhelming majority of electronic-hardware problems are related to bad power and/or bad ground. It is very very common for the ground in peoples houses to be absolutely awful--Ironically the bigger the house is usually the worse the grounding is. The power cable is important but if you're going to shell out 40K+ for a pair of speakers you should shell out a grand or two to hire an electrician to clean up your grounding. Public utility power is also generally pretty bad especially if you live in a large population center or share a grid with an industrial park (which is more common than people realize).

@georgebarronjr

23 күн бұрын

Well, we're not really talking about 'problems' here. We're talking about nuances, whether real or imagined, but nuances nevertheless. And even worse, from the point of practical operation, we're not even talking about objective nuances. Hi-fi equipment is almost entirely played in the home environment, not a lab and presumably not in some ideal theoretical fantasy land. If they can't design components and speakers to work in the environment it was intended to be used in then maybe we need to rethink spending several grand, much less $40k on any given component.

@ThinkingBetter

23 күн бұрын

Thanks for an intelligent comment. Indeed your electric wiring including grounding and interference from other things connected are of far more importance than a few feet of power cable from the wall socket to your audio device. Sort of like, you won’t get audiophile sound from an AM radio by using most expensive speaker cables lol…

@TurboLoveTrain

22 күн бұрын

@@georgebarronjr I have no idea what you're talking about. "we" aren't talking about anything. Honestly I have no idea what "you" are talking about at all. The only fantasy you clearly live in is one where you understand electronics--which you've made quite clear you don't.

@georgebarronjr

22 күн бұрын

@@TurboLoveTrain Wow, must have hit a nerve. But to clarify, you posted a comment in a comment section to which people often reply and discuss things. Some might understand "talking" in that way. Especially since in that context it was obvious. Sorry that confused you. And so that you don't get confused again, you posted " I can easily say the overwhelming majority of electronic-hardware problems are related to bad power". That is the part I was replying to. And instead of addressing or refuting my comments in any sort of meaningful or adult way you simply made insults. Which tells me all I need to know.

@BryanTorok

22 күн бұрын

@@georgebarronjr Absolutely! To be fair, having power cables large enough, or even one size up, for the peak current required is important. But as most residential wiring is 14 or 12 gauge, going larger than that gains nothing.

I'd like to see the results of bona fide blind listening tests.

@DOS-jx9wy

19 күн бұрын

Watch USB audio lead blind test @ passionforsound, committed audiophiles shooting themselves in the foot!

@DOS-jx9wy

19 күн бұрын

@passionforsound, blind test USB audio cables

@DOS-jx9wy

17 күн бұрын

Why do we need blind testing, when we have Paul's, golden oldie ears, to guide us!

Which brands of power cables fit the male shielding 🛡️ criteria?

Great explanation of the importance of quality power cables and why they DO matter. Thanks Paul!

@storkfletcher821

24 күн бұрын

It was lacking in some key areas. For example, why it's not important to have the same quality cables in the walls, as the walls definitely do not protect cables from anything like waves or electric and magnetic fields.

Placebo is routinely administered during trials, because patients on talcum often report improvement.

this maybe a silly question, do ps audio sound test their equipment with the standard cable that comes with it or an aftermarket cable?

@paulb4661

22 күн бұрын

Any, makes no difference.

@1stswim

22 күн бұрын

@paulb4661 exactly what i thought.

@BradfordWarner

19 күн бұрын

Paul's reference cable, I believe is the Audioquest Dragon. And sorry to frustrate the folks who were trained in electrical engineering for industrial rather than high fidelity applications, but that series of cables can be quite effective when paired with proper filtration equipment (even in blind tests).

@paulb4661

19 күн бұрын

@@BradfordWarner Few years ago, a group of individuals involved in the audio industry took part in speaker cables test, under the condition of anonymity. None achieved a statistically significant result. Want real knowledge, go to college.

@patl709

18 күн бұрын

@@paulb4661please explain.

With respect, two questions. You actually provide a cable you would throw away? Then provide no cable and sell some worthy options. Providing what you admit is junk just doesn’t seem right. Secondly, you are saying that the benefit is to the equipment OTHER than that using the cable? Can you elaborate further?

@RectifiedMetals

24 күн бұрын

Great point. Knock $10-15 off the price and don’t supply the cable. Only trouble is it thins the pool of very small already, potential buyers who would understand.

@giannismag3064

24 күн бұрын

They provide a cable that is not dirt cheap and its good enough to run the equipment reliably. They know that most audiophiles who spend these amounts of money on equipment, have aftermarket power cables, so providing an expensive ($100+) power cable with the equipment is not a wise option, because they would force the buyers to pay for it.

@edd2771

24 күн бұрын

@@giannismag3064 The man literally said he would throw the cables they provide in the garbage. If he does not find them suitable, he is misspending his customer's money by adding it (however cheap) into the cost of the product. But I think the bigger truth is this: In a blind A/B compare between their supplied cord and some upscale cord, with all else in the system equal, a majority of panelists are not going to be able to tell the difference in a majority of trials. But you can't have it both ways. Paul says it makes a difference. If it makes a difference, don't supply what you literally refer to as garbage.

@bayard1332

23 күн бұрын

How would you feel if you opened the box and had no power cable, would you have kind words to the manufacturer? How would you feel if after the listed item was an option box and every option cost at least $250 and went up to $5000 and you HAD to choose one, would you have kind words for the manufacturer?

