Gramophone Dreams

I befriended Marsh, and told him to ignore the naysayers and trust his ears. I explained that, for decades, Japanese designers of amplifiers had felt the same way about wires, resistors, even tube sockets. I told him that I thought the differences he heard were likely caused by combinations of electrical, atmospheric, and mechanical phenomena, just as in vacuum tubes. I imagined that alternating audio currents were pulsing electromagnetic shock waves emanating like periodic tremors from magnetic tape heads or phonograph cartridges. These pulsing waves impress themselves on the complete complex impedance of the audio chain. Therefore, I told him, every part of the so-called signal path—resistors, capacitors, transformers, chassis, wires, interconnects, cables—was microscopically vibrating like marimba keys and, in like manner, blurring and coloring the signal with its own resonant character.

Eventually, I began to wonder if AC power cords were no different from all those parts. Imagining that power cords might need to be improved, and keeping in the DIY spirit, I built the heaviest cords I could afford by weaving together three lengths of 8AWG (0.128") stranded copper wire and attaching them to industrial-grade plugs. I even had to drill out the chassis of my Dynaco amp to accommodate my fatter, improved cords.

When I compared my homemade cord to 18/2 zip-cord, the difference in the sound was subtle, but I believed it was real.

Around 1987, I noticed when I put a 500-milliamp (or larger) power transformer in front of a 100mA power supply, my amplifiers' sound became quieter, distinctly more transparent and three-dimensional, with stronger, more articulate bass, and more details exposed. It wasn't long before I realized that the more pure metal I put between an amplifier's tube rectifier and the AC breaker panel, the more solid and lifelike the amp's sound became.

I mention this because AudioQuest's Storm Tornado power cords seemed to somehow corroborate my early discoveries in heavy metal.

The Outrage Began
Around 1976, Polk Audio and Fulton Musical Industries were the first to make and sell audio cables of an improved or specialized nature, intended to sound better than zip-cord and cheap giveaways. I remember how outraged audiophiles were. I remember how every audio magazine, including Stereophile, condemned the whole idea of paying extra for specialty wire.

Through Audio Amateur magazine, I'd made friends with Bob Fulton, who sent me a pair of his Fulton Gold speaker cables ($5/foot). "Tell me what you think, Herb."

I compared the Fulton Golds to generic lamp cord and told him that the difference (which was nowhere near as dramatic as with the AudioQuest Storm Tornado described above), was conspicuous. New York City audio dealer Sound by Singer sold Fulton cables with a 30-day return policy. My friend Sphere, who then worked at Singer, said, "No more than 25% of buyers returned the expensive wires."

Triode Wire Labs High Power (HP) Digital American power cord "High-end audiophile cables at budget friendly prices" reads the slogan on the homepage of Triode Wire Labs' website. At audio shows, I always see Triode Wire's Peter Grzybowski, aka Triode Pete, hanging and showing with my ol' runnin' buddy Gary Dews, of Border Patrol (amplification), and Greg Roberts, of Volti Audio (horn loudspeakers). Together, the three manufacturers make consistently smooth and delicious sounds that pack a sure punch and generate a Scotch-whisky high.

In the Triode-Border-Volti room at AXPONA 2018, in addition to the intoxicating sound, I noticed that Triode Wire Labs cables are unusually pliant, well made, and sensibly priced. This combination of virtues encouraged me to ask for a review set comprising their Spirit interconnect ($349/m), American Series speaker cables ($699/6'), and High Power (HP) Digital American power cord ($499/up to 5'). According to Triode Wire's website, this cord was designed for such power-gulping electronics as power amplifiers, power conditioners and regenerators, and power bars. When it arrived, the appearance of Digital in the model name encouraged me to absentmindedly assume that I should use it only with my DACs—which at first I did.

My eyes (and ears) popped wide open when I exchanged a generic unsupple power cord for the oh-so-supple High Power (HP) Digital American.

