NanoFlo Superconductor Holographic 3D6 AC Cord by Mike Girardi

The Shot Heard Round the Audio Cable World

My recent contact with Christopher Arnold of Enterprise Coatings, Inc. concerning NanoFlo Superconductor (NS) Holographic 3D6 AC power cables wasn’t my first. I started using a patented engine oil additive product containing spherical-shaped nanodiamonds dispersed in a specialized high-temperature lubricant known as Quantum Coat from Enterprise Coatings, Inc. in my automobiles since 2012. My experience with Quantum Coat added to the engine oil, gas tank, and transmission reservoir resulted in a significant improvement in gasoline mileage, lower engine noise, and raw horsepower gains. My recent experience included checking the condition of the engine oil on my wife’s 2007 GMC SUV was driven 3500 miles where the color of the oil appeared the same as the color of oil right out of the bottle.

Having traded that vehicle for a newer SUV, I contacted Chris to purchase an additional Quantum Coat to treat our newer SUV. Still, in my conversation with Chris, he communicated that the product was no longer available for retail sale due to counterfeiters selling inferior products with similar names but now offered only as a service. Within a few weeks of my initial contact, Arnold knowing I was a Stereo Times reviewer, contacted me concerning his new product NS Holographic 3D6 and offered to send my two AC cords to try on my First Watt SIT-1 monoblock amplifiers. In speaking with Arnold, I learned the work of isolating nano-material for superconducting applications started in 1998, and in 2020 the final breakthrough was achieved.

NS Holographic 3D6 AC cords are said to be fully treated with Audiogon-tested NanoTube™ superconductive gel from end to end.[including the exterior nickel-plated brass contacts and outside surface of the cable insulators resulting in a power cable that eliminates poor electrical contact, micro-arcing of receptacle contact points, and limits RFI/EMI through exterior cord nano-coatings.] Based on internal testing by Enterprise Coatings, parasitic load in an electric motor power draw decreased by 25%. The thermal imaging study performed by Enterprise Coatings below shows the average 8F temperature decrease on two coated IEC plug connections. Additional follow-on thermal imaging studies confirmed a 10F temperature drop on the male IEC plug.

Why is the temperature differential between a non-treated and a treated AC power cord with superconductivity significant? Suppose you search Google for a superconductor’s “two most” striking properties. In that case, the response is, “It is the active exclusion of magnetic fields known as the Meissner effect and a material that has zero resistance.” Resistance in audio cables manifests itself through heat or parasitic thermal energy loss. According to Enterprise Coatings, power flow without resistance is shown by slashing receptacle heating and eliminating RFI from micro arcing at the male IEC connector to the female AC outlet receptacle and male component AC jack and female IEC power cord contact points. The static added in the AC power due to micro arcing is amplified along the stereo component chain on standard marketplace AC power cords which is heard as noise and signal compression resulting in excess heat generation within the stereo component. Eliminating the contact micro-arching at the IEC male and female connector contacts is also said to prevent connector oxidation.

To confirm the absence of a magnetic field related to the second element of superconductivity, testing of the active magnetic field generated in the Holographic 3D6 AC cable is planned [however, nano-materials may display unique magnetic effects.]

The NS Holographic 3D6 AC cords (herein) come in a standard length of 6ft, but other lengths are optional. When I first received the Holographic 3D6 AC cords, I was underwhelmed by the overall conductor gauge (16) of the Holographic 3D6 AC cable applied to the positive, negative, and neutral runs of each wire. Compared to my reference AC cords, the Synergistic Research Galileo SX used on my First Watt SIT-1 monoblock amplifiers, the overall diameter of the Holographic 3D6 AC cable paled in comparison (at least three times smaller). Each Holographic 3D6 AC cable offers a 30-day money-back trial period and a two-year warranty. Enterprise Coatings recommends that each cable remains a dedicated connection, as and where first connected, to maintain optimum results.

In this review, I started with swapping the two power cords on my First Watt SIT-1 monoblock amplifiers between my long-standing reference, the SR Galileo SX, and the NS Holographic 3D6 AC cords. I swapped the power cord on my Ayon Audio S-5 Network Player/DAC/Preamp, the heart of my all-digital system. After a 200-hour break-in period, all comparisons were made on the Holographic 3D6 AC cords.

A Copper Conductor-Based PC That Does Not Sound Like Any Metal I Have Heard

The main system components in my reviewing system include the AfterDark Project ClayX Roon KARMANN Music Server, AfterDark Project ClayX Giesemann Rosanna Network Bridge powered by a Farad Super3 lps, AfterDark Double Emperor Crown Master Clock powered by a Farad Super3 lps for the EtherRegen external clock input, Waversa EXT Reference LAN filter, Ayon Audio S-5 Network Player/Preamplifier/DAC, Uptone JS-2 Linear Power Supply for Google Fiber Router and EtherRegen Ethernet switch, Ayon Audio Odin III Build 4 amplifier, First Watt SIT-1 amplifiers, Cube Audio Nenuphar loudspeakers. My listening area is 14ft and 10″ wide with a 9′ ceiling and has a nearly open back wall to 1500 sq ft of first-floor living area.