@edd2771

23 күн бұрын

@@bayard1332 I wouldn’t like it. Therefore he should include what he feels is an acceptable, non-garbage worthy cable and just price the unit accordingly. If the currently supplied cord is sufficient he should admit that it is and stop selling the myth of high end cables. Either option is a valid way out for this dilemma he has created for himself.

Thanks for explaining the proper type of shielded power cable. Now, how do I verify all my extra power cords for old compute servers are properly grounded only to the male ground plug? Stick a needle into the outside and hope I only hit the shielding and check for continuity? Or I could just buy one, but I have a bunch of old 14 gauge power cords.

What about hardwired cables? Is there a solution?

I had some noise (quite audible)..It was a noisy preamp tube. Changed it, noise gone..I only use ordinary power cables..The noise floor is pretty low .

What about the cables used in your home electrical installation and the miles of cable from the power grid? Why would the last meter make any differences. I do get how a separate audio group would do something, I would invest in that before sending anything in power cables.

@jules153

24 күн бұрын

I thought exactly the same until I tried one.

@glenncurry3041

24 күн бұрын

It all does and some will have a separate AC Mains bought to the house with special panels, breakers, separate wiring, grounding,... Then there are things like Paul's Power Plant that basically put the AC power source right by the hardware.

@JulioCSolar

24 күн бұрын

That’s a good point. I also purchased a couple. Again, if he doesn’t sale cables, why in the world would he stand behind of what so many people think is a waste of money? That thinking process doesn’t make any sense! If Paul would have been making cables, then I’d understand.

@richardsoffice9176

24 күн бұрын

@@JulioCSolar Paul DID, P S Audio, DID make cables! About two years ago, I purchased AudioQuest Cables from, through P S Audio, quite a few, & was delighted to receive several, "P S Audio," cables, although they come in cheap, plastic enclosures, not the little, very nice, "suitcases," that the more expensive AudioQuest cables come in! {Although, this makes no difference, once one takes the cables out of their boxes & use them!} I've called AudioQuest a few times {there's no law against this!}, & was told that P S Audio USED to buy the raw materials from AudioQuest, then assemble these into the finished product. I've just now called P S Audio, it's 8:14 A. M. in California, they're an hour ahead, but no one picked up. We can, "bug," them, later!

@Pete.across.the.street

23 күн бұрын

My water goes through miles of pipe. Why would rusty pipes in my house effect anything lol

You can make power cables yourself , including custom length . There are sources for power & IEC plugs . I bought & recommend bulk purchase of Oyaide 12 Ga Black Mamba power cable . It's exceedingly high quality , although not inexpensive , has a copper shield & drain wire . Instructions can be found on KZread videos to get the hot & return proper . No soldering .

@paulb4661

23 күн бұрын

... or you can study electronic engineering and make real improvements instead.

@chungang7037

22 күн бұрын

@@paulb4661 or spend a life's savings instead...🤣

Why not just offer an option for your recommended power cable and still include the standard cable in the box.

Paul, your insights are invaluable in this matter. I appreciate your expertise and agree with your perspective. I have a DAC and a top-of-the-line Preamp from PSAUDIO and would like to upgrade my power cables (there are seven of them). The ones I currently have are, in theory, "audiophile," but I purchased them on Amazon for anywhere from $50 to $80 without knowing whether or not they meet the technical requirements you mentioned in the video. The problem is that the supply of cables is enormous. There are many brands, and within each brand, there are several references. One must figure out what to do because one only wants to pay what is necessary to meet the technical requirements. So, if a cable of reference A costs 200 dollars and the same company sells another reference B, which costs 400 dollars, does it mean that one needs to be better insulated than the other? How can the same manufacturer possibly sell you two cables at different prices? Is it that there is one that does not work? Some cables cost several thousand dollars. It's ridiculous! After a certain point, the subject of cables becomes very similar to that of jewelry. That is to say, it seems to me that luxury is part of the high prices one sees. I am not against luxury; whoever wants to buy a gold Rolex or several and can afford it is perfect. But in the face of so many cables, if one wants ones that comply technically but are not "luxury," one simply does not know what to buy. In short, we need your help. Please tell us (without fear, because it would be very helpful for all of us) a brand and reference that meets the technical requirements at the lowest possible price. I will buy them immediately.

If the shield is only connected at the make end. How on earth will you then lead away the noise from the equipment?

In Europe we have double the voltage, so half the current.

@NormcoreGreg

24 күн бұрын

@a.dejager7062 what implications does it have for home audio? I’m asking as a citizen of Europe :)

@a.dejager7062

23 күн бұрын

Therefore the high current requirement is less important.

@budgetaudiophilelife-long5461

23 күн бұрын

🙋‍♂️ JUST A FYI, I BOUGHT THE. PS AUDIO PERFECT WAVE AC-3 power cable years ago…NOTICED AN IMPROVEMENT RIGHT AWAY AND HAVE BEEN USING IT EVER SINCE, stretching the budget at the time, but amortizing the cost is a fraction of a cent each day😁🤗💚💚💚

@paulb4661

23 күн бұрын

​@@budgetaudiophilelife-long5461 Sure you did, that's why Doctors administer placebo to some patients in a test group, when assessing true effectiveness of a drug. Many report improvement, when ingesting talcum and citric acid.

@paulb4661

23 күн бұрын

​@@budgetaudiophilelife-long5461Sure you did, but did ypu know that placebo is administered during medicine trials, because patients treated with cittic acid and talcum regularly report relief in their symptoms?

Should I also replace all the electric wiring in my house? It's an antenna. What a bunch of snake oil.

