# The truth about "Hospital Grade" power cords



## Ferbose

When audiophile power cords are being advertised, the term "hospital grade plug" is often mentioned. Hospitals have lots of sensitive and big electronic equipment that can't afford to fail. So it makes sense to use good power cords in hospitals, right? But that got me thinking: what kind of power cords do they actually use in hospitals? After doing a lot of market search, these are facts I have gathered about North American hospital grade replacement power cords.

 1. They come with NEMA 5-15P hospital grade plugs and IEC-60320-C13 connectors
 2. They use three-conductor cables, mostly 8-12 feet long. 
 3. Most of them are made of 18 AWG wires, and a few with 16 AWG
 4. They must meet UL and CSA approvals to qualify as hospital grade power cords
 5. Usually the plug has a green dot on it to show it has been properly tested
 6. These power cords have no shielding
 7. Sometimes the plugs are transparent so the integrity of the connections inside can be directly examined
 8. All the certified cords I found have pre-molded plugs. Big, round plugs from Marinco or Hubbell are generally sold by individually for custom assemblies. 
 9. Special "low-leakage" cords are available. These use special wires and plugs to ensure that the current leaking to the ground is minimal. These cords are used in certain equipment to reduce the risk of electric shock to the patient. 

 With these facts in mind, it is interesting to compare them with audiophile grade power cords. Audiophile power cords like to emphasize on thick wires (10-14 AWG), shielding (or twisted pair construction to enhance EMI/RF rejection), hospital grade plugs and pleasant aesthetics. Sometimes, audiophile power cords also emphasize on special materials (especially silver) or construction. Let me examine some of the major differences between hospital grade and audiophile power cords.

*1. Wire Gauge.*
 Audiophile cord vendors like to emphasize that heavy wires lower DC resistance. 10 feet, 16 AWG wire has impedance of 0.040 ohms. Going to 12 AWG reduces impedance to 0.016 ohms. But house AC outlet generally has impedance of 0.2 ohms in the US. Other house appliances drawing currents will cause the AC impedance to go even higher, as well as lower the power factor, making it harder for audio amplifiers to draw large currents during peak demands. Hence, AC line impedance problem need to be addressed with power conditioners. Most hi-end UPS systems have active power factor correction. Some audio power conditioners also have power factor correction, from companies such as Furman or PS Audio. 

*2. Shielding*
 I could not find a single hospital grade power cord that has shielding. Many hi-end power cords have shielding. Since power cords carry a lot of power, it is unlikely RF and EMI will really affect the current flow in the power cord. The purpose of shielding is probably to prevent EMI from interfering with small-signal wires in the system. Anyway, I am not sure why hospital grade power cords don't have shielding, but in my experience shielded power cords work better in my current system. You could always add some ferrite clamps to any power cord to facilitate RF rejection though. 

*3. Certification*
 I feel that one of the most important things in cables is to have good contacts, both internally and externally. Good contact between the wires and connectors is really crucial and so is the contact between the cord and the equipment and outlet. Hospital grade power cords are actually tested for good connectivity and safety. Most audio power cords do not received any official approval from UL or CSA. It is not economical for power cords made in small quantities to obtain such certifications. In some countries it is illegal to use uncertified power cords. Here in the US there is no law against that, but there may be a problem with the insurance company if it causes a fire. 

*4. Wire Material* 
 All hospital power cords I find use multi-stranded, standard-quality copper. In contrast, many hi-end power cords use high purity OFC, single crystal copper, silver-plated copper or silver. Audiophile cords may also be constructed with solid-core wire or hollow wire or even ribbon wires. 

 Lastly, when protection from dirty AC power is required in the hospital, surge protectors and power conditioners are used. Tripp-Lite basically dominates the power-treatment market for hospitals. Lower-end Tripp Lite offers are surge protection power bars. The midrange stuff is based on isolation transformers. The high end stuff is UPS system with AC-DC-AC conversion. For the audiophile market, there are many brands of boutique power conditioners. It is kind of worrying that most of audiophile power conditioners are not UL certified and no one knows if they could be potential fire hazards. 

 In summary, it is quite educational for me to see how hospitals deal with AC power. In hospitals, sensitive electronic equipment is used in critical situations where human lives are at stake. No voodoo and no snake-oil are allowed in that business for sure! I don't believe that hospital power cords and conditioners are the best solutions for all audio systems. But I think we can all take some lessons from how hospitals actually deal with AC problems, so we won't be swayed so easily by the dubious claims of all-too-many audiophile boutique products.


