FFRC or summat else?

I'm thinking of upgrading my cables and I/C's as I'm sure they can't be doing me any favours as they are Richer freebies from my first system 10 years ago. I'm not keen to spend much but would like to be satisfied that I have reasonable cable and I/C's. I'm quite keen to try the TNT FFRC and the DIY I/C's having read the articles and read various snippets on both. Some questions then……

1.Anyone got any opinions on the FFRC and I/C's?

2.My amp only has 2 pairs of binding posts but my speakers are biwirable. Do you need 4 pairs of posts to biwire or can I biwire with only 2 pairs of posts on the amp?

3.Do you think I'll notice the difference!!?

They'll be connecting a Pioneer A400gte, Epos ES11 and a Rotel RCD965BX.

Cheers,
Tom

 

Well personally (but your mileage may vary), I find FFRC not only crap, but not worth the effort of making it. Not when 69p/meter Maplin cable pisses all over it from a great height (IMO of course).

I also tried the GWS cable. For slightly longer than my current VDH cable, with Eichmenn Bullets, it cost twice as much (at least) and yet the VDH cable probably still sounds better.

However, as I said, your mileage may well vary, and its up to you at the end of the day, but I wouldnt bother any more, its just not worth the hassle to me.

 

I agree. I've been there :cry:

Michael.

 

Careful guys,

People get upset when you refer to things as crap

I quite like the cheaper Kimber stuff, especially if you can get it s/h. Pretty reasonable all round performance.

 

I've got as pair of Iaasc new 2.5 meter stuff I'm sure you can have it for a fair 'non crap price '

 

FFRC:
I have a set of FFRC and they seem to work just fine for me, although they are not in use at ther moment, I'm sure they will get a look in at some time in the future. I actually enjoyed making them for some perverse reason .
GWS:
I also have a set of GWS i/c's i can't honestly say that I think they sound any better than any of the ready made commercial designs i also own, in fact given their cost and slightly inflexible nature over short lengths , I would say that a budget commercial design would be a better buy, mine where cheap off a mate and so worth the cost for me.

This arrangement is pretty normal just connect Red and Black at the Amp then split these outputs at the speaker in to two. Then repeat for the other side. Thats what I'm doing at the moment, i actually find it easier to connect up in this manner, rather than rely on those horrible jumper bar thingy's that many bi-wire speakers come fitted with ( i use the bare wire connecor not banana's ).

Lend me your head/heart and i'll let you know, sorry mate but come on, the only way you will know is if you try and find out for yourself.
I thought the FFRC sounded pretty neat actually, and when i first made my original set a couple of years ago I thought i noticed quite a pronounced change in my sounds, I did find the upper treble a bit 'strident ' though , this also lent itself to a very clear mid range. I found that there was bags of detail and loads of the much spoken of seperation ( eg easy to pick out individual shit in the middle of a heavy mix ). It seems to be VERY fashionable these days to knock FFRC vehemently, more specifically on this particular discussion board. I would ask your questions in other places too before making any final decisions. A basic 2.5m all bare wire FFRC rig will cost about <£10 to knock up. By virtue of the fact that you have been happily using your existing cheap'n' cheerful, no designer badge, cables for Ten years you have obviously not been infected by the cable junkie bug that blights the hobby so much these days, lucky you. You post does make me whince a little, maybe the seed of doubt has been sown? I'd keep it cheap and simple that way you will save yourself a whole lot of grief, vitriol, mocking, piss taking and self delusion.

Rock on youth...

 

Hi Tom.

How do you find the combination of kit that you have now - is the Rotel providing a good all round balance with the rest?

As for FFRC, well, its inexpensive - so if you dont like it you havent lost much.

Another alternative is buying second hand speaker cable and interconnects of course. Have fun.

Cheers
Chris

 

You could always try the first cable upgrade I ever tried. I found some old solid-core cooker wire in the garage and used that. Worked fine for me for quite a while.

The current cables I'm using (Furukawa FS-2T14) are nearly 14 years old. I just trim the ends back every 18 months or so.


Just dont spend a fortune.

 

Ok, so no glowing reports on the FFRC then. Think I might give some Maplin cable a go and see if I notice any difference with what I've got first. Whats that 69p cable PB?

Chris....Rotel is in the post as we speak so I'll let you know.

Tom

 

My TNT cables made my system sound very lively and active however after a month I began to realise all it was is a very daff bright sound which lacked any substance whats so ever.

I have some £5 a metre Ixos stuff now which I knew to have weak bass, I thought it would cure my bass boom and it did perfectly.

 

The code is XR72P.

 

Just received the Rotel at work. I'm hoping it sounds better than it looks, the build quality is pretty awful, the buttons and tray don't even sit flush to the fascia, theres gaps around it. Haven't dared show my workmates as they already struggle to understand my interest in hifi. My sansui looks far better so I'm hoping the rotel will show its quality in the sounds department...where it counts of course

 

Was just looking at the Maplin cable thinking the green looked quite cool then realised its just that colour so you can see it on the website, its actually white :roll: . Any other wire that has a good colour as white would look crap against my walls!
Think I'll go for the T+E (XR51F) as it looks technically better than the speaker cable (XR72P) judging by what CJ has said about insulation and conductors in response to the same question on HFC.
Given up on the FFRC as i've lost the urge for that project!
If I wanted to biwire am I right in saying I'd need 2 lengths for each speaker. Twisting red and red together at the amp end but terminating both seperately at the speaker end and doing the same for black?
So if I wanted a pair of 5 metre cables I'd need 20m right? and whats the best way to join the 2 lengths together to make my one cable? got to be an alternative to tape?

Tom

 

Anyone used any of that orange mains cable for lawnmowers. Got some T+E but its right hard to manouvre and doesn't look too hot either...the orange stuff looks much easier to use.

 

hi tom

what did you think of the rotel then?


Cheers
Chris

 

Hi Chris,
Rotel is nice....i really noticed the difference which I was pleased about, everything sounds alot better after plugging it in. I was beginning to lose faith! Still not sure about the synergy of the system as it is though....think I might still get another set of speakers....probably Tannoys that lots of people have recommended and compare them to the EPOS just to put my mind at rest. I get the feeling that I'm not getting the best out of the Pioneer. I compared it to my last system and its noticeably better but doesn't blow it away as such. I'm going to stick with it but if the tannoys don't do it I may well look for a combination in a little while that I've heard works really well. Like a pm7200 and some quad 11l's once these hit the 2nd hand market in numbers. Experimenting is good but not when I have to do everything by post cus of where I am.