Recommendation for new cables


Hi everyone. I'm planning to recable my system which is currently composed as follows: ARC Ref 3 (preamp), ARC Ref 110 (amp), dCS Bartok (DAC/streamer) + dCS Rossini (external clock), Accuphase dp67 (cd transport only), Wilson Sophia 2 (speakers) and Roon Nucleus.

Ideally, I'd like to use only one brand to have synergy across the system and I'm not planning to spend crazy money.

I've been recommended to go for Transparent Audio Ultra but would love to see other potential options.

What would you recommend based on my system? Also, where would you start from?

Thanks in advance.
F.
frankie67

Showing 2 responses by lemonhaze

Hi lalitk, yes we agree OCC cables are excellent and find I mostly prefer solid. If you read my post again you will see we are on the same page

Regarding my sentence : “Your desire for only one brand to have synergy across the system is unlikely to provide that to your quality components” 

You may notice in the above sentence that I mentioned 'unlikely' and was not intending it as a  'will definitely not'.
Your desire for only one brand to have synergy across the system is unlikely to provide that to your quality components.

Except for cable companies that use magnets or filter boxes or liquid metal in their cables you are probably not going to find a 'house sound'

I build my own cables and do not understand how a cable company could ensure that all cables produced by them exhibit the same style of portraying the signal. Lets take for example single strand OCC solid wire which I like and use a lot. This is great for internal speaker wiring, interconnects and speakers cables but not easy, though not impossible, to use for power cables. The single solid core does not allow for a flexible joint and is subject to fatigue and failure which for a power cable could prove dangerous.

So a manufacturer might build using solid core wire for his cables except where he sensibly would choose stranded for the power cables and in doing so would upset the house sound. There is more to this but the point I am trying to make is that cabling from only one brand does not guarantee synergy. In fact it's more likely to prevent it!
Wiring a system is an iterative process. An example : you obtain 3 power cables to try and you find PC No.1 to sound best. Next you do the same with 3 different interconnects, make your choice and then repeat this with speaker cables and find now that there has been a big upgrade in performance.

Now just for fun you go back and re-listen to the power cables and now with the effect of the new IC and speaker cables installed you find it much easier to hear differences and perhaps resulting in PC No.2 to now be clearly the best and on it goes.

Good luck with your quest.