Hey Nick, the power cord looks cool.
I think the Oyaide AC products are definitely worth the $, However i think
that any decent AC products can perform well IF they are used as a system (from the same mfgr).
By this i mean that by themselves, products from Oyaide or Furutech are very well made and sound MUCH better than normal wattgate or marinco or P&S (etc, etc) products. BUT, the beauty (or the magic) really occurs when you have a full AC delivery system.
EX: If you have nice gear but have $1 wall outlets and a Radio Shack power strip, then just adding Oyaide plugs to a power cord will reap benefits, but not huge benefits. If however, you have an Oyaide (or Furu or whomever) wall outlet & a power strip with the same or complimentary outlets...then adding expensive plugs will reap VERY large, extremely audible & pleasing results.
As with anything in this hobby, its a system. I'm only now realizing how all this stuff works together.
About a year ago I purchased a cryo'd SWO-XXX outlet from cryo-parts.com. The benefit was instantly noticeable versus the toxic sounding cryo'd P&S 5262 from chris venhaus that i had for 2 years. A few months later I purchased a Pure Power Center from Balanced Power Technologies w/3 SWO-XXX non cryo'd outlets...its a 3 outlet (6 receptacle) power strip with no filters, switches, fuses or nothing. Adding the PPC again ratcheted up the performance, imaging, bass, PRAT, yada, yada, etc. By this point it was easy to hear how well this stuff works.
Just over a month ago when i started having TT issues (open coil in cartr + no more footers OR plat due to TVC!) i began working to get a good digital source. I've posted about this on another forum, but i stuck an Oyaide P-079 male plug onto the stock pc from my XBOX (to use XBOX as my cdp). The change this imparted on the XBOX floored me, and still does. For comparison, I installed the same plug on my CDP, a Sony SCD-595, and did NOT experience the same results. From this I conclude that the XBOX's power supply is better made, and therefore more receptive to the Oyaide plug. I then listened to the XBOX with 3 types of plugs: P-079, wattgate 5266i & Furu FI-11cu. The change the P-079 made was unmistakable. Much more bass, sweeter sound and imaging similar to my TT....from a freakin' XBOX.
If I didn't have any Oyaide products in my system and then installed the P-079 plug on the XBOX, i probably would not be pimping the XBOX as anything but a decent CDP that can be used if your nice one is in the shop.
It is an expensive path to go down, but i feel its necessary to address the AC delivery for any audio set-up no matter if you go FIM, Furu, Wattgate or whoever comes along next. My computer is powered by a $40 Furu FI-15 cu outlet and my IPOD sounds better....oh, and the pc feeding my computer has Furu FI-11cu/ag plugs.
One conclusion i'm coming to is that a system of say Furutech outlets and plugs would benefit the same as i've described. I can only tout Oyaide since that's what I have the most of.
But, i have compared the P-079 plugs to Furu FI-11cu/FI-11AG & cryo'd wattgate 5266i plugs. In my system, nothing rocks like Oyaide gear. Its sweet sounding with lots of control - similar to this TVC.
In terms of construction quality, the Oyaide has Furutech beat...but again i'm comparing a $30 plug to a $90 one. The better Furu plugs might compete head-to-head with Oyaide.
If i were to start out in this hobby all over again, the first $350US i'd spend would be on a $100 cryo'd SWO-XXX outlet and a $250 Room Tunes acoustic treatment kit. of course, the next $350 would be on the Promitheus TVC! From that point, choosing speakers, amps and sources would be fun rather than a chore.
This stuff simply makes electronics work better - that much i'm certain of.
No cable mfgr will be wrong in installing Oyaide plugs. I just wish these were $50 a pop rather than $90.
Shameless plug: Chris Venhaus is now offering free cryo'ing on all Oyaide plugs...making his about $5 cheaper than most other suppliers. he is so convinced that cryo'ing Oyaide is a benefit he's offering it free of charge.
One story and i'll go: When i fist took the cryo'd SWO-XXX outlet out of the box it didn't seem like anything special. Its 2x as heavy as the P&S 5262 outlet it replaced, but nothing else seemed to warrant the extra $. Then, as I was flipping it around in my hand i was shocked to realize I could see my eyeball on the side where the screw termination is... Oyaide's plating and buffing is so good that it leaves a mirror finish. The weight, design & plating techniques of this gear surely sets it apart from the pack.
Because this TVC will reveal up stream deficiencies, its smart to look into getting at least a good wall outlet...and then addressing the power strip. From all I've read & experienced, the SWO-XXX outlets combined with the P-079 plugs are the bee's knee's.
GD
