It’s only money…
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HC cable:
Hanging-Silver over Red and Beryllium Copper - 4,17mm2 Line and Neutral - 3,31mm2 Ground
Source cable:
Hanging-Silver over Red and Beryllium Copper - 1,31mm2 Line, Neutral and Ground
@ dchang05
You mean 12 A max i think
Yes I asked Innuos team and they answered that any HC or Source Dragon cable can be used with their gear. Same question sent to AudioQuest but still waiting for an answer.
Cost apart I was first asking to avoid any kind of risk of damage. Secondly because it was cost free in this case (2 cables for spare available is better than buying anything else).
I’m using them since 10 days without issues, at the moment. And I’m waiting for a Purple fuse to try with Innuos ZENith. Then I can experiment with source cable to find out if any difference is audible.
As usual, happy to share with you the results.
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Lawyerly disclaimer regarding the possibility of low power factor? Although with some of these cables being #10 awg and larger supplied by a 20A circuit, I can’t imagine the issue. Also, I assume none of these cables are UL listed???
That sounds like a solid plan, and I’m looking forward to hearing from you 
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I’ve never seen an audiophile cable mfr mention UL or CSA.
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Yes, 12A. it is a typo, or a brain fart.
I would like to know @tedsmith opinion related to AQ HC vs Source Dragon power cords using them to feed a DS DAC, and the new MK II in particular.
Thank you.
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I did some power cable swaps on the DS in same family.
They are the Core Power Diamond and Diamond Xtreme. The Xtreme’s simply use more conductors in a weave for lower equivalent gauge they are a knockoff of Ofin II cables . Yes the lower equivalent gauge with more conductors sounds better on LPS for digital, the DS and my preamp. Duncan’s Whisper Elite with lots of silver at 9 gauge was better than a Iconoclast BAV 10gauge or the diamond Xtreme. Al’s Stealth cable did very very well too which is likely small gauge silver and lots of ampere capacity.
I bet you will like AQ high current best but am open for a surprise. Duncan’s whisper elite with tuning ring was only cord that could beat a Dragon HC on regenerator until it gets a tuning ring. Then they are a draw.
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One of the goals of the DS Mk II was to be less sensitive to power cords. Both that the DAC is less sensitive to incoming noise and that the DAC puts out less noise to the power cord to lower system interaction. Only time will tell to what degree I succeeded.
I don’t have direct experience with the cords mentioned.
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I’m trying to evaluate during last hour the difference between HC and Source Dragon PC feeding the ZENith.
Not a night and day.
Source pros:
- control
- decay
- realism
- separation
- width in soundstage
HC pros:
- attack and transient
- strength
- punchy
- depth in soundstage
Both of the cables already well used, no burning in needed.
First impressions, I may prefer the Source over the HC, due to a sound more natural. If you ask me now, I’ll keep on use the Source one. Time will tell.
Hope that helps (also. your wallet). Do a favor to this poor italian friend: next time I ask you for advices on a possible unit/cable/tweak dilemma… give me the cheaper solution, too!
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It is very interesting as a comparison.
Have you heard differences on the following 3 criteria : quality of timbres, presence and silence ?
In advance, thank you for your answer.
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This could be the first time that a lower priced cord works better. AQ is correct on Souce suits sources better. Thanks for spending time trying out. That’s a good news for AQ users out there.
I wish I have the King of Tweaks, vmax’s ability to find some cheap and great improvements in future! 
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You’re welcome.
Timbres pretty identical, presence too.
Silence, just another curious thing: I swapped the HC Dragon PC feeding the PhoenixNET switch, the one I used before with the ZENith replaced an old one model (I bought second hand). Bingo! A really blacker background, here silence went a step up bringing a pleasant sound. Not only before one track and another (where silence is alway silence, almost in my system) also at the very beginning of a new track every noise floor diminished a lot. Very happy with this unexpected result.
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This time I totally agree with you!
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My streamer manufacturer has a disclaimer suggesting heavier power cables (+12AWG) add no benefit to the sound, going further to say heavier wires could potentially damage the wire receptacle. I’ve got 12AWG on components, 10AWG on monos, and the AQ Thunder (whatever that’s measured to be) on the P10. It does not sound like anything is starved.
I would imagine if a person owned some of the really heavy, high-end, multi-unit preamps or DACs, heavier cords may be in order.
I frankly cannot generalize because I just tried 2 PCs of the same AQ brand (after having had the confirmation from the manufacturer, Innuos, that it couldn’t be harmful in any case for their products) and my system may respond in a different way.
Other members out there had different results with their systems.
In effect the HC cord seems to bring a quieter background feeding the PhoenixNET, just like it worked better-feeding a switch than a streamer in my system, so more experiments are needed before I can get any conclusion.
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No substitute for trying it in your own system to decide if differences in product is worth the purchase. That includes differences in cord wire gauge. Some retailers /etailers offer trials. You will be out the shipping if you choose not to purchase.
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