@kb9gkc

23 күн бұрын

You want to shield the power wires from picking up RFI and bringing the RFI into your pre-amplifiers and amplifiers. Close proximity RFI is of primary concern.

@markmeridian3360

23 күн бұрын

@@kb9gkc Nope. RFI picked up on your house wiring goes into your power cable. Pre-amplifiers don't amplify those frequencies, they have frequency cutoffs just above 20 kHz. Paul is selling snake oil.

Power cable or 20yr old amp with ageing OG caps? priorities. I do have Furutech power cables with basic plugs, easy to make, cheap and they look good.

Why are there 2 enormous handles on that microwave?

speakers cable , are fine braided copper cable , high cross sectional area , high current carrying capacity , very low impedance and low noise .

Isn't the ground cable required to proper function of our house surge protections, GFCI (we have it for all the outlets here) etc? I live in EU... Here (where I live) I think that this proposal is illegal...

@Lex_Populus

24 күн бұрын

it’s not about ground cable but the cable shielding (which is btw not implemented in most of the out of the box power cables)

@cengeb

16 күн бұрын

GFCI doesn't depend on protective ground for operation. I looks at the return current compare to supply, if diverted as in through you, it trips on the imbalance around 3-5mA. doesn't use ground to see the difference

I wonder how any in-wall cables are shielded this way 😂

I always read that terminating the ground at one end has a propensity to create a high frequency antenna effect at the ungrounded end.

@kb9gkc

23 күн бұрын

And that antenna drains the RFI to ground and it is gone.

I've experimented with various mains cables into and out of a P10 regenerator. The PS Audio AC12 was great going into the P10. XLO Signature are great on the output. I did try benchmark, prime and beyond from the RSX lineup. The beyond was the best on the input but is silly money. It wasn't so good on the output. The prime and benchmark were good all rounders, though not quite as good as the XLO. To complicate things, some equipment liked some cables and not others. For instance, a Linn radikal didn't like RSX or XLO but did like the PS Audio AC12. I've also tried cables from Furutech and Belden. Although both of these brands were much better than stock power cords, neither came close to the cables from PS Audio, RSX or XLO.

My vacuum cleaner also has a detachable cord, should I upgrade that one as well?

@glenncurry3041

24 күн бұрын

Well that sucks!

@roofpizza1250

23 күн бұрын

@@glenncurry3041 Yeah, but will it be suckier?

BARRY shouts out to you and the crew at Magenta Audio in SA I’m crow eater myself. Yes you do need to upgrade them, but my simple reason is don’t get fooled with nonsense where they don’t even use a rubber bound insulation jacket. There are plenty of knock offs at the moment that will have a simulated synthetic one that is basically a plastic and of course, if you’re anything like me and testing things to their limits and specifications, you will see plenty of smoke and flames on inferior product, stay safe

@dougdavis8986

24 күн бұрын

Lol! Good one Beavis!!!

eliminate the power noise by using an isolation transformer

so why is PS audio not in the cable biz anymore ?

@TurboLoveTrain

23 күн бұрын

It is impossible to compete with China making legacy cabling. The 3pin 120v/60h power cable has been around since the 70s and the Chinese can crank out cable for fractions of a penny per foot.

@maxhirsch7035

22 күн бұрын

@@TurboLoveTrain But there are still American cable manufacturers, like Audioquest and Cardas, and PS Audio wouldn't even be relying upon cable as their primary profit-makers if they were to still make it, so your logic doesn't stand up here.

Aceite de Culebra

Of course they matter---gotta keep bringing in that AudioQuest moolah....

good

I use Russ Andrews power cables that are Kimber Kables, the braiding on these cables cancels some of the RFI noise. They are also low impedance. I use these cables together with Russ Andrews power blocks and passive power conditioning, using everything together the improvements are transformative.

@wisehippo3072

21 күн бұрын

I've always been wondering what his cables are like. I constantly get ads and catalogues from him.

@janvanrookhuijzen8309

18 күн бұрын

Any decent power supply blocks rfi noice too.

Spend few k or so to upgrade power outlets and have direct 10 gage copper romex runs to electrical panel on their own breakers. Biggest bang for buck I have seen. I have best cables also but if constrained on budget focus on biggest pops of advancement for money spent.

having owned nordost valhalla, shunyata king cobra mk 1(still the best mains cable ive ever heard), shunyata python mk1, shunyata anaconda helix and shunyata cobra zitron(terrible cable)mains cable i can say that every cable changed the sound but not all improved it. the older shunyatas were epic but i think the newer ones are just marketing gimmicks and over-rated like the nordost which i sold after a week. some say snake oil but unless you have tried them you cant really comment imo

@BruceCross

23 күн бұрын

Wow, I'm surprised by the new Shunyata and Nordost cables.

@paulb4661

22 күн бұрын

Souandandvision magazine conducted extensive speaker cable tests on a large group of individuals involved in the audio industry decades ago. Guess waht the results were.

Let's not confuse the ground pin with shielding !

Hi Paul. I upgraded all my power cables to Audio quest HC Dragon and Source Dragon. And wow what a tremendous difference in sound. FYI my system consists of Audio Research Ref 750s mono blocks. Audio Research Ref 6SE pre. Audio Research Ref 9 CDP.

@JJ-no2ob

24 күн бұрын

Nice illuminated glass amplification ! What speakers are you listening on ?

@tattednyctrkman8119

24 күн бұрын

@@JJ-no2ob Classic. B&W Matrix 800s.

