Upgrding speaker cable - QED or Nordost?

[Damian Arstall]

Hi chaps,

Currently running my B&W 603 S3's on QED Silver anniversary biwired to my Sony TAVA777ES and use a Toshiba SD900e DVD-Audio player as source.

I want a bit more detail from my system as I find I need to increase the volume a bit to lift some of the details out.

I use QED Silver Spiral interconnect between amp and DVD but a hifi shop has recommended using Nordost Solar Wind interconnects and speaker cable (which would be about £360 all in all for 2 metres biwired).

I was initally going for 2 runs of QED XT400 with airloc terminals which would be a bit cheaper and sticking with my Silver Spiral interconnect.

Does anyone know how these cables compare?

Also wheres the cheapest place on line for them (Nordost don't seem to be stocked in that many places)?

Thanks

 

[Ultrasonic]

Try posting this on HFC, they love sharing their extensive knowlegde of cables with other forum members

You'd be surprised by how transparent the QED silver anniversary actually are. The most marked improvement ive experienced with cables was changing from my VdH D102 mkIII to Black Rhodium Oratorios.Loads more life and energy in the sound and low level details were much easier to hear and notes were easier to differenciate and had a more natural timbre and the whole sound gained texture and 3D-ness The silver anniversary revealed all this with no probs. if i were u, id keep the silver anni, its a very good speaker cable. I believe your amp is an AV1? I am yet to hear an AV amp which can cut it with music. Even something significantly cheaper like a marantz pm7200 or Rotel RA-o1 would most probably see off your Sony but thats all IMO and for all i know your sony could be great with stereo When i heard some expensive kit using the silver spiral there was more than enough detail, i think what you need a is a dedicated cdp or a stereo amp. Your speakers can be very detailed when partnered correctly.

HTH's

Ultra

 

[I-S]

The need to turn it up is endemic to B&W's DM600 series speakers. I had exactly the same with my 602S1s. I think that you might find that saving a bit more, and trading the speakers in for something more communicative might be a better bet.

 

[Rory]

nordost has a definate sound. really really fast. have a listen. however, i had blue heaven spkr wire and tried teh blue heaven phono leads at the same time and the sound was too bright. some nordost spkr wire and some black rhodium interconnects will sound nice

the qed stuff really does sound a bit 'bland' and 'so-what' to me.

 

[Kelly]

Try posting this on HFC, they love sharing their extensive knowlegde of cables with other forum members

HTH's

Ultra

This is interesting, the original poster, did post it in HFC forums, and when I wandered over there, they asked him to come to zerogain.
http://forum.hifichoice.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=11751&sid=e233468820220e8b9168a5eeffcfca05

 

[PeteH]

This is interesting, the original poster, did post it in HFC forums, and when I wandered over there, they asked him to come to zerogain.[/url]

He didn't seem much impressed by the answers he was getting at HFC - I thought he might get information more to his taste over here.

 

[MartinC]

Also wheres the cheapest place on line for them (Nordost don't seem to be stocked in that many places)?

I wouldn't go spending that much on cables without getting a demo set from a shop first to be honest. Not sure they're going to solve your problem really; I wouldn't have thought they'd make a huge difference over your existing stuff. The silver spiral IC you have is also pretty detailed to start with, so I suspect you may have to look at some form of hardware change really I'm afraid. Just my humble tuppence worth.

 

[Ultrasonic]

Forgot to mention, seveoaks norwich have a pair of Tannoy DC1's in the gorgeous maple finish for £350-they've been there a while so u can try haggling. These are incredibly detailed speakers. I dont listen to them on as high a volume i used to with my 602 s3 and missions as they have an effortless way with detail. You'd hear a much bigger leap in detail retrievel through gettin these speakers than changing to some new speaker cable. TBH i dont think the QED is holding your system back.

Also, the Tannoys are beautifully voiced and go pretty deep without any lumpiness in the bass. The mid range and imaging is exceptional.


Ultra

 

[Sid and Coke]

Try posting this on HFC, they love sharing their extensive knowlegde of cables with other forum members

Hey Ultra,
looking at all the post on the two parallel threads that are running on both forums I don't see a huge difference in advice between them . You are of course right about folk willing to share their extensive knowledge, every little helps.