JW Audio. Give Zman a try. To say I'm thrilled is an understatement. I have his Reference ICs which include: Keith L. Eichmann RCAs Deep Cryogenic treatment 99.999 pure copper solid core I couldn't be happier. I have NO affiliation with him or JW Audio in anyway. I'm just an extremely happy listener. |
If you do decide to start near the less expensive end of the spectrum consider Virtue Audio Nirvana cables. To my experience they have a rich, musical presentation and amazing for the price. I'm currently using the speaker cable with a Morrow Audio MA2 IC having taken out the Nirvana interconnect for sounding too big. I may consider Morrow Audio speaker cable as well...if anything the Nirvana cables may be too big sounding for my system (LFD integrated/Tekton LORE Reference speakers) but if I had small monitors they might be just the thing. I've owned many expensive and inexpensive cables and realize more and more the importance of synergy over cost. |
Given that this is a new system, for someone possibly not haven owned a quality system prior, I think I would start with budget cables. She could then develop an ear for her system while it is breaking in and, in the mean time getting accustomed to its sound. Then afterwards any tweeking provided by better cables might be better addressed once she has a better understanding of what improvement she is after. There are so many budget interconnects available on the used market. I have bought, sold and continue to use Audioquest. Regarding the speaker cables, 17 is a long run and more difficult to find used. I would consider trying the Canare 4s11. It can be purchased new for ~$1.50/ft online including shipping. Terminate them yourself. They might just prove very adequate, and at a very reasonable cost. If not they could be easily sold. Given the disparity between cable cost and sonic value for any given system I believe it best to start budget conservative and then upgrade. |
Al, I agree with what you said about Clear Day. I still have the first email that I sent to Paul asking him about his cables. And the moment he sent those pics, it was a clear no-no for me. I did not contact Paul till 2 years later and last year I finally decided to give Clear Day a try. After all, I did not stand to loose anything but $8 return shipping. The moment I put the Clear Day shotguns in my system, I realized what a mistake I made by waiting for 2 years. I ordered my 8 foot along with jumper cables. I would certainly not know the results if other configs are used, but if you read the forums you would certainly find that people have used them with excellent results. And BTW, I do trust user reviews more than the press reviews. |
Margot, approximately what length will each of the cables be? The Clear Day speaker cables which have been suggested have received much praise here and elsewhere, but their very narrow gauge raises caution flags in my mind if the run length is to be longer than say 8 feet. At least, that is, if the double shotgun version is not used, that being significantly more expensive than the versions which employ fewer conductors. Steve/Williewonka, I don't doubt that the cables you suggested are excellent, but note that the retail price of all of the components in the system totals a bit more than $5K. The gZero cables strike me as being a bit pricey in that context, aside perhaps for the bottom of the line models. Also, Margot, a lot of members here have reported excellent results with cables that are at much lower price points than those suggested above, including Signal Cable, Mogami, Canare, Blue Jeans, Vampire Wire, and others. And it's worth noting, also, that the relatively high impedance of your friend's speakers (see Figure 1 here) will tend to reduce sensitivity to speaker cable differences, compared to many other speakers. Best regards, -- Al |
Take a look at KLE Innovations gZero line - they are exceptional value. http://kleinnovations.com/kle-innovations-klei-products/ I have tried the gZero3, 6, 10 and settled on the gZero20 IC's and I own both the gZero3 speaker cables on my A/V system and gZero6 speaker cables on my 2 channel Audio System. Regards... |