Lately, I have been getting my fill of whatever I can find that is offered on the ECM record label. I have rarely been disappointed in the quality of any digital recording from ECM. They are the best at digital reproduction while offering a vast variety of music styles. I’ve been intrigued by the 16/44 digital download, Holon, produced by Nik Bartsch Ronin.

Thom Jurek from allmusic.com writes: Pianist Nik Bärtsch’s Zurich quintet Ronin has released a handful of recordings, but Holon is only the second released in the United States. The Ronin personnel have not undergone changes since the Stoa album: Sha, bass clarinets, alto saxophone; Andi Pupato, percussion; Kaspar Rast, drums; Björn Meyer, drums. Most of these players have been with Bärtsch since the beginning and, as a unit, have learned to trust one another to keep frames in this music while allowing for a certain looseness that makes it more physical, more driven, and consequently more intuitive and intimate: check the breakbeats and Bärtsch’s solo on “Modul 41_17,” where Sha moves the pulse by pitch from one sphere to the next and Bärtsch plays between the pulse and breakbeats of Rast. Different rhythmic statements come from Pupato and Rast as Bärtsch goes his own way, investigating a sparse melodic ideal to see how it looks in light of the grooves coming together in the middle. The bassline is a simple note, pulsed — until it changes, and the entire thing becomes a funky dance lock; here is where breaks, piano as a real percussion instrument, and a popping electric bassline move the listener toward funk regardless of where she was at during the beginning of the piece. Dynamic elements change course over its duration no less than four times, as do harmonic engagements of what is truly polymetric invention, and transforms itself into an Eastern modal groove without losing its danceable edge. By the final cut, “Modul 44,” which begins with nearly a full minute of silence, very quiet bells jingling before Bärtsch and the group enter fully and immediately, seemingly in the middle of a phrase, but as Sha begins to allow the lyric line pattern to emerge, Bärtsch suddenly comes at it from an entirely different angle, playing another repetition, changing nuances between the left and right hands, shading his chords, and after another short, skeletally spacious break, Sha begins his own solo, followed by an emerging bassline that echoes the same melodic line but louder, rumbling — never booming — over everything. In the mix, drums and bass are out front, piano, percussion, and reeds are hovering in the backdrop, shimmering with ostinati and minimal arpeggios before kicking into a different kind of high gear where everything is in your face. Uh-huh, this is on-the-good-foot music. The most beautiful thing about Holon is how “live” it all feels. You can see in the mind’s eye and fully hear this music in a setting where an audience is urging the band on, not just listening but moving. How much better does it get than that? 

I’ve always said once you get the bass right, it all falls into place. The Holographic 3D6 AC cord did not require the 1.5dB of bass boost at 100Hz and lower in the Roon DSP function to sound full, articulated, and fleshed out like my reference. With the Holographic 3D6 AC cord installed, I could play my system well past full volume without the grain or glare heard with my reference AC cords. The sound was effortless and flowed into my listening room like never before. Suppose you like snap, air, presence, liveliness, dynamics, an enveloping soundstaging, image depth, impact, lightning-fast transients, exquisite timing, and long decays of individual notes as a result of natural transparency and resolution. In that case, the Holographic 3D6 AC cord is the ticket. I was hearing micro details in the recording I hadn’t previously. I had to invite a local audiophile friend that has had more audio systems than me and has heard my system many times with all the improvements made to reduce noise and signal compression to hear the transformation brought by the Holographic 3D6 AC cord. He confirmed what I was hearing. The next day my friend inquired where to purchase these groundbreaking AC cables. My reviewing system clearly demonstrated the benefits of eliminating poor electrical contact, micro-arcing of receptacle contact points, and the reduction of RFI/EMI through exterior cord nano-coatings.

