Even though this was posted to the wrong thread, all I can say is thank-jebus that Mitch didnt test the $175 power cable as well or we would really have a long thread on our hands!
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Power Cable for a Bass Amp Question
- Thread starter soularis
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Even though this was posted to the wrong thread, all I can say is thank-jebus that Mitch didnt test the $175 power cable as well or we would really have a long thread on our hands!
Aw dammit, I feel like such an idiot. Yes, I did post yesterday's post to the wrong thread. Sorry, everybody. Somehow one questionable assertion got mixed with another. Blame it on the champagne I had with dinner.
Munji wrote:
It's true, Nathan plays on cheesy records. Good for him. I bet he's got low blood pressure.
Now go take your little gold foil amps and head back to your cheesy basement, m'kay?
Why I oughta....
It's true, Nathan plays on cheesy records. Good for him. I bet he's got low blood pressure.
Now go take your little gold foil amps and head back to your cheesy basement, m'kay?
Why I oughta....
I'm just tagging this so I'll get emailed on the progress of the thread.
My vote is "No discernable audible difference" between 'whatever' power cords (as long as they supply the needed voltage and current).
My vote is "No discernable audible difference" between 'whatever' power cords (as long as they supply the needed voltage and current).
I like all the cheesy records Nathan East plays on! Secondly, he's probably got all the high profile gigs out there [Phil Collins, Eric Clapton, Babyface and whoever else can afford him] besides being a member of the band, Fourplay, one of the top contemporary jazz bands around! He's also got his own signature bass by Yamaha so I think he's doing alright for himself!
Cable Guy-
I'm planning on releasing a new series of really totally sweeeeet sounding 110V wall outlets in almond, beige, and white.
I decided to make them after my friend and I did a listening test with the same MIT power cable you mentioned, and we could both tell that there was some difference at my house and his, and it turns out we were using a different source for wall outlets (Lowe's vs. Home Depot)
However, when we took my amp over to my friends house, the tone was better, and it turns out he's got Southwire 12/2 Romex wire in his walls and I've got some no name 12/3 stuff, so I ripped it out and replaced it with the Southwire and it is totally different, but then we noticed it sounded better at my place, and it turns out my friend was using some Square-D 15 amp breakers, but my house is older and has screw-type fuses, they have a much warmer "vintage" sound than modern circuit breakers way better, we both heard it they rock. He replaced his breaker box with a used fuse panel we picked up at a property auction, and it really helped
But we could still hear some extra sweetness in the tone of the amp at my place, and it turns out that my friend's power drop from Keyspan is a piece of pvc jacketed _ALUMINUM_ spun-core cable, rather than the 8 guage stranded copper line I get from Mass Electric- we did a lot of listening and the sweetness has got to be coming from the copper, the aluminum is "sterile" sounding.
We got Mass Electric to replace that line (don't ask how much that cost), but we were still hearing this kind of weird difference- we're pretty much identical all the way up to the transformer, same brand of fuses (bussman), same box, Southwire 12/3 romex- so now we're thinking it's either the kind of 440V stepdown transformer on the pole (he has a square-D oil-coiled type and I have some japanese brand air cooled), or the fact that his power drop has a ceramic disc style disconnect (the thing that blows to keep lightning off the line). The transformer is next- we think it could be the oil dampening the harmonics, or that disconnect.
Then we realized that we had never even thought about replacing the wall jack- we got the idea to not use the power cord at all, and at my friends place we just soldered the leads from the power supply (internal) to the power cord jack in the amp (Glockenlang) directly into the buss-bar in my breaker box (I had a fire with the fuses and my wife made me switch back), and dude, the difference was like night and day. I have never heard more clarity from this amp, the only problem is that I can only play it if I stand in my laundry room by the breaker panel, so I'm looking at replacing the internal wiring with something longer. We did this with my friends amp too, and it sounds pretty good but he used a different brand of solder and it's not quite as sweet.
Anyhow if that doesn't straighten it out, we're thinking about moving up to Vermont so we can get on the Mohawk grid- it's less stable power but I hear they're using new cable from MIT in the windings of the turbine generators at Niagra , and all the guys up there are saying its really sweet, sweet power.
Anyhow I'll let you know when the outlets are ready- we're probably going to start our own line of Romex cabling- looks like the outlets are going to run about 500$ for two sockets (with screws) and the Romex will be about 800$/yd, steep but the sound, woof!
I'm planning on releasing a new series of really totally sweeeeet sounding 110V wall outlets in almond, beige, and white.
I decided to make them after my friend and I did a listening test with the same MIT power cable you mentioned, and we could both tell that there was some difference at my house and his, and it turns out we were using a different source for wall outlets (Lowe's vs. Home Depot)
However, when we took my amp over to my friends house, the tone was better, and it turns out he's got Southwire 12/2 Romex wire in his walls and I've got some no name 12/3 stuff, so I ripped it out and replaced it with the Southwire and it is totally different, but then we noticed it sounded better at my place, and it turns out my friend was using some Square-D 15 amp breakers, but my house is older and has screw-type fuses, they have a much warmer "vintage" sound than modern circuit breakers way better, we both heard it they rock. He replaced his breaker box with a used fuse panel we picked up at a property auction, and it really helped
But we could still hear some extra sweetness in the tone of the amp at my place, and it turns out that my friend's power drop from Keyspan is a piece of pvc jacketed _ALUMINUM_ spun-core cable, rather than the 8 guage stranded copper line I get from Mass Electric- we did a lot of listening and the sweetness has got to be coming from the copper, the aluminum is "sterile" sounding.
