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Prototyping new EWA MCS-80

Well today has been an interesting one. Like some other days, the goals soon flew out of the window. I watched them fly away wistfully, it's beautiful out there! I have a few outstanding orders to complete, and I am still waiting on parts. Some premium banana plugs and spades for a lovely set of LS-80 - that's heading to Hong Kong next week. And, a set of mains plugs for a long time friend of ABCaudio - his mains cable is hopefully heading to Finland very soon. Also there an outstanding repair for a gentleman in the USA. Hopefully all this can be done with ease early next week. Sometimes these delays can be deeply frustrating, but today lent itself to another task. So, I spent some more time prototyping the final stages of EWA MCS-80, the new mains power cable that is now very overdue. The most obvious feature of this cable will be in-line mains filtering and DC-Blocking. Prototypes have proved very effective indeed, Colin's design is coping with the demands of even the most powerful amplifiers and outputting a clean, low impedance feed. We are incorporating this product with twin shielding on the cable for total overkill, it will be a most capable mans power cable to say the least!


EWA MCS-5 marketing shot: a mains cable is coiled like a poised cobra against a black background.
EWA Mains power cable

The challenge recently has been how to encapsulate the electronic part of the product. This is particularly important, as mains voltages are not to be messed with. Sometimes small additions can be made and safely sealed under heatshrink and laminate constructions, but this is too large for that. We are instead looking at a resin casting process, and making something of a feature of this unusual aspect of design. I hope to be able to share pictures with you soon! While the resin has performed really well for encapsulating and safely insulating the device, our issues has been two-fold: First, making the cast look nice. This is surprisingly important, as it will be an expensive item and cables aren't exactly elegant at best. Second, providing the correct strain relief for the cable termination within the cast is a right pain to get right. The only way to test this properly is to build one and break it - trial and error! I suppose the practice helps. However I think we are close now, and as ever the solution looks to be surprising low tech. Colin being a chartered electronics engineer needs to be fully confident in his work and how it is applied before the product can hit the market, so we are going to get this right. As he always says, 'KISS' (Keep It Simple, Stupid). Sadly Colin has had a really tough week. Late May can often be a tough period for various reasons, and this year he has had the added burden and drama of more health issues. He has been in-and-out of hospital all week, not having much fun at all - especially travelling to his appointments in London using crowded public transport. I am sure we all ant to wish him a speedy and stress-free recovery, and that he feels much more positive again soon. His typical nature is quite joyful, that's what we want to see! I have been quite worried for him, and I miss the guidance of my wise friend. If any of you dear readers has previously had dealings with ABCaudio, we would appreciate it greatly if you could spare us another moment of your time. If you have not already done so, please consider leaving us a review on google. I am trying hard to increase ABCaudio visibility on the internet, and any fresh review - even if it is for a previous transaction or interaction - would help a great deal. https://g.page/r/CasxSfAjz4mDEB0/review In the meantime, we wish you all a most excellent weekend!


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