@user-ge9fh5xm2k

23 күн бұрын

AudioQuest also sell snake oil

@Acura1NSX

23 күн бұрын

And now you are completely broke... lol.

@jameschambers2053

23 күн бұрын

@@Acura1NSXsays the NSX enthusiast! Come on you like to spend $$s too! 🤭

I got a longer cable for my tiny wifi speaker to use in the kitchen. It sounded better. Finished cooking and put it back in it's usual location and confirmed much better sound. Not a cable guy by any means. 🤔

@CS-dp1ss

23 күн бұрын

Maybe more a matter of placement of the speaker relative to your ear and room acoustics,?

Silver, if you can. Furutech NCF ends FTW.

@royrogers7644

23 күн бұрын

i would go for the WTF cable

We have replaced all the power cables in the house installation with pure copper rods and are digging up the road to the next substation to replace the cables in the road there too. We will then compare the sound of the transformer-station with that of our mini nuclear power station in the garden. Come to your senses. So far I've really appreciated this channel, but now it's getting a little absurd.

@stephenstevens6573

23 күн бұрын

Indeed!!

@Pete.across.the.street

23 күн бұрын

We mock what we don't understand i see

@barryflick54

23 күн бұрын

Do sunspots degrade my solar power set up?

@Pete.across.the.street

23 күн бұрын

@@barryflick54 idk, do they?

@bayard1332

23 күн бұрын

Once you have actually spent the time and energy to experience the difference between the curtesy cable and an actually very good cable you will have an entirely different attitude.

I have vintage gear with built in cables. Its Ofc cables, so i dont need to upgrade it

@TurboLoveTrain

23 күн бұрын

My H.H. Scott Steriomaster has a non removable power cable. Zero issues.

I guess you have an agreement with audioquest since you are using their cables and bill lowe is your friend. If you had given their cheapest power cable you had get a god price since you would have bought loads of them so you maybe had to raise the price on everything maybe 100$ and nobody would say anything about that and you would have a real good power cord

@dominiquedistefano

24 күн бұрын

In Germany the official McIntosh distributor (AC) puts with each amplifier a Furutech power cable.

Same as our MX bikes, we throw everything away before we even turn a wheel; tires, bars, pegs, levers, tubes, chains, sprockets the lot, and the manufacturers know this but keep supplying them with these cheap components. Their argument is that everybody has their own preference and would dump good stuff too for a different bend, ratio or whatever.

Most well designed amplifiers filter out any noise anyway so the generic power cables that come supplied with equipment should be fine.

It would seem to me you should offer the best power cable if you real believe in it. You should have a drop down menu like Apple does to pick options. All you would have to do is ship the power cables separately and that way each person would get what they want. Leaving it to the consumer go buy the wrong or right cable is not the best idea because you just said there are wrong ones on the market. I don't like to buy aftermarket parts. I look all my stuff weather it is cars, computers, or audio to come from ONE company that way I know the stuff is engineered to work together and take the guess work out of stuff.

I have audiophile Romex in my walls….🙄😳😏

@glenncurry3041

24 күн бұрын

You know it does exist right?

@Stimpy77777

23 күн бұрын

@@glenncurry3041of course it would…😂

Paul, I am pleased that you did not let the "everything is snake oil" trolls dissuade you from covering this topic. But the drama will ensue. Red alert!

@dakata2416

24 күн бұрын

How is a one meter shielded power cable improving anything? What about the tens of meters of unshielded cable that comes from the fuse box to the wall outlet? What about the hundreds of meters of unshielded cable of the electric company?

@AngryChineseWoman

24 күн бұрын

Not everything is snake oil, but in my experience "audiophile" power cables are.

@aa5az423

24 күн бұрын

@@dakata2416 Take the fuel filter out of your car and ask that same question.

@dakata2416

24 күн бұрын

@@aa5az423 shielding != filtering educate yourself before trying to correct people 🙏🙏

@jules153

24 күн бұрын

@@dakata2416 less noise is transferred the further you get away from the equipment

this is the best comedy channel for audio/electrical engineers!

@Lex_Populus

24 күн бұрын

Hmm, at least for those “engineers” who has not visited a university.

@TECHNICKER_Cz

24 күн бұрын

@@Lex_Populus haha, you're making it better!

@harackmw

24 күн бұрын

🤣

@Lex_Populus

24 күн бұрын

@@TECHNICKER_Cz ... this conclusion is a semantical nonsense

@TECHNICKER_Cz

24 күн бұрын

@@Lex_Populus well, so be it :) I'm just having fun here. have beefed with you people in the past, I don't need it today.

Agree. One of the key functions is low impedance for good grounding of the metal housing at higher frequency. Thus connectors play a role too, and low contact resistance becomes relevant, hence gold or rhodium plated plugs or sockets sound different (waaaay better) to whatever the standard outside nerdy hifi is (nickel?).

@storkfletcher821

24 күн бұрын

If something sounds "waaay better" it should be impossible not to hear immediately even for people who aren't very experienced. A big issue with audio conversations about debated subjects is that too many have no notion of nuance.

@gioponti6359

24 күн бұрын

@@storkfletcher821 though there are many things (products of all sorts) that are way different but differences are not necessarily noticeable for the neophyte or not sensitive one.

Supra is great cable in shielding, in my opinion. And not expensive.

Oh boy platinum iridium, hyper spiral wound, correct timing pure current. $1000 per foot

How is a $1000 six foot power cable going to fix anything that originates 60 feet away at your breaker box over 12 gauge Romex. Discussions about power cable are complete nonsense.