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## Tachikoma

Great write-up =D


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## foo_me

hey bruce...you never stop studying


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## Edwood

I thought the Green Dot was indicating it's use for independant ground.

 -Ed


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## Gabe Logan

Thanks for the time to post that.It is definetly a good read but does a non UL certified power conditioner mean a fire hazard is more likely?And does a UL certified one guarantee against fires?


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## GWN

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Edwood* 
_I thought the Green Dot was indicating it's use for independant ground.

 -Ed_

 

Nope, the green dot signifies hospital grade spec. To get it the device must meet UL hospital grade standard #498 and #544. Designed to meet maximum safety and reliability under severe abuse. The UL test requirement means that the plug at the end of the cable or the wall outlet has been tested and passed the following test:

 Specific pull force retention 
 Terminal pin strength
 Face impact and resistance to shock
 Ground contact temperature
 Ground contact resistance
 Mold resistance

 Pages 3-5 of the Leviton catalog has a good explanation of all the test required to get the green dot.

http://www.leviton.com/pdfs/hospital...e_Bulletin.pdf


 A red triangle is the symbol used to indicate that the outlet has an isolated ground. Check out page 10 of this Hubbell catalog PDF for a good explanation of isolated ground. 

http://www.hubbellcatalog.com/bryant.../section-g.pdf


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## mrarroyo

Great write-up, I enjoyed it very much and learned even more. Thanks.


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## Ferbose

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Gabe Logan* 
_Thanks for the time to post that.It is definetly a good read but does a non UL certified power conditioner mean a fire hazard is more likely?And does a UL certified one guarantee against fires?_

 

I think UL does independent testing to help ensure cetain safety requirements are met. UL provides many different types of certifications for many kinds of electronic devices. Non-UL listed power conditioners probably have not been independently tested for safety specs. Of course if it is designed and manufactured properly it would not be a hazard. The whole idea of getting UL to test the product is getting a second opinion about safety issues. Not having UL approval may not be such big a deal, since all those DIY power cords and conditioners are not UL listed. But it is defintely something to bear in mind if you are a "safety-first" guy. It is a capitalisitc world--use at your own risk.


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## Old Pa

I think that one of the main design points for both hospital grade power cords and hospital grade outlets is that they be non-sparking in an environment where oxygen may be being used. This leads to a certain quality of connection being mandated, including, but not limited to, a clamping action inside the duplex outlet on the prongs of the cord and inside the modular plug at the equipment. In audio terms, good clamping mechanical contacts on the power cord lead to reduced micro-arking (a source of rf and noise) and less space for corrosion to form.

  Quote:


 It is a capitalisitc (sic) world--use at your own risk. 
 

LOL!


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## omedon

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Edwood* 
_I thought the Green Dot was indicating it's use for independant ground.

 -Ed_

 

Many manufacturers sell identical parts that come from the same production line without the green dot for slightly cheaper prices.


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## PhilS

Maybe I'm missing something, but it sounds like there's two different things we're talking about. One is the plug. The other is the cord.


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## LFF

Nice write up! Very informative.


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## BrianS

good job, good topic


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## rsaavedra

Excellent research Ferbose, thanks for sharing!


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## velogreg

As usual Ferbose you have provided me with quite an education. First the ProSonus Central Station and now Hospital Grade Power cords. This has been an invaluable read. More importantly though, this gives me a reason to do some of my own "research" the next time I meet my wife at her office. My wife is a systems analyst at a large hospital in Sothern Cal. and naturally she deals with a host of equipment/system issues all day long. Now I have something to do beside look at magazines devoted to various diseases when I go visit her. Thanks!


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## Cjattwood

Great post ferbose with lot's of thorough and detailed information. Thanks for the info!


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## audiorapture

Ferbose: great info, thanks for the time and effort. I can see opinions being changed by this............


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## JiggaD369

So is it ok if I use a UPS System for home theater instead of a so-expensive audiophile power conditioner?


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## Ferbose

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *JiggaD369* 
_So is it ok if I use a UPS System for home theater instead of a so-expensive audiophile power conditioner?_

 

As far as I know, UPS systems may have a couple of problems for audio applications:
 1. Fan noise
 2. Many UPS don't output sine-wave AC, but some distorted waveform. Most UPS systems are designed for computers, and I assume the switching power supplies in computers don't really care about AC waveforms.
 3. Instaneous current capability: a 200W SS amplifier can draw up to 30A of instaneous current during musical peaks

 But then again, an UPS might work well in your system, which is hard to predict.


