Bias alert: most of my AC outlets are the Oyaide SWO-XXX. Its plating structure matches that found on the Acrolink CF plugs used on the DIY Bybee powercord.

In general, the Bybee DIY powercord coming out of my SWO-XXX equipped Power Wing yields consistent results.

The first thing we notice about the Bybee DIY powercord is that it brings the midrange to our attention. So in the case of the Simaudio 600i (versus the Pranawire Satori), it loses its chameleon-like abilities. Instead, you get a full-sized midrange, with little ambiguity. There's no loss of bass or treble extension; it's just that the mids are more vivid and tangible.

When I listen carefully, it's not that the treble is rolled off. Rather, it's that treble-rich instruments sound a bit dark, as if the immediate space surrounding the instruments is a bit sucked out of air, light, and vibrancy. It's as if the microphone isn't picking up the signature of the halo surrounding treble instruments. But the treble notes themselves are still present.

Even with the Oyaide SWO-XXX outlets, there are losses in kick drum speed, precision, definition, propulsion, and punch. If you are not a fan of heavy metal, this presentation is more sanitized, which may make it easier for you to survive the onslaught. But if you are a heavy metal fan, you're going to want a faster, tighter, more rhythmic bass register.

After any cable comes off of the audiodharma Cable Cooker, it sounds terrible. To remedy this, you need to give the Cooked cable plenty of regular playing time. And when it comes to Cooked powercords, perhaps the fastest place to get them to settle is between the wall outlet and your powerline conditioner. And that is exactly what I did overnight.

But since these are the holidays, the TV gets more use. So, I used this occasion to run the Bybee DIY powercord between Power Wing and a 50" LCD TV.

It took a little while for the freshly-Cooked Bybee DIY powercord to settle down. Initially, colors would not stay within the image boundaries. Soon enough, however, the images started to gel.

Imaging improved, and then the colors became more accurate.

The Bybee DIY powercord had enough honesty and accuracy, to show when the broadcast did not provide the sharpest, most focused picture. In the photo above, do not blame the camera. The broadcast really did jumble the leaves in the trees, and not accurately render the folds in the monks' brown garb.

In February 1993, I purchased the B&K Pro-10MC preamp, my first electronic component to sport a 15-amp IEC receptacle. That opened the world of after-market powercords. But I was still in college and unemployed, so I could not get to those powercords.

When I graduated from college in June 1993, my priority was to replace the hardware store power strips. So I spent my graduation monies partially on an Adcom ACE-515, and later on an API Power Pack. The latter was superior to the Adcom, so I decided to get API's full-fledged Power Wedge 116. After spending my money on that API Power Wedge 116 itself, I had none left over for after-market powercords.

In September 1993, I finally received the Theta Cobalt 307 DAC, which also had the IEC jack. But that left me with no money for after-marker powercords.

In Winter 1994, I replaced my AudioQuest cables with Kimber PBJ and 4TC. With all the money spent on signal cables, I had none left over for after-market powercords.

So finally, in Spring 1994, I was able to check out some after-market powercords. I borrowed the API PL-313 [previously reviewed in these pages], Kimber PowerKord, and MIT Z-Cord. Aargh! Each one had its peculiar influence on the sound of my B&K Pro-10MC and Theta Cobalt 307. The API PL-313 turned the music into the equivalent of a graphite pencil. The Kimber PowerKord was the most neutral. The MIT Z-Cord was like stock OEM throwaway cords, but with some noise removed. After some deliberation, because I was using Kimber's signal cables, I shrugged my shoulders, and went with one of their PowerKords.

Funny thing was, when I later purchased a second PowerKord, it sounded a little different from my older one. Aargh! That taught me that powercords, like signal cables, were subject to burn-in phenomena.

Here's a nice solution:

It's the audiodharma Cable Cooker, which is treating that DIY powercord made with Bybee materials. Make sure you burn-in the powercord in the proper direction, wall plug to female IEC. I'm going to give it an initial two days of Cook time, listen, evaluate, and determine if further Cooking is needed.

In the Spring '90 semester, while I was a freshman at UCSC, I'd go home frequently to see my then-girlfriend, KJ. Getting away from sylvan Santa Cruz meant I could find more types of music. And that is how I stumbled upon what was then a new type of heavy metal, as found on Prong's Beg To Differ. A trio from New York, Prong managed to sound stripped-down, just drums, bass, and guitar. But the recording quality of Beg To Differ is top-notch. Why can't all pop music sound this clear and unambiguous?

