GigaWatt PowerSync, PowerSync PLUS, PowerSync ULTRA, and LC-2 EVO power cables

PowerSync ULTRA

Since the PowerSync PLUS worked so well with the L1 preamp I chose to leave it connected and only swap the PowerSync PLUS on the C1 DAC for the PowerSync ULTRA.

Wow, here was a difference that I did not see coming! The PowerSync ULTRA may cost 3 times as much as the PLUS but if you ask me that is fully justified! This cable is not just incrementally better, it’s significantly better!

Outwardly, the cable has beautiful machined aluminum connectors and the cable has a slightly thicker outer diameter (17mm instead of 15mm). Otherwise, there’s nothing to distinguish it from the PowerSync PLUS. Of course, connectors are important to get right but this can’t be the whole story. On the other hand, it can’t just be the application of more copper for the conductors. So, clearly, the cable’s design ups the performance in a major way.

The ULTRA retains all of the PLUS’s beautifully fluid and deeply saturated sound, all of the spaciousness, and every last percent of its organic presentation while significantly increasing the articulation, resolution, refinement, and transient attack, but without introducing even a hint of dryness. Perhaps most strikingly, the PowerSync ULTRA creates a fabulously continuously fluid sound, yet is more expressive, more lively, and more lyrical, than the PowerSync PLUS. All this translates to a sound that is super-seductive, yet also rather realistic, and more like the real thing.

Oh yes, went my internal note-taker, this, I like!

2x PowerSync ULTRA

As I was now fully expecting, swapping the PowerSync PLUS on the L1 preamp for a second PowerSync ULTRA was once again significantly better. With two ULTRAS, the resolution and transparency further increase, and everything becomes more intricately pronounced but still with all the fluidity, deep tonal saturation, smoothness, and tonal richness fully intact. Despite the higher precision, the sound remains fluid and continuous, it just doesn’t come anywhere near being technical or dry.

The lyrical quality of music is now off the scale and I’ve not heard large-scale classical music better.

Still, a part of me craved a more direct and incisive sound. I’ll admit that I am more focused on rhythm and tightness than the average person, but somehow, my system is also more sensitive to this aspect than I would consider normal.

And this is where the LC-2 EVO comes in!

LC-2 EVO

Given that the C1 DAC is fuller-voiced than the L1 preamp, I opted to leave the PowerSync ULTRA on the preamp and swap the PowerSync ULTRA on the DAC for the LC-2 EVO. Oh yes, this was entirely different! Not necessarily better on all accounts, I hasten to add but very differently balanced.

The LC-2 EVO has finger-licking tight bass and very impressive articulation, along with immense precision and focus. It’s definitely not as fulsome in the bass, or as rich and deeply saturated in the midrange as with the two PowerSync ULTRAs, While comparatively leaner, it’s not devoid of color, and its timbre is very natural and convincing. Oh, and the LC-2 EVO’s high-frequency range is ever so open and airy! Like the entire sonic spectrum, the treble is articulate and precise, not whitish or swooshy, yet delicate and fluid.

The combination of these rather different cables achieves a very fine balance between explicit purity and precision on the one hand and organic flow and emotional bonding on the other hand.

However, it has to be said that the LC-2 EVO does not sound quite as spacious as the PowerSync ULTRA and it reduces the smoothness, continuity, and fluidity to the point where it could comparatively be considered very slightly dry. Some people might find this cable too matter-of-fact. But that’s wholly in line with what I expect from a solid-core cable and I do not mind at all. With this combination, I get sucked into performances on an emotional level while my brain remains fully satisfied with the level of tightness, neutrality, and precision. For me, and with these components, these two cables achieve an ideal balance.

After having played many more recordings, I would say the balance with these two cables is actually not leaning to either side of neutrality. It’s neither dry nor sweet but actually very well-balanced, if quite revealing. The sound can become dry but it can also be sweet and seductive, just as the recording requires.

Two Times LC-2 EVO

With two LC-2 EVO cables, one for the L1 preamp, and one for the C1 DAC, the sound further tightens up and becomes super-articulate as expected, and the transients are razor-sharp but, surprisingly, the sound remains quite fluid! Yes, the balance is certainly drier, more upfront, and definitely less liquid and organic, but the presentation is also beautifully agile, compelling, and still lyrical.

