Oh no, not speaker cables again...

Has anyone got views on which cables might suit my system (Cyrus CD8x, 8 vs2, with PSX-Rs - Wilson Benesch - Audio Physic) ? So far this combination is laid back and relaxed plus detailed and fairly transparent.

I'd like to avoid adding anything that will make it dull or too genteel, but equally I'd hate anything that would add a harsh edge. Sparkling treble would be good - tinkly or strident wouldn't. Strong, well-controlled bass is fine - flabby or thin bass isn't. I realise that's a lot to ask within a budget of £450 for a 4-metre pair, but I'd like to aim for the best compromise. Solid silver has been suggested, but there wouldn't be any within my budget, even used used or ex-demo.

My musical tastes are quite wide, but my favourite kind of music is solo harpsichord, which definitely doesn't benefit from over-bright presentation. The best original harpsichords (from the 16th to 18th centuries) are very individual, quite mellow and very resonant. The crisp attack and the sound of the notes as they decay are so important in defining the character of the instruments.

 

With AP speakers, best stick to solid core if you can.

Dnm reson would be perfect if you don`t want to spend much.

 

Some of Zanash's solid core silver's would work a treat

 

running gun, thanks - someone else told me that too.

But how do you find out about them / buy them ?

 

I knew I shouldn't have looked at this thread! £450 for a total 8m of cable; there is really no need to pay more than £45 at the most.

Something like - http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?TabID=1&ModuleNo=51&doy=9m6

Since you haven't posted here before I don't really know if you have only been exposed to lots of magazine reviews, adverts and dealers saying more expensive cables are better... but the fact is that electrically identical cables sound the same. You can get cables with extremely benign electrical characteristics for very modest money, so any cable that truly does sound rather different from such a cable is generally doing something to the signal along the way. You might like the sound of that more. Personally I don't, especially given the cost of such a tone control.

You may know all that , and you (and others I'm sure) may turn around now and say I am deaf and so on. You are quite welcome to spend your money where you like but at least I tried to save you £450!

 

Geeze, I really am out of touch!




LS

 

Ask Z for a loan of some cables. I use his silver ones all sewn up in some funky haberdashers fluff and they are the doggies doo dah's. Easily see off my matey's flat Nordost.

 

all you really need is this stuff in 2.5 or 4 depening on the length required
http://www.clearly-av.co.uk/V565060.html
________
Marijuana card

 

I just paid £40 for a pair of 3 metre lengths Chord Rumour biwire speaker cables. I used QED Silver anniversary cables before. Quite honestly, I cannot tell a lot of difference between the two.

I also had some expensive Ecosse MS2.3 in the past, again there isn't a lot of difference between the Ecosse and the QED.

Law of deminishing return can apply to speaker cables from my experience.

 

oops, didn`t spot the £450.

I would definitely recommend zanash`s silver cable....best cable i ever did hear.
superb.

 

Oh no another debate on cables. The naysayers and believers are at it again. Best thing is try to demo and see for yourself. I could give you recommendations but sometimes you get people say your trolling or just banging on.

 

I've a 4m pair of DNM Reson (solid core so suited to your application) which you can have for £45 incl P/P . I've no doubt that Zanash's cable would be much better- I have a pair of his agau interconnects and they are very good indeed. For a different sort of sound (note I don't say better !) I'd also try, as I mentioned recently on another thread, the cheaper Kimber cables as purveyed by RA - 60 days sale or return, which are OK.

 

this is what I have and is all you need...

 

Go DIY.
TNT UBYTE-2 is the business.

http://www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/ubyte2e.html

 

I shouldn't have looked at this either, Simon!

I have to say i ahve had less lluck playing with speaker cables that i/cs...but I ahven't tried that many.

Am using (petes recommnedation)of "twin and earth" as speaker cable, which seems to be working ok......there could well be better out there. I have not got the resources just now to experiment.

Simons point about the mag reviews is very relevant......don't get sucked in!! Perhapts trying twin and earth would be a good low cost starting point?

Welcome, BTW and let us know how you get on!





David


ps £450 sounds a bit excessive.....unless you are quite CONVINCED its doing soemthing (REALLY) special. Dob't just buy 'cos of a mag review,though.

 

Actually David has a good point about trying twin and earth.

If you are looking at £450 of speaker cable I suspect you already have a nice system and some pretty decent cable. Try some simple twin and earth mains cable from B&Q and just see if it is that much worse than your normal cable. If it isn't (it shouldn't be) then logic suggests getting a more expensive cable won't be better either.

If it is a lot worse then I guess you are 'one of them' And you may like to investigate uber expensive stuff.

 

there's a wave of the new US cable designers that produce rather great sounding products.

do google for 'anti-cables', 'reality cables', 'grover huffman' (he has no website though)

i'm currently using anti-ICs and they are the best value for money in the cables world i've experienced in 20 years, DIY world aside.

 

Wow! My thoughts exactly! You must be psychic.

 

The anti-cables sounded very much like DNM reson to me - I admit to haveing heard subtle differences between speaker cables and still experiment from time to time. I've never heard real night and day differences - although my initial scepticism about cables was swayed a bit by a friend 5 years ago or so. He always spent rather a lot on cables - which I duly mocked - so one evening he did a little demo for me, his system was burmeister CD and amps (don't know models - shiny metal and fairly slim) into some proac floorstanders. He had wired up the system with "bell wire" speaker cable, standard mains leads and used 'freebie' interconnects which I'd brought along. We listened to a couple of tracks (Folk tale - Christy Moore / Walk on gilded Splinters - Paul Weller and a few others). He then 'Kimbered up" the system with Kcag interconnects, powercords and speaker cable which cost more than my car at the time (!)and listened to the same tracks again. There was a difference - in clarity / tightness and what I guess is called soundstage. Anecdotal I know but it opened my mind a bit an the cables question. Perhaps it means that there are "crap" cables, then better ones up to a point when things don't make much of difference?

 

Thanks for the information and advice.

I should have said that I'm getting a new system together from scratch, so I have an open mind about cabling, other than not wanting to use the cables to change the sound characteristics. So far I have got or ordered...

Cyrus CD8x, 8vs2, two PSX-Rs - GSP Gram Amp 3 Fanfare, PSU1 - Wilson Benesch Full Circle - Audio Physic Spark 3

The newer cables sound very interesting - especially if they add and take away as little as possible from the source.

Did you buy the Anti-Cables directly from the maker?