Mains Cables
Most products nowadays have detachable mains leads, If yours do then a worthwhile improvement in sound quality can be heard from plugging in an Audiophile grade mains cable.
If you’re unsure of the type of mains connector you need please look at the list here
Mains cable sound quality is a complex issue, so I’ve tried to avoid giving subjective impressions here, as it is ultimately very dependent upon the equipment but also the quality of the mains where it is used. For this reason we recommend trying cables at home before purchasing wherever possible.
Supra Lo Rad Mains cable (unterminated)
The LoRad (‘Low Radiation’) cables use a novel screening arrangement that makes them
easy to terminate as there’s no drain wire to worry about -
Two versions are available:
The LoRad 1.5 has a 1.5mm diameter cross section per conductor, an external outer diameter of approximately 8mm and is rated at 10 Amps (at 230V): £10 per metre.
The LoRad 2.5 has 2.5mm diameter cross section per conductor, an external diameter of approximately 11mm and is rated at 16 Amps (at 230V): £15 per metre.
Please note it is not recommended to use this cable under floors or inside walls as it cannot be detected by normal hand held cable finders.
Supra LoRad
This is the factory terminated version of the LoRad 1.5 detailed above.
Supra ‘LoRad 1.5’ 1M IEC mains cable: £39.99
Supra ‘LoRad 1.5’ 1.5M IEC mains cable: £44.99
Supra ‘LoRad 1.5’ 2M IEC mains cable: £49.99
Supra ‘LoRad 1.5’ 4M IEC mains cable: £69.99
Chord SuperScreen
The SuperScreen uses a dual foil screen and damping similar to that used in their PowerChord (detailed lower down this page) but at a very accessible price.
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Our work with mains distribution blocks led us to look for a good quality cable that we were happy to put our name to. We listened to a very wide selection of cables and ended up choosing the cable you see here. We didn’t plan to offer it separately, but we were so pleased with its performance that we decided we just had to. It’s a screened copper cable and as standard is finished with a black outer sleeving (other colours are available if required, possibly for a small extra cost) and as standard is supplied as a 1.5 metre length. As standard is comes with a IEC connector, but naturally we are able to terminated the cable with whatever plug you require.
Deco Audio Mains Cable 1.5m long with IEC connector: £90.00
Rega Reference Series Power Lead
The Rega Reference Series Power Lead uses a fully earth tinned copper braid surrounding 1.5 mm square copper conductors for both huge current capability and low noise. This is a very consistent sounding cable, working well with every item we’ve tried it with, and is a very good value for money cable. It is terminated with an IEC connector and is 1.5 metres long.
Rega Reference Series Power Lead: £95.00
Following the success of the Sogon mains cable, Audio Note have introduced a much more affordable design which uses high purity copper conductors rather than silver. It’s a much chunkier cable than Sogon too, with each of the three cores having 150 strands and resulting in a diameter of approximately 11mm, but like Sogon it’s a remarkably flexible cable.
At the time of writing it’s very early days as we’ve only just started experimenting with this cable, but initial thoughts are extremely positive, as it sounds a lot more expensive than it has any right to. There’s a great sense of rightness to this cable, it sounds smooth (or perhaps grain free is a better description) and refined without losing any of the edge or excitement in the music. What’s more there’s great separation between musicians . The low frequencies are also really nicely extended and powerful.
More thoughts will follow when we’ve had the time to try it in a wider number of systems, but at this moment we would highly recommend an audition of this excellent cable.
The cable is available either as an unterminated length for DIY termination, alternatively we can fit what ever connectors you like from our wide range of connectors (please contact us with the desired spec for costings) or the Audio Note factory can fit their own silver plated connectors (as priced below).
Audio Note Isis mains cable, per unterminated metre: £120
Audio Note mains termination charge including a silver plated IEC and UK mains plug: £100.00
Chord ‘Power Chord’
The Power Chord is a dual layer shielded cable with high density vibration damping outer jacket. It is available with either IEC or 16A IEC connectors (the latter for an extra £15 cost). Longer length cables are available, just add £25 per extra metre required.
Chord ‘Power Chord’ 1M IEC mains cable: £150
Chord ‘Power Chord’ 1.5M IEC mains cable: £160
Chord ‘Power Chord’ 2M IEC mains cable: £170
Atlas Eos MKII
The Eos mains cable is made with high purity OFC copper strands that are insulated with extruded PTFE (Teflon), twisted to reject EMI, damped by the use of cotton filler stands, wrapped in an aluminium foil (with drain wire) and covered with PVC sheath beneath a fabric outer sleeve.
