This is an old subject in many audio forum, but this dCS forum is sort of an ‘all you ever have wanted to ask about dCS products’ So her I go
I always use a pole checker to find the plus in a power chord. When the pole on the right side of the iec c14 plug is the hot one then it is usually right for most devices according to my dealer. It is not much of an effort and just to be sure… But how important is it for dCS gear with their high grade power supply and is that the correct way for dCS gear? If plugging the schuko the left or right way in the (European) wall outlet is a difference making thing to do, why doesn’t dCS put a mark on the power inlet so we know to plug the plug one or the other way?
The reality is that it doesn’t matter and that’s due to the way that A/C power works. Polarity on A/C power systems is primarily due to safety concerns rather than anything having to do with power supply performance. We don’t explicitly mark the hot / neutral connections as we build the products wired to the IEC 320 spec which governs how the C13/C14 connector types are used and how the internal wiring is supposed to connect to the power inlet.
The Schuko standard has no concept of polarity and my understanding is that the hot and neutral leads are essentially connected randomly when the circuit is wired. This is compounded by the fact that the plug can be rotated 180 degrees so polarity is obviously not a concern there. Proper power supply design takes this into account.
In a properly designed power supply the neutral lead simply provides the return path to complete the circuit. Earth / ground / 0V reference is provided by the ground lead.
So what you are saying is that dCS products are also almost immune to different AC power cables ?
I have tested many different AC cables from Audioquest NRG 1000 , AQ NRG X , Nordost Vishnu , Frey 2 , Tyr 2 , Valhalla 2 etc, and maybe i can hear a slight difference with the Nordost Valhalla 2 could also be placebo, but the rest sounding equal.
On my SimAudio Moon 700i V2 amp i only use as an poweramp i can differentiate the AQ NRG 1000 vs Frey 2 whereas the AQ got slight heavier / solid low end vs the Nordost more numb / lighter low end.
But on dCS NWB , Rossini , Puccini , dCS Master clock etc i can’t hear any difference besides the Valhalla 2 ac power cable maybe.
What is your personal opinion on High End AC cables and power filters / regenerators for dCS products? Have you dun any A-B testing ?
The official dCS statement on power products (and cables in general) is to consult with your dealer. We do design our products to be as tolerant as possible of external influences so tweaks which may make a big difference on some products may not make much of a difference on ours.
Power cables and network cables are quite a bit different from interconnects and speaker cables as they aren’t carrying signal. Their impact has more to do with what they are letting into the signal path via the power supply and ground plane.
My personal opinion on power cables (and cables in general) is that they are an important part of any system and should be chosen based on common sense and engineering principles. If the marketing pitch sounds too good to be true then it probably is.
Yes, the ultra High End expensive AC power cables i have tested does not do alot of the overall sound, so my conclusion is that you can spare and save som money in this and just use a descent shielded AC power with correct AWG size and descent plugs, it does not need to cost 7000 £ like the Valhalla 2 when the Vishnu or a cheap Audioquest NRG-X3 can sound as good, so dCS is kind of immune from my testing during a few years time.
