Furutech FP-TCS21 Mains cable - Experiment.

Things have been sounding rather awesome since the addition of SAEC Triple C interconnects and the Acoustic Revive Speaker cable. Here: tinyurl.com/ycyvce3m and Here: ttps://tinyurl.com/2p8zx5ex

This stuff has been an absolute revelation. To the point where i have recommended it consistently to anyone who seeks input on such matters. With that in mind, and also recently having had some unexplainable tonal shifts when swapping mains cables around, I decided I would have a go with some UP-OCC mains cable and see what happens.

Unfortunately, it still hasn’t arrived from China, and looks unlikely to.

Armed with the experience of what the Triple C has done for the system, I decided I'd try a CCC one instead. I ordered a 1.2m length of Furutech FP-TCS21, Furutech FI-1363 (Cu) UK plug. I already had a Papri Pure Copper IEC plug here, so a Total cost of around £160ish. Obviously, this is not a “priority” spend on the system. If you have other areas that require attention I suggest paying attention to that first!

Building the cable up was a bit of a faff due to the construction of the cable itself but the cores were nice and flexible when exposed. Once i'd got everything to the correct length and position, the rest was easy. I decided to remove ANY cable that i did not need for the A/B test with the Belden Shielded stuff i usually use, I also decided that I would start with vinyl.

Out went the Mutec, Digibit Aria and Soekris 2541. I also realised i have a dual socket to the left of the system as well as the right. I felt it may be wise to put all the mains on the left side and all the signal runs on the right side of the rack. This also meant that i would be able to be absolutely spot on with the cable placement too. Listening to the system with the new layout and the Belden in situ, there was a definite uplift in sound quality. The Background seemed to be further back, or a little further “away” from me. Little nuances and details crept into my consciousness. Things that i have maybe heard with the high resolution levels of digital, but they were quite clearly more audible.

Tonally, not much changed at all.

I gave that a few days, just to be sure I knew what I was hearing. Then I threw the Furutech in. The first LP I played was a Jazz one….but I can't remember what it was called. That's because as I sat here getting the laptop out to make some notes, the drummer started playing the cymbal. What occurred after that has left me scratching my head for a few days now. Usually, I find if you listen to decent equipment, you can mayber hear the direction of someone's voice change, as if they move their head left to right, or vice versa.

Well, I could “hear” directions of his drumsticks striking the cymbal…..only it wasn’t just Left to right….it was front to back. It was as if the mind's eye could “see” him playing. I must have listened to about 30 LPs in a row…thus losing track of what I started with, and all of them…..ALL OF THEM seemed to have a moment where this 4th dimension turned up. I’m not talking about fancy pants audiophile pressings either. I listened to anything that caught my eye.

Now, I genuinely write this thinking that what I have heard/am hearing shouldn’t be possible. Or is possible, but that a mains cable shouldn’t be the reason for revealing this. But I have taken the cable out and put the Belden back in and this effect disappears with the Furutech. Thus, I am at a loss as to WHY this is happening with the Furutech. I wondered if i had somehow made a mess of the wiring and had the mains cable “out of phase” but a quick continuity test has shown it’s constructed correctly.

I have kettle leads strewn across the floor to see if any of them do the same, but no……

I decided to put the digital in and see what happens…..yeah, happens again lol. So, after about 10-15hours of listening i have decided that i’m not smart enough to figure out why, so i am just gonna rewire the entire system lol

I’ll add that to 2022’s list of things to do.