Acoustic Zen Absolute Copper vs. Cardas Clear interconnects
I currently have the Cardas Clear interconnects and speaker cables in my system. I demoed several AES cables from The Cable Co. and the Acoustic Zen Absolute 110 AES/EBU cable won the shootout.
Has anyone compared the Acoustic Zen Absolute Copper interconnects with Cardas Clear interconnects? I would like to hear your impressions and this includes any Acoustic Zen speaker cables vs. “Cardas Clear” speaker cables too. At some point, I would like to demo the Acoustic Zen cable loom from The Cable Co., (e.g., Hologram II or Absolute speaker cables). I’m on cruise control with HiFi purchases for a little while, however, I like the Absolute 110 AES cable so much, I might want to pursue the Acoustic Zen interconnects and speaker cables at some point.
I know I have to demo the cables in my setup to form my own opinion, but I’m interested in your impressions if you’ve compared the aforementioned.
@audphile1Concerning the intermittent pops and static, AGD Productions and MSB have been very responsive and AGD has a gameplan to troubleshoot the situation. We’ll get it worked out. Yes, the Till Brönner tune is nice!
@mclinnguyThat playlist is not my top ten but they have been in my rotation lately. I hope you are able to enjoy some of them on your system! Ohhhh, the power cable adventure. This hifi upgrading and swapping of this and that will never end if we keep reading and listening to reviews. I love forums and reviews, but when I’m content with my system, I try to avoid a bunch of reviews because “sometimes” it makes my wheels start turning, “I wonder what that sounds like in my system?” Audio Bacon mentioned how he loved the Synergistic Research power cable too, but I can’t remember the model? I thought about pursuing a demo, but was content with my PC. I’m good with the AQ power cables. They are good for the money!
Nick at TMR Audio encouraged me to check out Audience cables
Audio Bacon had a nice writeup of their AU24 SX power cord, and it makes me want to try one, but that's starting to get into stupid money territory IMO- I don't know why their power cord is 50% more money than their AU24 SX 6' speaker cables- I think for that amount I would just go with the Dragon- but I am good for 2024 me thinks.
Thanks for your top 10 list @dbt- I haven't heard of most of those!
@dbt hope you resolve the right ch popping issue.
By the way I totally agree with your assessment on listenability of lesser quality recordings with AZ Absolute. Keep the thoughts coming.
@mclinnguyI’m not insulted at all with your suggestions. Here’s a quick snapshot of what I’m dealing with, my speakers are dialed in to a tee. I already had tight and accurate bass with the Cardas Clear, so the swap to the AZ Absolutes conveyed their sound signature to my system with meatier bass, at the cost of losing clean bass. The bass sounds good, but some tunes don’t sound as good as the Cardas in the bass region. I’m demoing cables to see if they make a difference and adjusting the speakers to make the AZ’s do what the Cardas is already doing isn’t something I want to do. I’d be adjusting my speakers every time I swap a cable out. I demo a lot of music with my Sennheiser HD800 headphones, so I take the room out of the situation with headphones and my HD800’s are truly accurate. Some consider them too detailed, but you hear everything in the music, so I know what to listen for in my speaker setup. The AZ Absolutes are more airy and the midrange is thick, so it sounds extremely good with the majority of my music, but it doesn’t give as good a rendition of a piano like the Cardas Clear. The AZ Absolute make songs that sound a little thin sound very good! I think I could live with the AZ Absolute cables! I played with power cords and I clearly heard the difference, so I have Audioquest Thunder power cables for my mono blocks. They were superb for the money. In fact, all of my power cables are Audioquest. Also, I’m good on room acoustics and this room is not the final resting place for my gear. The room is wide with left corner several feet away and no right corner due the a open floor plan, 2-story room. Speakers have plenty of room to breath.
@audphile1You were correct about taking my time with the cables. I let them settle in and it seems like the bass became tighter, but still not as clean as the Cardas. I must say that the AZ Absolutes have been more enjoyable overall. I haven’t had any tunes that I wanted to skip with them. I can’t say that with Cardas.
Nick at TMR Audio encouraged me to check out Audience cables. I was solid on my Cardas until I bought that AZ Absolute AES cable and that got my wheels turning! I’m good with the AZ speaker cables. My buddy is a dealer for Siltech and he wants me to try them. I’m dealing with a static/popping issue out of my right channel, so I’m trying to sort that out with my amp and DAC manufacturers.? That’s the priority at the moment.
I’ll follow up with any updates.
