Acoustic Zen vs. Nordost

Judy426, you state:

Nordost cables and Valhalla in particular impart an edgy or grainy character I find fatiguing. I don't want to hear all of the resolution and revealing crap espoused by Nordost advocates who use these cables as tone controls to ameliorate other deficiencies in their system.

HUH?!! You can't have it both ways! The one thing that you CAN'T do with Valhallas is use them for "tone controls"! They are merciless for their resolution and micro-dynamics. Edgy or grainy...NO WAY! You've got other problems in your system that the Valhallas are revealing. It is you, who are in fact, are seeking to use cables as a tone control. Not that there is anything wrong with using cables to compliment the synergy of a system, or that the other cables you mention are "inferior".

The complaint voiced most often about Valhallas is their thinness in the bass region. I have not noticed this to be true, but again "system synergy" is the key.

Seurat, I was referring to the Valhalla not the Red Dawn [which I have also used]. The Valhalla is in another league way above the Red Dawn. However, using either the Red Dawn or Blue Heaven will give one a sense of the sonics of the upper echelon Nordost cables. I have heard that the Red Dawn Revision 2 is superior to the original Red Dawn. BTW, I have heard that Acoustic Zen is also a highly regarded cable in the audio community.

Teajay, have you actually tried the Valhallas [I was somewhat confused by your post]? I tend to agree that Valhallas probably may be more tube friendly. However, I disagree with your premise! At the risk of starting another war, most SS rigs that I have heard have a grainy. etched, or brittle sounding high end when compared to tube rigs. At my last CES [2004], Nordost Valhallas were everywhere! And while reviews should always be taken with a grain of salt, there seems to be a majority of reviewers who rave about the Valhallas. As for your comment that these cables are "overpriced", might I remind you that price and value are relative concepts, and the manufacturing process of Valhallas is rather labor intensive.

But as we all know, synergy is that great elusive "missing link" that transforms a good system into a great one!

Teajay, thanks for clarifying that you did indeed try the Valhallas. You state:

We both know all our opinions revolve around personal taste and system synergy...

Bravo! This is one of the simplest yet least understood tenant in obtaining audio nirvana!

So, what do you mean by the term "in your face"?

Why were the Valhallas the least favorite that you and your friends auditioned? Is your negative experience due to the actual sonics, or could your opinion of overpricing possibly have biased your results [this is NOT a put-down of your audio experience or expertise, it's simply human nature! That's why "double-blind" testing is so important for achieving objective results!]

Which AZ model did you chose? What other cables did you think beat the Valhallas? I might try doing a shootout on my own system.

Steve01s4, I'm confused by your post...Was it the AZ Absolute or the Nordost Valhallas that added the "edge to the vocals"? Why did you prefer the Indiras over the Valhallas, in the systems that you auditioned? [Your stereo set-up is quite impressive, BTW!] Also, you list Nordost Quattro-fils as your IC's, and SPMs as your cables. Still using them, or have they been replaced with something more to your liking? And you might try upgrading your Devil Duckie to the Purgatory Penguin, which is the cryo'd version :-)