I updated/upgraded my system sometime time ago. New McIntosh amps, preamp, digital and speakers. At the time and for a long time I used all Cardas Golden Reference and my experince was too much of a good thing. The system became dark, slow, and uninvolving. I love Cardas and have had much success with them but the GR didn`t cut it this time. I thought of going to the Cardas Neutral Reference which is the least sounding Cardas. Its very well Neutral and open yet had some body with smooth mids and highs. being a cable nut I still had some of my Kimber Select and moved them into the system. Well guess what happened, everything fell into place. Ended up selling all my GR and upgrading my Kimber Select to the new versions and couldn`t be happier. However, I do use the Cardas GR power cords on my line conditioners. I have not heard the new Clear and Clear Beyond but I do know they are expensive even more than the Golden Reference. Try the Kimber Select you might be surprised.
Happy Listening
Happy Listening