Adding the third Holographic 3D6 AC cable to my Ayon Audio S-5 Network Player/DAC/Preamp resulted in a further reduction in noise and signal compression compared to my reference, but to a lesser extent. The incremental gains in system performance when swapping in the Holographic 3D6 AC cords on the Ayon Audio S-5 focused on the image outlines being more fully saturated and the homogeneity of the center stereo soundscape. Another striking feature of the Holographic 3D6 AC cord was how fleshed out the midrange was. The sound of my FW SIT-1 has been said that resembles a

Another musical piece, 24/96 digital download, is one of my go-to albums for evaluating new audio components in my system and is Indikon by the Bobo Stenson Trio (ECM). Thom Jurek from allmusic.com writes: Any listener familiar with Bobo Stenson’s work knows that extensive range is a trademark on his records. Indicum is no exception. With longtime bassist Anders Jormin and drummer Jon Fält, he takes on works by Bill Evans and George Russell, contemporary sacred composition, free group improv, traditional hymns, and jazz reads of Carl Nielsen on this 12-track set. Stenson opens with a brief solo reading of Evans’ “Your Story,” dedicated to the late Paul Motian, who had held the drum chair on the Trio’s 2005 album, Goodbye. It’s elegant, emotive, and bears the hallmarks of Stenson’s sparse yet striking chords. “Indikon,” the first of three group improvs, commences with Fält’s solo. The pianist enters with an abundant lyricism, weighted by Jormin’s slow, studied pulse. As the players engage and trade the foreground, an organic process emerges and begins its evolution. On “Indigo,” dark minor keys emerge from the tune’s body to create

The digital download, Indikon by the Bobo Stenson Trio, was chosen to evaluate the performance of the Holographic 3D6 AC cord because of its sense of scale on the recording. The Holographic 3D6 AC cords had a knack for bringing digitally downloaded music to life. There was just more there, allowing the listener to follow each instrument without strain easily. The seductive high frequencies of the percussion instruments and the resonating sound of the piano strings never sounded better in my system. The original component dynamic range baseline specified by the equipment manufacturer was exceeded, which is a first in my reviewing of stereo components over the last 20 years. With lower noise and compression in the incoming signal, my Class A zero feedback First Watt SIT-1 amplifiers felt much cooler to the touch, which should extend their operational life span in the long run. This effect was also demonstrated on my Class A DHT Ayon Audio Odin Build IV SET amplifier. The Holographic 3D6 AC cords could be a godsend to those using Class A amplifiers (solid state and tube) in component operational life and amplification efficiency.

The AC power conductor gauge was proven not to be a limiting factor in my system’s overall performance. One might say that the old cable design rules do not apply to the Holographic 3D6 AC cable. With the Holographic 3D6 AC cords, I now hear what my main system components sound like and not a compressed signal through the cables as in the case of my previous reference AC cords. Whatever the NanoFlo superconductive gel was doing to transform a basic AC power cable into something in the realm of unobtanium, it was demonstrated in the new sound of my system—highly recommended and my Editor’s Choice! 2022 Most Wanted Component.

mike girardi

My journey surrounding the NS Holographic 3D6 AC cord began after reading Mike Girardi’s review. I have known Mike for decades and do not recall him ever sounding so overwhelmed by any audio product to this degree. I phoned to make sure he was doing OK because this review was very unlike him. Mike reassured me he was fine and even doubled down on his assessments of this Holographic 3D6 AC cord he’s been enjoying. I was so impressed with Mike’s enthusiasm; I asked if I could also get in touch with the manufacturer so I might have a listen.

The next day I received an email from Chris Arnold, NanoFlo’s chief designer and company head. He, of course, started talking about the technologies behind why his designs can do things sonic-wise that no cable has done in the past. Of course, I always hear this type of hype from manufacturers, so I just let Arnold keep talking. At the very least, I understood how passionate Chris Arnold was about his NanoFlo Superconductor brand. I researched the brand and found that a few companies have the NanoFlo brand name. Arnold made it clear that these are nothing more than copycats. NanoFlo does have a following on AudioGon under the same name. It appears Nanoflo was working with some folks in the past that Arnold felt compromised his technology, so he shut that side of his business down almost immediately after getting it started. Hence, the Holographic 3D6 AC cord was borne in the fall of 2022.

I was happy to hear Arnold say he would drop me a single Holographic 3D6 AC cable in the next few days. I gave him a hearty thank you rather than attempting to get two AC cords I needed as a minimum (one at each amplifier). A single Holographic 3D6 AC cord arrived via FedEx only a few days later. The package seemed too light to be an AC cord, but when I opened the box, I saw this lightweight and pedestrian-looking AC cord. My first impression was, “uh oh, how’s this unassuming light-in-the-pants cable going to work in place of my beloved Hemingway Creation S AC cord?” Thinking of where I might place it was the next big question. Does the Holographic 3D6 AC cord go into my pre? How about my music server? I got it. Let’s place the Holographic 3D6 AC cord at my Puritan 1512 AC conditioner, which might have the most impact because that location will impact everything.