@markushillemalm

18 күн бұрын

That's because you don't understand how electricity works

If Barry, in Adelaide Australia, will be using only one upgraded power cable, he should use it on his CD player (or DAC), if he has that component. DACs produce the most noise, out of all other stereo gear -- and that noise travels. Once you minimize the DAC's power related noise, via a quality power cord, your digital playback will have inkier backgrounds, and you will hear better separation between instruments. Everything will sound better, with no downside. It will not hit you like a splash of water. But after listening for 15 or 20 minutes, you will realize that you were drawn in to the music like never before. And if you, then, put back the stock power cord, you will immediately hear the downgrade (sound degradation is more obvious). Then put back the quality power cord, and it will be like a breath of fresh air. As to which power cable Barry should purchase? It depends on his budget, and the rest of his system. If his system costs $10,000, then he probably should not spend $2,500 on a power cord. The brands he should shop are Shunyata Research and Audioquest (with a nod to Audioquest probably being a bit better -- but both brands are excellent). There are probably other quality brands. But Shunyata Research and Audioquest are the two brands of which I am familiar.

I do believe good cables do make a difference, but not $10--$60,000.00 ones. I have mid-level Tributaries Cables and they sound great!!

@TurboLoveTrain

23 күн бұрын

People would be better off taking that 10k to hire an electrician to fix their common ground and return busses in their house. I know grad students building fusion test benches with stand alone power systems and several layers of redundant power conditioners who use custom cables that are nowhere near 10k for the entire lab.

ALWAYS POWER CABLE MATTER

Power cable lives matter!!

Power cables are important. Without them most equipment does not work at all. I have two fancy power cables. Never heard any difference between those and the stock cables on any of my systems, nor in the hifi shop I used to work. One can make real money out of placebo effects, everywhere, also in hifi.

@maxhirsch7035

16 күн бұрын

I've heard modest but clearly discernible differences between different power cables, both positive and negative, and other times no difference. Were the negative/neutral effects I heard due to the placebo effect as you suggest, even though I'd expected/hoped for improvement in those cases - but positive effects with other cables? Maybe it wasn't the placebo effect at all, but my hearing is more sensitive to those things- or maybe you were exposed to a limited sample of "fancy power cables." Maybe I should have had your job!

While I don't disagree that a good power cable can, and likely will eliminate minute amounts of electronic noise, I have yet to 'hear' any difference myself. I've heard a difference with speaker cables, not necessarily better, just different. I wouldn't call this snake oil. I would just call it a lack of return on investment.

It looks like a microwave with a small window

I thought they supplied cables because most of their customers don't believe in magic audiophile cables.

@solitaire5142

23 күн бұрын

Best reply so far.

I was abducted by Aliens a few years ago; they were so excited to tell me they spent a year's salary on cables. To boot, the shielding protects them from stellar radiation. The noise is harnessed as power and it runs the ship! They said to say Hi.

@inspireholy

23 күн бұрын

😂

@MisterChibs

23 күн бұрын

Nearly spit out my coffee 👽

@maxhirsch7035

22 күн бұрын

When I was abducted by aliens, they helped me to understand that the other species of aliens who had abducted you had a deficient sense of humor, but thought of themselves as quite clever.

@chungang7037

22 күн бұрын

@@maxhirsch7035 Humor? They were super serious about those cables!

@chungang7037

22 күн бұрын

@@MisterChibs 😅

The right power cables 🤔🤔 but what if the cables in the wall sucks ?? And the whole electrical system , from the street circit breakers and more ???

Can you really hear the difference?

@Audiofreak71

24 күн бұрын

Yes

@dakata2416

24 күн бұрын

@@Audiofreak71 no

@jules153

24 күн бұрын

Yes

@sagi_tech_n_stuff

24 күн бұрын

Absolutely no

@freekwo7772

24 күн бұрын

If you do not hear the difference, then you don’t buy it. I have both cases - yes and no. Then when you hear it, the question is - do you like it?

If only the naysayers here would spend half as much effort actually listening to cables as they do dismissing the notion of audible cable differences, the SNR in these comments would be much higher!

@crodoc69

23 күн бұрын

If power cable believers would spend as much effort on mesuring what cables suposed to do, they would stop preaching about one of the biggest snake oils in audio market!!

@RichTeer

23 күн бұрын

@@crodoc69 Thank you for proving my point. When I hear differences in different cables (yes, even power cables), I don't pretend to understand why I hear what I hear. I don't have to understand WHY I experience a phenomenon to accept that I experience it (although granted that would be nice). Exploring the reasons for why we observe something is how we make progress; dismissing observations just because we can't explain them is foolish (IMHO). How do you know we're measuring all the important criteria?

@crodoc69

23 күн бұрын

@@RichTeer What you expirence is the same one as pilgrims feel when visiting "holy places". And they can swear what they feel is objective. On the other hand those who come at same places only as tourists don't have same expirience. Things like this are in our minds, and we often expirience what we want to, or we are preconditioned to expirience. And that's not a real thing, not truth, not science. It falls in category of "beliefs". And part of science that deals with it is called psychology. They should deal with this snake oil.

