General Asylum: REVIEW: DIY Ubyte-2 Ubyte-2 Solo copper foil power cord Cable by Jon L

Model:	Ubyte-2 Solo copper foil power cord
Category:	Cable
Suggested Retail Price:	$20
Description:	Cross-connected Belden 82248 and Solo Copper Foil
Manufacturer URL:	Not Available
Manufacturer URL:	Not Available

Review by Jon L on August 03, 2001 at 11:43:30
IP Address: 162.119.232.100

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for the Ubyte-2 Solo copper foil power cord

I made the first Ubyte-2 Solo copper foil power cord a long ago, but my recent addition of a second Ubyte-2 cord along with a chance to do extensive A-B testing with my other excellent cords led to this review finally. I just want to share this wonderful DIY cord with the rest of the world... To make it interesting, let me compare the Ubyte to the other cords I have.
1) TG HSR-i squared Gen II--TG is a fantstic cord. Nothing will touch it at the price of $500. TG used to be the king of details and that "live" feel among all my cords. The Solo Ubyte-2 matches it for detail but in a more relaxed/refined way; must be that copper foil effect. TG with a bit more apparent treble detail and Ubyte with a bit more midrange detail. Both TG and Ubyte are best suited to preamps, amps, etc where you want neutrality, not color. Tonality is suprisingly similar.
2) Electraglide Fatman Gold 2000--This cord is KING of delicious, colorful, rich midrange. A completely different listening experience from any of my other cords. NOT good for line-level(low current) gear and thrives on equipment with big power needs. Fatman was (is?) irreplaceable on my VAC Ren amp, but the Ubyte on the VAC shows you more extension on top, more detail in mids, and more microdynamics, much better upper bass. Alas, Ubyte cannot match that richness of tone and that electraglide heavy-gague all-silver ribbon/air dielectric sound. Truth be told, I switched to Ubyte on my VAC last night and heard the most delicately detailed sound I've heard...
3) Tekline PC-12W--Fantastic cord for $400, but only for digital. Sounds colored on non-digital stuff, but on digital unbelievable price/performance ratio. Ubyte is not suited for digital as it doesn't hide anything, but on anything else, Ubyte eats up PC-12W for breakfast for purity, detail, speed, while retaining midrange beauty/solidity.
4) Omega Mikro Active shield--My current fave on digital. This replaced the Tekline because it is MUCH more extended, refined, and has that ribbon-bloom with a colorful sound. Omega Mikro still sounds much better on digital than Ubyte, but on others, Ubyte is more neutral, linear, fast.
5) Audience PowerChord--full/rich sound with air-suffused sound. The absolute perfect match for my Bryston crossover (IEC installed) and NONE of my other cords can replace it, not even Ubyte. In other places, though Ubyte is a lot more neutral, faster.
6) CAT5 diy cord--good cord overall but not approaching the above cords in overall sound. However, the bass of this cord cannot be beaten in its solidity, authority, weight. TG or Ubyte has more bass speed, but I guess you just can't get around a lot of AWG for bass foundation. My choice cord for my bass amp and irreplaceable in this position.
Overall, the Solo Ubyte-2 cord is a god-send. My system would serious suffer if I didn't have them. It really belongs in that ultimate best of the best category where "flavors" may depend on personal preference but not ultimate quality.
Warning: Because of the high-voltage and cross-connection, you have to be extremely careful to check it before use. Very careful dressing, wrapping so no short can happen. FYI my first ubyte is much shorter than it was intended to be because of an apparent short in the cross connection...

Product Weakness: Not good for digital sources. Bass is trendously impactful, fast, tight, but no added warmth.
Product Strengths: clarity, neutrality, linearity, speed, extension, beauty, harmonic

Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier:	VAC ren 30 on top, Spectron Digital One for bass
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	None. TDS and HRS in tandem.
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Cary CD-301 with Mullard 12AU7, volume control
Speakers:	Quintessence Acoustics one-of-a-kind
Cables/Interconnects:	Lots. refer to inmate system
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	All kinds but a lot of good jazz vocals
Room Size (LxWxH):	x x
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	My own modified
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner

Product Weakness:	Not good for digital sources. Bass is trendously impactful, fast, tight, but no added warmth.
Product Strengths:	clarity, neutrality, linearity, speed, extension, beauty, harmonic