Here’s a few test tunes for you all to try in your system;
1. Till Brönner - A Thousand Kisses Deep
2. Brian Bromberg - Solar
3. Orrin Evans - The Elm
4. Markusphilippe - Hey Joe
5. Chick Corea Trio - All Blues from The Trilogy 2 album
6. Ralph Towner & Paola Fresu - Blue in Green
7. Sean Jones - Letter of Resignation
8. Keith Jarrett, Gary Peacock, Jack DeJohnette - The Wrong Blues
@dbtyes absolutely kudos to you for keeping us updated! Take your time with the speaker cables. I would recommend auditioning Audience AU24SX and Purist Neptune speaker cables. You might hit that perfect balance top to bottom without impacting the awesome traits of the AZ Absolute Copper interconnects.
@mclinnguyditto on Hurricane and PSM156. The results you get with the Hurricane are probably more system dependent than with a lot of other power cables. Adding more Hurricane power cords compounded the effects. Didn’t work for me.
@dbtgood info -thanks for sharing. So many times a poster has a question like this, they say they are going to try this vs. that, and then the thread ends and a reader has no idea what ever happened!
I am not trying to insult your audiophile knowledge and experience, but that bass might be controlled by a slightly different speaker position, if you haven't already tried that, or maybe a bass trap, or even trying a different power cord, (see below) but with a different power cable that will affect tonal balance with the higher registers also of course.
If you don't mind my hijacking your thread again I will add some power cord thoughts for what I have recently gone through with my Hurricane addition, as I already brought it up earlier.
As always this is with my ears and in my system, YMMV.
My components are neutral, and I have always strived for speed, details and resolution, but we are all trying to achieve smooth and natural with that neutral. With playing around with Squeeze, which is the highest resolution and best sounding software for my recent K50 server/streamer (Roon, I love, but it is more heavy and opaque-better for lesser recordings) I have found some recordings needed a little taming for the cymbals, I was getting too much of a good thing, and my ears told me look for a little more midrange body. This is exactly what I got with the Hurricane- compared to the Zavfino Silver Dart it brings the vocals a little more forward, which I like, it adds some richness and tends to truncate 10% of the highest frequencies. The detail is still there with the Hurricane, just more of the middle parts of each transient and less of the extension (its quite odd to hear after being used to the Silver Dart), and the Hurricane is a wee-bit smoother. Maggies soundstage quite well, and I understand many might like having the vocals 10 feet in front of the plane of the speakers, which is what the addition of the K50 did, but that is a little too deep for my liking.
The advantage I have in my system is I just use the Hurricane on just my mid/high frequency amplifier, and I still have the Zavfino on my bass amp, as I actively bi-amp. Therefore, the overly ripe bass with the Hurricane is something I don't have to worry about. The crossover point is ~200hz if someone is wondering. I did try the Hurricane on the bass amp for fun, and actually it wasn't as bass heavy as I thought it was going to be, but my maggies don't go down too deep of course, so someone else with conventional large woofers will get a much different experience. The Zavfino is definitely tighter in the bass, goes just as deep, maybe deeper, and will be staying on my bass amp. I still am using 3 Silver Darts in my system on the other components.
I haven't tried any other high end power cables, and I always wondered how these Zavfino silver darts compared: I tried one and loved it, and got a few more, and my ears told me they sounded really good, but always wondered how they stack up against others. Well, after trying a Hurricane I can verify these Silver Darts are an absolute bargain at $1025 for 10 gauge 1.5m silver power cable- if someone is looking for more resolution and frequency extension, more excitement, but always remaining smooth, and little deeper soundstage, over the $2700 2m high current 11 gauge Hurricane try the Silver Dart. Wish I had 20+ other power cables to compare like Audio Bacon, but sorry, no. 😁 You can't always tell which cable may be silver these days as manufacturers are blending different metals, like Acoustic Zen, which OP just described as "rich mids" but in this case it is easy to know the Zavfino is silver and the Hurricane is copper- after listening to both the older stereotypical assumptions about silver vs. copper are easy to hear in this case.
So yes @audphile1very happy with the Hurricane, it did exactly what I expected it to do thanks to everyones descriptions of it I have read online over the past year, and the balance of the system is more musical overall. I think another Hurricane in the system may make it too smooth though, and may somewhat reduce the details that I love to hear. I am good for a while. 😁 It is interesting the option to go with one manufacturer's products versus a mix and match for fine tuning. I don't know.
As an added bonus, I have a 2m Hurricane, so it is long enough to go to the Furutech GTX directly and not in the Puritan PSM156 and I do think I get a little more ooomph. I still need to go back and forth to verify but yes, the Puritan may decrease dynamics a small amount for my amp.