@RichTeer

23 күн бұрын

@@crodoc69 I notice you didn't address my comment about not measuring all the relevant things. However, you assume far too much: I'm an open-minded skeptic. I'm skeptical of things until I can perform tests to see what I hear, and the differences between cables are a perfect example. I was very skeptical about the differences between cables UNTIL I actually spent some time to perform my own tests. It would seem that you're not open-minded in the least; why's that? Are you worried that you might have to admit something to yourself? Yes, there are some dubious, snake-oil like claims made in audio. But that doesn't mean that all seemingly-inexplicable things are snake oil.

@kb9gkc

23 күн бұрын

@@crodoc69 Incorrect, the shielded cable is solid electrical engineering. The improvement is very subtle and only important in very high end audio reproduction. Don't ridicule what you don't understand. Be Well, Douglas

Some famous reviewers on KZread say that power cables are a myth (snake oil). I happen to have an electrical engineering degree, but beyond that, I have a lot of common sense. These people KZread mentioned before, are really nice and smart. I don't argue with them on theory; I just appealed to their common sense like this: If Paul McGowan don't sell cables, has a century of experience and runs a company producing very nice sounding equipment (I now have the Stellar Gold family) and also invites anyone to visit PS Audio, how in the world you are so stuck on the idea that cables are snake oil? Let's asume you a roofing contractor with absolutely no knowledge about electricity; just consider all those points I made! Cables must have an impact on sound! They don't listen. We audiophiles are a weird specimen.

@TurboLoveTrain

23 күн бұрын

If you can't explain it: you don't understand it. Reputation means nothing. I have known enough engineers across several industries to realize just because someone can build a thing doesn't mean they actually understand that thing.

The most important thing with a power cable is that it has the text Nordost on it.

@Sunshine_Superman

23 күн бұрын

You mean Atlas 😁

@birgerolovsson5203

23 күн бұрын

@@Sunshine_Superman 😄

@royrogers7644

23 күн бұрын

An expensive brand is the placebo #1

I’m calling bs. Use 12/3 Romex as that’s exactly what is bringing the AC from the fuse box. Truthfully, I like beefy, reasonably shielded, good looking power cables, but we’ve gone way too far.😢

👀

I've been quite doubtful (and ignorant) on this subject. Personally, I'm not even sure the industry does a good job of really convincing us that cables do matter. I also think most of you are right about the placebo effect. Who's really going to admit after spending 10k plus on cables that they dont hear a difference? Also, keep this in mind: when you go into hifi store and say i want to upgrade my system, what is the first question they ask you ? Hint: is not what cables you have in you system. Im not saying they don't matter (I really don't know), you have people from both camps and there's far too many from the "don't matter group" trying to convince you not to waste your money. Cable manufacturers, you need to a better job convincing us of science.

You buy the hardware, but it doesn't include the speakers or other components. Why have them included a high-end cable when the price would rise commensurately, plus profit? They allow you to bring your own or decide your preferred price point/ quality. It is less convenient, but it is the correct business decision.

He should ask Larry the Cable Guy.

Why not make the base unit without a power cable and let people add on even from 3rd party? Today's ordering it's just button clicks.

Use $5 USD power cable and you will be happy about the price.

I upgraded power cable for my electric shaver. Now it makes less noise!

Remember folks, it’s everyday Romex and cheap plugs in 99% of homes.

It's BS for all of these manufacturers to supply a "courtesy" cable with the purchase of a God awful expensive piece of equipment, and then have the audacity to insist that you buy a God awful expensive power cable to have the unit function to capacity. If you made your own cables they wouldn't be that expensive for the manufacturer. You know the markup on those cables is excessive anyway, so you could and should supply one with your equipment!

this video might be the reason i never buy another ps audio product

And all the unshielded cables you have in the wall!? how can 1.5m cable change the sound when the cable in the wall is NOT shielded, so in my opinion this is snake oil, or you can just make a shielded cable your self and save a lot!

🍿😎

Good to know that that last meter needs that special treatment that kilometers of cabling between your power socket and power station don’t need. Wonder how much more bs built into your products.

Why are people so mean! They must be trump voters too.

@ljuboizsiska5448

24 күн бұрын

And your comment is not mean?

@ericmiller2285

23 күн бұрын

@@ljuboizsiska5448 sorry if I offended you it didn't mean to be mean! Just so many sarcastic comments.

@Acura1NSX

23 күн бұрын

You are a snowflake!

@kb9gkc

23 күн бұрын

Trump voters like Policemen and law abiding citizens?

All of this sort of audiophile silliness reminds me of expensive gin. Gin is a simple distilled spirit that has herbs and aromatics soaked in it. There is no aging. There are no expensive barrels or even ingredients. When it come to gin the ONLY thing that matter is how much you like it. If you like expensive gin that's great.....but it would be silly to suggest anyone ever NEEDED to buy expensive gin in order to enjoy gin. For whatever reason audiophiles just can get past this. Hear a difference with a $500 power cable? Great. Good for you. But to suggest that the rest of us suspend common sense and experience is nonsense.

Can you imagine if audiophiles talked like this to one another at audio shows? There would be fisticuffs spilling out of every hotel room. Just because you are an engineer or technician or whatever doesn’t mean you know everything. If you can’t hear differences in cables then great for you. You will save a bunch of money. But just because you can’t, that doesn’t mean definitively that others also can’t. Have some open mindedness and recognize that you might not know everything and that there might not be a an identified or practical way to measure something that causes a cable to shift a soundstage differently from another cable. I have heard differences. I don’t know why, but I have. Criticizing people is not in the best interest of the hobby. It is widely accepted that vacuum tubes have different sounds and soundstages but there are no reliable measurements to predict these specific effects. Just because a tube measures well doesn’t mean it will sound the same as another type that also measures well.

