Mains cable.. seen the light????
Posted by: fernar on 16 March 2017
After a short break I renewed my hifi magazine subscription which at the time was giving away for free a Atlas EOS mains cable...
With an electrical engineering background, I must admit to not ever buying into the idea of a meter length of mains wire making a difference to the sound quality of a well designed amp, never mind one with an additional power supply... I mean really... how could there be a difference...
But since I had this cable anyway... which apparently costs £170 ish new, what harm in trying out.. replacing the standard Naim mains cable (which apparently cost £30 if one wanted to buy a new one..)
Well I swapped out the cable, turned on the XPS DR and put a random track to play on the N272 and.... what the helll....! The sound coming out the speakers had a deeper bass, better slam and the sound stage has improved... no this could not be correct.. tried a different track.. and wait a min. where did extra bass line come from... never heard that before....
Amazing... so now I really can't wait to if a Naim Powerline will give me even more improvements... since this would have been specifically designed for Naim equipments...
Still trying to figure out why there is an improvement... But clearly improvements can be gained......!!
Posted on: 17 March 2017 by Raider
Can the Police tell if you accidently put on a Take That cd?
Yes they can so don't do it
Posted on: 17 March 2017 by Marksnaim
Take That don't release on Vinyl. Yaay. 
Posted on: 17 March 2017 by KTMax
I've not heard anything Rhodium plated. How does is sound?
General rhodium impact can be described as: fast and detailed.
Agree Adam but there is bit more to it than that in my experience.
To decide on the cable for the dedicated mains supply in my current new house I am also comparing plugs/connectors as part of the chain. Connectors from the likes of Fututech, iEgo, Oyaide, WattGate, Marinco etc. are usually available in both gold and rhodium plated versions. I've narrowed things down to Furutech and iEgo. They have identical connectors, only with a different plating (apples vs. apples).
Apart from the 'discovery' just how big the influence of the connectors is (huge), the other amazing discovery is how much influence the plating has on the sound as well.
Rhodium vs. gold for me; gold sounds warmer and more 'rounded'. Bolder and more forward too. The treble is shiny and sparkling on the possitive side, can be glary & too much on the negative side. Gold has are very distinct sonic signature that can fit a system very well or push things a tiny bit too far. Rhodium sounds more neutral and more natural to me. Rhodium gives better resolution and more transpancy. The treble is more relaxed, very smooth and extended. The bass is tighter, deeper and slightly more dry than gold. Overall rhodium sounds faster with better attack and better microdynamics (PRAT). In my system rhodium is the clear winner. But I can easily understand a preference for gold too.
And this is just the plating on connectors... mind-boggling... 
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by TOBYJUG
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by Huge
Does this affect all audio components in the same way?
Does the base metal from which the mains connectors are made have a similar effect?
Does this affect speaker connectors in the same way?
Does the base metal from which the speaker connectors are made have a similar effect?
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by Mrs Wogan's lemon drizzle cake
The notion that certain power cables improve sound quality is ludicrous i'm afraid.
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by u77033103172058601
Until you hear the effect for yourself!
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by tonym
The notion that certain power cables improve sound quality is ludicrous i'm afraid.
I'm afraid you're incorrect.
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by Adam Zielinski
The notion that certain power cables improve sound quality is ludicrous i'm afraid.
I'm afraid you are mistaken.
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by Mrs Wogan's lemon drizzle cake
OK. So can either of you explain how your expensive cable is making a discernible difference to the sound quality of your system?
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by Finkfan
I can tell you in my system my power cables add weight to the sound, better clarity and a bigger soundstage.
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by wenger2015
OK. So can either of you explain how your expensive cable is making a discernible difference to the sound quality of your system?
Without is like having a lemon drizzle cake, without the lemon
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by tonym
OK. So can either of you explain how your expensive cable is making a discernible difference to the sound quality of your system?
No, haven't a clue. Neither do I know why Power lines only work on certain components in my system and not on others.
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by Mrs Wogan's lemon drizzle cake
Allow me to enlighten you. You are suffering from confirmation bias. 
