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Quote:
I used to believe the same thing. Yes, the differences between speakers and headphones can often constitute some of the biggest differences you'll hear versus the switching of other types of components. I am finding now (as I review several higher-end interconnects) that one can also realize significant differences with cables.
Of course, I can only speak of my experience so far with these cables in my primary rig. Though full reviews are forthcoming (I will take at least a couple of months with all of them), a good example would be Cardas' Neutral Reference interconnects. When I put these in my rig, I was stunned from the opening moments of the Gladiator soundtrack at how revealing they were -- hyper-revealing. I found this very exciting, and after some listening I rushed to the phone to call MooGoesTheCow to let him know what I was hearing in my preliminary listening sessions. No joke, these interconnects in my rig sounded like I had inserted some sort of active component somewhere in the signal path. Dynamics were enhanced, treble energy was notably stronger, hyper-hyper-detailed presentation over the my entire audible frequency spectrum was realized -- from a passive component? The only conclusion I could draw was that either the Neutral References are a product of magic (I dismissed this immediately) or they're simply letting more of what's coming from my SCD-C333ES's outputs reach my Max (I opted for this explanation).
Sounds ideal, eh? Maybe. Are these my favorite cables so far of all the ones I'm reviewing? Too early to say, but they are easily the most exciting in my rig (admittedly, as of today, I still haven't heard the Tara RSC Air2's or the Stealth SCR's). If one is looking for the ultimate in neutrality, the Neutral References were mission-built to be just that. Why are they like this? I have no idea. Low capacitance? Low inductance? That's what I was immediately thinking, but I also have cables in a roomful of cables that have lower capacitance and lower inductance that don't do what the Neutral References do. A quick call to Cardas, and I was told that there's a lot more to cable voicing than just capacitance and inductance (it was a very interesting conversation). I'll have the opportunity to try to find out more about the Neutral References and why they do what they do by asking George Cardas questions about them (which I hope will provide me with some neat info for the review).
Again, full reviews are forthcoming, but I thought I'd mention (in my very long-winded way) that I am learning that cable differences (at least with the cables I'm reviewing right now, and in my rig) can be tantamount to changing out other components.
| Originally posted by Xevion In a somewhat reasonable audio setup (<$3000), I don't think I would allow myself to spend more then $300 on interconnects and cables - combined. I just feel that they won't make nearly as significant a difference as a better speaker or amplifier, if a real difference at all. |
I used to believe the same thing. Yes, the differences between speakers and headphones can often constitute some of the biggest differences you'll hear versus the switching of other types of components. I am finding now (as I review several higher-end interconnects) that one can also realize significant differences with cables.
Of course, I can only speak of my experience so far with these cables in my primary rig. Though full reviews are forthcoming (I will take at least a couple of months with all of them), a good example would be Cardas' Neutral Reference interconnects. When I put these in my rig, I was stunned from the opening moments of the Gladiator soundtrack at how revealing they were -- hyper-revealing. I found this very exciting, and after some listening I rushed to the phone to call MooGoesTheCow to let him know what I was hearing in my preliminary listening sessions. No joke, these interconnects in my rig sounded like I had inserted some sort of active component somewhere in the signal path. Dynamics were enhanced, treble energy was notably stronger, hyper-hyper-detailed presentation over the my entire audible frequency spectrum was realized -- from a passive component? The only conclusion I could draw was that either the Neutral References are a product of magic (I dismissed this immediately) or they're simply letting more of what's coming from my SCD-C333ES's outputs reach my Max (I opted for this explanation).
Sounds ideal, eh? Maybe. Are these my favorite cables so far of all the ones I'm reviewing? Too early to say, but they are easily the most exciting in my rig (admittedly, as of today, I still haven't heard the Tara RSC Air2's or the Stealth SCR's). If one is looking for the ultimate in neutrality, the Neutral References were mission-built to be just that. Why are they like this? I have no idea. Low capacitance? Low inductance? That's what I was immediately thinking, but I also have cables in a roomful of cables that have lower capacitance and lower inductance that don't do what the Neutral References do. A quick call to Cardas, and I was told that there's a lot more to cable voicing than just capacitance and inductance (it was a very interesting conversation). I'll have the opportunity to try to find out more about the Neutral References and why they do what they do by asking George Cardas questions about them (which I hope will provide me with some neat info for the review).
Again, full reviews are forthcoming, but I thought I'd mention (in my very long-winded way) that I am learning that cable differences (at least with the cables I'm reviewing right now, and in my rig) can be tantamount to changing out other components.
