[Hirsch]

I just put the pair of BSSR interconnects that I've got the most burn-in hours on in my Reference setup (CD53/Supra/R10). The cable that they replaced is a prototype cable from Virtual Dynamics that, when marketed, will be the next level up from the Nites (the new line is likely to be called the Master series, although it may be very different from from the cable I have when it goes on sale). In brief, early impression is that the BSSR are very fast and detailed, but don't have the impact of the VD cables. Particularly in the lower midrange, they sound a bit thin. I'll have to do a comparison with the Nites, as they may have more detail than that cable, if not the Master prototype. I'm going to continue burn-in in that setup, and see how it goes. Definitely a good cable, but up against heavy competition.

 

[DarkAngel]

Keep us posted Hirsch......you have lots of IC experience.

As far as bass............what may at first seem thin bass "may" actually be faster more detailed & transparant because the slowness/bloat and resulting slight opaqness of bass has been stripped away vs other ICs.

I really noticed a clarifying of the bass region vs other expensive ICs I've owned. Individual bass notes and plucking/strumming/bowing techniques are more clearly evident with leading edge and decay now revealed etc.

 

[radrd]

I've got around 35 hours of burn-in on them, and I am liking them very much. If they don't get any better, then I will still feel like I got my money's worth. There is an air of realism about the sound that wasn't quite there previously. My complaints about muddiness went away very quickly, and now everything is quite precise and neutral; part of the problem was that my CD player had not warmed up yet, as it tends to sound muddy when I first turn it on.

I can definitely say that I am a silver interconnect guy. If the sound were much fuller, I probably wouldn't be happy. Plus, the bass is great with these. My previous interconnects went pretty low with good tight bass, but there wasn't enough presence in the upper bass. Now, everything just sounds "right." I'm going to keep burning them in up to 100 hours, but I can safely say that I am extremely happy with these interconnects and I doubt that I will ever be upgrading from them.

 

[Sean H]

I've been watching your comments about the Bogdan's. Congrats on the cables and the new CDP!! I think it's high time you grab a new avatar, I'm not sure the bums in team broke are going to keep you much longer.

I'm interested in the Bogdans but the price, even though they are likely a bargain, is a bit out of my range. I'm considering silver IC's myself as I'm finding my all tube system paired with a somewhat darker sounding IC I have now might be too much in a certain way. I have my eye on the RS Cables silver IC. I know this cable is making waves too. I know there's the Bogdan ICS but I hear it's not quite in the realm of the Spirit Ref.

Hey, one suggestion, keep your CDP on all the time! It's solid state, heck just leave it on. Of all the solid state CDP's I have owned over the years every single one of them sounded their best well warmed up and so I left them on all the time as so many people do. Just a suggestion.

 

[radrd]

Quote:

I've been watching your comments about the Bogdan's. Congrats on the cables and the new CDP!!

Thanks, I'm definitely happy with my new system!

Quote:

I think it's high time you grab a new avatar, I'm not sure the bums in team broke are going to keep you much longer.

Yeah, I'm getting sick of Team Broke. It was fun for a little while, but now it's just depressing...

I'm trying to come up with a new avatar, but not having much luck.

Quote:

I'm interested in the Bogdans but the price, even though they are likely a bargain, is a bit out of my range. I'm considering silver IC's myself as I'm finding my all tube system paired with a somewhat darker sounding IC I have now might be too much in a certain way

Silver might be the answer then, but make sure you get a decent one, as many seem to be overly bright and thin.

Quote:

I have my eye on the RS Cables silver IC. I know this cable is making waves too.

Please enlighten me; I don't think I've ever heard of RS Cables.

Quote:

Hey, one suggestion, keep your CDP on all the time! It's solid state, heck just leave it on. Of all the solid state CDP's I have owned over the years every single one of them sounded their best well warmed up and so I left them on all the time as so many people do. Just a suggestion.

That's not a bad suggestion, but my cdp automatically goes off into standby mode when it is left not playing for a significant length of time.

 

[Hirsch]

Quote:

Originally posted by DarkAngel As far as bass............what may at first seem thin bass "may" actually be faster more detailed & transparant because the slowness/bloat and resulting slight opaqness of bass has been stripped away vs other ICs.

The Bogdan is good, but not at the level of my current VD cables.

