Id like to ask a related question regarding cardas power cords. For reasons, i wont bore you with, i am stuck in a very bright sounding room. I would like to find a pc for my pre amp that accentuates the mids and de-emphaizes the highs. Do the cardas PC's have any of the "warm" qualites. Im not looking for a debate as to change your system, its not the cord etc, since i have things pretty well tweaked and pc for the pre amp is one of the last steps....thanks |
Personally I hate Cardas products. They just dont work in my system. Thats not to say they wont work in yours, but every time I got rid of a Cardas top of the line cable, the system sounded better. I found the power cords to be really rotten. |
I just brought the GR speaker cable. In my system, it is a perfect match!!! Best price to performance. It is detailed but not bright and it creates good depth and wide soundstage on my Thiels 3.6. It also creates some tube magic which my CJ premier 350 lacks. To out do this cable, it will take at least 2 to 3 times the price. I think this is a great cable for high power SS amp and low efficiency spks. |
Yikes, with all due respect, I question the hearing of some of the posters, but to each his own.
I've had all three Cardas Reference. The Neutral I didn't like at all. It was thin, could sound shrill, the bass was nothing to brag about, neither was the soundstage.
Going to the Golden Presence and Golden Reference is entering another world. This nonsense about being dark and the other criticisms is as far from the truth as can be. Some of you want overdetailed, thinned out sound. The Cardas are natural sounding, yet manage to have much detail. Best to wash your ears out or get a hearing test if you think these obscure detail. I've had silver cables in my system, and they have added a bit more detail, but at the expense of brightness and thinness, some better than others. Perhaps with slow sounding tube equipment such compensation of hyperdetailed interconnects that have thin body would compliment such a system.
Listening to many cables compared to the Cardas Reference (GP or GR) is like listening to a table radio compared to an audiophile system. Do you want body that fills out the images, instead of stripping them of harmonics and creating flat, thinned out voices and instruments? You get this with the Cardas.
There are too many cable 'experts' out there who seem to think they know what music sounds like. Ask someone who plays a musical instrument which sounds more real to them - Cardas or Nordost, for an example.
The problem is the flavor of the month/year club with cables. Cardas got the recipe right, so they don't need constant model updates. I've owned a number of cables mentioned in this thread, and nothing has satisfied like the Cardas Golden Presence or Golden Reference. That's all I use. |
Saxo,
How do you think the GR and GP speaker cables compare? I currently have GP speaker cables along with GR and Golden Cross interconnects. I was wondering what improvements would be realized going to the GR speaker cables.
By the way I am in the I like Cardas camp. |
Sorry, no experience with Cardas speaker cables. Try to get them on loan from a Cardas dealer.
The GR speaker cables have much more copper and conductors than the GP, but in the end, will this make a big difference? Plan on paying for the GR speaker cable because it's not cheap. |
Simaudio uses Cardas to demo their systems at stereo shows, specifically Golden Cross. I asked why and the response was everything sounds good through golden cross.
My system comprises of Simaudio, I went with golden reference balanced ic's and golden cross bi wired. The combo sounds excellent. I haven't had much experiece with all kinds of wire so I thought if it's good enough for Simaudio , I will get it as well.
I am waiting to see if they switch up to the new Cardas Clear this year which is suppose to be awesome, but with an awesome price tag as well, |
I recently got very disappointed with a the KS-1121 which makes the sound of my system very high and grand-piano's almost sounded honky tonk pianos and lost all of the timber. SO i put the Cardas Quadlink's back. Now I am hesitating which IC is best for improving the detail, lift the bass a bit. |
I had GC ICs for years and never thought I would never change. I did, to Zu Varials. The detail levels are awesome now but still not too bright.
I also had neutral ref digital Ic which bested Stereovox VX 2 and X2 -60 digital, but was eventually ousted by Zu Ash for the moment. I find the Ash bordering on too bright but the treble detail is nice compared with neut ref. I still have the neut ref tho ...... Awesome digital IC, warm and cosy and easy to live with. |
Vinylmeister I used to have the Quadlinks. They are decent for the money but I would step up the Cardas chain or try something else like Harmonic Tech Magic Link or something more neutral sounding. The Quadlinks when I had them and I didn't realize that IC's can make or break your system really held mine back. I would upgrade soon. Just my 2 cents. |
I have owned Neutral, Cross, Golden Cross and Golden Reference. Like some others here, I did not care for NR at all. It seemed to have the weaknesses of the other lines, and none of the strengths. I think maybe it was envisioned as a home theatre type cable. The Cross is sweet sounding and I can see why some actually like that cable best. In general, I think the speaker cables are better than the IC's, and my favorite Cardas SC is the Golden Cross. For IC's, I would pick the GR in the Cardas line, but I went with Purist cables over the Cardas. I also owned the Magic Link II mentioned here and thought it was good across the board, but not special enough to keep. I actually like my DIY IC's using the VH Audio receipe with 24awg solid silver cotton wrapped wire, caulk backer, and Furutech FP-108R terminations. I tend to like solid core wire better than stranded, and I do think there is something to the Cardas litz configuration using solid core enameled wire with air tubes. I wonder if their cables would sound different if they used PCOCC wire? |
Recently I compared some uber-expensive, very high rated ICs and speaker cables ($6000/m and $10,000/8ft) with the name 'Indra' and 'Dream' against the Cardas GR stuff. The GR made these other cables sound boxy, smeared and two dimensional, to a point they were actually offensive. The ancillary electronics and speakers were all custom built, but wired to the teeth with Cardas hook up wire and Cardas capacitors.
It just goes to show...wires are always system dependant, and there is no absolute best. But a full wiring loom of Cardas (including internally) has produced the most neutral, linear and transparent sound I have ever heard. |
I think saxo nailed it.
I’ve had other Cardas but once you step up to the reference line it’s another world.
I was running some basic Audioquest IC for a very long time. Then upgraded to Parsec.
I had Twinlink speaker & changed to Neutral Reference. Significant step in the right direction.
I got one Golden Presence for preamp to amp run. Another significant step.
I got another set of GP & ran from DAC to Pre.
Once using the reference line straight through to speakers, I went from hearing really good sound through two speakers, to the speakers disappearing.
I was playing several different MFSL One-Steps.
My turntable to Pre run was Parsec.
They sounded really good but I was hoping for more. After switching the Parsec to Golden Presence, it was clear that one IC that was holding it back.
Just as with the DAC, after switching to the GP, it went from listening through two speakers to the speakers disappearing. The MFSL One-Steps are killer.
Now one more set of GP IC & I’m done.
I would like to hear the difference between the NR & GP speaker though...
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