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## CookieFactory

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Ferbose* 
_3. Instaneous current capability: a 200W SS amplifier can draw up to 30A of instaneous current during musical peaks_

 

lol well there goes the Universe!


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## JiggaD369

Damnit. lol. What about those Monster home theater power conditioners?


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## Ferbose

I heard that Monster power conditioners aren't bad, unlike most of their overpriced cables. I never used one myself.

 On the other hand, Furman is the MAJOR brand in pro-audio power conditioners. I figured, if musicians and studios trust Furman's products, why should not I? So far I like what I am getting out of my Furman conditioner.


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## Publius

To a large degree, hospital cables don't need shielding because it's not supposed to be the job of the cable to improve the signal. You either use a power conditioner or you use a power supply that does a proper job of providing a good DC output. Have you seen hospital-grade power supplies? They are _large_. And quite often linear too.

 IOW, at least from a semi-objective point of view, it's entirely possible that a piece of equipment does need a shielded cable for optimum performance. But that usually implies that the power supply is inferior for the specifications that are being expected out of it.


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## soultek

Hey all, here's my first post.

 Ferbose, that's good research, unfortunately I feel like audiophiles are barking up the wrong tree with high end AC power cords. (there's SO many other things to spend money on that make more of a difference)

 A few points:

 POWER FACTOR largely has to do with the efficiency of a power supply. From a user perspective, it should be transparent. If the power supply is designed properly, then any large quick transients will draw current from the bulk capacitors. Although a non unity power factor implies a voltage/current phase lag, this is never heard since the bulk caps should damp any transient current draw that is faster than 60Hz. 

 POWER FACTOR CORRECTION is not necessary for good audio performance, it mainly improves the efficiency of the AC power network from the power plant to the power supply in your piece of equipment.

 WIRE GAUGE is quite a silly spec for an AC cable. The resistance of the wire will not affect power factor, the power factor only changes with a reactive load. The important spec for wire gauge and jacketing is all safety related. As noted, the contact resistance in a typical AC plug probably has more resistance.

 SHIELDING is quite useless for an AC input cable. Assuming the device in question is designed good, it will have RF filtering at the AC input of the power supply. Also the box will be metal and earth grounded no doubt? between those two measures, it's quite easy to kill any RF problem. The only implication is that the electrical field of the AC power cable can couple into the circuitry. Not if the box is electrically shielded, which most are.

 WIRE MATERIAL is also kinda silly. All this would do is improve the DCR and maybe improve stray capacitance, but this would have no effect on the signals in the box. The stranding of the wire doesn't matter much unless you're worrying about flexture. 

 POWER CONDITIONERS do work well if well designed. I've heard some good things about the Monster products. If you have a relatively clean AC supply, and a well designed device, then you will probably not see any difference whatsoever. Spend your money on more audio gear.



 I realize this is a touchy subjects, there's a lot of people that want to justify their exorbitant purchases and there's still more who want to make a living selling snake oil. I'm just trying to add my two cents from an audio designer's perspective so that people are not decieved out of their money.

 Also I've been wrong on many things before, the bottom line is people LISTEN! If you can hear a difference in a blind listening test, then something's happening!


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## Ferbose

Clearly I am not an EE, so the power factor issue may be somewhat beyond my understanding. Do other appliances in the house with highly reactive loads increase the outlet's impedance? 

 If I understand correctly, linear power supplies only draws current during a small fraction of a 60Hz cycle. Therefore, the maximal instaneous current could be 2-5 times larger than current computed from continuous power P=IV. That means a 200W SS amp at its peak output will draw 800W of continuous power (assuming two channels and 50% efficiency). For a 120 V outlet this would mean 6.7A of RMS current. Instaneous current could be as large as 30A. 

 If the impedance of the outlet is 0.2 ohms, 30A would cause a voltage drop of 6V. A cheap stock power cord could have 0.1-0.2 ohm impedance due to thin wires and suboptimal contact, which could add another 3-6V of voltage drop. If I am not mistaken, other appliances in the house could cause the outlet impedance to go even higher, causing even more voltage drop. The combined voltage drop could now amount to more than 10%. Though I am not an expert on power supply, it seems to me that amplifier performance (output power and distortion) could be compromised if AC voltage drops by something like 15V. Of course the actual problems caused by high AC impedance could be more complex than the simple analysis I outlined. 

