September 22, 2008

• Nordost Valhalla PC

  In the aftermath of grunge, the music did not recover.  But that didn't stop Rob Halford from trying.  Rumors were swirling that he was gay.  It is odd that he didn't confirm that, until 1998.  But anyway, in 1993, he formed his own band, Fight, and came out with punkish, Pantera-like thrash.  The War Of Words album, though it had some rough spots, was, overall, a breath of fresh air.  Its sound is really tough for audio to get right.  I used the album to great effect, when auditioning hi-fi.
  
  One product that does keep up with Fight's tight sound is the Nordost Valhalla powercord.  I'm not sure about current-production units, but mine have always come in this useless wooden box.
  "Strap me in!" says Tessa.
  
  Whether new or used, you better stick the Nordost Valhalla PC on the Cable Cooker:
  
  If you don't, it will have a smaller, more "chaffed and chapped" sound.  There is a grain which is akin to scraping your skin on the sidewalk.  If you look carefully at the picture above, you'll see, on your right-hand side, the pigtail which came with the Jeff Rowland PC-1.  Look further, and you'll see that there are actually two Valhalla PCs being treated simultaneously.  That's 'cuz Alan Kafton, the Cable Cooker's manufacturer, sent some male-IEC-to-female-3-prong adapters.
  
  With all that Teflon, the Valhalla PC really needs 4-5 days on the Cooker.
  
  Mr. Kafton is going to cringe, but here's the Valhalla PC on his Power Wing.  The Wing uses Oyaide outlets, so in theory, optimal matches should be found with powercords which use Oyaide plugs.  One of the most common complaints the audiophiles whine at me is that I use cables which cost more than the components themselves.  And here is yet another example of a cable extracting the most out of a lesser-priced component:
  
  If you want to hear the Eastern Electric Minimax CD at its clearest and most detailed, go ahead and use the Valhalla PC on it.
  

  • 3:14 am
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