Long story short, the differences between swapping the Holographic 3D6 AC cord with my reference Hemingway Creation S were as immediate as it was apparent. The energy that accompanied the Holographic 3D6 AC cord was enormous. The music seemed to infuse a new sense of power flow and dynamics into my system. The bass was tauter with incredible snap and definition. Voices grew richer, rounder, and possessed less sibilance with each passing hour of burn-in. The sense of clarity was overwhelming, considering how transparent I thought my system was already. The Holographic 3D6 AC cord’s level of clarity shows off a vanishingly low noise floor. This made percussive instruments pop with a level of speed and dynamic realism I didn’t know existed in these recordings or, for that matter, in my system.

The Holographic 3D6 AC cord is the first single AC cord I can remember auditioning. As a rule, whenever I use an AC cord for review purposes, I request at least two for my monoblock amplifiers (which is normally where I start every audition). Placing a single AC cord into my system, I thought, should produce the least tangible results. I was wrong. The Holographic 3D6 AC cord produced the most significant sonic improvement I have experienced from any AC cord. That it would happen with just a single AC cord demonstrates the company’s extensive R&D alongside its accomplished design goals. After experiencing the Holographic 3D6 AC for just one week, I phoned Chris Arnold again. I asked him to repeat all that nano-theory he mentioned in our first conversation again. It’s funny how little attention I paid until I experienced the technology firsthand.

Just a single Holographic 3D6 AC cord impacted my system as if I had changed all six AC cords! Of course, I do not know what the Holographic 3D6 AC is composed of. And, understandably so, Chris Arnold is keeping his secret sauce to himself. Without hesitation, I admit I have never experienced the level of improvement wrought by a single AC cord, regardless of price. The only question to be answered is how my system, fully equipped with Holographic 3D6 AC cords, would perform. I am awaiting an entire loom of the NS Holographic 3D6 AC cords to arrive shortly. I shall report on my findings in another follow-up discussion.

Fortunately for all of you, I haven’t heard every AC cord in the world, but I’ve heard my share over the past 30 years. I have both Hemingway and the Bella Sound (Bybee enhanced) AC cords as my long-time reference. I do not mention the Bella Sound because I was only able to compare the Holographic 3D6 AC at my Puritan 1512 AC conditioner directly against the Hemingway Creation S. The Bella Sound AC cord retails for $5500 retail while the Hemingway is $9500. The Holographic 3D6 AC cord retails for $3999, and it surpassed one of the best AC cords I have ever owned in the Hemingway Creation S.

If you’ve been thinking of purchasing a new SOTA reference AC cord and saving a lot of money, then place the Holographic 3D6 AC on your 2022 holiday shortlist. Thank you, Mike Girardi, for sharing your discovery with us. Who knew the Holographic 3D6 AC cord would be the discovery of the year?

 
clement perry     

Manufacturer’s Website: https://enterprisecoatings.com

Enterprise Coatings, Inc, NanoFlo Superconductor Holographic 3D6, 6ft AC cord, $3999 USA

Mike’s Associated Equipment

Digital Front End

AfterDark Project ClayX Roon KARMANN Music Server

AfterDark Project ClayX Giesemann Rosanna Network Bridge powered by Farad Suoer3 lps

AfterDark Double Emperor Crown Master Clock powered by Farad Super3 lps

Uptone Audio JS-2 Power Supply for EtherREGEN and Google Fiber Router

Uptone Audio EtherREGEN

Ayon Audio S-5 Network Player/Preamplifier

Amplification

Ayon Audio Odin SET stereo amplifier III Build 4

First Watt SIT-1 monoblock amplifiers   

Loudspeakers

Cube Audio Nenuphar loudspeakers

Cabling 

Revelation Audio Labs Precept II CryoSilver Reference A/C Mains x 3

Synergistic Research Galileo UEF speaker cables with Blue Fuse treatment

Synergistic Research Galileo SX interconnect

Synergistic Research Galileo SX ac power cords, digital and analog

Synergistic Research Atmosphere High Definition Grounding cables x 14

Wireworld Platinum Starlight 8 Twinax Ethernet x 3

Accessories

Synergistic Research PowerCell SX

Synergistic Research HFTs on loudspeakers, Wide Angle HFTs on wall

Synergistic Research Active Grounding Block SE

Synergistic Research Black Box

Perfect Path Technologies Eden Gates

LessLoss Blackbody ambient field conditioner x 2

Marigo Audio Lab L3 Platforms x 6

Marigo Audio Lab E3 Mystery Feet x 5 sets of 3

Marigo Audio Lab ZSD-31 and ZSD-41 SuperDots x 6 sets of 3

Custom built maple wood rack with stainless steel support rod,

sleeves, and cones
Marigo Audio Lab Window Tuning Dots

Herbie’s Audio Lab Preamp Ultrasonic tube dampers

Synergistic Research UEF Black duplexes

Synergistic Research Blue fuses

Stillpoints Apertures x 6