2. cables
  3. 1082200938

Nordost Blue Heaven to SPM Reference

Nordost cables are known to be very detailed, quick and having a fast transient response while their only caveat is in the bass department. Anyhow I don't think this is an issue with me since I am thinking of improving the bottom end of my speakers with a subwoofer.

I have the Blue Heaven speaker cables on my SF Grand Piano and was thinking of upgrading to the SPM Reference. Will I get a substantial improvement? I am just concerned on the ratio of money spent/improvements in sound. If the differences are huge I don't mind getting rid of my Blue Heaven for the SPM. Any comments?

Thanks in advance.
ryder

Showing 2 responses by subaruguru

subaruguru
1,374 posts
 
I'm in agreement that the SPM improved both the ultimate bass output AND removed a transient edginess existing in the Red Dawn. The extra bass didn't surprise me as the SPMs are larger. The cleaner top octaves was a treat. Yet I bought the SPMs at 70% off used, making them a no-brainer. I found the Red Dawn, Siltech whatever, Discovery Essence and HT ProSilway XLRs almost indistinguishable from the RD, but the SPM was clearly better than all these.
Too bad, as I always like cheap giant-killers.
subaruguru
1,374 posts
 
I agree that the RD sounds great, and still use it in the less fussy pre-to-monos XLRs. But the SPM simply removed the psychoacoustic transient "edge" that imparted a slight articiality to the presentation. The SPM simply sounds more natural (less "obviously" high-rez) than the RD on my balanced CDP, as well speaker lines. Again, unless I had found them at 60-70% discounted I probably would have gone sideways instead of "up", as I don't believe in overpriced cables. Yet Nordost's fairly unique Teflon slow-extrusion process and geometry have obvious merit in a well-balanced system. Having a squeaky-clean front end helps, as does proper room damping and proper tweeter integration.
More to discover