NEW ZenWave PSR-14 UPOCC Silver Ribbon Power Cable

Ern Dog · « **Reply #60 on:** 30 Aug 2019, 01:12 am »

Cool. Good to know. Thanks Dave

DaveC113 · « **Reply #61 on:** 30 Aug 2019, 01:52 am »

No problem Ernie, be happy to send you the DSR and D4s together to see what you think.

Burt, good to see the cable arrived quickly and safely! Thanks for the initial report and pics, usually cables take a few days to settle down after shipping, so it should get even better.

Pic of the new DSR Interconnect Cables with RCA plugs:

Ern Dog · « **Reply #62 on:** 30 Aug 2019, 04:50 am »

Wowza!!!! YES, thanks so much Dave. I’ll take this into PM.

DaveC113 · « **Reply #63 on:** 20 Sep 2019, 01:46 pm »

A new comment on the ZenWave PSR-14 vs Audioquest DRAGON!

This comment is exactly why I wanted to use UPOCC silver ribbon for this cable, UPOCC silver is often perceived as thin or dry sounding, the ribbon type wire is not.

With this cable you get body, tone, clarity and dynamics that are on a whole 'nother level vs cables like Furutech DPS-4 and even the AQ Dragon. This is a 5-figure power cable for an amazing price!

Quote

This cable is pretty incredible for the price. I would say it’s comparable to the AQ Dragon in almost every respect and that cable retails for $4200 due to the solid core perfect surface silver. The main difference between them is the PSR-14 has a much sweeter treble, which is addictive to listen to over long periods of time and never causes fatigue. Ergonomically, the PSR-14 wins hands down and was very easy to move into both the wall and the DAC. The Furutech connectors are simply outstanding! The detail retrieval is easily in a class of its own and I suspect comparable to many of the other uber expensive power cables...

kngale1 · « **Reply #64 on:** 21 Sep 2019, 01:15 am »

Quote

A new comment on the ZenWave PSR-14 vs Audioquest DRAGON!

This comment is exactly why I wanted to use UPOCC silver ribbon for this cable, UPOCC silver is often perceived as thin or dry sounding, the ribbon type wire is not. With this cable you get body, tone, clarity and dynamics that are on a whole 'nother level vs cables like Furutech DPS-4 and even the AQ Dragon. This is a 5-figure power cable for an amazing price!

Do you offer a 10 or 12 gauge PSR-14? If you do, what's the price?

DaveC113 · « **Reply #65 on:** 21 Sep 2019, 02:12 pm »

Quote from: kngale1 on 21 Sep 2019, 01:15 am

Do you offer a 10 or 12 gauge PSR-14? If you do, what's the price?

Yes, a PSR-11 11g silver ribbon cable is on the way! Price will be about 50% more vs the 14g version, so about $3750.

pursuitofnow · « **Reply #66 on:** 21 Sep 2019, 03:29 pm »

Dave, speaking of the PSR-11, what would you say are the sonic differences compared to the PSR-14? Would the same differences I hear between gauges with copper cables apply here?

Silver power cables are a new world to me, but after hearing the PSR-14 in my system, I am sold on the positive difference they can have.

DaveC113 · « **Reply #67 on:** 21 Sep 2019, 06:39 pm »

Quote from: pursuitofnow on 21 Sep 2019, 03:29 pm

Dave, speaking of the PSR-11, what would you say are the sonic differences compared to the PSR-14? Would the same differences I hear between gauges with copper cables apply here?

Silver power cables are a new world to me, but after hearing the PSR-14 in my system, I am sold on the positive difference they can have.

I think so but I'll comment more on the 11g version after thorough testing. It's pretty likely some components will be better with 11 and some better w/14g.

The 11g version won't be shielded and is intended for large amps or power conditioners, the 14g is shielded and will be better with most sources and preamps. For PCs I feel amps like a larger gauge and no shield, the shield can dull transients a bit. For sources and pres it can improve clarity. I think the 14g cable will work great on many smaller amps, after all 14g wire is rated to carry 1800 watts in your 120V AC system.

pursuitofnow · « **Reply #68 on:** 22 Sep 2019, 07:34 pm »

Thanks, Dave. Can't wait to hear your thoughts after some testing.

paul79 · « **Reply #69 on:** 28 Oct 2019, 03:29 pm »

So far, I have 2 of these in my system. One to the Pre and one to the DAC power supplies. It is as transformational on the DAC as it is on the preamp. More of everything I loved using it on the preamp, making for an even more ultra quiet, very resolute, atmospheric, dense, and palpable presentation. It allowed my system to more fully illuminate the room of the recording, and also gives so much body to the performers. It gives all of this with no negative trade-off. Astonishing power cable. It brings out the best in whatever I put it on it seems. A true neutral reference, just like the D4 interconnect.

