Willster, many fine wide bandwidth amps such as my Threshold and I would imagine Spectral need the zobels. It is not necessarily an indication of poor design that zobels may be needed. One might even argue that it might be be an indication of better quality. I would suggest using zobels in most applications, they can only help and do no harm. |
I've had good customer service from Alpha-Core in the past, not great Shari of Thiel, but good. I could imagine some improvement, but your reaction, based on my experience (not yours of course) is a bit surprising. |
I suppose the purists who choose to use the speaker cables sans standard terminations such as spades or plugs might find the cables fragile. The recommendation to use the free zobels Alpha-Core offers with loan or purchase of their speaker cables is well documented. In the unlikely event one fries their amp because they choose to ignore these many warnings, they'll have no one to blame but themselves. |
I don't believe that an Audiogon member is being any more "anonymous" hiding behind a user name, than a manufacturer's rep' is hiding behind a brand name. If one started discounting opinons on this basis, most of the content on this site would have to be discounted. I think it a positive thing when an Audiogon member shares their experience regarding customer service, whether it be positive or negative. Heck, manufactures go to great lengths and expense to project their opinion of themselves or the positive opinion of others regarding their products, but rarely (and quite understandably) do they do they opposite. This may be one of the few avenues that the audiophile community has to keep it "real". While I think this thread may have opened in a less inflamatory fashion, I still welcome the sharing of experience. As the thread progressed, I believe the consensus indicated that Abdou may have had something of a unique experience or reaction. Perhaps, a somewhat unexpected positive outcome may have or will come to be. |
I'm not sure about this, better check with Alpha-Core, but I believe the zobels are free with initial purchase or loan, and are otherwise sold at a cost of $20.00. In any event, prudent risk management would suggest they are well worth having. |
If your talking about Alpha-Core Goertz speaker cables, many if not most users can use them sans "terminations". Hardly "a big hunk of useless copper.". |
There should be no greater risk of shorting an amp with Alpha-Core Goertz solid speaker cables whether they are used with traditional termination or au natural. |
Why not try the zobels? They work as intended without compromising anything. |
The zobels needed for some amps with Alpha-Core Goertz (or other designs with similar characteristics for that matter) is due to feedback from the speakers. Placing the zobels at the speaker terminals easily and unobstrusively resolves this dilemna. I'm not alone in finding the Alpha-Core Goertz speaker cables to be particularly compatible with the wide-bandwidth Threshold amps. In no way am I arguing that it's not the amps that neccesitate the use of zobels, only that there is a very easy solution that accomplishes the desired end result, and it does so with out any compromise. If needed, there is no sound reason not use zobels. |
If anyone is familiar with "no sound reason", it's me.
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I have long forgotten this thread. To go back and respond to Willster's questions. I was referrring to (and rather poorly in retrospect) the "reactive oscillations" that you more properly described. I don't consider the zobels as either a tweak or as a band aid, but more as minor and easily reversible if need be, modification. Nelson Pass the designer of the amp in question suggests such a modification on his web site, Thiel's tech support suggested the use of these cables with the zobels if needed and of course so did Alpha-Core. FWIW, I discovered all of this prior to implementation and your question. While it may appear less than elegant to you, I can assure you that the unobstrusive use of the zobels and Goertz cables have provided me with the most satisfactory sound to date and I am not tempted to change. |
As I’ve posted before; there’s no sound reason not to use RC networks (zobels) with the Goertz Alpha-Core speaker cables.
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