HomeGrownAudio cable Owners

How is the quality of your bass? I'm trying Audio Magic Excaliburs and they are very nice, but, but... it seems like my bass has gotten drier, less weighty. And while subtle, I really miss it. I'm finding my music less involving. does this mean I like "warmer" sonics. Looking for diagnostic advice.

I have both the Super Silver and Silver Lace. I think the Super Silver excels at speed, clarity, transparency, and detail. In my opinion, the Silver Lace makes major improvements. Most apparently in the areas of bass response(extension, power, and tightness) and dynamics. Lately, because of all the talk about the Sakura OTA cables, I have been thinking a lot about cables in general. From the opinions of people I trust very much(Brulee, Dekay, Kitch29, and Redkiwi) it seems this product has proven to be a revelation to them. Following along the one thing I always seem to conclude in life. Simpler is better. The big issue in my mind right now are connectors. Super Silver features very middle of the road connectors. Silver Lace comes with some wonderful WBT like locking connectors. I am now really wondering how the two would compare if the connectors were the same. While I have raised this issue several times in the past, I have never really dwelt on it to the point where I am now. As the more I hear silver, the more enamored I am of it, I am considering trying the Super Silver with solid silver RCA connectors from Alpha Core Goertz. I wonder if that is as close as I could come to the ultimate truth in interconnects.

Thanks guys. I just read the threads in the archive, but wanted to hear opinion from new owners, if any, with this product. OBTW - I like the shot about paranoia being a determining factor on the Super Silver vs Lace - HAH! My system is about 25k retail; triode (VAC) tubed-based with Silverline Sonatinas. My reference cables for the last 3 years; Magnan type Vi & XLO signature 1.1's.

Just recently I sampled 6 different cables for primarally the XLO. Cardas Cross, JPS Super Conductor, TG Audio, Bear Labs, NBS Monitor IV, and the Super Silver. The JPS and TG Audio were best at benefiting my systems weak points, but the Super Silver is much closer to my sensibilities. While the TG Audio had a dramatic, sweeping effect, the SS was much more delicate (but not soft) and detailed (but not fatiguing).

It really comes down to a preference, and while the TG Audio and JPS were very impressive, the SS were very transparent and musical. Very unHIFI-ISH. Talk about the shimmer on top, the air and decay and the throbbing yet very tight bass. Chorus' were just lovely and someone previously mentioned the way they disembody the music from the speaker enclosures, much like the effect of my Shunyata Hydra PLC. I appreciate the insight. MikE

http://cgi.AudioAsylum.com/systems/436.html

I built the cheapest kit: silver solution. A nice step up from AudioQuest Turquoise in detail and imaging. In fact, the solution seemed to be more forgiving of speaker placement!
I then bought the Silver Lace factory wired. Major improvement in those nuances known as inner detail plus shimmering highs with no glare. Much more difficult to achieve speaker placement but once done, wow.
I have two pair, one from CDP to volume control and the other on to my tube amp.
BTW, the Silver Solution are now showing themselves well in my lower-fi HT system: Pioneer 525 to Outlaw receiver.

I have assembled all three of the HGA kits (Silver Solution, Super Silver, and Silver Lace). The Silver Solution and Super Silver are fairly easy to assemble and solder, because they have relatively few strands. As Drrasta noted above, the Silver Lace is a bit more difficult, since there are 8 strands in the braid, and you have to have a voltmeter/multimeter to determine which 4 strands are positive and which 4 are negative. Once that is done, however, the soldering is fairly straightforward. I took me about 2 hours to assemble and solder both pieces of the Silver Lace cable. If you have a decent soldering pen (and a voltmeter in the case of the Silver Lace IC's), and don't mind spending some time doing the assembly, I think the kits are a great buy. If you do NOT have a good soldering pen (and voltmeter), the extra cost to buy it may largely offset the cost savings on the kits vs. factory assembled units.

I am using the Silver Lace IC's between the preamp and the 2 power amps, and Super Silver IC's for all of the connections between the various analog components and the preamp. I am very pleased with the quality of HGA's materials and RCA jacks, and think that both of these IC's represent excellent value. After I installed the IC's in my system, I noticed subtle but positive improvements in the sound quality -- smoother, cleaner highs, and a slight improvement in bass reproduction. I honestly can't say that I hear consistent differences between the Silver Lace and the Super Silver IC's, but I have not done a rigorous A/B comparison (switching back and forth between IC's is more hassle than I'm interested in).

I bought the Silver Lace cables for the preamp to power amp connection, rather than the Super Silver, because the runs are a bit longer (2 meters vs. 1 and 0.5 meters for the other components), and I wanted more strands in the cable to be sure the signal transfer from preamp to power amp was as accurate as possible. (To be entirely truthful, you may find in your system that the Super Silvers work just fine, and the Silver Lace IC is overkill. I suspect that it will depend on how good your system is, and how much audio paranoia you suffer from -- the audiophile's secret worry that somewhere there may be something better that you are missing out on.)

There are other regulars on this board, such as Trelja, who have the Silver Lace IC's, and they may also have comments to offer.

Did the silver lace kit. It was a bit difficult to pick out the +/- strands. You need a Radio Shack multimeter to match them up. Otherwise basic soldering skills and a little finesse are all that are needed. For your other question, do a search of these archives under homegrown and you'll find plenty of discussion.