Later in 1990, KJ and I would see Prong at San Francisco's The Stone. A little more industrial-sounding, Beg To Differ would set the table for Ministry and other groove metal acts.

In 1990, all of my electronics had hard-wired powercords. None had an IEC jack. Thus, I could not experiment with aftermarket powercords. However, in the summer of 1990, I went to Audio Directions in Honolulu. There, I saw Stewart Ono replacing the stock hard-wired powercords on Conrad-Johnson gear. He used beefier cords. A couple years later, he'd use MIT Z-Cord to replace CJ's stock powercords.

Some dude who worked for a Bybee dealer made his own powercord, using mostly Bybee parts. This guy spared no expense; he went all-out, and used Acrolink's carbon fiber CF plugs.

I have no idea just how expensive Bybee's materials and parts are. All I know is, their finished products are super expensive. So I guess it is appropriate to use Acrolink CF plugs.

In late March 1990, I received, for my 18th birthday, an Adcom GFA-535 power amplifier. To me, the GFA-535 was my entry into high-end audio. It had speaker cable connectors, where you inserted bare wire, and turned the knob clockwise a quarter turn. My friend Sol gulped, "I hope vaginas aren't like that!"

But anyway, that GFA-535 prompted me to find speaker cables. San Francisco's Harmony A/V and Ultimate Sound both had spools of raw speaker wire. At 79 cents per foot, the AudioQuest F-14 was so cheap, I could afford to buy and try it. I used a wire-stripper to remove about an inch of white outer jacket, exposing the copper leads. Using my own hands, I then twisted the leads together. Between that Adcom GFA-535 and my Sony APM speakers (which had those awful spring-loaded push-in-and-lock connections), the F-14 worked perfectly, and sounded better than my old Original Monster Cable. One of the first albums I played was Eric Johnson's excellent Ah Via Musicom.

Ultimate Sound had spools from AQ, Kimber Kable, and Monster Cable. They could cut wire from these spools, and then hand-terminate with a large number of pins, spades, or bananas. From the cable manufacturers' perspective, there was no control over the dealers' termination skill or supplies. But to me, I saw nothing wrong with dealers and others making their own speaker cable creations, using different brands of raw cable and connectors.

And that brings us to one store's employee, who created this powercord, using primarily Bybee parts.

The most noticeable feature is the carbon fiber tube, which slides up and down the cable proper. I have no idea what it does.

The black outer mesh wrap obscures whatever comprises the cable proper. Other than the carbon fiber tube, the product itself is relatively flexible.

When ACS and I reconnected in the summer of 1994, she was not taking classes, and primarily stayed at home (her parents' place), rather than in Berkeley (an off-campus apartment). Thus, she and I spent many days doing physical activities, such as basketball, bowling, football, hiking, rollerblading, running, swimming, softball, and volleyball. One afternoon, after playing softball, we went to her place. She took off her blue shorts, revealing a thong. I pointed to it, and said, "This whole time we were playing, you were wearing that?"

It turned out that ACS' preferred underwear was the thong. Not full-coverage panties; not the minimalist G-string. Thongs. She wore thongs while traveling or commuting. She wore thongs at work. She wore thongs at home. She wore thongs while cooking and doing chores. She wore thongs while going out to shop, do errands, and eat. She wore thongs while studying at libraries. She wore thongs while playing sports. She wore thongs to bed. And when she didn't wear a thong, it was because she slept naked.

A year later, ACS and I became bowling partners. Whether she wore shorts, miniskirts, jeans, tights, or sweats, she wore a thong underneath. After Saturday night bowling league, I would sleep over at ACS' apartment. I playfully patted her exposed butt cheeks, and asked, "Why thongs?"

She matter-of-factly shrugged, "My rump likes to be free."

On some Sunday mornings, ACS participated in various martial arts. Each had its own uniform. I was helping her get ready for judo. I shuffled through her closet, and came upon the white Judo Gi uniform. It felt rough. I asked her, "Doesn't this chap your hide?"

One morning, ACS was out of clean thongs. ACS then used regular white panties, instead of her usual thong. When putting on the Judo Gi, she didn't like the way her panties rubbed her butt [and yet, she was okay with her butt cheeks rubbing against the fabric of the Judo Gi. Hmmm...]. She claimed that the panties got crinkled, and gave her a wedgie. Without delay, she got out of the Judo Gi, took off the panties, and fished out a thong from her laundry basket of previously worn and unwashed clothes. Yep, ACS would rather wear a dirty thong, than a clean panty.