DaveC113 · « **Reply #70 on:** 28 Oct 2019, 03:40 pm »

Hi Paul, thanks very much for your post and I'm happy to hear your thoughts!

I'm also happy to announce the addition of some new ribbon power cables!

The 11 gauge version of the PSR-14 is ready! Unsurprisingly, it's called the PSR-11.

The entire cable is 11 gauge, including the UPOCC copper litz ground connection, and it's not shielded. I think it's best to use shielding for low powered components and simply keep ICs from running parallel and touching your amplifier power cable, as shielding can soften dynamics a bit. I avoid this in the 14g cable by spacing the shield away from the conductors, but for an 11g cable it would result in a ridiculously large cable.

Other than the shield, it's basically a double-run of the 14g cable.

I also have copper ribbon versions of the PSR cables ready! Sorry to be boring, but they're the PCR-11 and PCR-14. These cables will replace the Furutech DPS-4 in my lineup. The ribbon geometry results in lower inductance, the litz-type ground wire is far more ideal as far as both electrical characteristics as well as geometry, and this results in a cable that's significantly better than the DPS-4 for close to the same price.

For the ribbon cables the idea is to use the shielded 14g cables for everything but the amp and the power distribution that has amps plugged into it. It really doesn't need more gauge, it gets the job done with finesse rather than brute force.

For big amps and power distributors, the 11g cables can use 20A IEC plugs as well.

I also still have the UPOCC copper litz PL-11 and PL-14 power cables, these are more neutral vs the ribbon cables, while the ribbon cables are warmer and have a bit more bass. I recommend the 11g cable for everything, the more litz the merrier in my experience.

So I currently have silver ribbon, copper ribbon and copper litz power cables to choose from. These 3 cables will be the ZenWave Power Cable lineup going forward. I think they are the best power cables you'll find today, and they are priced fairly, designed to last, and use genuine name-brand connectors.

Please contact me for a demo!

Pictured is the 11g ribbon cable in "dark carbon" techflex.

carride11 · « **Reply #71 on:** 9 Feb 2020, 03:26 am »

How does the Copper ribbon compare to the Silver ribbon?
I own the PSR-14 , it very impressive but The copper is more in my price range for the two or three more power cables I need currently, or would it be worth waiting until I can afford the silver.

jtcf · « **Reply #72 on:** 1 Nov 2020, 12:45 am »

Resurrecting this older thread after spending the evening with a brand new PSR 14 power cable. Dave was out of demos when I inquired a few weeks ago so it literally is new.After bringing it up to room temperature, then letting it power my tube amp (Aric Audio) for a couple of hours with a CD on repeat, sat down and cranked it up.All I can say is HOLY CRAP!Not what I was expecting at all. As if every aspect of the sound pouring out of the speakers was much more dimensional,nuanced, and correct. Like dialing in a camera lens sort of. Like my amp got a tune up.It was quite a happy surprise.
I've been trying out a few other brands and they all have hinted at this level of performance and sound pretty darn good on my dac but nothing special on the amp.This is only day one, I'll update in a couple of weeks.

genjamon · « **Reply #73 on:** 1 Nov 2020, 02:12 am »

Can you name any other brands you’re looking at? And what cable your ears are most accustomed to?

DaveC113 · « **Reply #74 on:** 1 Nov 2020, 03:51 pm »

Quote from: carride11 on 9 Feb 2020, 03:26 am

How does the Copper ribbon compare to the Silver ribbon?
I own the PSR-14 , it very impressive but The copper is more in my price range for the two or three more power cables I need currently, or would it be worth waiting until I can afford the silver.

Sorry, I have no idea how I missed this!

The copper version is warmer, and a little less clear and resolving... however it is MORE clear and resolving vs most other copper power cables.

As far as price, I think the best value would be using the copper cables for amps and power distributors and silver for sources and preamps. However, this is just a very general recommendation and some amps or power distributors may show larger differences in power cables. So far most folks have found the silver cable makes a larger difference on sources and preamps. I think DACs are one area the silver cable shines, and it's being used on a couple of MSB Select DACs and clocks, and other cost-no-object DACs when the owner could have chosen any cable on the market. The shielding used on the PSR-14 silver ribbon and PCR-14 copper ribbon makes them great choices for digital components in particular.