UPDATE…. I got the Acoustic Zen Copper interconnects and they outperformed my Cardas Clear interconnects, so they are a new fixture in the chain. Then, I got a pair of Acoustic Zen Absolute speaker cables on loan from The Cable Company earlier this week to conduct a shootout with my Cardas Clear speaker cables. Thus far, The AZ Absolute speaker cables has an airy, full sounding midrange and bass! My Cardas Clear has a more accurate sound in the bass region and just cleaner throughout the frequencies ranges. Pianos sound better with the Cardas Clear. But the Cardas does seem to lack that rich midrange and air like the Absolute. I’m trying to decide which one I like the best because I love the sound of jazz cymbals and brushes on the snare drum with the Absolute, but I love the clean bass and realism of some instruments that Cardas provides. I need more time to listen to my music library because I like to narrow down a test playlist for auditioning my gear, so I can focus on the tunes over and over to hear the difference. For clarity, I’m using the AZ Copper interconnects in the speaker cable shootout because they definitely sound better than the Cardas Clear interconnects. It’s hard to beat the airiness and beautiful midrange of the Absolutes, but I wish the bass was tighter like the Cardas Clear. I’ll spend more time with them and make a decision.
From Used Cables to be exact, but same company- snapped it up and demoed it against a Triode Wire Labs, and it wasn’t really a fair contest. Actually I do see one on The Cable company- was it not there when you looked?
@mclinnguyI am familiar with Audio Bacon’s review. I read several forum comments about the Boomslang and I figured I’d give it a shot. Just didn’t work for me in my system.
@steakster After my experience with the lower tiered Acoustic Zen MC2=Zen vs. the higher tiered Absolute 110, I’m confident a higher tired Synergistic Research AES cable would be a much better performer over the Foundation SX. I didn’t want to break the bank with an AES cable. It’s hard to audition a bunch of cables and gear. It takes time, energy and money. I wanted to try the Jorma AES cable, but the Cable Co. does not have it in their library. My audiophile buddy had the Acoustic Zen Absolute cable and said he misses that cable after selling it. He has the big boy tiered Synergistic Research now, but he still had high remarks about the Acoustic Zen that I ended up buying.
@dbtCool, thanks for sharing. The Boomslang was one I was considering trying. I assume you know about Audio Bacon's review?- he loved it- it was the BNC not AES, but should be similar findings. He did state something to the fact that is wasn't the most transparent though, some quotes below:
"So the first thing I noticed about this cable was how natural voices and instruments were presented. It didn’t exude “atmosphere” or “clarity” but it sounded raw, accurate, and unadulterated. In fact, this is the rawest sounding cable I’ve heard so far. It’s a very good thing. It’s also the cable that has rid me of the notion of how silver is supposed to sound. Along with the WAVE Storm Reference, this is one of the warmest sounding BNC cables I’ve reviewed so far. Both of which are made with 5N silver.....
Although the tradeoff for a richer sound is a less present treble, this isn’t the case with the Boomslang. It’s still able to allow cymbals and strings to shine appropriately.
It’s not as quiet, treble present, speedy, or as resolving of the lower level details – but from a musicality standpoint, I feel it provides enough of those qualities.
Not the most outwardly “dimensional” and “outlined” sound. Some reverb, reflections, and decays aren’t made as apparent – but are still very audible."
Just goes to show one has to try themselves. I wish I could add something regarding a AZ cables comparison but just had some older Transparent speaker cables and XLR's before them.
@mclinnguy I conducted an AES digital cable shootout with the following;
1. Mogami W3080 AES/EBU - Too thin sounding.
2. Synergistic Research - Foundation SX AES/EBU - Too forward in the treble.
3. Snake River Audio - Boomslang AES/EBU - Too veiled compared to the other cables.
4. Analysis Plus - Digital Crystal AES/EBU - Best bang for the buck after breakin, but bass was not as clean and articulate as the Acoustic Zen Absolute 110.
5. Acoustic Zen - MC2=Zen AES/EBU - Bass was exaggerated and boomy.
This was my experience in my system. All cables were broken in except for the Analysis Plus because I purchased it brand new, however I broke it in at 300 hours before making my assessment.
@dbtI'm curious which AES cables you demoed against Acoustic Zen's? I didn't even consider Acoustic Zen for digital, and I just got an AES a while ago.
Hey, another guy with Maggies, Acoustic Zen Absolute XLR's and speaker cables - I can relate 😉
Yes, we have to try ourselves as one person's dark is anothers bright- different amps, different speakers, different DAC's, rooms, and yes ears, but we are all on Audiogon forum here reading everyone elses impressions and opinions, right? I would rather read a few forum posters experiences than a "professional" review.