This XLO Signature 4.1b AES/EBU digital cable has been used on and off since the mid-90s. Its sound is very fast, kind of like when I watched ACS' wushu troop strike the metal swords against each other. Well, the way ACS described the Signature 4.1b was: "It's like turning on a blender. It's all slash and burn. No finesse. Reminds me of my panties giving me a wedgie."

Okay, if you want to remove the crinkled panties from your butt crack, you need to use a proper cable burn-in device, such as the audiodharma Cable Cooker. I tried various Cook times. I recommend no less than 2 days, no more than 3 days.

Ah, summer of 1996. One partly cloudy evening, ACS and I were at the Stonestown (located in the SW corner of San Francisco) Tower Records, where we bought Metallica’s new album, Load. We then went to her place in foggy, windy, and cold Pacifica. While we scampered from the car to the warm apartment, we forgot about the new and unopened Metallica CD, and left it in the car.

Even when I got home the next day, I didn’t immediately open Load. But when I did, I played it not on my living room stereo, but on my bedroom headphone system, which comprised the CAL (California Audio Labs) Delta and Theta Cobalt 307. I was frustrated with the inconsistent, underwhelming, and disappointing (as many audiophiles can attest, the D-60 never lived up to the published reviews) Illuminati D-60 digital cable, which I’ve reviewed in these pages. I was also frustrated with the subpar and uneven Load. Still, the songs on Load, especially “Ain’t My Bitch,” “Until It Sleeps,” and “Hero Of The Day” [ACS and I later purchased the CD single, above] reminded me of ACS.

Back then, my main system’s digital front end consisted of the Theta Data Basic II and DS Pro Prime II. With my family constantly in the living room, I found myself using the bedroom headphone system more than the main one. Needing better sound in the bedroom, I then targeted the Cobalt 307 for replacement. One of the DACs I borrowed was the CAL Alpha (also reviewed in these pages). Unlike my Theta DACs, the CAL Alpha had an AES/EBU balanced input.

So then I borrowed some balanced digital cables. The Apogee Wyde Eye was cheap, but poor-sounding. The Wireworld Gold Starlight [version "II," I believe] was too mellow, casting a fake golden glow over the music. The MIT Proline Digital was interesting, but a bit pricey ($695). The Illuminati Orchid was expensive (at $750, it cost almost as much as the CAL Delta), and poor-sounding. So the very first time I saw and used an XLO Signature 4.1b was between the CAL Delta and Alpha. It was, hands down, the best AES/EBU cable. It made the others sound bloated, colored, hazy, distorted, plodding, congested, and hopelessly inept.

I ended up not getting the $1495 CAL Alpha [I used the funds on a huge mistake, the Thiel CS.5. But that’s whole ‘nother tale of woe]. Because I did not get the Alpha, I returned all of the balanced digital cables. Nevertheless, the XLO Signature 4.1b left a positive impression.

When ACS and I looked at Load’s album cover, we learned that it was a mixture of blood and semen. ACS remarked, “You mean like sex during my period?”

The interesting thing is, in all the years I was with ACS, I only saw her period twice. The first was in summer ’92, when we were playing softball. She kept pointing to her rump, asking me if I saw any blood [no]. The second was around Labor Day 1996, when she and I went to Baker Beach. The north end was (and still is) clothing optional. Because she was having her period, ACS kept on her shorts.

ACS claimed that, when she was on the Pill, it sometimes suppressed her menstrual period. And when she did have her period, she often avoided going out and seeing anyone. She didn't want to "burden" others with her "bitchy" mood and temperament. That, said she, was why I seldom experienced her having her period.

We’ve had this XLO Signature 4.1b [it's not the same as the one used between CAL Delta and Alpha] since the mid-90s. It has been used on-and-off since then. Versus when it was fresh out of the box, using it for over 15 years does lessen the “slash & burn” sonics. So I guess that’s like going from a regular CD to an SHM-CD. As an example, Metallica’s Load is now available on SHM-CD (above), which does sound cleaner and more stable, than the original CD. The XLO Signature 4.1b makes the sonic differences plainly obvious and visible.

Okay, let's go back to that night of February 12, 1993, when my friend ACS had made her way from UC Berkeley to UC Santa Cruz. It had rained earlier in the day. While the mist was dissipating, the ground was damp, and the night air was still moist. Because of the mist, a beautiful, enchanting, and romantic halo glowed around each streetlight. When ACS walked into my college apartment, she felt it to be a bit humid, warm, and muggy. So she removed her poofy red jacket. Feeling sticky, ACS reached behind her back, unhooked her dirty white (almost light gray) bra, and threaded it through and out of a shirt sleeve. Balling it up and stuffing it in her jacket pocket, she did not have an underwire bra. Still hot, ACS stepped out of her blue jeans. Her bottom half was left with a black-colored bikini-strap panty, which she called "tanga" or "cheekini."