At this point I've had a lot of comparisons vs many other cables and the new ribbon cables have done quite well, I really don't think the value for the money can be beat, and for PSR silver ribbon, it will compete with any cable regardless of price.

DaveC113 · « **Reply #75 on:** 1 Nov 2020, 03:56 pm »

Quote from: jtcf on 1 Nov 2020, 12:45 am

Resurrecting this older thread after spending the evening with a brand new PSR 14 power cable. Dave was out of demos when I inquired a few weeks ago so it literally is new.After bringing it up to room temperature, then letting it power my tube amp (Aric Audio) for a couple of hours with a CD on repeat, sat down and cranked it up.All I can say is HOLY CRAP!Not what I was expecting at all. As if every aspect of the sound pouring out of the speakers was much more dimensional,nuanced, and correct. Like dialing in a camera lens sort of. Like my amp got a tune up.It was quite a happy surprise.
I've been trying out a few other brands and they all have hinted at this level of performance and sound pretty darn good on my dac but nothing special on the amp.This is only day one, I'll update in a couple of weeks.

Hi, thanks for the report and I'll be interested to hear what you think in another week or so, and if you think it works as well on your other components.

As you know from the DSR silver ribbon interconnect cables you have, the silver ribbon is very sensitive and can take a long time to settle down, even if it's previously been burned-in. I have a new idea to mechanically de-stress the cable before electrical burn-in, I think this will solve the issue of shipping disturbing the cable and requiring additional burn-in. So, hopefully in the future I can ship cables that will be delivered to the customer totally burned-in.

jtcf · « **Reply #76 on:** 2 Nov 2020, 12:05 am »

@genjamon I'll message you. I'm not comfortable comparing them publicly yet after such a short time.

jtcf · « **Reply #77 on:** 10 Nov 2020, 11:38 pm »

After only ten days with this PSR 14 I'm still thrilled with it, especially on the amp,a match made in heaven. If it's breaking in and changing I can't detect it, it simply seems to let my amp perform at its best. I very carefully moved it to the preamp for a day,then the dac.In each case the dimension,truth of timbre,and clarity were evident but the amp is where it is a superstar in my system and room(I'll list it at the end).

My system is a simple transport, dac,pre,and amp,feeding Harbeth C7 speakers and four subs.Digital takes some time and experimentation to conquer "digititius".Smooth it over too much by choice of cabling and tubes and it sounds lifeless.Harbeths are tricky to incorporate also - along with their famous beautiful tone comes an over inflated midrange.The music I love is acoustic and electric blues and rock and it's taken a while to cobble together a system that allows the music to sound like it was intended to sound IMHO.I like live recordings in particular and own several discs of concerts I actually attended.
So tubes,interconnects,speaker cables, isolation devices,room treatments got me 95%of the way there.Power cables I've tried run from $99 - $1,500 JPS,Shunyata, PS Audio, Audio Envy(warmish,good timbre,solid bass)Cabledyne(clear and airy),Cullen and Triode Wire Labs at present. They all worked well on one component or another.The TWL is particularly adept at bringing out the best of the transport (a huge surprise), my preamp stepped it up a few notches with the Cullen.The PSR14 brought everything together to really the highest level ever. A huge 3D soundstage,amazing unraveling of instruments and vocals. I can hear EVERYTHING on the recordings with correct tone,nuance, and dynamics. Harbeths CAN rock.The other evening I played an ancient Small Faces disc - First Steps (w/ Rod Stewart before he was featured) fully expecting it to sound awful. It was wonderful! A great mix of blues with psychedelica blended in:-)It became one of those evenings pulling out various discs trying to find something to trip up the PSR.Haven't been able to do it. My bank account isn't happy but the same thing happened when I tried out Dave's silver ribbon ics.They are perfect for this system.

CXC transport, Tubadour dac,LTA microZotol2 pre,Aric Audio Transcend amp, Harbeth C7 speakers,four subs, GIK room treatments

jtcf · « **Reply #78 on:** 30 Nov 2020, 05:38 pm »

Excitement! My PSR 14 has been shipped! I was reluctant to listening to my system for several days after sending the cable on to the next customer. But I had a craving for some John Lee Hooker so I had to fire it up. Of course it was all good, but the illusion of him being Right There and the ambience of the recording space was not.Before I tried Dave's cables a few members warned me once I heard em I would never be happy without them. Truth.

DaveC113 · « **Reply #79 on:** 30 Nov 2020, 06:05 pm »

Hi jtcf, Yes, I am on my way to the post office... thanks for your patience!

Also, thanks for posting your thoughts on the PSR-14, I really appreciate it.