# Zu Birth/Bok Vs. Pangea AC-14 Vs. Signal Cable Magic Power Cord



## sampson_smith

*EDIT: Sheesh! It appears that I was mistaken and the original post regarding these high-performance/low-cost power cords survived. So, sorry for what has essentially turned out to be a double post. Since the following is slightly different, I will leave it to posterity below.  *
   






 Well... I just finished writing a long assessment of the above three cables, only to have Head-fi lose the message. I guess you can blame the new operating parameters for the snafu. So, while trying my very best to keep my cool, a brief summary:
   
  I have been searching for a quality but affordable power cable option for my Gilmore Lite DPS and have narrowed it down to the above cables. It is my understanding that the Birth is the better of the two Zu's, as it is more flexible. markl's scathing review of the Bok aside, is it possible that it will both offer an improvement in sound quality over the Birth and be flexible enough not to displace the light Gilmore Lite DPS? This is paramount, given how small the amp unit is.
   
  I have also been interested in the Pangea AC-14 (as the much bigger AC-9 is just too bulky for my purposes), but there is little info. on this new budget power cord here. The Signal Cable Magic Power Cord as well as the JellyFish and associated hospital-grade cryogenic SoniKLEER seem to be rather well-built, but offer no shielding to avoid interference. Also, the Signal Cable PC is said to be rather stiff.
   
  So, any ideas on the above? I do not want to spend an arm and a leg here, but look forward to switching out my Volex for an noticeable - okay, marginal? - increase in performance. 
   
  Thanks in advance for the input.


----------



## Xan7hos

haha and here i was thinking this was a review
   
  My thoughts on the Signal Cable Power is that it's bulky and heavy, and very stiff (metaphors aside the thing is a garden hose) and should definitely used on heavier equipments; the connection might be too heavy and might tilt an amp or dac slightly.
   
  Sonically I didn't notice a difference, perhaps greater focus and imaging. It is however built like a tank and I can't see it ever failing


----------



## sampson_smith

Thanks for the input, Xan7hos. Sorry that I had no review to post. Actually, that brings up a good point: There is no comprehensive review here of sub-$100 power cables. I know that markl has covered a few in his 22 power cord shoot-out, but I think a budget-minded review would be very helpful. Same goes for interconnects. This needs to be done in short order.
   
  For now, I think that the Birth is the way to go. It appears to be flexible enough, is well-built, and gets the job done properly. *Fingers crossed*


----------



## fhuang

birth is a very flexible cable


----------



## sampson_smith

Thanks very much for the pic, fhuang. Good to hear that it is flexible. Any improvement over stock cables when you use it with your rig?


----------



## tke398

I received a 1.5 meter Pangea AC-9 and AC-14 for use on my Woo amp and Audio-gd DAC last week. I've been an audiophile since the late 1980s and the one area I've always stayed away from is power cables. It just didn't make sense to me and it was one of a handful of items that I would consider as snake oil.
   
  Well, I swapped out the stock power cables and the difference was one of the biggest that I have made to my system. The change was bigger than any tube rolling, cable upgrade or tweaks that I've tried. It wasn't as big as changing headphones or swapping phono cartridges, but it was very close. It was so obvious that I believe anyone would have immediately heard the difference. I know comparing the sounds of different cables, etc. leads to heated debates, so I will not get into the specific sound changes. My point is that these entry level power cables are worthy upgrades and I am very happy with their products. I really do wish I tried them sooner.


----------



## Jon L

Quote: 





tke398 said:


> I know comparing the sounds of different cables, etc. leads to heated debates, so I will not get into the specific sound changes. My point is that these entry level power cables are worthy upgrades and I am very happy with their products. I really do wish I tried them sooner.


 
   
  Let me guess.  You got much more bass and "impact" while the top end smoothes out, making those nasty CD's sound much more listenable.  Everything sounds fuller, and richer..


----------



## tke398

Well, close. The midbass was immediately apparent and that is the part that I think anyone with ears would have noticed right away. The other obvious changes were a more focused sound, longer decays, and more room ambience. This is the most holographic/3D sound I have gotten so far.
  Quote: 





jon l said:


> Let me guess.  You got much more bass and "impact" while the top end smoothes out, making those nasty CD's sound much more listenable.  Everything sounds fuller, and richer..


----------



## sampson_smith

Excellent to hear, tke398! I appreciate the thoughtful comments. I have considered the Pangea cords quite a bit, but have balked at their more expensive shipping to Canada (through Audio Adviser). It was my belief that the AC-9 is waaay too bulky for the Gilmore Lite DPS. Would you agree? I previously wanted to get the AC-9, but figure that the thinner, more flexible AC-14 would do, even though that is generally prescribed for DAC's and other sources.


----------



## tke398

The AC-9 is waaayyy too big for my Woo WA6SE. I was concerned about it lifting the back of the amp off the shelf, but it is pretty flexible considering its size. The photos in Audio Advisor do not help portray the actual size. It is definately overkill for a <1 watt headphone amp. These are more for huge monoblock amps sitting on the floor. The AC-14 is slightly thicker than your average pc cable and should do just fine on your Gilmore.