At the time, my college stereo (Sony CDP-520ESII; Adcom GTP-400 and GFA-535; Pinnacle PN-5+) used AudioQuest Lapis and Topaz interconnects, which, due to their outer jackets, were relatively thick (but not poofy like ACS' jacket). The AQ interconnects may have been thinner than the side straps on ACS’ tanga, though.

But ah, the XLO Signature 4.1b (which, other than the color of the bands on the XLRs, appeared identical to the 2.1 line-level interconnect) was as thin as, say, ACS’ thong straps [a year later, I would discover that, most of the time, ACS liked to wear thongs, not other full-coverage panties] or the underwire found in her bras. Unlike underwire bras, the Signature 4.1b is flexible. You will have no trouble routing it. No, you should not crumple the Signature 4.1b into a ball, as ACS did to her dirty white wireless bra.

Until high-end audio goes wireless, we can go hog wild with cables. If you look carefully at the XLO Signature 4.1b’s conductors, you’ll find 6 conductors per polarity. One band was made up of 5 gray and 1 black. The other band comprised 5 purple and 1 white. The black core was hollow. In balanced interconnects (such as the Signature 4.1b), a third conductor supposedly ran through this hollow black core. All of the plastic found on the cable portion was Teflon. ACS had Victoria’s Secret underwear in the same colors as the XLO Signature 4.1b. That’s another reason why I associated the XLO Signature series with her. Of her gray-colored underwear, ACS said that it was not meant to be sexy, but to blend in with gray workout clothes and athletic wear.

When ACS and I left the college apartment on February 13, 1993, she did not wear any fancy lingerie. Rather, she simply wore regular purple panties.

Those purple panties would turn out to be similar in color as the purple band found on the XLO Signature 4.1b. And yes, ACS borrowed one of my gray t-shirts, similar in color to the Signature 4.1b's gray conductors.

I believe that this XLO Signature 4.1b dates from the mid-90s. Despite all of the plugging and unplugging (no sex jokes, please), it (including the female XLR) has held up well.

Okay, let's go back to Valentine's Day 1992, when ACS visited me at UC Santa Cruz. That was the night she discussed and depicted vampires having sex. In addition, she also talked about the human penis. She firmly declared that she did not like the look of the uncircumcised human penis. I wasn't going to ask her whose uncircumcised penis(es) turned her off.

I tried to argue, "But that's its natural state."

ACS reasoned, "Don't get me wrong; I like dick. But the dickhead is such a beautiful thing. It deserves to be unwrapped. It deserves to be shown in its full glory."

Fast forward to Fall '94. My preamp-to-power amp (Classe' Thirty and Muse Model One Hundred) used a balanced connection. I was using the inexpensive Kimber PBJ. I have always regretted not replacing it with the original XLO Signature 2.1. Instead, I went with Kimber's own balanced KCAG. When ACS held the clear-Teflon-over-silver-conductor KCAG, did she ooh and aah about the jewelry-like tri-braid cable? Nope. She held the male Switchcraft XLRs, and likened them (especially the three pins) to penises. She loved the way they plugged, and sometimes locked, into female XLR sockets.

Which brings us back to the XLO Signature series. The first XLR-equipped Signature product I had wasn't the 2.1 balanced line-level interconnect. Rather, it was the AES/EBU 110-ohm 4.1b digital cable. A major reason why XLO balanced cables did not have that upper-octave roll-off was that they avoided using Neutrik XLRs (which are notorious for curtailing the treble). Instead, XLO designed their own XLR plugs, which were sonically neutral, neither boosting nor curtailing the treble. Regarding XLO's custom XLR, ACS giggled about the ribs. She kept running her fingers up and down the outer barrel. She cracked, "I wish that ribbed condoms were this kinky."

Then ACS eyeballed the 3 pins, which had a thin layer of gold plating. She joked, "Hmmm, I have a silver vibrator, but not a gold one!" She likened the male XLR to an "extra large condom wrapping THREE penises together." She would refer to a male XLR as a "3-headed dick." Do note that, after almost 20 years, the thin gold plating on the XLO Signature 4.1b looks a bit dull, more like bronze or copper. After 20 years of...oh never mind.