We got Mass Electric to replace that line (don't ask how much that cost), but we were still hearing this kind of weird difference- we're pretty much identical all the way up to the transformer, same brand of fuses (bussman), same box, Southwire 12/3 romex- so now we're thinking it's either the kind of 440V stepdown transformer on the pole (he has a square-D oil-coiled type and I have some japanese brand air cooled), or the fact that his power drop has a ceramic disc style disconnect (the thing that blows to keep lightning off the line). The transformer is next- we think it could be the oil dampening the harmonics, or that disconnect.
Then we realized that we had never even thought about replacing the wall jack- we got the idea to not use the power cord at all, and at my friends place we just soldered the leads from the power supply (internal) to the power cord jack in the amp (Glockenlang) directly into the buss-bar in my breaker box (I had a fire with the fuses and my wife made me switch back), and dude, the difference was like night and day. I have never heard more clarity from this amp, the only problem is that I can only play it if I stand in my laundry room by the breaker panel, so I'm looking at replacing the internal wiring with something longer. We did this with my friends amp too, and it sounds pretty good but he used a different brand of solder and it's not quite as sweet.
Anyhow if that doesn't straighten it out, we're thinking about moving up to Vermont so we can get on the Mohawk grid- it's less stable power but I hear they're using new cable from MIT in the windings of the turbine generators at Niagra , and all the guys up there are saying its really sweet, sweet power.
Anyhow I'll let you know when the outlets are ready- we're probably going to start our own line of Romex cabling- looks like the outlets are going to run about 500$ for two sockets (with screws) and the Romex will be about 800$/yd, steep but the sound, woof!
Wow. Im completley sold on those power cables. In fact, I sold my entire rig just the oher week so i could get the money to buy one. Sure, all I have right now is a cord sticking out of a socket with nothing attached at the end... but damn. when i can finally afford another amp, it'll be sweet as hell.
But - I just cant figure out to do with the effects I have. Im sure there has to be some way i can get better tone out of them. A friend reccomended some danelectro vintage batteries so i copuld get that real sweet classic tone, but in not sure.... Opinions?
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But - I just cant figure out to do with the effects I have. Im sure there has to be some way i can get better tone out of them. A friend reccomended some danelectro vintage batteries so i copuld get that real sweet classic tone, but in not sure.... Opinions?
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Wow, this is such an interesting thread. A double-blind test would be very interesting.
Without it, of course, you can't really take anyone's word for the sound difference. The phenomenon is called "cognitive dissonance". In this case, it means that having spent so much money on a cable, a person will create opinions or rationalizations about that cable which are consistent with his purchase--reducing dissonance, or inconsistencies, between behavior and beliefs about oneself (e.g., "I'm a sensible, educated consumer" or "I'm not a gullible person").
Maybe this is the reason I'll tell you my Monster instrument cable sounds better than my old el cheap-o cable
Without it, of course, you can't really take anyone's word for the sound difference. The phenomenon is called "cognitive dissonance". In this case, it means that having spent so much money on a cable, a person will create opinions or rationalizations about that cable which are consistent with his purchase--reducing dissonance, or inconsistencies, between behavior and beliefs about oneself (e.g., "I'm a sensible, educated consumer" or "I'm not a gullible person").
Maybe this is the reason I'll tell you my Monster instrument cable sounds better than my old el cheap-o cable
I had to register just so I could tell you how funny that was.
I was literally trying not to roll out of my chair.Otherwise, I'd love to actually see the results of a double-blind test of these cables. Even better, I would REALLY love to see some charts showing the voltages and current draws of these cables as opposed to a standard copper power cable. I'm not willing to completely discount them without any evidence, but it seems very unlikely to me that any difference would be made by changing power cables. As I said, though, I'd really enjoy seeing some hard numbers on what difference the cables are supposed to make in the quality of power supplied to the amp.
hey guys guess what, I got one of these Tara Labs cables for my once crappy SWR LA-15, and I must say! It sounds much better! Now it sounds like a raging Hiwatt, and alot more tubey! Now I can sound just like Entwistle, and play like him to! Now i'm playing Won't Get Fooled Again harder and better than ever! I can't believe something as simple as a cable could make me sound so much better!
Hats off to Tara Labs cables!
Hats off to Tara Labs cables!
Batteries used to be made differently than modern day alkaline and lithium batteries. They were quicker to drop in voltage from having a higher internal equivalent series resistance and as such made whatever they were in run below voltage which usually affected the sound. The Dano's are made like the old ones; they wear out VERY quickly and the provide the desired voltage drop which is usually distortion inducing.
Hmmm..
Only one comment comes to mind....
People are saying that as long as power cables come up to spec they will all sound the same - fair enough.
Would a power cable just under spec sound different without actually being dangerous? (I presume it would heat up a fair bit).
Could this difference conceivably be musical?
Could a company start producing under-spec cables for amps at $175 a pop?
Sorry, I'm not trying to accuse anybody of anything - just an idea.
Only one comment comes to mind....
People are saying that as long as power cables come up to spec they will all sound the same - fair enough.
Would a power cable just under spec sound different without actually being dangerous? (I presume it would heat up a fair bit).
Could this difference conceivably be musical?
Could a company start producing under-spec cables for amps at $175 a pop?
Sorry, I'm not trying to accuse anybody of anything - just an idea.
My educated guess is that the maximum power of the amp will drop a bit (after all, we're talking about the POWER cable here), but sound will be exactly the same.
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