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by wenger2015
Allow me to enlighten you. You are suffering from confirmation bias.
Please explain!?
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by nigelb
Yeah, that Wenger, that Adam and that Tony are clearly deluding themselves. They have very little experince of Naim equipment and probably have cloth ears too. I wouldn't trust a word they say.
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by Finkfan
Allow me to enlighten you. You are suffering from confirmation bias.
I wish it didn't make a difference. I'd have saved some money. Same with sources, pre amps and amplifiers too
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by tonym
Allow me to enlighten you. You are suffering from confirmation bias.
No you're right. I imagine they work on some components and, stone me, I imagine they don't work on others!
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by KTMax
The notion that certain power cables improve sound quality is ludicrous i'm afraid.
Sleep tight.
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by Finkfan
You may have to shout
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by KTMax
1. Does this affect all audio components in the same way?
2. Does the base metal from which the mains connectors are made have a similar effect?
3. Does this affect speaker connectors in the same way?
4. Does the base metal from which the speaker connectors are made have a similar effect?
1. In my experience, yes. If not the same, very similar at least
2. Yes
3. Yes
4. Yes
Posted on: 18 March 2017 by Timo
Allow me to enlighten you. You are suffering from confirmation bias.
The notion that certain power cables improve sound quality is ludicrous i'm afraid.
Oh dear, a visitor from the What Hifi Forum it seems. Over there they tend to get into arguments over wires...
Posted on: 19 March 2017 by Filipe
OK. So can either of you explain how your expensive cable is making a discernible difference to the sound quality of your system?
No, haven't a clue. Neither do I know why Power lines only work on certain components in my system and not on others.
[@mention:1566878603998391], I noticed this also. On the 282's SuperCap DR the PL was very noticeable; on the 300DR PS less and on the nDAC's XPS DR hardly noticeable. In the end the Isotek Optimum improved the later, and I've ordered Optimums for all three plus the Rega Aria phonostage where the Optimum really reduced the noise less etc bringing out greater smoothness to instruments.
I've also just added the WitchHat Din to XLR between the SuperCap Dr and the 30DR. This has brought the piano up from being dull to really quite good even after 2 days with no signs of overbearing brightness. It also adds to voices and instruments, whether the absence is less easy to put the finger on the problem. I wanted to know whether the stock cable was not performing even after 400 hours.
It seems that there can be chokes in a system which easily go unnoticed. I'm sure some upgraditis is driven by this, and it's sad that we have to resort to solutions that don't come with our expensive boxes.
So on the matter of where PLs help and where not it would be good to hear from others, and likewise the sonic improvement in the DIN to XLR.
Posted on: 19 March 2017 by Filipe
A few typos to correct....
@tonym, I noticed that PLs don't help everywhere also. On the 282's SuperCap DR the PL was very noticeable; on the 300DR PS less and on the nDAC's XPS DR hardly noticeable. In the end the Isotek Optimum improved the later, and I've ordered Optimums for all three plus the Rega Aria phonostage where the Optimum really reduced the noise level, bringing out greater separation and smoothness to instruments.
I've also just added the WitchHat Din to XLR between the SuperCap Dr and the 30DR. This has brought the piano up from being dull to really quite good even after 2 days with no signs of overbearing brightness. It also adds to voices and instruments, where the absence is less easy to put the finger on the problem. I would like understand why the stock cable is not performing even after 400 hours.
It seems that there can be chokes in a system which are not easily located. I'm sure some upgraditis is driven by this, and it's sad that we have to resort to solutions that don't come with our expensive boxes. I'd recommend getting your dealer to loan you enough bits to investigate the problem. Mine has.
So on the matter of where PLs help and where not it would be good to hear from others, and likewise the sonic improvement in the DIN to XLR.
Posted on: 19 March 2017 by KTMax
OK. So can either of you explain how your expensive cable is making a discernible difference to the sound quality of your system?
No, haven't a clue. Neither do I know why Power lines only work on certain components in my system and not on others.
There is some very interesting info that explains this here:
https://forums.naimaudio.com/to...21#69708705488755621