The Kimber KCAG wasn't a total loss. It inspired ACS to buy a thin silver belly chain. Above her thong, the belly chain looked very sexy, was quite a turn-on. Which is more than I can say about my system at the time; I just wanted to turn it off.

Hands down, when it comes to XLO’s original Signature series, the girl I think about the most is ACS. When the Signature series came to prominence, I was predominantly, almost exclusively, with ACS. Moreover, when I first auditioned the Signature products, I was with ACS.

The Late Spring 1994 TAS (The Absolute Sound) review brought the XLO Signature series to everyone’s attention. But what triggered the XLO Signature’s explosive growth was Jonathan Scull’s review in the September 1995 issue of Stereophile.

Because the line-level interconnects were far more affordable than the speaker cable, they sold well. Though highly respected, the Signature 5.1 speaker cable was just too expensive, and did not sell well. Because JS gave what was perceived to be a negative review, the $325 Signature 4.1 digital cable did not sell at all. At this price, the Illuminati D-60 was the runaway market leader. The XLO Signature 4.1 probably sold less than the identically-priced MIT Digital Reference.

From my years of experience with the XLO Signature 4.1, we know that it is far more accurate, nimble, resolving, honest, neutral, and transparent than the D-60 and Digital Reference. The Signature 4.1 will better reflect the transports and DACs it is used with.

Neither TAS nor Stereophile reviewed the balanced AES/EBU XLO Signature 4.1b. And that is too bad. The Signature 4.1b is actually one of the best AES/EBU cables out there. Over the course of this multi-part review, I’ll get to matters of sound quality. But for now, I need to arm you with more background, history, and details.

When Stereophile came out with that review of the XLO Signature series, ACS and I were bowling partners. In addition to seeing each other once a week for league, we traveled to several tournaments. Wherever we went, when it came to cable looms, I kept thinking about XLO’s Signature series. So in early ’96, ACS and I were in downtown San Francisco. She went shopping for clothes and a camcorder, while I went to Ultimate Sound. Even though I had just wired my system with Kimber KCAG, the XLO Signature series intrigued me. I asked Ultimate Sound about it. They didn’t have any, but did hear some other customers inquiring about it. So they ordered a demo.

Here in the Bay Area, the flowering plum trees bloom in late January and early February. In early '96, I was frequently over at ACS’ apartment (above). Maybe it was the plum trees blooming. Maybe it was my red pearl bowling ball and black-and-red bowling ball bag. Maybe it was the pinkish blush ACS had lightly applied. Maybe it was the black and lavender Victoria's Secret underwear ACS changed out of. Maybe it was ACS' gray and periwinkle towels. Maybe it was the black-and-magenta swimsuit ACS was wearing. But as she and I used the complex’s swimming pool and hot tub, I could not stop thinking about and anticipating the XLO Signature series.

When Ultimate Sound finally did bring in a demo 2-meter Signature 1.1 interconnect, it came not in the anti-static plastic resealable bag, but in a soft corrugated plastic box. The Signature digital cables also came in this box (above).

As for the digital cable, I started out with the RCA-to-RCA Signature 4.1. Too much under the influence of Stereophile’s negative review, I did not give this product a chance or fair shot. I kept going back to (a) the Illuminati D-60, and to a lesser extent, (b) the MIT Digital Reference, both of which received more positive reviews. And then I went to the similarly-priced Wireworld Gold Starlight [could have been the "II" version], which sounded all wrong: warm, lazy, rounded, melted. ACS said of the Gold Starlight: “It’s as if I ballooned 30 pounds, and none of it went to where I need it most: my boobs.”

We plucked out the Gold Starlight, returned it to the dealer.

I would occasionally revisit the XLO Signature digital cable. It wasn’t until after I had broken up with ACS, that I tried the XLO digital cables with enough equipment, and discovered that it merely reflected what I was feeding it. In the late-90s, when I held the XLO Signature 4.1b (after pulling it from a Mark Levinson No. 360 DAC), I realized the error of my ways. I missed ACS, her spunk, her Victoria’s Secret lingerie (which included the same colors as XLO Signature: black, magenta/lavender/periwinkle/purple, and light gray), her participation in sports, and her honest criticism of audio products.

After the Theta Jade turned out to be a godawful transport, I reverted to one-box CD players. Thus, I no longer had the need for digital cables, including the XLO Signature 4.1b. Nowadays, with computer audio requiring DACs, interest in digital cables has been rekindled. ACS and I have rekindled some (only some!) of what we had in the mid-90s. So it is time to bring back the Signature 4.1b. Stay tuned!