$66.00 cables will take you no place keep what you have and save your money.
Buying advice
I have an Arcam FMJ A19 driving a pair of KEF LS50s. Maybe it’s a tad, just a smidge, bright. I don’t even want to use that word because I know it’s audiophile death. Maybe it’s better to say that I’d like to take a step—just a step—in the Harbeth direction. Import a rounder, smoother, warmer sound into the mix. And I’m thinking that speaker cables might help.
I’m constrained by a very small bank account and grave limitations on room correction.
There’s a pair of Morrow SP2 cables for sale on this site for $66. The price is right but are those going to take me where I want to go? If not, any suggestions? Please keep in mind the constraints noted above.
Crazy paranoia: The Morrows are 10 feet long as opposed to the 6 foot length of my current Q.E.D. cables. (From Q Accoustics.) That extra length can’t possibly affect the sound, can it?
Thank you.
I’m constrained by a very small bank account and grave limitations on room correction.
There’s a pair of Morrow SP2 cables for sale on this site for $66. The price is right but are those going to take me where I want to go? If not, any suggestions? Please keep in mind the constraints noted above.
Crazy paranoia: The Morrows are 10 feet long as opposed to the 6 foot length of my current Q.E.D. cables. (From Q Accoustics.) That extra length can’t possibly affect the sound, can it?
Thank you.
16 responses Add your response
A cheap tweak for too bright for your taste speakers is to double up the gauge of your current speaker cables.For example if your cables are 14 gauge,buy a roll of 13 or 14 speaker wire,cut it to length, strip the ends,insert in the holes of the binding posts,re tighten.It's not a cure all but it will take the edge off for the time being while you're researching other speaker brands and selling plasma to pay for them;-) |
Arcam can sound somewhat "analytical". Kef probably has a metal dome tweeter. I myself have QED silver cables and they can sound bright. So I can understand your system might have a bright sound to it. Honestly I am not sure a $60 pair of cable can fix that. But if you really have to choose a different cable, I would go to the What HiFi review page and find an affordable pair of cables that can warm up the sound. What HiFi has a lot of affordable cable reviews from across the pond. https://www.whathifi.com/us/products/accessories/audio-interconnects-analogue |
I know that the speaker cables I’m talking about are very cheap by audiophile standards. But until the Arcam seller talked me into making some kind of investment, I was leader of the “cables don’t matter” army. Wanna know something else? After I had them for a bit, the sound actually changed. They burned in! Another audio myth legitimized? I’m still not quite ready to accept what I heard first hand, with my own ears. Science must be right and I must be the victim of some neurological prank. Otherwise, what do we have? Where is the science upon which our civilization is grounded? |
You could always try some speaker cables from Amazon based on Mogami or Canare cable. There are several that are under $100. No idea what they sound like, but it seems like a lot of people on different forums use and like them. Plus, you can return them to Amazon if you don’t like them. Ditto for Blue Jeans Cable. |
If you want to explore a possible "fix" that's really inexpensive, I would try a layer or two of felt applied around the tweeters, The outside shape doesn't matter too much, square, round, hexagonal, whatever, you just want an appropriately sized circular hole in the middle of the sheet just fractionally larger than the tweeter. Apply with double-sided tape or some such (reversible). That might do the trick. You can google this for more details and suggestions. |
@ paul6001 You more than likely have issues that result in your equipment sounding bright which are totally unrelated to your equipment. A "viby" rack or stand is all but guaranteed to add a hard glare to your sound. If you have your equipment on regular furniture that is more than likely the root of your problem. Back in the day I found sticking a vinyl floor tile on the bottom of the surface my CD player was resting on was sufficient to dampen the surface and take the glare out. |
ls50's are not bright as an innate characteristic, but their metal dome tweeter can certainly be excited to play harsh and bright treble with amplification or source that offends in this way in this case, the arcam integrated is the offender... among the british integrateds, arcams are well known as the zippiest, leanest, most strident sounding ones -- so together with the ls50’s this is not a good combination if what is being sought is a natural dimensional sound with some warmth, fullness and body to the music |
paul6001, Others have reported that the Canare 4S11 speaker cables provide a warmer presentation than most others. Very budget friendly and available from Blue Jeans and other cable companies, If you still find the brightness to be excessive, the Shiit Loki 4-band equalizer (analog) is inexpensive with a full refund if you don't like it and may well be the first thing that you should try. Lastly, the Rega Brio Integrated Amp is a good match with the LS50s and just may provide the sound that you're looking for. Good luck in your search. |
