NBS Speaker Cables and Interconnects

i have recently replaced my cardas lightening digital cable with a nbs monitor I digital and my dac to preamp with the same monitor I interconnect. the latter replaced an ht prosilway II. they are great cables. very expensive if you get the higher grades.they are extremely detailed with the blackest background i have yet heard.no rolloffs here. bass very tight and better rhythm to the music.

A few years ago I was on the hunt for an upgrade to my XLR interconnect between my preamp and amp (ARC LS5 and VT130). I had been using Straightwire Virtuoso which I quickly learned had much to do with my system's brightness. I borrowed an Audioquest Diamond. Very neutral tonal balance but this cable robbed the music's midrange bloom and ambience. Stereophile was certainly out to lunch when they recommended this or they were using a very unmusical solid state based system as their reference. I then tried the Transparent Audio Ultra. It was quite nice but the rolled- off top-end was just not right for a cable of this cost. I then tried an NBS Master, middle of the NBS line, and experienced one of those rare times when a component change just stops you in your tracks. I had not heard of NBS until this time when a dealer told me to take it home and try it. The tonal balance was very good, the midrange bloom was back again but I had a level of resolution that was new to me. My opinion of this product was very high except for the price. I finally settled on Cardas Golden Cross and SilverAudio cables. These are both outstanding values and each has its pros/cons.....midrange warmth vs resolution.....but only the NBS gave me both. I recently upgraded again, and this time to NBS Statement and have never looked back. These things are ridiculously expensive, but I have seen them on the used market for 15%-25% retail price and that is the time to jump. Someday I will try the Nordost, but for now, the NBS Statement is an excellent match in my system. I understand the Monitor series to be a bit higher in resolution and more neutral compared to the Classic series with a little more warmth. Try both before you decide the NBS is not a good match for you.

I purchased the a set of NBS Monitor IV XLR interconnects and the Monitor IV speaker cables. They replaced JPS Superconductors. They are very good cables. In matter of fact, I bought a pair of Nordost SPM XLR interconnects and was very surprised that the SPM's (over twice the cost) were only slightly better than the Monitor IV's. I recently upgraded the Monitor IV speaker cable to NBS Monitor III. They are awesome. All the ranges improved, in detail, clarity, and space, especially the in the lower frequency. Best speaker cable that I've tried. But I agree that you should audition any cable before purchasing them because what may sound wonderful on one system, could sound awful on another. Wen-li at eAudioNet.com has a great service for auditioning and purchasing cables.

I tried the King Serpent 3 RCA interconnects. I had misgivings, and the designer told me I should try Monitor 3, that it would alleviate what I was hearing. I just couldn't budget for it at the time, and still can't. I am liking Discovery Essence right now, but haven't tried them side by side (only using my "sonic memory"). The NBS are quite stiff, but if you can tolerate that, you ought to try them. Just make sure you compare them to the competition side by side. When I had the NBS, I preferred my top of the line MIT to them, running direct from my CD50 to a Rogue 88 tube amplifier (admittedly, the MIT is much more costly when new, so it wasn't a totally fair comparison). From what I can recall, HOWEVER, I would also prefer the LESS COSTLY Discovery Essence overall, to the NBS KS 3 RCA interconnect...in my system..............I learned a long time ago that you can never predict how a cable will sound in your system's context, so if you are interested, then demo some directly from NBS, like I did, if there is no dealer in your area, or if your dealer won't loan you any. Walter Fields was quite personable to me on the phone...good luck!