 Clearly, using a thick power cord with nice plugs is only the first and less significant step toward tackling AC-related problems. Some also try to replace the wall outlet itself. But it seems to me that a suitable power conditioner is the answer to most AC issues.


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## Ferbose

A good link that helped me roughly understand power factor: 
http://www.ibiblio.org/obp/electricC.../AC/AC_11.html


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## soultek

Wierd things can happen with wall outlets and home AC power systems in general. I depends on how the system is wired.

 I see what the concern is here.

 First of all is the issue of amp power ratings. Typically amplifiers are rated by running a sine wave through the amp to a resistive load and then noting at what power output 1% or 10% THD is measured. Important to note that this is done with a SINE wave. Sine waves are very different from music: they are continuous, have no harmonics, and have a different crest factor. Crest factor is important here. Crest factor is basically the signal difference between peak and RMS. For sine waves this is ALWAYS 3dB. For music it varies. For pop stuff, it could be 6dB, for more dynamic stuff it could be as high as 20dB.

 Now,

 The point of a well designed power supply should be to account for everything: low and high line voltage (usually designed to account for +/-10%), rated power out of the amplifier, temperature, etc. 

 So,

 If the amplifier is designed well, it should draw all it's instantaneous peaks from the power supply, and NOT from the line.

 Typically, with an unregulated power supply in an amplifier, the droopage of the voltage rails in the box will be related to the power transformer more than anything. When magnetic flux of the core starts to saturate, the voltage will droop. This is why really nice amps sometimes have HUGE toroids in them. 

 Bottom line is that for a TYPICAL LINEAR AMP a 200W SS amp will NEVER be dumping 200W continuous into speakers. Think about it in the terms described above. If the amp is rated at 200W, that means that it can pass a sine wave to a specified load at 200W. For the sake of arguement, lets say the amp is mono, is a voltage amplifier, and the power supply is linear, and that the load is 4ohms. So that means that the load is seeing 28.3Vrms. If the amp trys to deliver more power to the load, it will square off the wave and sound terrible. This is the ceiling on the performance. Therefore, with music with a crest factor of 20dB, and running music signal in with no sqared off peaks, the RMS level of music would be around 2.83Vrms at the load with peaks as high as 28.3V. This translates to about 2W or average music signal. Now this is very controversial in the industry, but it's a much better way to understand this stuff than with just sine waves. 

 This explaination doesn't cover transients really. So what's the worst transient really? a 20Hz pulse at full peak (28.3V). The power supply should store enough juice to be able to deliver this to the amplifier. What would happen is the resivoir capacitors in the power supply would drain to provide the current necessary to drive the load. Then it would start to charge back up after the transient (MUCH slower than the speed at which the transient hit). Now you may ask, what if it's hit repeatedly with 20Hz transient peaks. Well, the answer is that that is very very very unlikely in music, and any well designed amp should account for all these things.

 Now, all this discussion focuses on standard, voltage amplified, linear supply, solid state amps. There's a lot of wierd stuff out there that might act differently.

 hope this helps..

 You could always take a reasonably equipment multimeter and measure some of this stuff for yourself.


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## Ferbose

After trying some genuine, 16 AWG, *low-leakage*, hospital grade power cord from Volex (Belden), I am not impressed with its sonic result. This is already the best "true" hospital grade power cord I managed to find. I still prefer black, pre-molded, shielded power cords. Nor did a 10 AWG, silver-plated copper, unshielded, fat-ass cord with big hospital grade plugs impress me. 

 Not sure why power cord shielding works in my system because all my audio interconnects are far away from power cords. Now my favorite is Volex's 14 AWG, shielded 3 ft cord. $14 for very-low-impedance, shielded cord for a world-leading brand--I can live with that. A logical upgrade from those sotck, 18 AWG, garden-variety brand IEC power cords.


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## John Massaria (May 28, 2020)

The best thing I can personally suggest is to invest in a dedicated 15A-20A single pole circuit breaker for your digital equipment and AND MAYBE another 15-20A for your amplifier/preamp/headamp. Using 12 gauge or better yet 10 gauge romex type wire. Another suggestion while your electrician is there- ask him to tighten all grounds connected to your box.   To quote an article I read from PS Audio (not a fan or not of PS Audio mind you)- "A dedicated AC line is simply a separate AC wire going back to your home’s circuit breaker box. Instead of the standard AC feed with multiple AC outlets available for many pieces of equipment, a dedicated line is a “home run” single-use wire from the equipment it powers all the way back to the circuit breaker box where the AC power comes into our homes.... For less than the cost of a budget power amplifier-a mere $373.45—the electrician ran two new 20A lines to the listening room, one with the hot on one side of neutral, the other on the other. Each had its own circuit breaker and each fed two hospital-grade wall sockets. (These orange receptacles grasp the prongs of AC plugs with a clasp akin to the Vulcan death grip.)" Hope this helps- when you sell your home its a feature some buyers may love- but in the time in between you will have musical bliss blowing away any cable purchase or maximizing equipment purchases you can make. You could also do a isolated ground- and a metal box thats also grounded.


