All time favorite speaker cables

so far, 16 companies have been mentioned as sources of favorite speaker cables.

if the purpose of the thread is to obtain ideas for purchasing a speaker cable, how does one make use of 16 suggestions (opinions) ?

if the purpose is to exchange opinions, and this is certainly a forum for that purpose, what else is gained ?

it seems that there are so many threads where opinions are elicited regarding what is the "best" product, at or below a price point or what is one's favorite component, that such a subject would be trite by this time, having been asked and answered over and over again.

Surprised that there are no mention of the Kimber Select KS3035 and KS3038. Wonder how they compared to the Synergistic Teslas...

I sold away the Supra Sword after auditioning Van den Hul SCS-4 cables.

Y'all got that right - Cardas Hex golden 5c I've got a pair and they are it. I use all Golden Cross now but the Hex is great. I had, a long time ago, Quadlink, but the Hex was way better.

PAD Dominus Rev B - so blew away everything else that it was never a competition.

Cardas Hexlink Golden 5C separate bi-wires have been in my system since 94.

They sound consistantly musical across the board and sell fast when they go up for sale.

Audioquest cables probably won't get much mention as they've become too mainstream but the first cable I tried and had an "ah hah" reaction was the original Audioquest Slate. They seemed to add a sense of depth to my system that only solid core cables have had. Not sure why but the newer version doesn't impress me quite as well.

Both the Wireworld Eclipse III and the Gold Eclipse III were highlights of anything I've ever owned...and I've had much of what Cardas, Nordost, Kimber and others make/made.

Intuitive Design Chimera Reference carbon nanotube speaker cables. I did a review on them here on Audiogon. Another league up from conventional cables.

NBS Black Label for now with FMS Nexus not too far behind it.

I love my Harmonic Technology Pro-9s.
Although they didn't work with my low-powered SET, they are magnificent with high powered tubes or SS.

I have had many cables and my current MIT Oracle speaker cables and interconnects are by far the best I ever have had. My cds sound analog and the music sounds so real that from the next room it sounds like live musicians are playing. Of course my other equipment, Accuphase and Avantgaurds help account for this realism, but I have tried them with other highly regarded and reviewed cables and have lost that realism. You simply must audition these cables to appreciate what they can do.

Right now I would have to say the Mosaic Chimera by Intuitive Audio. Although I still have a fondness for the CRL/FIM Silver.

I have had the Supra Swords in my system and really liked them. I think Krell_man has described them accurately. If I didn't already have the CRL/FIM Silver, which has a very similar sonic signature, I would have kept them.

JPS FX series but they do have a downside:

not to expensive
name is not exotic

but performance is at least as good as terminated coat hanger.

2-06-08: Eldartford
They say that Home Depot Orange extension cords are great. The only problem is that they don't have an exotic name, and the price is an embarasment.

Yea that's it-while were at it does anyone know how I can terminate a couple of straightened coat hangers to RCA's? Think about it-solid core, rigid (less resonance), air dielectric, and CHEAP.

Synergistic Research Tesla cables. (I happen to have the acelerator) State of the art.

They say that Home Depot Orange extension cords are great. The only problem is that they don't have an exotic name, and the price is an embarasment.

I settled on the Jade Audio cables after trying many...they just seemed to sound "right" with a variety of components. I referred several longtime audiophile friends to these and we each have shared a similar experience. I think the Vermeil is one of the best values around although you do get better performance with the Hybrid...but at a steep cost.

Valhalla

Krell_man,
I had a full Valhalla system (IC's and SC's) prior to going Tesla and I came to the same conclusion regarding Nordost performance. Perhaps that paper tiger is getting a little long in the tooth?

MIT Oracle speaker & interconnect.

My latest speaker cable, Synergistic Research's Tesla Precision Reference. Unless new technology is created this cable will stay in my system for a long time.

Leica_man,

I agree, the name 'Supra Sword' is different indeed! The company 'Supra' is a well known and long time established cable company in Sweden, they're just becoming known in the U.S. You'd have to read the review and see the drawing, but the 'Swords' are made in such a way that they have virually no inductance or capacitance. That makes them lightning fast, along with having their other virtues.

What caught my attention when I read the review was the comparision with the Nordost Vahalla. I had talked to Walter at Underwood HiFi before that and he told me that he had taken a set of Nordost Vahalla speaker cables in on trade and had already sold them, but that he did have them long enough to give them a good listen.

He said that they were a whole lot better than he ever imaged that they would be, he's not a Nordost dealer. He told me that if I ever had a chance to to pick up a used set on Audiogon, it would be worth my while.

When the Supra Sword review came out in HiFi+ and the end of the year award, I decided to seek them out and give them a try. They are so good and natural that one one night I fell asleep while listening to a CD. For some reason it startled me when it ended and I got up to flip the record over. I had forgotten that it was a CD that I was listening to!

I think that that is about the highest recommendation for anything in our hobby.

I suspect you are looking for some 'high end' recommendations - this won't be of any help. But, FWIW, after a couple of years and many high end cables I settled on some Cardas cable 10+ years ago (Quadlink) and used it thru several systems. It was OK I thought but it sure gave meaning to cable 'break in' for me. I was never convinced that it was optimum but had been told it was neutralish and bought in. (It sure was in comparison to some of the cable I had already tried!)

I reconfigured my room and needed some longer cables but since I didn't know if it was permanent I didn't want to spend a lot of money. I bought some Canare 4s11 and put it in. First thing I noticed is the lack of a need for serious break-in. The next thing I noticed was that it was 'synergistic'. Good cable. If anything it was a bit 'softer' than the Cardas.

The interesting thing is that for the past 2 years I've changed amps, speakers, etc, and guess what - the Canare is still in place, just much shorter lengths, the Cardas is still in the closet, and I have no interest in trying to 'improve' my system by making any more speaker cable changes. I have no sense of loss of fine detail from my components or speakers. Go figure. :-)

My pick would be the Cardas Hexlink Golden 5-C also. I have owned about every frickin' cable ever made and always go back to these. The Cardas Hexlink Golden 5 would be on my list too.

I would have to pick the new Synergistic Research Tesla Series- forced to pick one model I'd go with Precision Reference (I did). Apex is also right there. It comes down to system components and acoustics.

BTW Krell_man "Supra Sword" sounds like something Austin Powers might have returned to him after his long hibernation. "Oh behave"

: )

Supra Swords out of Sweden. I auditioned and bought them after HiFi+ reviewed them, awarded them speaker cables of the year and said that they were right on the coat tails of the Nordost Vahalla in terms of speed and detail, but beat it by being musical. It's right around or under $1,000.00.

After I bought them I ended up upgrading everything else system wise to complement them. I can't imagine how these speaker cables impacted my system in a way that made me want to upgrade pieces to match what these speaker cables were doing. My system now has a list price of almost $40K, including my $850.00 Supra Sword speaker cables.

I'm been told that the Supra Sword interconnects just introduced are a better upgrade than the speaker cables. You have absolutely nothing to lose in auditioning them, and everything to gain.