----------



## sampson_smith

Thanks for the explanation! Too big for the mighty WA 6 SE?! Those things do weigh a tonne, so I can now be sure that the AC-9 will not play nice with almost any headphone rig out there. The AC-14 it is. Or, what about the *AC-14**SE*?! It looks as if Pangea just released an upgrade the AC-14 with multiple wire gauges within the cord, no unlike the AC-9:
   
  http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo.asp?number=PGAC14SE
   
_Thoughts?_


----------



## tke398

One of the reasons why I decided to invest in Pangea power cords was because I heard the prices were going to increase on May 1st (which they did). That's when they started selling the AC-14SE, so I haven't heard it and it wasn't available at the time of my purchase. It's about $15-20 more expensive than the newly increased price of the AC-14, but it is still pretty reasonably priced IMO.
   
  Will you be getting these for all your components?


----------



## musicman59

I second the opinion on the Pangea. I have 3 of the AC-14 and 1 of the AC-9. For the money they are unbeatable IMO.


----------



## sampson_smith

Thanks again for the input, guys. I would love to get my hands on a singe approx. 1.5 m AC-14 or AC-14SE power cord, but it appears that Audio Advisor's shipping is prohibitive to Canada, and I cannot go through amazon.com. If there is anyone out there wanting to upgrade to the AC-14SE and needs someone to take an AC-14 'regular' edition off of their hands, let me know. I would be more than glad to if the used price is reasonable.


----------



## sampson_smith

Nobody wants to sell a Pangea AC-14 power cord?! I guess that there is either a limited amount with the AC-14SE upgrade itch, or just very few with Pangeas in the first place. (Obviously they are very fine cables, so I should probably attribute it to the AC-14 being 'good enough'.) Well, PM me if you have a change of heart, any and all.


----------



## dmac03

I've been on the fence about power cords from the get go. I've been hesitant to throw down a few hundred on something that gets such mixed reviews. Thanks for everyone's insight into the AC-14 - it just might be the entry level power cord that I've been looking to add to my amp and source.


----------



## sampson_smith

Good to hear. I will soon have a Zu Birth power cord for use with my system. Looking forward to reporting on how that compares to my cheap Volex.
   
  Let us know how the Pangea AC-14/AC-14SE turns out, dmac03, if you choose to order one. What sort of rig are you thinking about using it with?


----------



## dmac03

I should specify "future" rig. I will be obtaining my gear over the summer. Hopefully I can convince my local hi-fi shop to loan me some nordost demo power cables so I can compare. I will make sure to post impressions when the time comes.


----------



## nephilim32

tke398 said:


> I received a 1.5 meter Pangea AC-9 and AC-14 for use on my Woo amp and Audio-gd DAC last week. I've been an audiophile since the late 1980s and the one area I've always stayed away from is power cables. It just didn't make sense to me and it was one of a handful of items that I would consider as snake oil.
> 
> Well, I swapped out the stock power cables and the difference was one of the biggest that I have made to my system. The change was bigger than any tube rolling, cable upgrade or tweaks that I've tried. It wasn't as big as changing headphones or swapping phono cartridges, but it was very close. It was so obvious that I believe anyone would have immediately heard the difference. I know comparing the sounds of different cables, etc. leads to heated debates, so I will not get into the specific sound changes. My point is that these entry level power cables are worthy upgrades and I am very happy with their products. I really do wish I tried them sooner.





musicman59 said:


> I second the opinion on the Pangea. I have 3 of the AC-14 and 1 of the AC-9. For the money they are unbeatable IMO.




I totally concur with your feelings and findings! I bought a Burson Soloist and replaced the stock cable with a 1 meter AC 9-se 12AWG Pangea AC power cord and I was shocked that a difference in sound quality and a deeper Pitch Black background was evident to my ears. A worthy buy. Cost 150$. this is the latest and greatest cable from Pangea though. Has LITZ copper in it as well. Beautiful.


----------



## crazychile

I just bought an AC-14SE for my Schiit Bifrost Uber and an AC-9 for my Schiit Lyr 2 Amp. The AC-9 is too heavy for the Lyr2 which weighs only 5-6 lbs. Would another AC-14SE be adequate for the Lyr2? It's only 6W max output.
  
 I made the mistake of ordering from Audio Advisor. I'll have to pay shipping to return the cable, and their customer service dept has been unavailable every time I tried. I just noticed that Amazon sells these also for the same price, but with a prime membership you get free shipping/free returns. So if I order another AC-14SE, it will be from Amazon.


----------



## swifty7

sampson_smith said:


> Good to hear. I will soon have a Zu Birth power cord for use with my system. Looking forward to reporting on how that compares to my cheap Volex.
> 
> Let us know how the Pangea AC-14/AC-14SE turns out, dmac03, if you choose to order one. What sort of rig are you thinking about using it with?


 

 I'm looking forward to read your thoughts on the Zu Birth power cord compared to the standard Volex ones.


----------

