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Perfect for your favorite amplifier.

All about the ETI eXpress Power AC Enhancing Cable designed by Keith Eichmann

Want to make your amplifier sound much better? It's easy with the new MK2 power cables from the Australian manufacturer ETI. Originally designed by Keith Eichmann, these cables are developed with the same 240v, 50Hz AC power that runs every amplifier in New Zealand, Australia and the UK. While there is no doubt that many US designed cables are also very well designed and reviewed, it is important to understand that this is within the context of their 120v, 60Hz system and there are significant differences.

The standard AC power cables supplied with almost all amplifiers are functional but the reality is that they do no more for the performance than the cheap little interconnects included with most CD players. In fact, a standard power cable is strangling the performance of your amplifier, especially if it is one of the higher power models.

In contrast the ETI eXpress Power AC Enhancing Cable will make your amplifier and almost any other component in your system sound dramatically better. You can read much more about these cables below but there is no substitute for hearing how great an improvement one will make in your own system - all it takes is a call or e mail.

There are also major issues with mains borne noise and interference affecting the ability of the internal power supply section of your amplifier to function properly. The ETI power cables address the shortfalls in conventional cables in terms of their capacity, the quality and integrity of plugged connection. And contained within the large inline bulb of the cable, the unique ETI element dramatically improves the performance of the cable as a whole (we have done a direct with and without comparison using the same cable and plugs - while there is no doubt that the cable itself is a great deal better than standard leads, it's the inclusion of the patented ETI element in the protective bulb that accounts for the greatest part of the gain)

This is an extruded length of aluminium, hard wired into the AC mains power path, that mechanically dissipates resonances and high frequency noise found typically on AC mains. Fractal math, used to determine the shape and length of the extrusion, very clearly causes HF resonances and electrical noise to play themselves out passively - as opposed to being filtered electrically. As there are no capacitors, inductors, or other electronic components in AC power path there are no added reactances to negatively affect the power supplies of the connected components. The eXpress AC Cable has high current capability which makes it suitable for the most demanding amplifiers or systems.

Think of the eXpress Power cable is an amplifier component – it improves the performance of the initial power circuits within an amplifier. Every amplifier has its design constrained by cost or physical space. And with all due respect to amplifier designers there is still plenty of potential to build better sounding units and a little imagination combined with a good ear can go a long way. This is of course what we have with the Keith Eichmann's of this world and rather than building an amplifier that may not fulfill all needs, he has gone down the path of improving the performance of a great many systems at a fraction of the cost of changing amplifiers. When you have the cable in your hands you’ll quickly understand why these improvements aren't incorporated within amps - they simply wouldn't fit.

Improve the performance of any amplifiers power supply and you make clearly audible gains in clarity and dynamics – noise is diminished, music enhanced. You can hear this. People may try and tell you that a simple cable may or may not make much of a difference. But the eXpress power cable is more than 'just a cable'. Just picking it up will tell you this and plugging it in will make it doubly obvious.

You can expect to hear - Improved clarity and detail, an obvious reduction in grain and background noise. And better rhythmical drive and bass control.

You may be cynical about this but there is both hard data and reliable listening tests that show the quality of your mains power cords do strongly influence the quality of the sound you will enjoy. In a comprehensive test in the Canadian magazine – Audio Ideas Guide 40 – a number of high end cables and one generic AC cord were compared and contrasted. There were significant measurable differences and the Eichmann eXpress cable came a very close second in both technical and listening tests to the estimable Kimber Palladian cable. Given the much lower cost of the ETI cable and the fact that we have them in NZ plugged 240V designed versions we have no problems at all with a second best.

And it's also true that if we are able to put two, three or even more high quality mains cables in a system for around the same price as one, the overall improvement to that system will be much greater again.

Amplifiers show the most obvious improvement with the eXpress Power cable but other components such as CD players, Home Cinema systems and radio tuners will also benefit – the increase in amplifier transparency makes any downstream improvements much more apparent. So subsequent additions of cables make for cumulative improvements. It’s the opposite of the oft-quoted law of diminishing returns - we offer you a bigger improvement with every step!

The more demanding of power your amplifier is, the greater the potential gain – New Zealand amplifiers such as Plinius, Perreaux and even the new Pure Audio have proved to be particularly suited to this Eichmann upgrade. For instance when reviewing a Perreaux amplifier, FFWD editor Martin Bell concluded... 'The already impressive sound stage seemed to improve a further notch, while a slightly greater sense of scale and air was apparent... with the Eichmann power cord in place dynamic transients sounded even more impressive, with rhythms propelled along with greater snap and gusto. Music seemed to breathe a fraction easier, the end result being an even greater sense of musical realism. Overall there just seemed to be more music present.'

