Furutech NCF

Any opinions on this?

The latest advancement is ‘NCF’: Nano Crystal² Formula, an ‘active’ anti-resonance damping material now included in the body of selected connectors. Developed in-house by Furutech’s design and engineering team, NCF already features in the brand’s top-of-range NanoFlux NCF power cable. Now it is now being incorporated into the bodies of several of the company’s connectors.

Not sure about the snake oil content in this one. I stumbled upon it while researching some straight UK plugs like the F1363. How much f***ing vibration problems do we have in our systems?

I imagine soon we will have liquid nitrogen cooled cables since vibration(except mechanical) will be less near absolute 0.

 

I was skeptical but the ncf receptacles and power strip def opened things up, increased dynamics and clarity. But as with all tweaks at this level they're equivalent to a tube swap if your system can resolve the changes. Also prob harder to detect on headphones (at least thats been my experience so far, also harder to care for headphones but thats just me). Don't expect the heavens to crack open and sunlight to pour down on you amidst the song of angels. Havent tried the power cables though.

 

Good stuff, detailed and resolving but has a tone you either love or hate. I prefer the audio replas ones but they’re found only in japan and twice the price of the NCFs.

 

There are Chinese knockoff brands selling NCF tech in various products.

Not sure how reliable they are in their marketing though.

 

Are they knockoffs of the NCF tech, or knockoffs but with the actual NCF tech? Tonnes of fakes on Taobao for all sorts of audio tweaks.

 

Furutech NCF stuff is the nuts. As already mentioned, though, your rig has to be able to resolve the difference between NCF and lesser connectors (or outlets). When it can, NCF is incredibly good - and audibly better than the other Furutech connectors. A couple things to consider: (1) Furutech connectors are generally offered with gold plating which I found notably bloated / bloomy, rhodium plated copper which is more balanced sounding but has a bit of an overall "polished" character, and NCF material which seems to remove that bit of noise and distortion yielding a clean and crisp end result. (2) FI-28-R connectors use the same electrical contacts as the NCF connectors (but the different plating) at a substantially lower cost. (3) If building DIY cords, the connectors are more important than the wire. That is, get the best connectors you can afford and spend less on the wire rather than the other way around. (4) Sorry to say, but the first time I went from computer cords to even run of the mill "good" power cords, in the right system, the difference was greater than a tube swap.

Some cost cutting tips:

A. There are NCF connector knockoffs on Ebay. These aren't counterfeit with Furutech printing, like on alibaba, but some of these are "reverse engineered" copies of the NCF design. They just don't use the NCF material in the plating as that is proprietary and not reproducible. A buddy I know with a very resolving system who has tested all sorts of connectors told me these Ebay copies gave him 85% of real NCF performance (for 10% of the cost) and in some of his friend's systems, he couldn't hear any difference at all. These knockoffs ship from China, and I bought a bunch but haven't gotten around to trying them. I think they were like $40 bucks a pair (IEC + AC outlet connector).

B. There are some incredibly good power cords for audio applications that one can buy for $20 manufactured by Ching Cheng (real name). I have a bunch and found them very neutral. Most importantly, they don't suck the ambience and air out of the sound as most/all low grade computer cords do. Here again I know people who compared them to many commercial "audiophile" wires and preferred the Ching Chengs for their lack of coloration. We're talking $600-$800 audiophlie cords bested by the $20 Ching Chengs. It's the 14 gauge version of what they call Plug EL-304; http://www.chingcheng.com/ul-csa.html . I noticed they now have a 12 gauge version of the same cord, which I've never tried. Incidentally, Pass Labs, ships (or at least used to ship) Ching Chengs with many of its high end products.

C. Lastly, for most people, particularly those with personal audio rigs, I'd suggest mostly not f'ing around with power cords. At most, buy a $20 Ching Cheng and then know you don't need to have any power cord nervosa at all.

 

For those who keen to read about Chinese standard powercord comparison: ching cheng, i sheng, bao hing, etc. This thread has it covered: http://www.lejonklou.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=116&start=25

 

Don't want to hijack this thread, but I'd never seen that Chinese powercord comparison you linked, and it's interesting. The Ching Chengs are rated "boring" by some people in thread. Based on those I've talked talked to who have tried them (who are people I know have good ears too), and in my experience (though not having sampled other Chinese cords), the Ching Chengs are simply neutral by consensus. I can see some people liking characteristics of other cords for various reasons, but in a lot of those cases I believe those (cheap) cords are adding colorations rather than getting out of the way like the Ching Chengs do. So those others may sound more "exciting". But I don't agree with the one person in the thread who said the Ching Chengs suck life of the presentation. Quite the opposite. I can provide other cords that do at a moment's notice for comparison purposes too. ;-) Anyways ... carry on.

 

I chonged the shit out of some of my system and I don't regret it. Chong it up bros.

 

were can we get the ching chengs? @bazelio

 

buy a pass labs amp, they ship with ching chengs!

 

Thanks guys. I have two wywires silver power cords with schuko connectors so I'll try the NCF plugs and replace the IEC side as well. These will be used with the new ps audio p5 once it arrives.
I'll do one cord first and see if I can catch any differences.

 

The NCF plugs are really pricy. REALLY pricy. I personally stick to the 004 (there's a new armoured version) from Oyaide for a more economical option.

Don't forget the receptacles; there's also an NCF IEC inlet that's not really that expensive; and for the wall I have NCF as well as Audio Replas (a pricier Japanese product but with better tone than the NCF imo). I find receptacles to be better ROI- you can use them with all components and they're not as expensive for some reason.

 

I take the Furutech marketing with a massive grain of salt. They make good (if sometimes overpriced) connectors, but the last thing I'd ever buy is their Flux 50 or Flow 28, which in my humble opinion are just a dressed up power cord extensions with an inline IEC filter. IEC filters are $10 at Mouser or $5 surplus and are just a generic way to get rid of a little bit of EMI/RFI.



Nothing against anyone using their stuff, it's very well made, but in many systems I think better gains could be made elsewhere (e.g. upgrade trafos, caps, potentiometers, run better power cable through the wall, etc.).