James, @jimboman IF you send them in to Cardas, once they peel back the end jacket they will know quickly, able to help determine next steps.
If they are the real McCoy, they may tell you the older soldered XLR connectors are history. The conductors and dielectric inside may still be just fine. With the current [standard upgrade] option, they recut the ends fresh, install the newer/better crimp style ends, re-wrap the connector end jacket sleeve fresh, test and certify.
In this case upon return, if you still don’t like them, I bet someone will buy them from you now knowing they just came back from Cardas with an upgraded bill of health.
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@jimboman "...I’ve been looking at the Cardas Parsec level of cable, and could perhaps stretch to the Clear line, pending your recommendations."
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I almost did not reply to this because this is a trial and error thing. I’m noting the rest of your gear and the cables your using now, and having been up/down the older and newer Cardas line myself past 30+ years. I’d say save your money, and pass on the Parsec. They are okay for entry level systems, nice quality build, but I hear a notable difference moving further up the line if you choose Cardas. The next level jump up the 4-wire Cygnus open up a bit more, with more air, detail, openness coming in. Not as smooth compared to once you go further up the line noticing more texture and other fun and interesting results. You do kinda need to find the cable version that matches up well with your speakers/ears and gear, to make it worth it. Some folks here will say "cables should not have a sound’. Okay, good for them. Let your ears be the judge. I don’t think some of the lower entry-level cables in many of the brands are worth it (maybe only for added shielding) or you can just use Supra Classic soft copper lamp chord style from Madisound, or bulk roll stuff by the foot from Cardas to test, starting out. Best of luck on your search.
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@jimboman ..." but sometimes I feel, for my ears, I’d love a bit more openness / brightness in the higher end."
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"...An update on my cable journey: ...1) Cardas Clear Cygnus (recommended by Brian at Cardas)".
Yes, Cygnus will work as prescribed. Working with Brian I did some early factory cable testing with Cygnus when they first came out, and later bought two pairs to compare to Golden Reference and Clear Reflections. It all depends on the rest of your system and I found the particular design of the 4-wire Cygnus can provide the added openness and brighter detail you are looking for in comparison to the others in the line. Each of the ICs in the lineup do have a different balance of low/med/high frequency results and presentation in the three different systems I’ve tested them on. Without getting into the weeds too much, the only way to know is to try them.
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@jimboman would you mind sharing the photos from the original ad, if you can locate the former sold/expired ad, or search from Hifishark.
A few thoughts, even on some of the older versions, the jacket label lettering should still look pretty decent and not rubbing off on Golden Reference. It can be possible to spot counterfeits too, visually, with some back and forth photo comparisons - if the photos are decent. I looked over a few old ads, not sure which ad they are from. The seller should have no issue with you sharing the former public ad if they are legit.
Note; There was this one seller on Canuck last year who was selling cables with zip bags, not the original container boxes from Cardas, and sorta what appeared to look almost like color copied factory paperwork. I inquired a few times on these particular cables, and mentioned I’d be shipping them to Cardas for authentication, immediately, and never received a reply. I saw them reposted a few times, same photos. So I inquired again, several months later and got no reply. Will try to help figure out ifs the same person or not. They should have serial number paperwork with them, all of my former Clear Reference, Clear Cygnus, Parsec, Clear Reflection and others all had this. Most people dont easily lose the real papers and containers when it comes to Cardas. You do see this with dealer trade-ins some.
NEXT:
If you don’t return them for a refund, its almost a must to send them to Cardas for verification in case you decide to resale them later. And, at least you’ll know and have the proper papers with the cables for someone to take them off your hands. All of my former three pairs of Golden Cross cables were sent to Cardas and i had them reterminated with the new style solderless connectors, with papers, before I resold them. New happy owners now too, fyi fwiw.
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...and IF you decide to send them in to Cardas for validation and certification, and they check out to be the genuine article, imo its worth it to at least inquire about the new termination process, and/or getting that done should you decide to keep -or- resale the cables.
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@jimboman ...man you are having too much cable fun. Good for you. Keep us posted, and keep up the good work! 👍
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@jimboman JAMES, you did the right thing sending the cables to Cardas.
1. Validated authenticity, for yourself, the prior seller, and any future buyers.
2. Cardas "repaired the mid/low bass attenuated signal" for you. Issues resolved.
3. Re-evaluate them after the repair, over 30 days, and decide from there.
Beware of counterfeits, see the Cardas website for more information.
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@mclinnguy ..Got the cables back from Cardas yesterday. They are now certified and have been re-terminated with updated sleeves.
I've had a few older pairs reterminated a few years back, and not only are the ends a little different, the newer process to apply the termination is different too. Was informed beforehand this changes the end result with a little more resolution across the entire frequency range. Some of the older cables with a stiff outer jacket and dielectric inside do change a bit after they are uncoiled and set in place for more than 14-21 days.
George Cardas talks about tension release and some info about any type of static electricity that goes away over time, after being set in place and played for a while. I've retested this theory several times with reintroducing old cables coiled up stored away, and multiple pairs of brand new day-1 vs. 60 day used cables, swapping them out for the next new pair of the exact same cable, and having to start the process all over again. The newer version (more pliable) cables seem less effected compared to some of the old version (stiff) outer jacket cables, or the ones with a stiffer dielectric inside, I don't know. In all cases, I always give it the first 14-21 days, taking notes, and listen again at 30 days to compare fwtw.
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@magnuman I’ll second the statement above by @audphile1
OCC and OFC are general terms used in the industry and varies by vendor, design, and metallurgy used. For example, Cardas places their own service provider mined and drawn "Cardas Grade 1 pure copper" and process, as illustrated. Under a a visusual microscope found here. Just gotta listen to the cables and decide what’s best for you. What OP @jimboman has now is Cardas Grade 1 pure copper.
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@mclinnguy someone should call George and let him know.
No need, he’s messed with it all, seen it all, heard it all, and decided to buy/lease his own mining operation to source some of the best copper in the world.
Less known that many come to him for his copper, and use it in their cables, with more than a few manufacturers others mentioned here a lot lately on Agon too.
Sold off my last four pairs of OCC high end cables to new owners last year. Nice but nowhere near the level of some of my best Cardas Clear line stuff. A different league that is.
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@jimboman it was great to read they did reterminate yours for you while they were there being serviced and certified. I had a few pairs of the older Golden Cross ICs done the same way, with the new solderless method - with compression connectors. The result is not meant to be an overly-forward -or- ridiculously expansive type of sound and presentation. It’s just "there" in front of you, in a nice way. After the cables are left in place connected, undisturbed, It will be interesting to see what you think at the 30-day point. Best of Luck on the journey 👍
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@jimboman ..."The feeling of wanting to revisit all your library is very strong right now."
A good first sign.👍
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