|
|
Double Helix MK2 Power Cord |
|
 |
Because the Double Helix Speaker Cable came out sounding so good, we decided to adapt the design to an AC power cord. Our unique, proprietary Double Helix shielding/grounding technique worked like gangbusters! If anything, the power cord goes beyond our speaker cable in improving the sound of amplifiers. Turntables(!), CDs, DVDs, D/As, and power conditioners are helped even more by our power cord. We’ve further enhanced our cord’s sonics with an audibly better-than-standard IEC plug and by far the best-sounding AC plug in audio, both produced to our specs.
Design and Performance:
• The conductors of the Clearview AC Power Cord are identical to the speaker cable; the field canceling double helix configuration is also the same. The grounding scheme is a modified version of the speaker cable’s approach.
• The IEC connector is a new design, produced for us to our specification. The design minimizes the dielectric absorption. The dielectric is an unusually good-sounding one, selected after extensive comparative listening tests. The resulting IEC plug has, by a surprising margin, the best sonics we’ve heard. Similarly, the AC wall plug we use was selected by ear. It sounds better than any of the standard audiophile “hospital grade” plugs, all of which have far too much mass of bad-sounding insulation.
• The MKII version of our AC Cord adds a pair of “outrigger” ground wires that run parallel to the Double Helix power conductors (about 6" to the left and right of the power wires). The MK II has noticeably better dynamics, more bass weight, more warmth, and even cleaner treble than the standard Clearview AC Cord. We think the MKII’s modest extra cost is an excellent sonic investment.
Additional Info:
• The recommended break-in period for standard Clearview power cords and power strips is 50-100 hours; 150-300 hours for cords and strip with PLUS Upgrade. Feel free to install and listen to our cables immediately, they'll sound really good after about an hour. But you won't hear their full potential until they have been broken-in thoroughly.
• DO NOT USE ANY BREAK-IN DEVICES OF ANY KIND ON OUR WIRES!! Doing so will degrade the sound of our cables. Use only music to break in our wires, preferably music with strong transients (i.e. music with lots of percussion and/or plucked instruments).
• Novices sometimes think our wires are uninsulated because they don't see thick plastic insulation on our cables. In fact, part of the large sonic advantage of Clearview power wires is the very low dielectric (that is, insulation) mass we insist on. Our design provides for low dielectric mass, low dielectric absorption to avoid interfering with good sound, and excellent protection by using two redundant layers of insulation. The first is a thin, highly durable proprietary coating directly on each power conductor, tested to over 300 volts. The second layer is a loose-fitting sleeve of very low dielectric absorbtion polymer plus air dielectric; this second layer has been tested to over 250 volts.
THE PLUS OPTION
Another Step Up
All Clearview wires are available in a PLUS version, using conductors with our new stress-relieved metallurgy. The PLUS Option yields two primary upgrades:
• Decreases brightness and grain in high frequencies, reducing edginess in the upper treble without sacrificing detail; this is particularly noticeable with music coming from a digital source (i.e. CD players, computers, and iPods). The breathiness of singers and flutes, the metallic ring of cymbals is better articulated and less abrasive. PLUS is especially
beneficial for digital interconnects sources, significantly reducing listening fatigue.
• PLUS lowers the soundstage noise floor, resulting in a quieter, more blacker background. This makes the most difference in quiet passages: held guitar or piano chords sustain longer and resonate more clearly as they fade into silence. Newly discovered details and nuances emerge from the negative space of the music on good recordings.
For fans of well-recorded acoustic music, small group jazz, or chamber music, we recommend PLUS without hesitation. Listening to typically over-processed commercial studio recording, the improvements will be audible but much more subtle.
|
|
|