Two different gauges of wire are available, 2mm (rated up to 20Amps) and 4mm. These cables come with Atlas Rhodium plated connectors. The cables can be made to order to almost any length, but I have priced them below for the most common lengths with UK mains plugs to IEC’s, but Schuko and Nema connectors are also available for other countries (please enquire for pricing).
Atlas Eos mkII 2sq mm with Atlas Rhodium plugs, 1 metre length: £160 (plus £24.00 per extra metre required)
Atlas Eos mkII 2sq mm with Atlas Rhodium plugs, 1.5 metre length: £172.00
Atlas Eos mkII 4sq mm with Atlas Rhodium plugs, 1 metre length: £200 (plus £36.00 per extra metre required)
Atlas Eos mkII 4sq mm with Atlas Rhodium plugs, 1.5 metre length: £218.00
Nordost Leif series Mains Cables
Above left: Purple Flare figure of 8 cable Above Right: Blue Heaven mains cable
The Leif series of mains cables includes two models, the Purple Flare (intended solely
for figure of 8 connector equipment) and the Blue Heaven (which has a high quality
IEC connector). These cables use 65 strands of fine 99.9999% oxygen free copper for
each conductor, which has their spiral wrapped mono filament construction to provide
a mainly air dialectic -
These cables offer superb performance for their price. As you’d expect resolution increases, but there’s also no lack of weight or tonal colouring. These cables are available in any length required, however please note that Nordost recommend the ideal minimum length of each cable should be 2 metres for the best performance, so I have priced them accordingly below.
Nordost Purple Flare 2 Metre Figure of 8 mains cable: £164.99 (+£20 per extra 0.5 metre)
Nordost Blue Heaven 2 metre IEC mains cable: £234.99 (+£35 per extra 0.5 metre)
Nordost Red Dawn 2 metre IEC mains cable: £399.99 (+£35 per extra 0.5 metre)
Nordost Norse series Mains Cables
Above: Nordost Heimdall 2 mains cable
The Norse series is the second range up within the Nordost family of mains cables, and consists of two models. They both feature their micro mono filament design which uses silver plated very high purity copper strands. No strand is allowed to touch one another and are given a predominantly air dialetric insulation thanks to the spiral wound cores surrounding each wire (please see close up pictures below for a better idea of how they’re made). The main change between these two cables is the number of conductors used, with the Heimdall 2 there are three and on the Frey 2 there are 5 in total.
As you’d expect from their apparent constructional similarities with the Valhalla (featured below), these cables offer a real taste of what that remarkable cable achieves at a more affordable price. They might not quite reach the giddy heights of bandwidth, resolution and dynamics of the Valhalla, but they offer a remarkable chunk of performance considering the price differential and are still superior in these areas to all the other cables we’ve tried. Very highly recommended!
Nordost Heimdall 2 two metre IEC mains cable: £749.99 (+£150 per extra metre)
Nordost Frey 2 two metre IEC mains cable: £1,599.99 (+£250 per extra metre)
Chord Sarum Mains cable
Just in, the top of the range Chord mains cable. The Sarum mains uses silver plated conductors in foamed Teflon insulators. It is fitted with high quality Furutech mains connectors at both ends. More details to follow.
Chord Sarum Mains cable 1 metre: £1,050
Extra half metre add £150
Audio Note Sogon mains cable
The Sogon mains cable is, like all the top Audio Note cables, made with pure silver conductors. It is remarkably flexible by the standards of most audiophile mains cables. A full write up will follow, but initial listening to this shows a new level of subtlety and expansiveness is possible and it works exceptionally well with source components and pre amplifiers. For exceptionally high current applications I may suggest trying multiple runs for the optimum performance. It is sold in half metre lengths and can be factory terminated, alternatively we can supply and fit a variety of suitable connectors for individual applications, please contact us for details.
Audio Note Sogon Mains Cable: POA at request of manufacturer
Audio Note mains termination charge including a silver plated IEC and UK mains plug: £100.00
Nordost Reference Mains cables
The Valhalla is, quite simply, the best mains cable we’ve heard to date. The problem with many mains cables is that they are often quite selective over which systems (and even locations) that they work best in, but the Valhalla (and the Norse series detailed above) somehow seem to bring their magic to a system every time we use them. There is not a single area that seems lacking, their bass weight and control is impressive but always appropriate, their resolution startling yet never forced, the tonality is neither lean nor warm and what they do to timing, the leading edges of notes, dynamics and musicality is a joy to hear. What’s more the treble become sweeter and more delicate without losing any energy. I will not go on for now, but this is one range where the hype really does seem appropriate. Yes, it’s an big investment, but if you have a great system then you really must hear what one can do (just start by using one to feed your mains distribution unit or main source).
Nordost Valhalla 2 metre IEC mains cable: £2,499.99 (+£500 per extra metre)
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