@audphile1 found the AZ Absolute speaker cables too dark, yet I am trying a different power cable on my amp to get a little more darkness and warmth, as some tracks are a little too "high frequency tipped" based on my setup, and I'm hoping the Hurricane which is arriving tomorrow adds that and a little body to the mids- @audphile1and @ghdprenticetalked me into it- peer pressure!
@dbtSorry, I read your post a little too quickly and made the assumption it was about AES cables. I have a VPI Super Scoutmaster turntable, Skyanalog Ref cartridge, Allnic H-3000 phono stage, Berkeley Reference 2 DAC, Audio Research 5SE preamp, PS Audio BHK 300 mono blocks, and Magnepan 20.7 speakers.
@decooneyI couldn’t agree more, but it’s always fun to hear some insight from the community who may own the product of interest. There have been times where there is the same theme going around about a product from hifi reviewers and actual owners. That still doesn’t mean the product will be the same in your system, but a consistent positive or negative about a product could have some validity to it. I experienced that with the AGD Productions class D amps. Most reviewers and owners spoke highly of them with similar adjectives. They are everything that I read about them!
@dbt"I know I have to demo the cables in my setup to form my own opinion,..."
Appears you already know the answer to your own question. When it comes to cables, I've found its almost pointless to compare with other people's systems, rooms, speakers. Best to use CableCo or a local dealer to try it, as you are considering now. People hear differently, so that's a gap too, in consideration.
@audphile1I am very familiar with the Cable Co. 5% loan program. I have to demo it first because if I don’t like it, I’m out of $100 or so bucks vs. buying it used and trying to sell it. BUT, if I like it, I plan to buy it used.
Yes, please send me the contact information for your hifi dealer.
One other suggestion if I may…you can pickup a pair of 1m Absolute Copper used between $900-$950. If you don’t like it, sell. With the cable co it will be 5% charge from the retail cost. That’s going to add up quickly. And to be perfectly honest the new MSRP for these cables is ridiculous. Just something to think about.
Also…let me know if you would like me to message you my dealer info.
@pinwaWhat speakers, preamp and power amp do you have paired with the Acoustic Zen cables?
Also, my question is not about AES cables. It’s seeking impressions from anyone with the Acoustic Zen Absolute Copper interconnects vs. Cardas Clear, and I’m open to any other cable comparisons with Acoustic Zen. If anyone has Acoustic Zen speaker cables is icing on the cake. I recently purchased the Absolute 110 Ohm AES/EBU digital cable, hence the reason I’m interested in Acoustic Zen’s interconnects and speaker cables. Their digital cable made a nice improvement in my system.
I did replace them with Tyr 2 XLRs.
I’ll add that I tried the Absolute speaker cables when I had Martin Logan Montis speakers, not with my Wilson Sabrina. But the XLRs were replaced when I already had the Sabrinas. Once again, I didn’t replace them because they were bad but only because of the synergy with the new amps.
I would encourage you to try the speaker cables and the XLRs to see how they sound in your system. Overall fantastic cables and I highly recommend them.
I have the Acoustic Zen Absolute Copper XLRs which I felt were an upgrade from Harmonic Technology Magic Link 2's. I also have the AZ Absolute speaker cables which are great. I didn't carefully compare them to anything else but my system certainly doesn't sound dark.
But you specifically asked about AES cables, and recently I bought a Shunyata Etron Python AES cable that simply trounced my Audioquest Coffee Coax cable in exactly the same setup just different connections. And in talking with several people it seems the Shunyata digital cables are very well regarded in general. I don't have any other expensive digital cables to compare to but if you are doing a serious comparison I would add the Shunyata's into the mix.
@audphile1 I appreciate your impressions! Sharing a comparison of several other cable brands and how the Absolute Copper interconnects sound in your system is good information.
I am surprised the Absolute speaker cable was dark sounding in your system because it’s a hybrid cable and it seems like the silver would eliminate the dark sound? Not so in your setup. So, are you replacing the Acoustic Zen with Nordost Tyr 2 interconnects and speaker cables? I will be trying the Absolute Copper interconnects at some point.
Thanks for your impressions and I hope you can get the new amp dialed in!
The cables that were a better fit for my system were Nordost Tyr 2. And this is an important point…better fit for my system.
The Absolute are resolving but warm sounding cables with great mids, delicate but extended highs and lots pf bass with very good texture top to bottom. There’s no harshness or sibilance with these cables and they don’t cause any fatigue.
But…it’s really system/room/listener dependent. I would probably not move on if it wasn’t for an amplifier upgrade that just resulted in a bit too much bottom end and required me to rebalance the sound.
One other note - I tried and found the Absolute speaker cables to be too dark sounding. But again that’s just my take on it in my system.
If you’re after sound with lots of meat on the bone without sacrificing resolution, the Absolute XLRs or RCAs will deliver.
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