I am not an electrical engineer and can only tell you what I hear. I have all Ayre equipment and Vandersteen 5A's. I am a professional violin player, and can tell you that Paul's cables set up straight and far from each other sound very real to me. I borrowed a pair of Kimber Select all silver cables and they sound very colored - maybe more "impressive", but not nearly so real. Pauls cables have a deeper, wider soundstage, is way quicker (percussion - even the hammers on the piano are much clearer and cleaner). The only cable that I would consider for my system other than Paul's are the Audioquest silvers. They were neutral as well in the system, but I couldn't see spending that kind of green and not get any better performace than Paul's. |
I did extensive research concerning the best way (sonically) to use the anti-cables.
This is what i decided to do.
I bought clear,3/4" flexible hose and cut 1/4" inch wide and 1" wide rings.
I fed the anti-cables through the rings and snapped the 1" rings into some 4"long hooks I screwed into my wall ~3 1/2" out and 4" up from the floor.They are spaced ~ 2' apart.
I screwed the first hook directly in back of my speakers and the cables do a 90 degree turn down my wall to the back of my amp.
I spaced the cables with the 1/4" rings ~1'apart and as far as I could to the back of the speakers and amp, until the cables had to widen to meet the speakers and amps posts.
It isnt perfect but its close and a pita but worth the effort as the ~3/4" spacing is the key to the best sound, along with getting them up and out.
I had excessive cable so I cut it and made 3"jumpers.
Im using no terminations on the cables as I've read they sound best bare wire.
All I can say is, all the 'hype' is dead on with the anti-cables
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Spacing the cables further apart introduces a shift in both the nominal impedance of the cables and the tonal balance of the system. Obviously, most systems are not as "neutral" as we would like to think and / or some end users have very specific sonic preferences. Either way, the bottom line is that one can achieve a good measure of either approach ( neutrality vs cable flavouring ) by simply re-configuring the individual conductors of the speaker cabling.
As far as the interconnects go, these have always intrigued me. From what i can tell by the photo's that i've seen, it looks like the ground side is both quite high in inductance and MUCH longer in signal path length as compared to that of the "hot" conductor. Electrically, this looks like a mess to me, but i have to wonder how it would actually sound.
Given that i'm quite familiar with the interconnects that Bob / Ptm Consulting compared them to ( Jon Risch's SSTP ), i'm pretty certain that my results would echo his. This does not mean that others won't like them / achieve desirable results in their systems though, as we all know how important system synergy / personal preference is.
As a side note, Jon's original SSTP ( Solid / Stranded Twisted Pair ) does pretty well for what it is, but even that can be easily improved upon. Jon used to use all stranded cabling in this design until Thorsten Loesch and i suggested that he try some solid core conductors. Jon incorporated a solid conductor into the equation and sonics improved. The problem is, he used too heavy of a gauge of wire, slightly dulling the top end. He also recommended using the stranded conductor as the "hot" wire whereas i recommended using the solid wire.
While Jon contends that both wires are in the circuit and contribute equally to the sound, therefore negating which wire is used for a given polarity. My listening tests, and those of others that have compared the two designs, contradict this. In our experiences, using the solid conductor for "hot" results in a smoother, more cohesive presentation. Not only is there a difference in tonal balance and transient response, but the entire presentation has much better focus. Since the return path to ground is "shared" between the two interconnects, this conductor is less critical. That's why i recommend using the stranded wiring there, rather than as the lone conductor per channel on the hot side.
Jon later recommended that the solid wire used in this design be swapped from an 18 gauge to that of a 20 gauge, which helped to open up the top end a bit more. Going that route and using the solid for the "hot" conductor can make for a very solid performer for a very reasonable price.
Either way, i'm sure that all of these cables ( both JR's and Paul's ) bring with them certain positive attributes that are hard to find in many other cables. I attribute most of this to the use of solid core wiring.
