Running in circles searching for excuses NOT to show proof of what you claim.
On the other side unnecessarily mentioning Shuncaca 3 times in post #305
Not sure why this useless thread is not moved to the Commercial section, where it belongs.
The video below shows a moulded UK 13 amp mains plug being cut open to investigate why it functioned intermittently.
Inside, the crimps on the neutral and unused earth terminals have been completed correctly. The live terminal has a crimp mark, but it is shallower that the others, indicating it was not properly crimped.
Inside, the crimps on the neutral and unused earth terminals have been completed correctly. The live terminal has a crimp mark, but it is shallower that the others, indicating it was not properly crimped.
Please share!
I have to shout out so you know you're not alone.
I, too, heard non negligible differences between USB cables, I don't really follow this thread, but I find the non-believers' tunnel vision quite amusing.
Happy new year to you all, whatever your faith might be.
US market plugs used to be spot-welded. No, not a perfect process but a bad spot would fall-off in handling to get it to the molding machine.
Today YouTube has factory processes from all over the world. Here is Chinese production of US line-cord showing crimps (and not that crap-crimp in #315 ):
Today YouTube has factory processes from all over the world. Here is Chinese production of US line-cord showing crimps (and not that crap-crimp in #315 ):
I have found that silver wire power cords sound better to me than copper. Does anyone know of a good source for silver wire for a DIY cord?
Rick,
According to professional designers I know silver may sound better in some situations, but in most cases needing silver wire is an indication of some other problem that is being bandaided by wire.
Also, there is more that can be said about sliver wire besides having to do with resistivity. Often it is used with teflon insulation, for example. The result tends to be triboelectric and not necessarily for the better.
According to professional designers I know silver may sound better in some situations, but in most cases needing silver wire is an indication of some other problem that is being bandaided by wire.
Also, there is more that can be said about sliver wire besides having to do with resistivity. Often it is used with teflon insulation, for example. The result tends to be triboelectric and not necessarily for the better.
Thank you Mark, that is good information. The best sounding power cord I have heard is this one;
https://www.audioquest.com/ac-power/ac-power-cables/storm-series/dragon-source-constant-current
And it uses solid silver wire so I was thinking of trying build one similar to it. Silver seems to sound better with tube equipment than SS.
Wireworld talks about the effect of insulation and triboelectric with their cables and they have their own solution to it. Their cable construction is so complex that I could never DIY it.
https://www.audioquest.com/ac-power/ac-power-cables/storm-series/dragon-source-constant-current
And it uses solid silver wire so I was thinking of trying build one similar to it. Silver seems to sound better with tube equipment than SS.
Wireworld talks about the effect of insulation and triboelectric with their cables and they have their own solution to it. Their cable construction is so complex that I could never DIY it.
Some of those cables do look shitty. However I make custom power cables and if I could I would buy a molding machine. Crimping is best if possible but screws work. The issue with screws is depending on the wire type you may have to retighten them many times before finishing assembly (leaving it sitting for hours or days before returning to it, to tighten again).
If you’ve seen a see through heavy duty extension plug you’ve seen the type of crimping that’s good, has strain relief, and nice thick blade material extending into the mould. That’s desirable. That plug a page back does actually look shitty.
If you’ve seen a see through heavy duty extension plug you’ve seen the type of crimping that’s good, has strain relief, and nice thick blade material extending into the mould. That’s desirable. That plug a page back does actually look shitty.
Ah, yes. Often it is used compensate for less than optimal tube amplifier design. There is a tube amp recently posted in the WOTS thread. Probably not far from really, really good: https://www.diyaudio.com/community/threads/warmth-of-the-sound-wots.380373/post-7206423 ...Doubtful silver wire is needed...
I understand it was not your intention, but you ‘honestly’ described yourself and alike as believers. It is not good if you have to be a believer to hear sound of wires.
I don’t care for beliefs. I care for facts. I do listen very carefully to my audio equipment and measure it the best way I can.
Imagine where would we be if world technical advancement would be based on beliefs instead of observation, measurement and theoretical explanation.
So, any relevant measurement carried after observed change in sound is more than welcome in search of understanding.
How do you know he didn't know exactly how you might read it, and that he wasn't simply trying to be tactful and diplomatic to avoid starting a food fight?
I think power conditioners existed before light dimmers.it was a long time ago that Iread about the widespread use of aluminium cables for house wiring n the USA. As far as I know there is no need for them in the UK and I keep them in the cupboard marked Snake Oil.
So where does everyone think the audible effect of a power supply ends? The output cap, the regulator, the main filter cap, the diodes, the transformer? I hope most people feel that the power supply has a audible affect on the sound of the equipment it is powering.
Depends. Some don't do anything useful. A few are quite good. Which ones did you try before concluding they were all snake oil?
Some people seem to have the belief that power supplies are modules that connect with amplifier modules, and so long as both modules meet interconnection specifications, then all power supplies must sound the same. There is of course a huge assumption in that case to the effect that the specification captures all possible factors that could affect sound. So, there may be a list: Output Z verses frequency, PSSR, noise, load regulation, etc. Its that the list covers all the different ways we think of as characterizing power supplies. Unfortunately, the power supply does not 'think' (to take some anthropomorphic license) exactly like we humans do, and to its 'mind' all those different variables are not necessarily independent of each other. Nor is the power supply completely linear, time-invariant, and or stationary 🙂
Anyway, if there is a belief that all human conceptualized interconnection factors are accounted for, then perhaps 'expectation bias' on the part of the listener will cause them to hear that there is no difference between power supplies.
In other words, whatever we believe, we are all subject to human biases, and to a mentally constructed perception of reality. Except most people often believe they truly see reality as it actually is, and its everyone else who doesn't see it so accurately. 🙂
https://thedecisionlab.com/biases/naive-realism
Last edited:
If there is an audible effect, it will be masked by the significant percentage of harmonic distortion produced at the end of the chain by my loudspeakers!
No end, every little bit counts.
Just go easy and enjoy any improvement each step brings.
One important item I'd add to your list is a snubber, which double-duties nicely as a mains filter. I started with Mark Johnson's Quasimodo, then decided to hit the transformer's primary instead, with the secondary loaded, so every item is in the loop, more or less. It's easy to simulate, provided you have a LCR meter,, and the effect is not subtle. I think I posted some graphs in the CTC and my JC2/HPA thread.
I like the use of a cap on the primary of the transformer, this really helps lower noise from going out of the transformer and into other equipment plugged into the same power strip.
- Status
- Not open for further replies.