Anroj

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $400.00 from eBay

Summary:
This review is actually for the PS Audio Ultimate Lab Cable. I bought this cable used on eBay to see what all the hype was about. I had been using the stock McIntosh cord that came with my MC402 into an Ultimate Outlet with good results. When I got the Ultimate Lab Cable and plugged it into my MC402, there was an immediate lowering of the noise floor. Music emerged from a blacker background and I was able to hear a deeper and wider soundstage. Instrumentalists and vocals had their own spaces. A good example of this is the drum tracks from the Sheffield Labs Demo Disc. I have heard this disc numerous times with the MC402 into the Ultimate Outlet, but when I connected the Ultimate Lab Cable, I was able to hear more of the skin sounds, more air, more impact and the cymbals had a realistic shimmer. What I didn't expect was the ability to detect the differing heights of the drums themselves as well as the heights of the cymbals. I am very impressed with the Ultimate Lab Cable and would heartily recommend it.

Strengths:
Black backgrounds, fantastic soundstage height and width.

Weaknesses:
Heavy gauge power cord may not work in all applications

Similar Products Used:
Nordost, Shunyata, Kimber

Price Paid:  $320.00 from ultimate sonics

Summary:
These cables are really chunky in size, so need a bit of space to use them. I put the cable onto my Gamut D200 Mark1. The sense of grip this amp has changed radically. The Gamut has always been a very musical amp, but lacked that final bit of impact, with this cable that has changed. It is well worth spending the extra money on this cable than others and will out perfom a lot more expensive cables as well. Along with the extra grip, it gives more bass weight, removes a few more layers of grain and makes the music so sweat without any sense of fatique. At some point I will upgrade the rest of my cables to this. I currently use a master couplier for the cd and a kimber power cord for the pre-amp.

Strengths:
Adds extra grip, improves soundstaging, makes the whole experience more musical

Weaknesses:
A very thick cable, hard to use in small spaces

Similar Products Used:
Kimber, Master couplier and Iso tek

Price Paid:  $595.00 from Codell Audio, Montre

Summary:
My jaw dropped. My Virgo's sounded like Wilsons! Hard to believe changing the stock power cord on the Moon P5 preamp could have such a dramatic effect on its sound across the frequency range. Bass response was unbelievable, not just its greater extension, but its tunefullness and mid-base articulation. The mid-range was lush; the upper-mids completely free of glare. It was the airiest presentation I had ever heard from my system,superbly detailed but grainless and unetched, with complete freedom from listening fatigue despite its wide-open nature. Transients had unmatched speed. Palpable presence was such that it was difficult to concentrate on other tasks with music playing. Images were rock solid. Curiously, bad recordings were more evident as such, but less bothersome. Distorted distortion is worse that simple distortion. My previous favorite power cord, which I still use for my PS Audio P300 powerplant and my Pass X150 amp, was the Synergistic Research Reference Master Coupler which I use in inactive form (plugging in the active shield reduces transparency in my system). This is still an easy, reliable choice, but sounds a bit laid back without the dynamic ease or frequency extension at both extremes that the PS Audio Statement has to offer at a signicantly lower price. Associated equipment: Proceed PCD3 used as transport, resting on a Symposium Ultra platform; Levinson 36 DAC fed by a Nordost Silver Shadow 1.5m digital cable; Moon P5 preamp supported by a shelf resting on Vibrapods; Pass X150 amp; PS Audio P300 used only for digital gear (SF7 pending multiwave II upgrade); Audio Physic Virgo speakers on Soundcare Superspikes; Harmonic Technology Truthlink balanced interconnects and Pro 9 speaker cables. Synergistic Research Reference Master Couplers (P300 and X150); Quietline AC filters (8). Two dedicated, shielded power outlets.

Strengths:
Wide-open sound; startling retrieval of ambiant cues without inducing listener fatigue. Terrific base extension and articulation. Cheap for what it offers.

Weaknesses:
Nominally flexible in one direction only. Big and heavy and a pig to wrestle into place, which will make it unsuitable for some installations. Extremely long break-in period of some 500 hours of PLAYING time before it loses its slightly recessed, polite character and the sound stage finally opens up. For some time I entertained dark thoughts about the dealer sample having been manufactured from better materials. Turned out just leaving the equipment on wasn't enough for break-in. It took 3 weeks of running continuously with the preamp cranked up (but the amplifier on standby, most of the time). As the resolution of my system has gradually improved over the years, new components seem to take longer and longer to burn in completely, but this was extreme.

Similar Products Used:
Synergistic Research Master Coupler Synergistic Research Reference MC many other cords briefly auditioned

Price Paid:  $400.00 from LotusHifi Istanbul

Summary:
The best power cord I have tried. I tried various power cords for my cd player Audio Aero Capitol 24/192 which I also use its volume control function and it is directly connected to the power amp. I could not tell the difference among them. Kharma for example, lowered the noise but it also lacked the critical dynamics and music wass dull. Cheap cords had much more noise and made brightness, created fatigue. I tried PS Audio Lab II cable and it worked for me. It had a significant impact on music, bass lines were significantly stronger and detailed. Highs were smoother. Mids were stronger. Listening fatigue lowered. I should say the greater impact came after I used a PS Audio Ultimate Outlet. It is something special. It made critical impacts for my power amp which is an ARC VT-200. Both Ultimate Outlet and Lab II are Ddfinitely recommended for the price. Priority is Ultimate Outlet, think power cord later. Audio System: Audio Aero Capitol 24/192 cd player Audio Research VT-200 power amplifier B&W Nautilus 803 speakers Transparent Reference XLR interconnector Transparent Ultra Bicable speaker cable PS Audio Ultimate Outlet and Lab II cables. (plan to add a PS300 for source and other AV components)

Strengths:
Lab II has not only a good conductor wire capable of carrying high currents, its insulation is very good. A cable is a good antenna while current delivery. With PS Audio Lab II, there is no need to concern for electromagnetic interference and any other noise.

Weaknesses:
very heavy, hard to use in limited spaces. Price should be a con.

Similar Products Used:
various cords like Kharma etc.

Price Paid:  $200.00

Summary:
This is a review of the PS Audio MiniLab Power cable. Could not imagine what a power cord can do for my system. I upgraded from a stock powercord to an after market power cord and more recently after investing in a PS Audio Ultimate Outlet decided to try out the MiniLab from my MF A3 integrated amp to the PS Audio juice bar. The power cord consists of a heavy 10 gauge pure copper conductor with triple shielding and is one of a series of poer cords offered by PS Audio (famous for the Powerplants)

Strengths:
The sound even before the cable was properly broken in was by far better than the previous power cable. The bass was much more cleaner and tighter, and the soundstage..fantastic.

Weaknesses:
None.

Similar Products Used:
Straightwire, Audusa Eupen CSA