DIY power cable

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I ordered a few meters of Supra Lorad 1.5 power cable and some Sonar connectors. I want to make a couple power cables for my Audio Research PH5 preamp and the Burson Audio HDA-160 headphone amp.

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Anyone else build/use DIY cables?

All my power cables are from Signal cable. Here is a diy site for cables.

http://diyaudioprojects.com/Power/diyMains/

All my power cables are from Signal cable. Here is a diy site for cables.

http://diyaudioprojects.com/Power/diyMains/

I use DIY Belden 83803 mains cable (with Wattgate connectors) for my Parasound Halo preamp and my Sony DVP-E9000ES SACD player in my living room. My Parasound HT-2205 power amp came with a 10 gauge, shielded power cable with Wattgate connectors which is doing the job nicely.

My Audio Research PH5 preamp came with a cheap, molded, 16 gauge power cable which was total garbage. I got the Supra cable yesterday and built a new power cable for it with some spare connectors (The Sonar connectors are not here yet). So far, it sounds good but the highs lost a little air and sparkle, but the bass tightened up. The cable is brand new, so it will take some time to break in.

I was browsing Ebay and found this:

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It looked interesting, sort of like a Nordst flat cable. The wire is supposed to be 88% pure silver. I have a few silver cables and from my experience, silver can sharpen dynamics and extend treble response. Silver usually sounds 'fast' and focused. Usually, pairing silver cables with tube equipment creates a very good balance and synergy. With the right equipment matching, silver can sound smooth, full and detailed. With the wrong match of components, it can impart an overall 'leanness' and sound brittle and sharp.

I bid on it and won. It should be interesting how the cable sounds with my equipment. 

I was browsing Ebay and found this:

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It looked interesting, sort of like a Nordst flat cable. The wire is supposed to be 88% pure silver. I have a few silver cables and from my experience, silver can sharpen dynamics and extend treble response. Silver usually sounds 'fast' and focused. Usually, pairing silver cables with tube equipment creates a very good balance and synergy. With the right equipment matching, silver can sound smooth, full and detailed. With the wrong match of components, it can impart an overall 'leanness' and sound brittle and sharp.

I bid on it and won. It should be interesting how the cable sounds with my equipment. 

I got the silver interconnect today and so far, it sounds fantastic! I connected it between my phono preamp and my headphone amp. It has a very nice, wide soundstage with very pinpoint imaging. Overall, there is a warm, full character that really brings out the tube sound of my preamp. The highs have a nice shimmer and detail without being bright or etched sounding. The background is nearly silent - much better than I would have thought with a cable of this design. The cable is new, so it will take some time to break in, but so far it's a very impressive cable for $23 for 1 meter.

The seller has more for sale ([ebay]360425371793[/ebay]) and also has other silver cables available.

As for silver interconnects. I think I would have to change everyone I have. My internal Hookup wires in the Cornet 2 and Aikido are DH Labs Silvers. I would think that in my case, I wouldn't see any improvement if i just bought one? How about the internal tonearm wiring? Or the wiring in the Cinemag SUT? and Speaker Wire? I think the entire chain would be replaced. Can you say KACHING $$$$$$$$$

As for silver interconnects. I think I would have to change everyone I have. My internal Hookup wires in the Cornet 2 and Aikido are DH Labs Silvers. I would think that in my case, I wouldn't see any improvement if i just bought one? How about the internal tonearm wiring? Or the wiring in the Cinemag SUT? and Speaker Wire? I think the entire chain would be replaced. Can you say KACHING $$$$$$$$$

Well it depends on the system, and what you are trying to achieve. I find the effects of silver cable are cumulative and complementary at the same time. Strategically mixing silver and copper, experimenting with it's placement, is usually educational and can be rewarding; if you find the right combination that creates the synergy your looking for in your system. Personally, I like to use silver interconnects before tube preamps since the silver will enhance the detail and the tubes will usually translate that into a sweet, 'golden' sound with rich, even order harmonics. Copper usually has a warm, mellow tone to start with; which can sometimes become too mellow when feeding an already warm, 100% tube preamp, but there are exceptions and some people prefer this effect. Sometimes going all silver can be 'too much of a good thing', especially in a highly detailed, bright system, or a system where one of the components is lacking (to cold, bright, or thin; etchy or 'gritty' sounding) and silver cables may make it sound worse by magnifying these issues.

Cable synergy, for me, is more experimentation than purely scientific. Placing a cable at different locations in the signal chain can have and audible (and sometimes dramatic) effects on the sound. In the end, it really depends on personal preference and what sounds good to you.

As for silver interconnects. I think I would have to change everyone I have. My internal Hookup wires in the Cornet 2 and Aikido are DH Labs Silvers. I would think that in my case, I wouldn't see any improvement if i just bought one? How about the internal tonearm wiring? Or the wiring in the Cinemag SUT? and Speaker Wire? I think the entire chain would be replaced. Can you say KACHING $$$$$$$$$

Well it depends on the system, and what you are trying to achieve. I find the effects of silver cable are cumulative and complementary at the same time. Strategically mixing silver and copper, experimenting with it's placement, is usually educational and can be rewarding; if you find the right combination that creates the synergy your looking for in your system. Personally, I like to use silver interconnects before tube preamps since the silver will enhance the detail and the tubes will usually translate that into a sweet, 'golden' sound with rich, even order harmonics. Copper usually has a warm, mellow tone to start with; which can sometimes become too mellow when feeding an already warm, 100% tube preamp, but there are exceptions and some people prefer this effect. Sometimes going all silver can be 'too much of a good thing', especially in a highly detailed, bright system, or a system where one of the components is lacking (to cold, bright, or thin; etchy or 'gritty' sounding) and silver cables may make it sound worse by magnifying these issues.

Cable synergy, for me, is more experimentation than purely scientific. Placing a cable at different locations in the signal chain can have and audible (and sometimes dramatic) effects on the sound. In the end, it really depends on personal preference and what sounds good to you.

Sounds Interesting. I might have to try it. I'm looking at the Signal cables.