Schiit Audio's Yggdrasil DAC ($2399) always sounded more vigorous and lively than Mytek HiFi's similarly priced Brooklyn DAC+ ($2195), which tends toward a tighter, pro-studio sound. When I ran the Triode Wire Labs cord between the Yggy and the wall socket, I was surprised to hear even more vigor, more distinctly drawn images, and a lot more physicality. The Yggdrasil's ability to reach into the bitstream and reconstitute a recording dramatically increased.

A few days later, curious, I reinstated the generic cord. Immediately, I felt uncomfortable. After only two CDs, I became impatient. "That's enough of that!"

More often than not, line conditioning and boutique power cords don't just clean up a component's sound—they tighten it. Often, this tightening feels unnatural. With the Triode Wire cord, Schiit's new Yggdrasil Analog 2 DAC ($550) sounded more transparent and felt more relaxed. I really liked that.

The same thing happened with the Mytek Brooklyn and the Triode Wire cord: The Mytek's sound became simultaneously more solid and relaxed. Its best traits were enhanced.

Conclusion #4
My limited experiments suggest that DACs respond well to premium power cords and line conditioning (more about this later). I now keep whatever DAC I'm using connected to the AudioQuest Niagara 1000 via the Triode Wire Labs American—High Power (HP) Digital American.

I'm continually vexed and bewildered by cable deniers' unwillingness to do any of what I've described above. What is the argument against just trying it? Several retailers offer extended free home trials of cables, so why not stick a Tornado on your amp or a Triode Wire American on your DAC? Then, at the very least, you could say, "Herb, I tried it and didn't hear any difference!" And I would believe you.

My review sample of the HoloAudio Spring "Kitsuné Tuned Edition" Level 3 DAC, which I reviewed in the May 2018 issue, didn't come with a power cord. I used the Triode Wire Labs cord plugged directly into the wall and forgot about it. Stereophile's policy is to review products as manufactured and delivered: without tube rolling, modifications, or power conditioning. But I unwittingly reviewed—and strongly praised—the HoloAudio Spring as used with the Triode Wire Labs cord. Yesterday was the first time I'd heard the Spring with a generic power cord. Big frown moment.

The Spring's extraordinary ability to remove digital sound's reflective glass wall remained intact—the Spring was still the most musically satisfying DAC I've heard in my home. But! In my review, I'd raved about the literalness of its transparency, how many subtle textural and dynamic intricacies it revealed, how much digital artificiality it eliminated, how "un-mechanical" it sounded. When I finally played it with the cheap black cord, I realized how much the Triode Wire Labs cord was supercharging the Spring's inherent virtues. I highly recommend this combination of DAC and power cord.

I was unable to compare Triode Wire Labs' High Power (HP) Digital American cord with AudioQuest's Storm Tornado because the AQ was too short and stiff to connect to the HoloAudio Spring. But I've used the Triode cord with all of my phono stages and preamps, and have consistently noticed subtle increases in punch, clarity, and dynamism.

I did finally try the Triode cord with the Pass Labs XA25. The result was nowhere near as transparent or as powerfully assertive as with the AQ Tornado; in comparison, it sounded a tiny bit flat and unremarkable.

For the moment . . .
I've settled on using whatever DAC I'm listening to with a Triode Wire Labs High Power (HP) Digital American cord plugged into the AudioQuest Niagara 1000 conditioner, this in turn plugged into the wall with a 1m-long AQ Storm Tornado/High-Current cord. And I have definitely settled on plugging whatever power amp I'm using directly into the wall with a 1m-long Storm Tornado.

For the record, I have yet to hear musically satisfying sound from any power amplifier connected to any power conditioner or isolation transformer—I always sense some amount of dynamic repression or current strangulation.

Of course, the elimination of purely electrical contaminations will likely benefit any low-level source; but the greater senses of force, power, and mass that I observed with both the AudioQuest and Triode Wire Labs power cords took me by surprise.

I have a strong feeling that the enhancements I'm discovering are not simply the result of electrical filtering, isolating, or impedance matching. There seems to be a lot more happening in that meter-long cord than I've so far imagined.

As a result of these surprising experiences, I've decided to learn more about how audiophile power cords are built, and what sorts of engineering considerations inform their design. I will keep you posted. Meanwhile, I encourage you to duplicate my experiments and see what you discover. Peace and good wires.