Rhodium vs Gold AC connectors

No one trusts anyone else's opinions here and should not.

Anyone else find that a very odd comment coming from a reviewer? Or do I have Tbg confused w someone else?

TBG, That is odd that you posted those comment's, coming from someone who only own's Rhodium connector's and outlet's, and has told me numerous time's that Gold to you was inferrior to Rhodium by a large margin, I trusted you, and you were correct!, I trust my own finding's, most here have not a/b testing furutech GTX-D Rhodium and Gold like I have, I had both here for week's, no, I am not saying that Rhodium is for everyone, but to tell me that their is very little difference between the two when I heard a substantial difference does not make any sence, I take opinon's as a basis to investagte and try my self in my system, so the science is that I tried both and had my preference, it does not matter to me what anyone else uses, I like the Gold version, not bad, However, the Gold sounded very veiled compaired to the Rhodium version for outlet's, connector's are a different story, I have no exsperience with them yet, so I cannot give an opinon other than what certain metal's sound like, cheers TBG.

Cheers Tbg, I know the real reason I talk to myself on this forum, and it's nothing to do with the folks on here..

Melbguy1, don't let anyone bother you. No one trusts anyone else's opinions here and should not. Perhaps over time you can find your opinions correspond with someone here. But in reality it is not good science to trust anyone.

Hi michaelzay, I look forward to you finding's, oh, your welcome about the kind word's, keep me posted, I enjoy learning.

Audiolabyrinth, I bought some IeGO Silver and Gold AC plugs that I am on last phase of breaking period. I will post the results/ comparison to Furutech soon. So far, I just tested Silver AC plugs and they are wonderful, having best features of Rhodium & Gold ac plugs. My AC outlets are TESLA Plex SE and I very happy using them. If I could find any AC outlet made of Silver plat over Copper, I will certainly go for it.

BTw, I appreciate your kind words ...

cheers,

And i'm not? (a well seasoned audiophile). I've been in this game for almost 20 years & have an almost $200k system. Audiolabyrinth, the only people who help you on this forum are those whose views accord with yours. Then they're all-wise and knowing. So yeah, what would I know...

melb, Michaelzay is a well seasoned audiophile I respect, he know's more about outlet's and connector's than the both of us do!, I have garnished alot of info from him, he helped me!, If I were you, ask him question's about all of this, he is my teacher, he has not been wrong thus far, though on connector's, pending on the componet sound, not tube or solid state, he has mixed to good success.

Michaelmas, firstly you should think before you falsely accuse other members of using profanity. Secondly, you are very attached to the phrase "so be it". Perhaps you are a fan of the film 'Pump up the volume'? Thirdly, are you a frustrated academic or something? Your lengthy, but flawed essay was little more than sermon in mediocrity. It seems like too arcane a concept for you to grasp that Audiolabyrinths's findings could be correct in the context of his system, yet potentially misleading for other members relying on his commentary before waiving their credit card. Yawn, onto another thread...

Michaelzay, so you did get those outlet's you told me about in earlier post, how is that working out?, can you tell me about your impression's, thankyou.

Melbguy1, That is an odd assement that you believe I could not hear a substantial difference between the furutech GTX-D Rhodium and Gold, you have never listened to my system, the difference was big enough I made my decision on what I wanted to have, maybe you should a/b the two wpo's, you may be suprised that their is a substantial difference, I understand some may prefer the gold, you will never know untill you did what I have, audition the both of them for a month or so, you may end up still liking the gold better, who know's, we each prefer diferent sound from one to the other, that's like I cannot really comment about your speaker's against some JBL speaker's, I have never had both in my system to hear what work's best to my liking, cheers.

Thanyou melbguy1.

Audiolabyrinth, thanks for the clarification on your speakers. Yes I agree it takes time to achieve your audio goals. My current system has been an almost 7 year labour of love. But I also think you need to be realistic about where your system is at. I've owned a pair of $2k speakers of similar vintage (Infinity Renaissance 90's). The Rens simply had superior drivers and cabinet design compared to your JBL's including High Energy Emit & Emim drivers, a Watkins dual voice coil bass driver & excellent sound staging and off-axis performance. They were good reference tools, but my current S5's kill the Rens and have much better resolution, linearity, layering, timbre, dynamics, balance and slam. Really my current system has been a revelation. Now with the benefit of hindsight I can see how even my classic Rens were not up to the task of objectively evaluating the differences between the GTX-D(G) and GTX-D(R). That requires a well balanced high end system with excellent resolution, overall neutrality and no weak links. I don't doubt you've formed an honest view from your listening tests based on your equipment. I put it to you however that given a reference level system with which to evaluate the two outlets, your view would likely be very different.

