I have used the ASI Liveline, had it on my system for about 4 months. Yes, you guys are right, they are very resolving of micro details, very lively with great clarity. The highs have a sparkle to it lacking in many cables.
However I somehow could not warm up to its sound. It has a forward character, upfront and a bit too immediate. It was fast but not fluid. Somehow, everything felt magnified which to me is not real. No, my system was neither forward nor edgy, it was the cable, and I ascertained it after I tried it at couple of my friend's systems, the results were the same. Music always sounded very high on adrenaline, which was fatiguing to me. I also tried it as a digital cable with same/similar results :( |
Murataltuev, I have had ICs which were even higher in resolution than the Livelines and those ICs sang in my system.
I do not want to boast anything about my system, all I can say that it is a very clean sounding system. Reimyo is the source and Symphonic line the Amplifier, ATC are the speakers, cables are very well matched and clean. There is no reason for me to step backwards on the resolution front to get the balance.
I have tried many cables and my basic takeaway is, there are tons of cables out there which play this resolution game by making it sound gritty and really emphasizing the presence region, especially the leading edges and Livelines are no exception to these, except that they do it in a little more acceptable manner. Real instruments dont bite. I have heard cables which give you all the details but not in a manner to chew it but as part of a instrumental tone which really helps you appreciate the instrument. Livelines were more like, it is trying to impress you so hard that at the end you appreciate the system and the cable but not the instrument. It never allowed me to forget my system, thats what I call a electro-mechanical sound. Even today I use the same system (as in electronics and speakers) but when it plays I only appreciate the fact that there is only music in the room, no electronics and no speakers. I hear all the little details and texture but they dont call attention as an individual. If I want I can always dealieanate them and listen to it as an individual.
A simple example of this would be the way music sounds at late nights when the A/C line is cleaner. You hear more detail but it is presented as more music. Going by your argument, if a system is not upto the mark, it should sound worse at nights because of more details !!!
I would still say Liveline is a good cable but needs to be matched well to get more positives and less of its negatives. |
I use a Fusion Audio Romance at present. This is one interconnect which sounds closest to real instruments (tone, timbre, body, texture, harmonics, decay...everything is so real and present). And it does not do this only to the midrange...you hear the same across the frequency spetrum. |
Macdude, my observations is exactly the same as yours. Tonally it had too much edge and lacked warmth, while sounding too live. Subtlety was out of the window.
I would strongly suggest you try a Crimson RM Musiclink interconnect. It will blow you away with its true to timbre, natural warmth, musicality, realistic soundstage and amazing PRAT. For the price $360, it is an extreme bargain. It just sounds like nothing. |
Well Silkworms sounded somewhat too lush and golden to my ears and clearly lacked bass definition. It was colored, simply put.
Yamamura is nice, especially the Millenium 6000. The digital cable is extrmely good. The analog cables sounded a bit rounded and slow to my ears. Tones were very good, soundstage was superb, airy and open but it has that tendency to round off edges and makes for a relaxed listening for any kind of music.
Crimson has none of these issues. It just sounds right. |
Fla, I have not tried the speaker cables. But I know they use the same cable for their interconnect, speaker cable and digital cable. I have tried it as an interconnect and a digital cable and in both the applications it is fabulous. When I say it is fabulous it doesnt have an wonder tone or a ghostly huge soundstage...it just sounds like it doesnt leave a signature of its own, the tone-timbre is dead on, soundstage is wall to wall when the recording has it else it is just nice and extends from outer edge of speaker to speaker. Background is very clean, not the kind of cleanliness which you see in some heavily shielded cables which almost always takes away something from the music as well. It is just very clean with all the music intact. Another outstanding thing about this cable is its PRAT. It is among the best in the business in keeping PRAT intact. Apart from all this, I have never missed anything in the detail department but it doesnt sound hyper detailed like some silver cables. IMO every little detail is there and presented the way it was intended. Clean taut bass and open airy highs with natural hue like an excellent tube equipment. In the end it sounds like nothing. You have to listen to this my friend. |
BTW, Crimson comes with a return policy.
I normally never buy a cable new and never ever at the list price. This one I bought new and at its list price, thinking that anyway I can return it unless it blows me away...and guess what, I am ordering one more pair (at the list price:) ) to go from my pre to power. |
Fla, the Fusion Audio Romance IC is more romantic sounding. It has a lush, rich tone but it is not veiled, muddy or slow like typical romantic sounding ICs. It has good extension on both ends and makes music sound really full and present. That is its USP. It actually adds tube like character to the presentation, with instruments sounding big and bold. However it is definitely colored. It is not neutral to the tone. What you hear is a larger than life presentation. I would say every audiophile should listen to the Fusion in his system at least once. It is like savoring an exotic dish. You may or may not like it that is a different topic.
