Welcome back Bill! Hope to learn about changes in your system at your convenience!
聖HIJIRI Users thread
Based on a discussion with another forum member, I've been reading up on this Comback Corporation brand. The reviews I've found have been pretty positive, but I've also learned over the years to take all reviews with a grain of salt. So the purpose of this thread is for users to share their input on 聖HIJIRI cables. When you share, if you'd discuss what model of HIJIRI you demoed and what brands/models they were compared to, that'd be very helpful.
A little background: a few years ago I was reading the Audio Envy threads and decided to give them a try as the seemed to compete with much higher-priced cable. So I decided to give AE a try. I found both the $179 P2 and the $279 M3 to easily best an Isotek power cord at $1k. So that got me thinking even more about value products. I was about to give Zavfino a try and then was given another recommendation to give HIJIRI a try. So this is how I got here. I'll be very interested to hear all user comments on HIJIRI and this should be a good repository for the brand.
Here is their website: www.combak.net
Showing 22 responses by lalitk
+1, @grannyring well said! |
I’m using 聖Hijiri H-SLC “Million” speaker cable in my system. The HIJIRI H-SLC "Million" speaker cables conveys tonal richness, depth, resolution and dynamics in spades. They make an obvious but worthy companion for Takumi Maestro power cords. I can’t reiterate enough the musicality of HIJIRI loom….organically natural while delivering delicate nuances that were previously imperceptible. I would reach out to Colin for speaker cables demo. |
@disc As I said in my earlier post, I have a slightly unique setup with Tannoy’s. In addition to bi-wiring functionality of Canterbury’s, I chose to add optional Super Tweeters for enhanced WideBand frequency response to Prestige GR loudspeakers. Based on my assessment with speaker cables, in a bi-wire or tri-wire scenario; you always want to use a cable that renders the highest resolution with finesse on HF terminals. This is not to say that speaker cable connected to LF post is not important, a high quality 12AWG speaker cable like Zavfino Nova is far more capable in delivering the bass frequencies accurately. In direct comparison between HIJIRI “Million” vs Nova on LF channel, I honestly couldn’t tell them apart. If there were any differences, they were subtle at best and certainly not justifiable at 15x the cost difference in this particular application. When I swapped the Nova on HF terminals, HIJIRI was sorely missed. The tonal richness, depth, musicality and resolution took a noticeable hit in scalability. The vocals were not as palpable as heard through HIJIRI. I am not trying to knock down the Nova but HIJIRI “Million” plays in another stratosphere, as it should given the price and its artisan heritage. And lastly, the Sternklang speaker cable was a better fit for my Super Tweeter. Their low mass design, livelier, slightly forward tuned and detailed sound allowed the tweeters to sound more alive and louder. Thankfully my hearing is still good but in ten to fifteen years I may not able to appreciate the cymbals splashing like confetti falling to the ground…LOL! Sternklang speaker cables were able to render the definite trails of textural nuances such as reverberation trails and delay repeats more succinctly than any other cable I’ve tried in this application. In my system, the combination of these three cables has elevated the sense of excitement and listening experience. Cheers! |
I am looking forward to your listening impressions of Aurora’s. I believe, trying different speaker cables would be a great idea as long as HIJIRI “Million” speaker cable in the mix. Like you, I am also using a complete loom of HIJIRI’s with one pair of Sternklang Speaker (tweeters) and XLR between my SACD player and the Integrated. My other source, DAC/Streamer is wired with HIJIRI “Kiwami” XLR’s and a pair of “Takumi” Maestro PC’s. |
Thank you for posting your feedback. I’m glad to hear you found Muon Filter and Ethernet cable effective in your system. If I may make a suggestion, try the 聖HIJIRI SM2R-L "SOUND MATTER" Power Cord for your LDMS. This is an amazing cord for the money considering it will get you very close to TAKUMI sound. I am reposting my impressions below. I think you will be very happy with SM2R-L over Nagomi. “The 聖Hijiri SM2R-L power cord took 300+ hours to open up. My listening test were conducted at 400 mark. For direct A/B comparison with “TAKUMI”, I swapped the SM2R-L back n forth on my Accuphase Integrated. I listened to variety of high resolution files stored on my Aurender SSD and Qobuz. What struck me immediately is the similarities between the SM2R-L and TAKUMI power cords. I heard much of the same characteristics of 聖Hijiri TAKUMI maestro