Many cables today are Chinese junk, with almost nonexistant conductor materials.. So buy cables with verified dimensions that match your system requirements, besides quality issues and correct dimensions, cables have no sound of their own

OK.. the neutral and safety ground are both connected to the ground stake outside the house. All products sold in the usa has the safety tied to the case..BY LAW .YES THE METAL CASE MUST BE CONNECTED TO GROUND STAKE. youre nuts

The much longer cabling inside the walls of the house have neither any shielding or is with over-sized gauge. Adding a few feet of magical cable at the end of the total distance will surely be visible to the eyes but only audible to the ears if you are using audio products with poor power supplies sensitive to tiny drops in the voltage. Those of us who actually engineer audio products know that if a power cable would be able to make a difference, you would also be able to measure some fluctuations from it on the Vcc lines inside the product using a high resolution oscilloscope. But no, nobody will dare to prove it by either proper measurements or blind tests. PS audio wants to sell cables and could lead the industry by informed factual data but no…sadly no…

@Pete.across.the.street

23 күн бұрын

Yeah. Water filters in my house don't work either because the water has flowed so far from the water treatment plant LOL

@Pete.across.the.street

23 күн бұрын

Alpha audio has done the measurement. Blind tests have also proven differences in audio. What you say is just uninformed.

@Audiofreak71

23 күн бұрын

Your cult leader over at ASR tried and miserably failed 😂

@ThinkingBetter

23 күн бұрын

@@Pete.across.the.street Engineers don’t need to compare wiring with water filters. The serial resistance of the power cables is causing some elasticity in the voltage seen by your audio gear. More resistance is causing higher voltage fluctuations per peak load conditions. A power amp dragging 1000 Watts through the power cable might cause a slight voltage drop while drums are playing. To reduce this effect, high quality amps will have a bank of capacitors keeping the voltage more stable. A transformer is made up of copper wires for the primary and secondary side. What you quickly realize is that the primary side transformer copper wiring is quite thin compared to your US$5000 power cable and actual voltage fluctuations is much more about the resistance inside the windings of the transformer. Essentially you get nothing real out of such power cable because in actuality it’s in series with much inferior wires inside the transformer and through your house. All of this is completely measurable also. If you really wanted to compare it with water pipes, you could say that if you have a thin 1/4 inch. water pipe to your wall outlet and you connect 5 feet of 2 inch water pipe to your gear, the water flowing into your amp is no better. And inside your gear there is a much longer 1/8 inch water pipe being the actual culprit (transformer wire) lol…

@Pete.across.the.street

23 күн бұрын

@@ThinkingBetter apparently engineers don't need to know anything about audio either.

Paul said the power cable is important and makes a 'DIFFERENCE' ! "DIFFERENCE" does not mean "GOOD", Good to your ears may not be good for his ears... So, is his answer precisely answered to you/Audiophile ?? NOPE !

This is the most illusion topic.

I don't believe in the sound of the power cords. From the power plant to the socket, hundreds of meters or kilometers of simple cables are used. No one can tell me that the last meter really makes the difference. Superstition, facts, fiction? Faith moves mountains. 😂😂😂

no that's not the proper way you do not terminate the shield at the wall plug end, all you're doing is isolating the wall cable you have to isolate it both ends and you have to have metal plugs and socket ideally for extra shielding noise rejection your are completely wrong. You're not making a antenna at all you need to go back to school and learn about power supplies and EMI. interference.

@terryjefferylee6314

24 күн бұрын

Interesting comment. What are your qualifications please? ie How do I know you or Paul is correct?

@gioponti6359

24 күн бұрын

Sry, your sentence reads like a moebius loop, not clear to me. Isolating the shield on both ends is wrong, yeah, noone proposed that. connecting it only on the wall plug side frees the shield of functioning as a ground connector, thereby becoming less effective in shielding off the cable. Have a bigger ground connector inside the cable to do that job.

@Error2username

24 күн бұрын

Back to school? Thats not how we treat our elderly, what common sence is that? , i would like to see you in a vid about it. Ive made enough cabels to know where to ground and not, its all about setup and your rig, and you need to try all solutions(if youre really interested)

@dakata2416

24 күн бұрын

@@Error2username yall crazy

@jamesplotkin4674

24 күн бұрын

@@gioponti6359 Wrong! You NEVER want the ground cable to be larger than the line and neutral. Look it up.

If the brain only locks into what it is, you’re never receptive to what it is not. Everlasting ignorance is best described as contempt prior to investigation.

@georgebarronjr

22 күн бұрын

The problem is that there is no investigation here. We have, at best, subjective anecdotal evidence or we have theoretical considerations for which there are no practical evaluations. And again, all of this in regard to nuances of how people perceive sound. So when the topic at hand is never really investigated then healthy skepticism is far less ignorant than unexamined acceptance. And then the question has to be asked: Why no real investigation. Blind, randomized A-B testing of a large panel of golden eared experts is the simple answer. So simple, so easy and guaranteed to be revealing. And that is why it is never done on a serious level.

