For the past several months, I've been using a prototype of the new Virtual Dynamics Master Series interconnect. I've been waiting for the final production version before posting a review, and it just arrived today (review coming after the cables are burned in and I've cleared my backlog a bit).
Virtual Dynamics is moving to a dealer network. It had reached the point that Rick was spending all of his time selling cables, and not enough time designing and building them. So, a dealer network relieves him of much of the sales work, and lets him put his energies back into what he does best: creating cables. My understanding is that these cables will not be available directly from Virtual Dynamics unless you live in an area that does not have a Virtual Dynamics dealer servicing it. In that case, you will still be able to buy from Virtual Dynamics at full retail price.
Back to the cables: The RCA connector is from Australia. It's a gripping connector, no lock. You can buy a pair of good interconnects for the price of these connectors alone.
Visually, they're gorgeous. Dark gray, not quite black. My pictures don't do justice to this cable (I need to get a camera that doesn't use a direct flash).
Rick also sent along a Master Series Power Cord for review. Will this be an improvement over the Nites? Is Dave1 laughing madly as he reads this?
(Dave1 and I have been having spirited discussions over whether or not power cords make a difference).
It's every bit as stiff as the Nites. Still, I've gotten used to Virtual Dynamics cable origami, and was able to bend these to the needed shape in no time.
Burn-in has just begun, so it will be awhile before I post about sonics of these cables.
However I can talk a bit about the prototype. In my review of the Nites, I had hoped for a cable with the fine resolution of the Cardas Golden Reference with the dynamic range of the Virtual Dynamic Nite cable (original version, at that time). The prototype Master was the answer. The transparency of the cable is unreal. In switching back to the Nite, from the Master, the Nite actually sounds indistinct and blurred, until you adjust to it again. I don't really have a way to do a peer comparison, simply because the prototype Master interconnect is the best I've ever heard (YMMV of course). The prototype Master simply passes music. Dynamic contrasts are handled easily. Low volume sounds coexist with high volume sounds. Imaging is precise and highly localized. The illusion of depth within the confines of the head is unmatched IME. I've been completely happy with the prototype...and now the real thing is here.
When the production version gets burned in, it will be interesting to see what if any changes in sound appear when compared to the prototype. In the spirit of confounding my results, I've also placed the Master Power Cord on the Creek CD53. (The Master interconnects go from the Creek to the Supra, which still has a Nite PC). Time to let everything burn-in...
to be continued...
Virtual Dynamics is moving to a dealer network. It had reached the point that Rick was spending all of his time selling cables, and not enough time designing and building them. So, a dealer network relieves him of much of the sales work, and lets him put his energies back into what he does best: creating cables. My understanding is that these cables will not be available directly from Virtual Dynamics unless you live in an area that does not have a Virtual Dynamics dealer servicing it. In that case, you will still be able to buy from Virtual Dynamics at full retail price.
Back to the cables: The RCA connector is from Australia. It's a gripping connector, no lock. You can buy a pair of good interconnects for the price of these connectors alone.
Visually, they're gorgeous. Dark gray, not quite black. My pictures don't do justice to this cable (I need to get a camera that doesn't use a direct flash).
Rick also sent along a Master Series Power Cord for review. Will this be an improvement over the Nites? Is Dave1 laughing madly as he reads this?
(Dave1 and I have been having spirited discussions over whether or not power cords make a difference).It's every bit as stiff as the Nites. Still, I've gotten used to Virtual Dynamics cable origami, and was able to bend these to the needed shape in no time.
Burn-in has just begun, so it will be awhile before I post about sonics of these cables.
However I can talk a bit about the prototype. In my review of the Nites, I had hoped for a cable with the fine resolution of the Cardas Golden Reference with the dynamic range of the Virtual Dynamic Nite cable (original version, at that time). The prototype Master was the answer. The transparency of the cable is unreal. In switching back to the Nite, from the Master, the Nite actually sounds indistinct and blurred, until you adjust to it again. I don't really have a way to do a peer comparison, simply because the prototype Master interconnect is the best I've ever heard (YMMV of course). The prototype Master simply passes music. Dynamic contrasts are handled easily. Low volume sounds coexist with high volume sounds. Imaging is precise and highly localized. The illusion of depth within the confines of the head is unmatched IME. I've been completely happy with the prototype...and now the real thing is here.
When the production version gets burned in, it will be interesting to see what if any changes in sound appear when compared to the prototype. In the spirit of confounding my results, I've also placed the Master Power Cord on the Creek CD53. (The Master interconnects go from the Creek to the Supra, which still has a Nite PC). Time to let everything burn-in...
to be continued...
I gave a quick listen to see what they sounded like as they were breaking in (that way I'll at least know when the sound changes). Early impression: best cable combination I've ever heard. I hate saying things like that too early, because the sound of VD cables change during break-in. But I'm hearing levels of detail I never even dreamed of. I'm seriously psyched by these cables. I'm going to have to see if it's the interconnect, power cord, or the combo. I'm also going to have to hear the final sound after I've got some hours on them. But if these cables live up to their early promise, there's no way that I'm letting them go. What's happening right now is not subtle. We're talking the same order of difference between generic cords and the Nites, now happening between the Nites and the Masters. I shouldn't let myself get carried away yet, as I've had one experience where break-in wasn't kind to cables. Still, as I type my wallet is shivering in terror 