As most of you know, i'm a BIG fan of solid core conductors and have been quite vocal about this for quite some time. I'm also a big fan of low skin effect, wide bandwidth, short signal paths, etc... The one variable that comes into play is the nominal impedance of interconnects and this is why some cables work better / worse in certain installations. In this regard, interconnects are more of a "trial and error" type of situation than speaker cables are. Sean
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They are not twisted and as far from each other as possible. The sound is stunning. That's very interesting and also very surprising. Based on my limited knowledge (Sean, care to weigh in?), you are sub-optimizing electrical characteristics in a big way by doing that. Just goes to show how system-dependent these things can be. |
I have replaced all the interconnects in my system with the Anti-Cable balanced interconnects. They are fabulous |
Paul will braid these for you for a sight fee. I found that straight is better |
Silver will most likely not make them better. |
I'm using the Anti-Cables bi-wired with an Ayre V1xe, and Vandersteen 5A's. There are 4 wires each side from the amp to the speakers. They are not twisted and as far from each other as possible. The sound is stunning. |
sgreent@att.net, when you unbraided them, how closely were the two wires spaced? |
I just picked up a set of the Speltz IC's. Compared them to a DIY set of Jon Risch 89259/89248 twisted pair (unshielded). They didn't come close in the mids and top end.
However, I am using them to feed signal to my bass amp, which was too loud for my tube amp in a bi-amping situation. The Speltz cables muted it down a bit making the balance better. I'm using it this way until I can build a passive volume attenuator to better control the balance.
Does this really sound like a good, transparent cable to you? Me neither.
Bob |
I am using Ayre K1xe preamp, C1xe Universal player, V1xe amp, and Vandersteen 5A speakers - Anti cable interconnects throughout, and speaker cables bi-wired. I originally braided the spk cables and they sounded great. I had them in the system for months - satisfied. I read something on the internet that unbraided wire is much better (Nordost, etc). I unbraided the Anti-Cable spkr wire, and BOY was that a change for the better. Much more solid and difined lows, bigger picture, Much greater definition in the mids, sparkling highs. There was just a very slight "hardness" that went away after the unbraiding - it took a few days. The amp sounds much more powerful too. Recommendation is Do Not Braid. |
drubin,
sorry, i did miss that fact in my post. a reasonable premium, perhaps, but crimp on spades will set you back less than $10 for 4, and the wire and heat shrink are dirt cheap as well. for about 15 minutes of effort you can still save a bundle. same goes with "cable lifters", the primary pin insulators that sell for $3.50 each and are on most telephone poles. these regularly sell for $160 for a set of 8. amazing what clever marketing hype will do. i don't begrudge anyone for making a living, but some of the markup on common items that are being sold as high end tweaks is just ridiculous and needs to be exposed. |
Stvncar, it's $10 per foot PAIR, so half of what you imagine. For many of us, it's a reasonable premium to pay to have the wire cut to size and terminated. |
Hi!
I received Paul Speltz Anti-Cables (speaker cables) the other day. I have listened to them for about 20-25 hours now and I must say as I've seen a reviewer say: Wow! And wow again!
I do not have much experience of speaker cables, specially not expensive ones such as Audience, Crystal etc., not even standard audiophile cables as Kimber, Van den Hul or JPS. My speaker cable experience is the following: Linn K20, Linn K400, DIY CAT6 (TNT Twisted Twins), Supra Ply, and that's all. Of the above the Supras were my favourite. I would have preferred the Twisted Twins had they not been so slow...
Now, if someone asked me how the Anti-Cables compare to any of the above I would frankly say, they don't. It's something completely different. I won't write a review, a couple of words sums it up: openess and transparency, natural dynamics, and most of all palpable presence (who turned my unmoddified T-Amp into a tube amp? :o) ). The clichés such as opening a window to the music etc. are true with these cables, at least to my ears. Break-in time is said to be 50 hours but they sound good already now after 20-25 hours (still opening up and settling in, though)
If you're after new cables, I strongly recommend you try these out. For people who are used to pay thousands of dollars a meter they're a bargain at about 30 USD/pair/meter. Before I tested them I considered the price as reasonable. Now, after having heard them I am extremly glad to have found something this good at this price.