The original VD Nite set a standard for dynamics in interconnects, but the price paid was cohesion of the sound. It was too much for some setups, and fine detail could be blurred. Much of this was cured by the next generation of Nites, which greatly increased focus without loss of impact. However, the Master prototype takes this even further. I had been having some issues with the tonal balance of the cable that turned out to be due to setup of the CD53 that previous cables had been concealing. Redoing the vibration control on the CD53 restored the sound to what it should have been. At least at this point, the Bodgan just isn't in that league. The sound sounds almost artificially bright, and they just don't let the full midrange performance of my Sylvania's through. Underterred, I'm continuing burn-in, and will report if the tables turn.

Then again, were the Master cable to have actually gone on sale in the form of the pair I have, the price would have made the Nites look cheap (even at full retail). The Bogdans are going to go into one of my other setups and get compared to the Nites and some of my others. For example, my much-delayed review of the HR-2 indicates that the Emmeline prefers the MIT MI-330II to the Bogdan, while my modded Melos prefers the Bogdan. Go figure.

Note: In talking to Rick, he mentioned that Virtual Dynamics will be moving from direct-sale to a dealer network. In a short while, they will no longer be selling direct to customers.

Correction: They will continue to sell to customers in areas that do not have a dealer.

 

[DarkAngel]

AC1 are you there man?
I found an exciting new use for Bogdan BSSR ICs, I asked Ben if he had digital cable and he said the existing BSSR with Eichman bullet RCA is perfect 75 ohm cable.............I tried it, I really like it.

Also tried cheaper Bogdan ICS as digital cable with great results.

Ben will sell single 3ft cables which makes cost very cheap for digital cable...........try this out and verify I am not imagining things please.

 

[Hirsch]

I've been meaning to post to this thread. Thanks for saving me the use of the "search" button.

I'm using the BSSR cables in a new setup. It's a bit convoluted...
Rotel 955AX -> Monarchy DIP -> GW Labs Upsampler -> ART DI/O partially modded -> SCE HRS II -> Stax SRM-007t -> Sennheiser HE 60.

The digital connections are Elco DC-32, while I'm using the BSSR for the analog connections. The BSSR is very impressive after burn-in. It's got loads of detail and air, which the electrostatic setup excels at reproducing. Midrange is dead on. Bass is a bit loose, but that could be anything from the source to the headphone (and there's a LOT of stuff between the source and the headphone

). Overall, an impressive interconnect, particularly if you got in on the introductory price.

 

[AC1]

Quote:

Originally posted by DarkAngel AC1 are you there man? I found an exciting new use for Bogdan BSSR ICs, I asked Ben if he had digital cable and he said the existing BSSR with Eichman bullet RCA is perfect 75 ohm cable.............I tried it, I really like it. Also tried cheaper Bogdan ICS as digital cable with great results. Ben will sell single 3ft cables which makes cost very cheap for digital cable...........try this out and verify I am not imagining things please.

Hi DA,

Cool, glad to hear it works there as well. Unfortunately, I have all bnc conections now since I changed transports to a Muse Model 8 so it won't be possible for me to try one out unless I use a few adapters.
The i2digital has worked very welll for me and in comparison to the AZ MC2 it was better, being able to pass more information than the MC2. But the difference was greater only after I had made more improvenments on the DIO and even using an older Theta DAC made very little difference between the two.
How does the BSSR compared to the MC2 or your glass toslink so far?

 

[DarkAngel]

Quote:

Originally posted by AC1 Hi DA, Cool, glad to hear it works there as well. Unfortunately, I have all bnc conections now since I changed transports to a Muse Model 8 so it won't be possible for me to try one out unless I use a few adapters. The i2digital has worked very welll for me and in comparison to the AZ MC2 it was better, being able to pass more information than the MC2. But the difference was greater only after I had made more improvenments on the DIO and even using an older Theta DAC made very little difference between the two. How does the BSSR compared to the MC2 or your glass toslink so far?

I sold the AZ Mc2 several months ago because the glass toslinks had edged it out overall..........my initial experiments with BSSR is that it is at least equal to glass toslinks (which is quite a feat and therefore preferred to AZ Mc2, but no longer can do direct compare)

I have too many fish to fry right now to do extensive testing since I recently picked up:
-Musical Fidelity A3.2cr amp
-Tyler Taylo Reference Monitors
-Von Schweikert VR1 monitors

Am currently try to sort all this out in my two systems so things are a bit hectic and change often.

 

[ipodstudio]

Are those that bought the Bogdans still happy with their choice? I'm currently reading about the Nite IIs, but they are in a whole different price range and one I was hoping to avoid....