Cables for Audio Mirror Tubadour III
@jjss49 Thanks for the reply. Actually I was thinking about silver ic's. Since both my DAC and amp are tubes, I wouldn't mind a wee bit of sparkle as long as it doesn't sound harsh or bright. Any thoughts on power cord? My AMT3 is still breaking in, but already sounds miles better than previous DACs. It does such a great job of reducing digital harshness but not at the expense of details or resolutions. Just right, for my tastes at least. I'm planning to upgrade to SE in a few months. Hopefully it'll be worth it. |
Personally, I would finalize and break in my components before spending a significant amount of money on cables. Otherwise you are just optimizing the sound for components that will be changing in the near future. If you feel compelled to buy something, check out the Signal Cable digital power cord and silver IC's. Very good products for the money and not so expensive. Don't get me wrong - some expensive cables can yield transformative changes in a system, but I think you should match them to what you have - not what you are going to have. IMO. |
Hi again @Arafiq, @chayro makes an excellent point, especially considering the break in required for the AM Tubadour, as we have discussed. I too have found the Signal power cords an excellent & affordable product & use them throughout. On another, but related note; I have recently discovered the Dueland 16AWG interconnects. They are simply amazing, especially at the price. They have replaced my much more expensive Cardas Golden Presence. They too need quite a few hours to reach potential, but after they do they are superb. Good luck. Kind regards, P.B. |
I’d go with an Audio Envy PC and a used pair of Acoustic Zen Silver Reference ICs that together should come in under $800. The AZ will give you excellent imaging/soundstage and nicely detailed treble/air without going too far while maintaining nice tonality and heft, which sounds like what you might be looking for. Anyway, best of luck. |
Great advice! I agree that the best path is to get my AMT upgraded first before spending money on ic's and power cords. I'll stay put for the time being. @pastorbob -- I ordered the Curious cable (reg version) and received it yesterday. I'm keeping my mouth shut tight until I've put at least 50 hours on it... lol! I reached out to Jaguar Designs who are the US distributors for Curious to ask if it's worth paying extra for the Evolved. They told me that unless my DAC is over $4000, Evolved might be overkill. |
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Hi @arafiq LOL about the Curious Cable 50 hours.......... I am interested to hear opinion of the sound in contrast to the Audioquest Just to add I have also had very positive results with the Audio Envy power cords. They're about twice the price of the Signal cables but still really affordable. The trick with the Signals is to use them throughout. They have a nice synergy when used together in system. As for interconnects see my previous post about the Dueland interconnect. They are amazing in my opinion. But again, the 50 hour rule definitely needs to be applied. Best regards, P.B. |
@yyzsantabarbara IIRC your headphones are Meze Empyrean right? What kind of improvement did you notice with the Wywire cables? I have Hifiman Arya and Focal Clears, not as high end as yours but still considered reasonably good performers. I do wonder if it's worth spending extra for non-stock cables. |
Hey @arafiq You have some respectable headphones that will scale well. Just to give you some reference; of my phones my favorites are Beyerdynamic T1 and ZMF Auteur. My system is just phones, no speakers. So, I have Ocean Elite 3 connected to my power line conditioner to which all of my components are connected. It has been a BIG improvement in detail & sound stage. I just ordered a 2P for my Audio Mirror. The 3P is safe for any application, so no worries about risk or damage. You can email them for recommendation. Audio Envy has a liberal return policy. I think you will see a positive change in the sound of your system with these power cables & price is reasonable BTW what do you think of the Curious Cable USB? Best Regards, P.B. |
@arafiq I had to look up IIRC, I do have the Empy. My frame of reference is the Empy and a Sennheiser 600 10 years ago. So not much experience with headphones. I bough the Empy because a dealer told me to get that instead of the Focal Utopia which he also sells. I bought the Benchmark HPA4 and DAC3B from the same dealer and he said the Empy is great with the HPA4. He was correct. I am prone to fatigue with bad sound and I was worried that the Empy would do that as the Sennheiser, which I had to give away. I was very happy to find that the Empy has 0 fatigue even after hours of listening. The Empy is a little dark on top with the stock cable, which is made of copper. It is more than enjoyable but I felt there was some restriction in the sound. I think the lack of fatigue was because of the darkish sound. After some discussions with guys on Head-fi they steered me to the WyWire Platinum copper cable (on sale 40% off). When I first plugged in the cable I could hear a lot more detail but also got a ton of fatigue. This never happened with the stock cable. I let the headphones play on the stands for a few days and then listened again to the same album that gave me fatigue (forgot which it was now). After the burn-in I heard the same details but also a more relaxed sound without any fatigue, even after every long hours of listening. There was a sparkle in things like drums that I was missing with the stock cable. So these 2 copper cables had a different effect on me and sounded very different. I sent the WyWire cable back to WyWire to get a longer version since they have a buy back program. Great company and cables. |