Next on my list are the Anti-ICs.
Cheers!
Jolojl
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i'm still at a loss as to why people are paying $10 per foot for 12 guage magnet wire that retails for about $3-4 per pound. a 10 foot pair costing $200 is about 10x what you would pay for an entire spool of this stuff, which has 100 feet or better. there's no magic here, it's just magnet wire. sure it works and sounds great, but people need to do their homework and save some serious money. those isoblocks sold for $25 to $50 for a set are the same ones you can get at a furniture store or appliance store for about $1 each or less. and no, they are not "specially tuned" or formulated in any way by the resellers. |
I actually had a freebie pair of Magnetwire speaker cable a gentlement name Jim Hess used to sell on this forum that had been sitting in a closet for over a year. I had replaced them with Acoustic Zen wiring (first Satori, then Holograms, then Satori again and finally Hologram II) and never looked back. Then shortly after purchsing my abbys something just didn't do it for me. At the suggestion of Terry I decided to root through my closet and broke out the magnet wire. I'll be damned if it didn't best the AZ cables in most every avenue in my system! Dynamics were much better, sound was no longer soft and flabby, soundstage stayd about the same but imaging really improved and overall I greatly prefered the new tonality. This was about 5 months ago now, and I'm still using the Magnetwire with no desire to change--this says a lot about me as I'm a very 'fidgity' hobbyist.
For the price they're worth a try and if I'm not mistaken Speltz offers a money back trial. Give it a shot, worst case scenario you've learned something from the expereince and are out ~$5 for the shipping. |
Arkprof you're using a double run of Q10s or T4s? |
Thanks for all the feedback folks. I have been using the anti-cables for about 2 weeks and from reading the feedback reference i now have other aspects of sound quality to listen for. I truly believe that everyone has there own opinion and idea's of how things should sound, along with the difference in audio equipment. As i said, i have been using them for about 2 weeks and i feel they do rival the MIT T2'S i have been using for some time. They come in with a pleasant brightness without the fatiguing ear blah's. The LF isn't as strong as the mit's but i believe they are a bit more defined and to the point. At this price point, i would most definately say they are one of the best and most inexpensive upgrades to hit the market so far. I have yet to try the ic's against some of the other ic's in my system.
Great job Paul, keep them coming. Peace. |
While I want to try the cables simply because they're so inexpensive, I'm also hesitant to spend even this small amount of money on something that simply doesn't seem like it could possibly be an "upgrade" to what I'm hearing now. In that sense, Bbolival, you're right, it can't be all bad when "my ears are happy." I'll probably stick with the cables I'm using double-run DHLabs.
However, if anyone is running the Anti-Cables with Cains, let me know what you think.
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in my biamp set-up, i use the anti-cables for LF for its tight and clean bass but i use dh labs Q10s for HF for its full, warm sound. i know my wiring is unconventional but my ears are happy. |
Ccandte,I agree it is a synergy problem,this cables
they replace very very expensive cables in my system
and other friend system.Good Luck |
Not sure if it just wasn't a good match with my system (Classe CAM 350 monoblocks and Maggie 3.6s), but I wasn't impressed with the anticables. I really wanted to like them because of their ridiculously low price and the good feedback I have read from others, but I can't recommend them based on my trial. No soundstaging, poor definition on the bass, lack of "air" on the highs. |
Just be sure not to run them with the two wires spaced too widely apart or you will probably be disappointed with the sound. There are, or should be, some archived discussions about this. |
Thanks to everyone for the AntiCable comments ... the price is so reasonable, though PS admits that there isn't much to them, that ignoring them totally would probably be a mistake. Low price or not, I was reluctant to spend the dollars without some feedback, so your comments are very much appreciated. |
Speltz now has an XLR IC!?
Now thats interesting and something I may have to try. Those using the ICs, how are they constructed? I'm assuming they use the same wire and minimalist construction as the speaker cables. Also, how would you describe the sound, similar to the speaker cables? |
I have the Anti-Cables,unfortuanately not the Anti-Connects.Using Ridge Street Audio throughout now,but I can say from my observations on the Anti-Cables that they are stunning when considering price/performance ratio ... I will most certainly try the Anti-Connects in my system in the future.....
