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carbon interconnects

post #1 of 27
2/17/08 at 11:34am
Thread Starter 
Has anyone (except me and spritzer ) tried carbon interconnects?
Your impressions?
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post #2 of 27
2/17/08 at 11:39am
Carbon, in its various forms,

1) Graphite
2) Diamond
3) Carbon fibers
4) Buckey ball


I wasn't aware that carbon is a good conductor of electricity in any of these forms.
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post #3 of 27
2/17/08 at 12:17pm
I've tried a few with carbon conductors as a part of the design (they may also have additional silver or copper in them). The sound is unique and tends to be very smooth and balanced, quite grainless and very pleasant to listen to, while retaining a healthy neutrality tonally.
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post #4 of 27
2/17/08 at 12:23pm
I have been using Van Den Hul The FIRSTs for a some time. I second what markl said about the sound.
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post #5 of 27
2/17/08 at 1:36pm
agree; I have the grover Sc (c stands for carbon IIRC) and its very balanced and extended, maybe tilt to the warmer side of the scale, just barely
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post #6 of 27
2/17/08 at 4:48pm
I've used the First and still use the first Ultimate. In my set then the First sounded dull, rolled-off, lifeless, probably because of the high resstance in combination with my components, others reported different things. I now have the Ultimate; an open sound with deep controlled bass and extended treble (IMO the spots where cables tensd to differ). Cmpared to my favorite, Kimber Silver Streak, they sound remarkably alike, open, dynamic and detailed, but th Kimber has slightly sweeter treble and sounds more 'together'.
I'm sure in other sets the results could be different. Anyway, the Ultimate seems like a good cable for a relatively friensdly price (compared to other 'high-end' cables, which are all overpiced IMO).
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post #7 of 27
2/17/08 at 7:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by furball View Post
Carbon, in its various forms,

1) Graphite
2) Diamond
3) Carbon fibers
4) Buckey ball


I wasn't aware that carbon is a good conductor of electricity in any of these forms.
There are more carbon allotropes. Graphite is a good conductor and is used in arc lamps. The brushes used in old-fashioned DC motors are also made of carbon.
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post #8 of 27
2/17/08 at 8:07pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by chesebert View Post
agree; I have the grover Sc (c stands for carbon IIRC) and its very balanced and extended, maybe tilt to the warmer side of the scale, just barely
CB
I sent email to Grover about purchasing a pair of his latest SC interconnect cables, still using Grover S (black mesh jacket) ICs and speaker cables from over 1 year ago

Long ago when Grover and Mike Wolff were working together they had a cable called the Empress that featured a carbon design, I still have it and find it very silky smooth in its presentation.
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post #9 of 27
2/17/08 at 8:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkAngel View Post
CB
I sent email to Grover about purchasing a pair of his latest SC interconnect cables, still using Grover S (black mesh jacket) ICs and speaker cables from over 1 year ago

Long ago when Grover and Mike Wolff were working together they had a cable called the Empress that featured a carbon design, I still have it and find it very silky smooth in its presentation.
Could you please elaborate on what you mean by "silky smooth"
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post #10 of 27
2/17/08 at 11:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by markl View Post
I've tried a few with carbon conductors as a part of the design (they may also have additional silver or copper in them). The sound is unique and tends to be very smooth and balanced, quite grainless and very pleasant to listen to, while retaining a healthy neutrality tonally.
What does grainless mean??
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post #11 of 27
2/18/08 at 10:54am
Quote:
Originally Posted by 883dave View Post
Could you please elaborate on what you mean by "silky smooth"
Like listening to Senn 650 headphones, full rich flowing relaxed sound without emphasis in treble region. Produces less treble grain, harshness and edginess when playing average sounding Cds, seems to be removing some noise/distortion other cables can pass along.

Not sure what elements of old Empress cable used carbon.......
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post #12 of 27
2/18/08 at 11:41am
Quote:
Originally Posted by furball View Post
Carbon, in its various forms,

1) Graphite
2) Diamond
3) Carbon fibers
4) Buckey ball


I wasn't aware that carbon is a good conductor of electricity in any of these forms.
Graphite is conductive, I've used standard lead pencils to repair broken traces in emergency situations before.

Diamonds are not electrically conductive, though they are great at thermal conductivity.

Carbon fiber without the epoxy insulating it can also be conductive, when working with carbon fiber you have to be aware that the carbon dust can cause shorts in equipment if you are not careful. It also ranks right up there with fiberglass in terms of annoyance to work with.

Bucky balls.....I know nothing about, aside from the cool models that are used to show their structure (I think?).
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post #13 of 27
2/18/08 at 11:51am
Quote:
What does grainless mean??
You have no idea what "grainless" means?

Lacking grain. As in having none, being bereft of, devoid of.
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post #14 of 27
2/18/08 at 11:59am
Quote:
Originally Posted by markl View Post
You have no idea what "grainless" means?

Lacking grain. As in having none, being bereft of, devoid of.
I believe he is asking what grain is in the audio realm.
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post #15 of 27
2/18/08 at 12:31pm
LOL, I know that, I'm just tweaking him.


If he doesn't know (or wants to pretend he can't imagine) what "grain" is.....

There's a link somewhere on this site to a couple of dictionaries that explain audiophile jargon. He's a noob and should look them up so he can get up to speed.

But that's not his game. He's going to claim there's no such thing as the phenomenon described by the term "grain" and will shortly ask us for the test and equipment which measures it.
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