Smaller UK designed amps such as Cambridge and Rotel also leap forward with the addition of the eXpress power cord. One of our clients writes…

'Hi John, Thanks again for sending me the Eichmann AC cables: I have been absolutely staggered by the improvement they've made to the system, particularly the amp. We spent hours listening over the weekend. Sometimes, when you upgrade cables and things, you think you can hear a difference, but you're not quite sure and after a day or so you begin to wonder. But the improvement really has been black and white despite a system that is pretty good in its own right. Great stuff. I experimented with one of the cables on the AV amp and DVD player (which I wasn't going to bother about) and was also amazed at the results.'

And another review... This power cord incorporates newly-discovered fractal resonance control technology that provides a cleaner AC load to the power supplies of components. The cord incorporates a bulbous attachment that contains an aluminum body covered in plastic. It looks strange, but how does it sound? In one word—INCREDIBLE! Plugging this cable into my CD transport caused a haze or film to be removed from the sound. As good as the Eichmann interconnects were, the AC cable was even better! The difference the eXpress power cable made was amazing, especially since it replaced a top-of-the-line Onix Statement power cord costing over two times as much. The Eichmann AC cord doesn't restrain or restrict the sound, as do some of the heavily-shielded power cords that I have tried. Vocals were full and natural. Rim shots, high hats, and triangles had a natural shimmer, with unbelievable sense of air, transparency, focus, and detail. Bass had great weight and authority, with superior clarity and definition. John Mayer's Room For Squares had me tapping my toes from start to finish, as the dynamics were better than I had ever heard in my system. The Eichmann Series 2 AC cord did a better job of engaging me in the music than any power cable I have tried to date. Unfortunately, I only had one! I imagine that similar improvements in my system could be realized by running another to the preamp and two more to my monoblock amplifiers. I highly recommend this product. Positive Feedback

When we first heard one of these cable ourselves, we thought that it was greater than the improvements we were getting swopping between amplifier models. The MK2 cable was a lot better again. And now we are finding the difference between this AC cable and the 'standard' versions is much greater again because the quality of mains power is getting significantly worse. We think the culprit is the proliferation of wireless devices - modems, cellphones, computers, cordless phones, halogen transformers and Sky. Not only do we find increasing problems with radio reception but it's becoming obvious that all these sources of radio frequency interference are being picked up by the network of mains cables within your home and being fed back into components - it's a vicious cycle. But the ETI cable breaks the cycle and feeds your amplifier clean power and isolates it from RFI.

This is exactly why Kimber speaker cables work so well - the braided construction stops them picking up RFI and feeding it back into an amplifier via the speaker terminals - amplifiers are primarily designed to produce audible frequencies but the much higher radio frequencies can wreck unpredictable havoc if introduced at either end - the amplifier can be working overtime trying to reproduce signals we can’t hear but this can manifest itself in distortions in the audible range not to mention some nasty background noise and buzz - have a close listen to the sound coming out of your speakers when the amp is turned up but isn't playing anything - we’d wager it sounds a lot noisier than it seemed to a few years ago.

Don't take our word for what these cables do - it's the improvement made to your own system that matters and until you plug one in, you'll only be guessing. Unlike many components there's no setup or learning curve - just plug it in and go. They are effectively indestructible so there's no problem with spinning them around the country. Simply put, if the cable doesn't wow you then just send it back to us for a refund - at least you will have listened and decided for yourself.

ETI eXpress Power AC Enhancing Cable 2m cable NZ$650 including GST

ETI eXpress Power AC Enhancing Cable 3m cable NZ$680 including GST

On the payment front we encourage people to use internet banking if you find this easier and this helps keep the price down. E mail us for account details. We also make a worthwhile donation to the WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature) every time someone makes a purchase from us - this goes directly to help the endangered Hectors dolphin.

ETI was formed as Eichmann Technologies International in 1999. They are proud of their reputation as true innovators in high performance audio connector and cable technology. Importantly, the wonderful plaudits and reviews that their products have earned give them the drive and motivation to maintain development. ETI products are designed and manufactured in Australia.

Direct Contact

John Ransley and Carolyn Guytonbeck are the principals behind Totally Wired. It’s our own business and we take pride in building something worthwhile.

If you want to contact us directly per mail:

• John Ransley
• Carolyn Guytonbeck

Related links

• NEW KLEI gPower2 AC cable
• KLEI Iterconnects
• Pure Audio
• Kimber
• Wadia 121