[dBe]

When all of this began, I told you all that things would be coming down the PI audio group pipeline.  I had a firm grasp on what would be concerning product development.  Well, things have  changed due to some consulting work that I have been doing.  I will be rolling out a new line of power cables in the next two weeks.  The lineup will consist of two different source cables, a high power cable for amplifiers and the MajikBUSS, RevB, and UberBUSS filtration units.  Standard terminations will be WATTGATE with Furutech connectors as options on all products.

I know, all the world needs is another power cable manufacturer    Power cables have been done, redone, done over again and finally, overdone.  There are differences inherent in the PI audio group cables.  One is the flexibility of the cable.  Even the 10ga high power cable is quite flexible due to the core.  Another is the geometry of the cable itself.  It is not unique, but a refinement of existing methodology. 

Obviously, I'm going to say that they sound quite good.  They do.  Spacious and articulate.  Great bass and clean highs with a very low noise floor, attributable to the electrostatic treatment of the core. 

The one that I am the most excited about is the 2010 Mac Mini power cable.  It opens the new Mac Mini up sonically when used as a music server.  This is one of those "gotta hear it to believe it" kind of cables.

Enough for now.  My bride of many years (Gayle) and I are headed to San Antonio for the weekend to celebrate our anniversary - one of them, anyways - and I promised here that I would leave the laptop and the cell phone at home.  She deserves it.  I'll check back tonight.  We leave tomorrow morning.

Everyone, I wish you a great weekend.

 

Dave

[poseidonsvoice]

Dave....

Have a great time. San Antonio is a beautiful city. And thanks for being in the power business.

We need you.

Anand.

[highfilter]

Very interested to hear more about the 2010 Mac Mini power cable and pricing. Especially how well it works on taming the non-linear supply of the Mac Mini.

Have a great time on your time away from everything.

[dBe]

Very interested to hear more about the 2010 Mac Mini power cable and pricing. Especially how well it works on taming the non-linear supply of the Mac Mini.

Have a great time on your time away from everything.

Radiated RF and RF within the 2010 MacMini is lower than the previous models according to several sources when measured with strength meters and O-scopes.  I'll just have to take their word for it.  I do know that the new power supply is well shielded and the supply traces are very short.

I had heard from reliable sources that aftermarket power cables had very little positive effect on the new Mini.  This one is pretty darned special.  I'm quite happy with it.

More, later.

Off to bed.  I don't like early flights   

Dave

[highfilter]

Radiated RF and RF within the 2010 MacMini is lower than the previous models according to several sources when measured with strength meters and O-scopes.  I'll just have to take their word for it.  I do know that the new power supply is well shielded and the supply traces are very short.

I had heard from reliable sources that aftermarket power cables had very little positive effect on the new Mini.  This one is pretty darned special.  I'm quite happy with it.

More, later.

Off to bed.  I don't like early flights   

Dave

Just when you are peaking my interest!

Haha, have a good and safe trip.

[dmccombs]

I got to hear a few of the cords Dave mentioned.  I can see why he is happy with the MacMini cord, but the source cords I heard are fantastic as well.

While I think highly of the cord on my preamp, Dave's source cord lifted a veil of previously unnoticed crap from the mids and highs.  The tonal balance was terrific.  I look forward to buying one.  As it will go on my preamp, the whole system will benefit from this improvement.   

I too was surprised by the MacMini cord.  The new MacMini seems to be less affected by power cords and conditioners, but obviously it is not impervious to outside power changes.  Dave's cord sounded a little better than the stock cord when I put it in (brand new - no break in).  I let it run a couple of days, and the sound became a little more lush, a little more detailed, more analog sounding.

Since I had listened to it as it broke in, it wasn't obvious how it had improved the system as it broke in.  It became very obvious when I took the cord out and put the stock one back in.  If you ever took out your favorite pwoer cord from your amp or preamp, and put the stock cord back in, you know what I am talking about.  The sound seemed flat in comparison, less involving, blah.

These are some winners...

Darrell

[jrebman]

Hi Dave,

Hope you had a wonderful getaway!  I'm ordering a 2010 mac mini today to send to Darrell, so would love to know more about this PC when you are ready to tell us more.

-- Jim

[dBe]

Hi Dave,

Hope you had a wonderful getaway!  I'm ordering a 2010 mac mini today to send to Darrell, so would love to know more about this PC when you are ready to tell us more.

-- Jim

Jim,

We had a great time!  It had been a couple of years for Gayle and I to get away together.  There have been some family health issues on Gayle's side of the family and that took a lot of her time, so... this was really good for both of us.

There are some developments on the power cord side and all will be revealed the end of this week or the beginning of next.  I'm trying to get pictures done before I do so.  It is always good to let people know that things aren't vaporware.  There is too much of that in this industry.

Hang in... they are coming soon.

Dave

[dmccombs]

Well, I got my MPC/Source1 power cord from PI Audio group the other day and it is now somewhat broken-in.

I played my old preamp power cord for one good listen so the sound was fresh in my mind, then swapped out to the new Source1 power cord.  The frequency response in the mids and bass region became smoother.  Though I never noticed it, the old cord in comparison seemed a little congested with some frequency ranges sounding like they overlapped.

The details in the music were better.  Strings were being plucked.  Cymbals had improved clarity and the decay was more natural.  There was MUCH more separation between instruments.  This separation made things more 3D and real. 

In one song, I could hear the singer move across the stage from right to left as she sang.  You could almost visualize her moving step by step.  I had never noticed it before.  Drums sound much more natural.  It is easier to tell what kind of drum is being played.  The nuances between different tom-toms for example are much more apparent now.  Everything is more real (more texture in the voices, more spacial correct).

The bass SEEMS a bit lighter than the previous preamp cord, but I think it is just that the Source1 cord is more detailed (less overlap between the mids and highs - and less tubby).  While I miss the apparent bass a little bit, the Source1 cord is clearly better.  I prefer tighter bass to more bass.  I placed a drink coaster on the DAC (a little mre weight and damping), and the weight of the bass bass strong again (yeah, high-tech tweak).   

The cord is terrific.  The cord it replaced is a very good source cord but the Source1 is clearly better.  Since I am using this cord on my preamp, all my music listening benefits from the upgrade.  I put on some vinyl this morning and I was thrilled, my vinyl never sounded better.  It had great clarity, had terrific separation between the instruments, and the voices never sounded more natural.

I also played my MacMini/Tranquility DAC setup.  It sounded equally nice.  With some of the rock songs I have on the hard drive, there was more attack or effortless than before.  Things are definitely more dynamic now.   

I will try to post a picture (of the cord, not me smiling from ear-to-ear) later today or tomorrow.  It will depend when I stop listening long enough to pull the cord out and shoot the pictures.

[dmccombs]

Here are a couple of pictures of the Source1 cord.  It is very pliable as you can see in the picture, and it is light.





Darrell