@maxhirsch7035

22 күн бұрын

@@georgebarronjrMusic listening and responses to audio are subjective experiences - and nuances can legitimately matter to people and guide their choices/purchases. Get an audio shop to temporarily lend you some audiophile cables, or buy from an online seller with a return policy, such as Music Direct provides. Then make your own evaluation. If your audio system is for your enjoyment, then directly determine whether you'd enjoy audiophile cables more than stock ones, as I have. And it's not just a matter of cable appearance or 'placebo effect' IMO, as in my experience, certain pricey cables make a system sound better than with stock cords, and other ones have made it sound worse, despite my initial hope/prediction that those particular ones would also improve it. Also, I've had differing impressions about the degree of improvement heard from different audiophile interventions, whether in a positive or negative direction. And to be clear, if anything, I'd been primed by reviews etc. to expect only improvements in sound from various cable changes in my system, so the instances in which they sounded the same or worse confounded my initial expectations - but still, other changes confirmed them. Case in point - I tend to like Audioquest interconnects in my system, but when I got their Niagara 1200 power conditioner (later returned to M Direct for a refund) I found its impact on my listening experience either negligible or a bit negative, based upon the particular audio system of mine it was placed in, whereas my Ayre power filter makes either system sound susbstantively better. Since I have a generally positive impression of AQ products, by the standards of the placebo effect, I should have heard improvements from the AQ Pwr conditioner, vs a negligible or negative effect. Also, there have been a couple instances in which the inclusion of a Cardas interconnect made my system sound better than all-AQ cabling- but then all-Cardas in that system sounded worse to me than the mix. Conclusion- direct trial and error-based interventions will typically provide the best outcomes for one's invariably subjective listening experiences.

@paulb4661

22 күн бұрын

Years ago, soundandvision conducted speaker cable tests in a professional manner on a large group of individuals closely connected to the Hi-Fi industry. Guess what the results were. Worth taking a look at, before investing in fancy braids.

Absolutely nonsense.idocracy at its best...

Sounds like absolute B.S.! As a manufacturer why would you sell a product with shit power cable. Any electronic product has to have a quality power cable. Paul your old enough to know your just bullshitting us! Really sucks that you have to make a little more profit and force consumers to pay for a quality cable to use your new amplifier. Really sad and disappointing! 😵‍💫

Here we go again with total BS. Whatever anyone says, I will never believe that any cord capable of carrying the current drawn by a piece of equipment can be bettered by some Other cord, whatever its design. And I HAVE "heard" the kind of power cord PS Audio sells. It "sounded" EXACTLY like the cheap ordinary cord it replaced. The only difference was the hundreds of dollars the owner paid for the special one.

@Fidelity_Sound

24 күн бұрын

How is it BS? Nobody is saying spend thousands on cables. The thing is if you have invested 15-to whatever K worth of gear, why would you use garbage quality cables? That’s like wearing a pair of $1500.00 dress shoes with sweatpants. You just don’t do it. Good quality cables can be had at affordable prices.

@dakata2416

24 күн бұрын

@@Fidelity_Sound the problem is that it just doesn't make sense from engineering standpoint.

@NoEgg4u

23 күн бұрын

@spacemissing, If you were to ever do a proper listening test, you would hear the difference. So I know that you never did a listening test -- at least not a proper one. And yet you go full steam ahead making BS claims. Since quality power cords do allow a stereo to sound its best, and since the difference is undeniable, you will never convince anyone who has heard the sound quality improvement. Such people have a choice to either believe you, or to believe their own ears. Assuming you did any listening tests, you did them wrong. If you did them correctly, then you would have heard the sound quality improvement, and you would not have posted your comment that shows you to be misinformed. The total BS is coming from you, because you are spewing unsupported conclusions.

@kb9gkc

23 күн бұрын

@@dakata2416 You want to shield the power wires from picking up RFI and bringing the RFI into your pre-amplifiers and amplifiers. Close proximity RFI is of primary concern.

@dakata2416

23 күн бұрын

@@kb9gkc do yo live inside of a power substation?

Paul, I have three rigs in my place. All of them use the crappy cables you speak of. All three systems sound fantastic. You are full of baloney. Please stop.

@maxhirsch7035

22 күн бұрын

He didn't make an either/or statement, saying that lesser cables would make a system sound like crap, or less than fantastic. My two audio systems plus home theater one can sound fantastic with stock cables, but sound yet better with better "audiophile" ones. It's really easy for a person to selectively misrepresent someone else's statements as you've done in an attempt to over-simplify the issue and denigrate someone else.

@ryanschipp8513

22 күн бұрын

@@maxhirsch7035 you obviously didn't listen to the whole video. He literally said that when he gets stock cables for any audio equipment which would include them shipping out their stock cables he throws them out. Is he throwing them out for fun? You should share your blind Ave test that you did to discern that the stock cables aren't as good as your Fancy cables. It's called placebo effect

@maxhirsch7035

22 күн бұрын

@@ryanschipp8513 You obviously have a weak capacity for inference. He NEVER said those cables would make his system sound crappy (or, not fantastic)- he even later referred to them as "decent" in the video above. He threw them out to replace them with what he regarded as better cables. While he doesn't favor stock cables, I hardly expect he'd deliberately sell them with PSA gear if he thought it would actually make it sound 'meh'- he's just saying that it doesn't make it sound its best. I hope that's not too nuanced a distinction for you. It's common for an audiophile to try to maximize his system's sound, which doesn't mean that it wouldn't be fantastic at all without that optimization- just that with a superior component it sounds better still. I've stopped using certain cables that if included in my systems would allow them to sound fantastic, because replacing them with other cables have nevertheless have made them sound incrementally better. Some 'fancy' cables that I've bought, with high hopes, though, have actually made my system sound worse- was it the placebo effect that made those cables sound worse to my ears? Try answering that.

This is downright outrageous misinformation.

Unscientific BS.

All credibility has been lost.