Well done Mr Speltz ....Now make us the same with solid silver,please !! |
Drubin, I tried them both ways...one anti-cable (left)braided with the positive wire over top of the negative wire and the Right anti-cables, braided with the negative wire over top of the positive wire and I like it better with the negative wire over top of the positive wire when braiding them. When braiding them... every Inch and a half I make a braide......This does sound better like this. |
I agree with most of the above posters. The Speltz cables may very well be the best buy in high end audio today.
The $100 XLR Anti-ics made my $3500 ics sound bloated in the bass and veiled in the highs in comparison. They exhibit little if any time smear. That's the mark of a very good cable.
However, I do not use the Speltz cables since my Audio Teknes are even better and are more musical. But I keep a complete set of the Speltz cables as a backup.
I would not be surprised if the Speltz cables could directly compete with most any ic or sc out there regardless of cost. For $60 a pair, you can't go wrong.
-IMO |
The best buy in audio in my opinion. They bested my Audience AU-24, which floored me. Highly recommended! |
I have been using the Speltz speaker cables for quite a while now, in my quite resolving system. I run two 10' runs per side (shotgun biwired).
Sure there are better, but at many multiples of the cost of the Speltz. The Speltz have bettered my Audience AU24s, Cardas Golden Reference and PAD Venustas, all great cables, in my system, to my ears. There is no lack of highs, transient response, dynamics or bass slam.
I have since covered them in a fiberglass cloth (1/4" from Michael Percy, keeping the high/midrange run separate from the bass run) and re-terminated them with Cardas rhodium spades, using WBT solder. Before I covered the wires in the fiberglass, I wrapped a short piece of electrical tape around the + and - wire of every run, every foot. This reduced the gap between wires which in turn reduced impedance, thus maintaining the integrity of the highs, transient response, dynamics and bass slam that the cables are capable of.
Aside from that, they now look great, sound great, and are very pliable.
I highly recommend the cables, and for the price, they are a bonifide steal. |
Tin_Cup: I don't understand what you mean about - over +. If they are braided, how is there any difference?
I started using the Speltz a while back and really like them soncially. Extraordinary clarity and lack of grain. A bit lighter in the bottom than my Audience AU24 but I haven't switched back. The longer term problem is the way they look. I'd be willing to pay quite a bit more for this cable if it were pre-spaced or braided and were more flexible (which I suppose would defeat the design). |
Yes, I have a 9 foot pair....I braided mine (When you braide them you want the - over top of the + ) and need to keep the cables off the floor too. This really does improve these cables for the better. It does tighten up that bass and adds more air and sparkle in the highs..... |
Ark, the Paul Speltz speaker cable are very good,they
dont have grain,they are explosive,and quick,I replace
expensive cables in my system,because of that, I was
able to buy more software,my findings with this cables
is the opposite of Dlwask,they have huge soundstage
also,the best way for you to find out,30 days trial
is needed for you decide if indeed they are for you. |
I used an 8 foot pair with jumpers for a couple months and thought they were really good. It was not until I had a chance to listen to some much better, and more expensive, cables that I was able to identify their shortcomings (less sparkle and air in the upper registers and a rolled off and somewhat loose bass).
They are awkard to use, I never did get used to seeing those little red cables floating in the air between my amp and speakers.
The draw is obviously their price to performance ratio which is outstanding. |
Iam using them on my B&W N803s and am very happy with them. I started with single cables then went to Bi-wire setup. Sounds great. I would recomend giving a try. At the price you cant go wrong. Mike. |
Lots of people based on what I found from a forum search here when I was upgrading my sspeaker cables several months ago. I ended up going with the Alpha Core Goertz MI-2 Veracity, but the Speltz were very intriguing and many people here seem to enjoy them. |
Search this site, prof. You'll find probably hundreds of notes on the AntiCables.
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