@pastorbob -- did you mean to say 2P is safe for any application, or were you referring to 3P? Based on what I read on the website, it looks like 2P is a better choice for DACs, but I'll certainly reach out to the AE. So for Curious Cable, right now I don't notice any differences apart from a maybe a bit more bass. Unfortunately, I have been super busy lately and have not been able to burn in the cable yet. It'll probably be a couple of weeks for me to put on 50+ hours, at which point I will share my impressions. But right now, I honestly cannot hear any differences. BTW, I have never had a power conditioner in any of my systems -- headphone or 2 channel. That's another avenue I still need to explore. Maybe after upgrading ATM3. |
@yyzsantabarbara Thanks for your detailed response. Once I'm done with upgrading the DAC in my 2 channel rig, I might refocus on my headphone system. I really like the R2R sound, so I might be getting a similar DAC for the headphones too. Although, I've heard great things about RME. Or maybe a used Benchmark. |
I recently looked at the ROON DSP settings and did not try it for too long since it was for Audeze. However, now that you mention it for Focal. I will check it out. Though I must say I like the way the headphone sounds in the current ROON configuration. I also use the headphones for FM tuner over the air and my SACD player that can only output analog (due to mods). So no ROON DSP available for those 2 sources. They also sound great, BTW - PM me when you are ready to get your next DAC. |
@yyzsantabarbara -- It's definitely worthy trying IMO. Here's the Oratory 1990 EQ settings for your headphones ... https://www.dropbox.com/s/imsf6j4nmp7684v/Meze%20Empyrean.pdf?dl=0 I'll definitely contact you when I'm ready for the next DAC. Thanks. |
Hi @arafiq The 3p is the standard grounded cable. The 2p is ungrounded. It is useful for eliminating ground or audio loops traveling through the ground leg of the wire. As long as your amp is grounded using the 2p is up to you. But if you are experiencing no hum or frequency interference I would go with the 3p Because being a conventional grounded cable the 3p is good to go in any & all applications. Cheers, P.B. |
@pastorbob is always right :) I ordered the AE power cord 2P and have been playing it since yesterday. Wow, what a difference! It's like everything opened up a bit further. More details even at whisper low volumes, guitars have more bite, piano has more weight. However, I will add that the Curios Cable USB chord didn't really improve the sound anyways. I can't hear much of a different between it and the AudioQuest Forest cable I had before. |
As I have a AM Tubadour DAC I am very interested in this thread. Regarding the power cords Audio Envy recommends use of the P3 for a preamp or Integrated amp and the P2 for all other equipment connected as a way to prevent ground loops. I wonder how this works when gear is on dedicated lines. In my case my amp is on it's own dedicated line, as is my preamp. The digital equipment is on a third line. All lines go back to the main house breaker box. |
Hey @arafiq Yeah, the Audio Envy cables are about the biggest improvement in S.Q. for under 200.00! I just got a 3p I ordered last week. I installed it, the last remaining A E power cord cord, today on the power supply for my microZotl amp. Right out of the box the improvement is very noticeable. I'm sort of glad I got these piecemeal as with each install I was able to hear & enjoy the improvement. Much, much better than the Signal cables I was using previously. Sorry the Curious didn't work in your system. I would encourage you, however, to continue experimenting with USB cables. There are many that absolutely outperform the Audioquest Forest. Just have to find one with system synergy. Cheers & stay safe! P.B. |
Hey arafiq, I have the AM Tubadour lll Se Dac. Never heard the regular one, but the SE is a really good Dac. Sold my Terminator and have no regrets. I use Triode Wire Labs Digital American PC with great results. It is made especially for digital equipment. Pete the owner is a great guy and has a good return policy. |
Hi @arafiq LOL, I know that feeling. Let me know your thoughts when the upgrade is complete. At any rate, without appearing to be a know it all, I used a Rogue Audio tube/ highbred Sphinx integrated for a few years with Totem Rainmaker speakers. I really thought very highly of it. Don't know what speakers you got, but the Sphinx has the power & stability to drive just about anything & very reasonably priced (always a priority for me). Just saying........... Be healthy & happy P.B. |
Has anyone had any luck with the tubadour iii se and a denafrips ddc such as the iris? I'm trying to find a i2s hdmi cable that will work, and currently i'm getting static and distortion (with the music audible and muffled in the background). I've only tried vanilla standard hdmi cables at this point (amazon basic crud) but I don't want to pull the trigger on a cable that costs more if it's not a cable issue, but instead a compatibility issue.
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