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## Speedskater

Isolated Ground receptacles are for circuits that are wired with metal conduit (ridge or flexible). Romex® cable does the isolating all by itself.

Also, post #1 in this old thread is well worth reading.


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## JDFlood

Very interesting, but I have only heard of hospital grade duplex receptacles being recommended for audiophiles. Never power cords. My experience has been that many approaches can be used to good sounding power cord construction. i think some basic engineering principles are used to begin designing an audiophile power cord... but that ultimately trial and error with materials and techniques are used. I am sure Nordst and some of the long-lived top audiophile cable manufacturers have deep science driving their development, but that it is far more advanced than commonly used electrical principles. I wouldn’t waste time playing with hospitals grade stuff, to be sure one or more of the high end audio cable companies started there 40 years ago. Hospital grade is purpose built for hospitals not for audio. While there are probably some stuff that sounds good, my experience with purpose built power cords while counterintuitive has been astonishing good. However, you need excellent audio equipment for it to make a big difference... you need a very sensitive system (to the music going in and through), then Power cord choice makes a big and noticeable difference. If you are experimenting with common cords versus hospital, then maybe hospital grade is better. If you are looking to maximize your audio system, I would spend your time and money evaluating audio power cords.


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## JKDJedi

So if I can get a hospital 18 gauge cord for under $10 vs a 14 gauge audio cord for $100.. (for my headphone amps) are both overkill or does one beat the other and why? I read the OP and to me didn't really answer which one was the better choice.


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## JDFlood (Jul 24, 2020)

JKDJedi said:


> So if I can get a hospital 18 gauge cord for under $10 vs a 14 gauge audio cord for $100.. (for my headphone amps) are both overkill or does one beat the other and why? I read the OP and to me didn't really answer which one was the better choice.


You basically have to listen in your system. There isn’t a “Perfect”. You would have to listen to them in your system.But typically a better cord improves the sound (as opposed to interconnects which can make it wors or different). I have spent 40 years building my system and at least a thousand hours comparing cords and interconnects. It depends, is always the answer.. Generally thicker gauge is better. I would always optimize interconnects before power cords. They produce a larger differences. But if the roast of your system is up to it a good power cord will result in a notable and important improvement.

Specifically to answer your question the highest probability is the $100 audio cord... but $100 audio cord is a really cheap one so I would not expect much research has been put into it. But thicker wire is better, I would put my money on the audio cord.

hope this helps.


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## JKDJedi

JDFlood said:


> You basically have to listen in your system. There isn’t a “Perfect”. You would have to listen to them in your system. I have spent 40 years building my system and at least a thousand hours comparing cords and interconnects. It depends, is always the answer.. Generally thicker gauge is better. I would always optimize interconnects before power cords. They produce a larger differences.
> 
> Specifically to answer your question the highest probability is the $100 audio cord... but $100 audio cord is a really cheap one so I would not expect much research has been put into it. But thicker wire is better, I would put my money on the audio cord.
> 
> hope this helps.


RCA Cables?


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## JDFlood (Jul 24, 2020)

JKDJedi said:


> RCA Cables?



interconnects = RCA cables if that is what you are asking.

Also, embedded in any cord / cable discussion is your definition of value. There are two sides, the value of money, and the value of the change (also dependent on you hearing and experience in listening). If 90 audio Dollars is a lot of money to you, then it may not be worth it. My experience is that I would not invest less than $300 in a power cord. At this level someone has invested lots of time listening and choosing materials as well as listening to the completion In order to price it apprropriatel. I can recommend DH Labs as selling power cords of good value... It has been many years since I bought one, but I liked his silver power cords (they require at least 100 hours of break-in).