OTOH, the Crimson doesnt do anything to change the sound, if at all I have not yet noticed it. It is more extended on both ends and the extension comes across clean and airy. It is also more transparent and a little more see through. I would say if you want to add some extra life, color, romance, vigor, presence to the sound, go with the Fusion. If you think your system has it all and you just want to listen to your system un-adultrated go with the Crimson.
Both the interconnects are smooth and musical so it is left to your system's balance and your preferences |
Knghifi, I am not saying Crimson is the best cable. I was rather more impressed with my previous Fusion Audio cable. It did more things to please me !!
However I realized that if I want more tube-like sound I am better off adding a tube component to my system rather than using cables which tries achieve that "effect". So I am in the process of adding a tube source to my setup. Please read my other posts on this topic on the digital section. That is how I moved on. |
While I will not debate on the tonality of the Livelines, I will just say that it MUST be auditioned before buying to see if it falls into your camp of signature sound. It definitely has polarized impression. Not for everyone. |
Knghifi, all I am trying to say is Livelines have an extreme sound so it becomes EVEN MORE important to audition them before buying. Just like a Cardas Golden Cross which tends to have extremities on the warmer side.
Yes, "ideally" every component in audio should be bought after home audition but practically speaking the fact that we have so many threads here on Audiogon where people keep asking for suggestions means that there is a lot of blind buy as well. My suggestion was not to do that with Livelines as much as possible. Its characteristics are not moderate IMO. |
as apparently many other users of this cable feel the same based on the numerous posts on this thread(vast majority). It just did`nt fit for you and pani, nothing pleases everyone. It is a common observation and also common sense that most people dont write or even visit threads about products that they dont care much about. Hence you normally see most of these "boutique product" threads filled with praises and appreciation of the products concerned...since it is mostly visited by people who found something special about the product and something worth mentioning. People who thought the product is passable mostly do not spend time on such threads, I mean it is understandable right ? Personally I have bought numerous products based on such appreciation threads and most of them turned out to be dud in my evaluation. So the "vast majority" you are talking about is nothing special to this product or this thread IMO. I dont want to undermine your assessment or anything, just wanted to highlight human behavior. |
Knghifi and Charles1dad, If you look at all my cable related threads, I have never asked a question about speaker cables, never ever....do you know why ? Simply because I found a cable which doesnt leave its signature on the overall sound, even if it does it is extremely faint and inaudible. Thats it, I have never touched it since then.
Unfortunately, with interconnects it has not happened that way till recently. Same with power cables. Almost everything that I have tried in IC and PC had its signature loud enough for me to be pissed off within sometime. So, at some point in time I started believing that there is no point trying to find such a "no-nonsense" cable, rather I am better off selecting a cable which has a signature that I can live with and hence I started my quest to get a warm sounding cable. That is how I got to try Fusion Audio, kCi Silkworm, Yamamura etc. Anyway, fortunately someone recommended a Crimson RM Musiclink and the way he described the sound struck a chord with me and I ordered one. You know what, you may not see another interconnect related thread from me for a long time :). It is exactly what I was looking for, no-nonsense clean cable which does everything in an audiophile book well.
BTW, I also realized the importance of having a top quality tube source in the chain after listening to an Einstein Audio CD player, so I sold my Reimyo DAC and now looking out for a high quality tube CDP/DAC, again something that doesnt have a strong signature. So, it is not that I am not looking at my system and just blaming the cables, if I do that I am only foolong myself. Moreover, whenever I get a new cable, I take it around to couple of my audiophile friend's place as well to hear it in different systems and every time (100% i.e) my findings in my own system resembles the findings in their system even though they use totally different equipments. |
Thanks Charles1dad, same to you as well. |
Yes, PCs are total game changers which is very dicey to handle. I am planning to try out the Lessloss power cords soon as I have been "reading" that they dont alter the signature sound. |
Knghifi is right. I dont own an Einstein preamp. In fact I have only heard it once in a showroom. I own a tube preamp from a boutique brand called Acoustic Portrait. It is not at all forward, it sounds very close to a Shindo Auriges preamp. We did an A-B in my previous setup and it was really difficult to tell them apart. |