Spaciousness and flow are two of the PowerSync ULTRA’s biggest assets, and indeed, removing both of these cables from the system results in a rather less engulfing spaciousness and a more matter-of-fact sound still with great focus but depth layering that appears less 3-dimensional.

With the further increased articulation and transient snap, as well as a speedy old-school-Naim kind of sound with an utter lack of tardiness, the demanding technical purist part of me was deeply impressed.

These cables simply excel in terms of articulation, control, transient precision, and midrange purity, and I thoroughly enjoyed a wide range of electronic and rhythm-driven music. But with such high precision, the sound also becomes less weighty and voluptuous, and the whole moves more toward the clear-cut technical rather than the juicy emotional side. These cables simply do not add anything in terms of body or weight and this means that you will hear whatever is in the recording, for better or for worse. When the recording is great, then so is the sound, but when the recording is only so-so, then these cables will not disguise that fact.

My system had become akin to a studio environment and on the one hand, I was enjoying the heck out of this, but on the other, I also found that soul music became a little less soulful. In part, this was because the midrange was so direct and pure rather than smooth and rich, but it was also caused by the leaner bass. When realizing this, I noticed something interesting. With a classical piece, I felt that plucked bass and cello notes felt less convincing with the two LC-2 EVO cables than with the LC-2 EVO/PowerSync ULTRA combination. Somehow, the single PowerSync ULTRA on the L1 preamp managed to elicit a sense of acoustic depth and substance, and a convincing portrayal of the recording venue that the LC-2 EVO did not quite catch. Of course, a power cable cannot truly create deeper notes, so, in trying to understand the effect, I performed the comparison multiple times. But sure enough, when playing classical or other purely acoustical recordings with a true recorded ambiance, the combination of the two different cables simply produced the most credible timbre, depth, and sense of the recorded space. Apparently, these extra ambient cues made large string instruments sound more impressive and realistic.

While I remained fascinated with the precision of the two LC-2 EVO cables with three-quarters of my musical diet, I had to admit that a third was left sounding less grandiose than it could. Apparently, with the inherently clean-sounding CH Precision components, this extra focus on, well, focus and purity that was obtained by the two LC-2 EVO cables, became a little too much of a good thing.

After this, I went back to using one PowerSync ULTRA and one LC-2 EVO, and sure enough, this did indeed achieve the ideal balance across my entire musical diet.

Whilst two LC-2 EVO was an overdose in my system, I maintain that there’s a lot to say for the superb level of precision, purity, linearity, and transparency that these cables achieve. I truly have not heard higher precision from any power cable. If a system lacks some incisiveness or transient purity, one or two of these cables can do wonders and I expect that especially tube-based systems may benefit in particular from one or more LC-2 EVO.

Conclusion

In audio, one can compensate for certain system- or room peculiarities, further enhance existing great qualities, or elevate the performance across the board in an even-handed manner. But no matter which method you choose, GigaWatt has you covered. The PowerSync and PowerSync PLUS lean to the relaxed and smooth side and offer great value for money while the LC-2 EVO offers a great alternative with its incredibly concrete and precise, yet delicate sound. The PowerSync ULTRA, finally, offers superlative sound on so many levels, has the best-balanced mix of virtues, and is the prime choice in its price category.

I am not letting go of the PowerSync ULTRA and LC-2 EVO. They are not only highly recommended, but effective immediately, also HFA Favorites!

(PowerSync ULTRA and LC-2 EVO)

Associated Equipment

External Links

Distributor for the Netherlands: Ohm Audio
Manufacturer: Gigawatt.eu

Related Posts

Mad Scientist Black Magic Ultra and Black Magic Gold

Jorma Audio Unity Interlink, Power Cable, and Speaker Cable

Final Touch Audio Elara power cable – Revisited

GigaWatt PF-1e, PF-1 EVO, and PF-2 EVO Power Strips

Ansuz Mainz8 D2 and Mainz8 D-TC Power Distributors

Mad Scientist Audio Nitro Nano power cable

Way Cables Substance Plus Power Cable

Vermouth Audio Reference Power Cable