As far as interconnects. I have experienced jaw dropping improvements in the sound... the biggest in the digital interconnect and also a high difference in analog interconnects. I have many stories... but my audio guy sent me a pair of Nirvana RCA analog interconnects many years ago. I told him I was not in the market but would try them anyway. I had settled on $600 Harmonix mixed copper and silver interconnects. That was a lot of money for me. I tried the Nirvana an it was as if someone took away my preamp and replaced it with one that cost twice as much, I was astonished, and bought them immediately for $2000. Absolutely a great deal for the money... I have three pair on my system today.


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## JKDJedi (Jul 24, 2020)

JDFlood said:


> interconnects = RCA cables if that is what you are asking.
> 
> Also, embedded in any cord / cable discussion is your definition of value. There are two sides, the value of money, and the value of the change (also dependent on you hearing and experience in listening). If 90 audio Dollars is a lot of money to you, then it may not be worth it. My experience is that I would not invest less than $300 in a power cord. At this level someone has invested lots of time listening and choosing materials as well as listening to the completion In order to price it apprropriatel. I can recommend DH Labs as selling power cords of good value... It has been many years since I bought one, but I liked his silver power cords (they require breakin).
> 
> As far as interconnects. I have experienced jaw dropping improvements in the sound... the biggest in the digital interconnect and also a high difference in analog interconnects. I have many stories... but my audio guy sent me a pair of Nirvana RCA analog interconnects. I told him I was not in the market but would try them anyway. I had settled on $600 Harmonix mixed copper and silver interconnects. That was a lot of money for me. I tried the Nirvana an it was as if someone took away my preamp and replaced it with one that cost twice as much, I was astonished, and bought them immediately for $2000. Absolutely a great deal for the money... I have three pair on my system today.


The gear I have is not as high end as yours, pair of headphone amps (although one has the inards of high end build). I have an RCA connect that's really cheap build from DAC  to amp, will try one of them Monolith RCA cables. They look robust in build and not that expensive.


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## JDFlood

That is the place to start. You might try a on line company that will lend you a couple pair. Get something you can afford and then get some thing two or three times more expensive. Try them out for a while. Odds are you’ll end up getting the expensive ones. The more expensive the better they sound in general.  Unless there’s something wrong with your system... like overly bright.


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## JDFlood

Also used cables go for about half the price of new cables. I think it’s use cables.com


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## JKDJedi (Jul 24, 2020)

JDFlood said:


> Also used cables go for about half the price of new cables. I think it’s use cables.com


https://www.usedcable.com/ found it... thank you! Ordered a set of Kimber Kables  See how good these are..


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## JDFlood (Jul 24, 2020)

Backing up one more step. I realized I have a three other rules of thumb. 1) don’t buy a power cord for less than $300 and 2) don’t buy a set of interconnects for less than $250, and 3) don’t buy a interconnect costing more than 10 - 20% the value of the component it is connected to. Obviously only a guideline, but life is to short to,be spending enormous amounts of time evaluating $10 interconnects is a waste of my time. But if you add these together it says don’t buy special interconnects for components costing less than $1,500. As, I said just a guideline, an $800 Schiit amp may be worth it... When I get some time, I’ll try it. But my point is, your components must be sufficiently sensitive to be able to show the difference. The better the component the more susceptible to changes in interconnects, and then having a even smaller impact will be power cables, support rigidity, points and finally interconnect elevators. The last one here, your components better be over $5,000 or you got really good hearing and listening skills.

My goal has not been to enjoy comparing equipment, but to listen and enjoy the music with the best sound I can currently afford. So people love the evaluation process... nothing wrong with that.

Hope this is useful.

JD


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## JKDJedi

JDFlood said:


> Backing up one more step. I realized I have a three other rules of thumb. 1) don’t buy a power cord for less than $300 and 2) don’t buy a set of interconnects for less than $250, and 3) don’t buy a interconnect costing more than 10 - 20% the value of the component it is connected to. Obviously only a guideline, but life is to short to,be spending enormous amounts of time evaluating $10 interconnects is a waste of my time. But if you add these together it says don’t buy special interconnects for components costing less than $1,500. As, I said just a guideline, an $800 Schiit amp may be worth it... When I get some time, I’ll try it. But my point is, your components must be sufficiently sensitive to be able to show the difference. The better the component the more susceptible to changes in interconnects, and then having a even smaller impact will be power cables, support rigidity, points and finally interconnect elevators. The last one here, your components better be over $5,000 or you got really good hearing and listening skills.
> 
> Hope this is useful.
> 
> JD


That's an extended way of saying Don't Waste Your Money 😂


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