in SM2R-L i.e. conveying the music in a most natural way without emphasizing any elements of music and with finesse and fluidity. Again with SM2R-L, the designer's emphasis remained on the mid-range. The vocals through this PC were simply stunning and my connection with music was just as engaging as with “TAKUMI” power cords. IMHO, the SM2R-L fills the performance/price gap between the NAGOMI and TAKUMI power cords nicely. I don't think SM2R-L meant to compete with TAKUMI's so in that aspect, SM2R-L has easily surpassed my expectations at 60% cost of TAKUMI's. Switching back and forth between "TAKUMI" and SM2R-L revealed why I'm still biased towards TAKUMI's :-) The TAKUMI’s in my system simply digs deeper into the music and reveals every nuances you didn’t know you were missing with SM2R-L or Nagomi power cords. It’s not like SM2R-L is lacking in details or holding back anything but you’re in different stratosphere of resolution with TAKUMI’s. Is SM2R-L worth the 2X cost of Nagomi's? Well, I'll let you be the judge of that! I do honestly believe, if you hear both of these power cords in your system, there is a darn good probability that you're going to end up preferring SM2R-L over Nagomi's. ” |
You’re welcome my friend! As to your earlier post, I am using full loom of 聖HIJIRI “Million” series in my system. As far as SM2R-L PC, it’s currently being used on my SACD player along with Sternklang XLR IC’s. I’ve written in detail on Sternklang cables in my thread, check it out. As I mentioned earlier, SM2R-L has a gorgeous sound and I’m glad Combak decided to revive this cable. In any case, I recommend auditioning both SM2R-L and TAKUMI in your system and let your ears guide you. |
“The Combak company is the real deal for musicality” I couldn’t agree with you anymore. If I may say so, you barely got a taste of what 聖HIJIRI’s cables are about with Nagomi. Wait till you try the "TAKUMI" 匠Maestro Power Cord or even the 聖Hijiri SM2R-L power cord. I started my audition with Nagomi vs TAKUMI’s and end up upgrading to full 聖HIJIRI “Million” loom. |
“I need to prioritize” Not knowing your budget, I suggest you contact Colin @gestalt for guidance on where to start. My suggestion would be to start with a speaker cable plus - One power cord, - One pair of Interconnect That 3 cables in total, rotate the PC and IC between your components to access where you hear most audible improvement. Once you get hooked (and you will), upgrade as funds permits down the road. Good luck and have fun!
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I couldn’t agree with you anymore. I started off with the PC’s as well and end up upgrading all of my cables. Now I have a full loom of HIJIRI’S on all the main components. Also, check out Sternklang cables, they mate very well with HIJIRI’S. Colin @gestalt has great taste in music and he certainly knows how to pick his gear, everything I came across and heard so far offers great value and audio nirvana. |
@willgolf …lol! @kclone ….thanks for chiming in. Glad to hear you’re in enjoying Takumi. Nagomi PC is pretty good but once you hear Takumi, there is no going back. Not sure, if you know, but ask your dealer about HIJIRI SM2R-L PC for your source component. At almost half the cost of Takumi, the SM2R-L will get you very close to TAKUMI. I first added this SM2R-L to my SACD player then moved it to my streamer while I save money for 2nd SM2R-L PC. This PC is very complimentary to three TAKUMI’s in my system. Enjoy your music! |
I recommend starting with a Power Cord if you are going to upgrade entire cable loom. And if you aiming at “Million” series IC and Speaker Cables down the road then I would start off with 聖Hijiri SM2R-L "SOUND MATTER" Power Cord not Nagomi. The SM2R-L performance is closer to “Takumi” Maestro PC and offers amazing synergy with “Million” IC and Speaker cables. Nagomi PC is good but SM2R-L PC is simply on another level. If I were to start over and on a budget, I would buy one “Takumi” PC for Integrated or Amp and SM2R-L PC for rest of the components. Hooe this helps! |
I own a full loom of HIJIRI Million Series cables. IME, SM2R-L would be an amazing upgrade over Nagomi in your system. Mola Mola is an excellent DAC and the SM will do wonders there. A pair of SM gets you very close to "TAKUMI" Maestro Power Cord. For Jumpers, request your distributor to special order jumpers from Combak. If that’s not possible, then pick a high quality jumpers made from OCC wire. |
It’s great to hear how much you’re enjoying your system! Thoughtfully chosen components and PC’s like the TWL Obsession and Takumi can truly contribute to the listening experience. I am currently breaking-in my phono with stock cord. Once it’s fully broken-in, I will swap out stock pc with SM2R-L. It’s always inspiring to see someone who is so engaged with their music and setup, enjoy! |