Hi Michelzay, I have known about the above review for a few month's, I liked the review so much that it was my inspiration to get the furutech GTX-D Rhodium and Gold to audition for week's and with different industrial wpo's, this was the biggest pain in the aXX that I have ever encounterd in hi-end audio, I never want to go through that again, so to me the reviewer of the review of wall power outlet's here went through an incredible amount of trouble to give all of us his impression's, I respect and believe his review based up-on that I went through almost the same amount of hard work for my decision to use for a wpo on my system.

Hi melbguy1, yes, I have changed out the binding post and replaced some cap's inside the speaker's, it is however, a work in progress, to be clear here, I have started all the way from scratch building a system from 2012, it is my opinion, I am not doing to bad, do you remeber when you started out?, took you a few year's to get where you are now, correct?, that is where I am, hope you understand, thankyou.

Melbguy1, "gross and non-sense comments" are those calling others whom are not sharing the same thoughts as dummies. Using f. words as abbreviation, to express and push their non-sense logic. The bottom line is to respect other Audiogon fellow's opinion even though if is not the same as ours.

As for the articles and generally the reviews, I need to add that I don't believe on them. Most of reviewers are biased toward certain brands (go find why!!???!). If not. their system is totally different than ours, therefore their opinions on a particular product should not be generalized. Obviously, one could learn some stuffs from those reviews but accepting a review as is, it is not advised. Of course, some sites/journals are more honest like tonepublication, soundstage and the absolute sound. others that I usually don't trust, are like Stereomojo, steretimes, daggo, etc..., their reviews mostly consist of saying hey, it is a good product ... without going through any concrete detail and or/and any comparisons. Once again this comment is only my personal opinion, not a rule.

As for this funny battle of Gold vs. Rhodium, one should express his/her system and related experience to inform other audiogon fellows on their path toward perfectness. If that experience is different compared to any other person, so be it!!! One could feel to be musically more connected toward a Gold ac plug or Rhodium Ac plug, so be it! Our audio systems and our taste for music genre, are different from one to another, therefore we might prefer Gold over Rh. and vice versa, so be it!!! I use mostly Gold plated Ac plugs, some Rhodium ones and very recently some Silver plated plugs, dependent on power cable material, source device, power conditioner, So be it !!! If someone is happy with his audio system plugged either with silver, Gold, Copper, bronze or Rhodium, SO BE IT!!!!

Michelzay, I agree that was a well authored review, but is completely irrelevant to anyone seeking reliable feedback about the differences between the Furutech GTX-D(R) and GTX-D(G) wpo's. Perhaps you can link into the "gross and non-sense comments" you referred to as I must have missed them.

01-28-15: Audiolabyrinth
I am going to say this once, my speaker's are NOT some $695.00 speaker's!, They are a highly modded pair of $2,000.00 JBL L-7 speaker's, I have way more money than this retail of $2,000.00 in these speaker's, I have said this to you many time's before,stop

Yes, those speakers were $1950 in 1992. By "highly modded", I assume you're talking about your Tara Labs jumpers? High end jumpers certainly improve the sound, but that is not a mod. To clear the air, perhaps you can fill us in on what mods you're speakers have had?

I am going to say this once, my speaker's are NOT some $695.00 speaker's!, They are a highly modded pair of $2,000.00 JBL L-7 speaker's, I have way more money than this retail of $2,000.00 in these speaker's, I have said this to you many time's before,stop!

That' a very good public/online review from Enjoy the music.com written by Jonathan Lo. It also provides price list of these power outlet. I have already recommended this article about a month ago, before all those gross and non-sense comments mentioned recently!!!!!!

01-28-15: Audiolabyrinth
This is in agreement to my finding's!, January 2014

Audiophile AC Power Outlet Comparisons
Oyaide, Synergistic Teslaplex, ACME, Hubbell IG 5362, cruzeFIRST Audio Maestro, and Furutech GTX.
Review By Jonathan Lo

How could this review be in agreement with your findings if they did not compare the GTX-D(G) in the same system?? I must be missing something.

01-28-15: Audiolabyrinth
my post was an extensive hard ache testing that was crazy to have to go though to the begin with, it's an absolute to everyone, this kind of difference was substantial!

Audiolabyrinth, buy some real high end speakers then come back to us with a serious evaluation. Listening through your $695 JBL L7's does not cut it..

This is in agreement to my finding's!, January 2014

Audiophile AC Power Outlet Comparisons
Oyaide, Synergistic Teslaplex, ACME, Hubbell IG 5362, cruzeFIRST Audio Maestro, and Furutech GTX.
Review By Jonathan Lo

Most audio reviewers dislike writing cable reviews, especially if it involves comparing multiple cables, since the amount of time, effort, and concentration required makes it a laborious challenge. What is even more onerous? It has to be audiophile AC outlet comparative reviews because changing out outlets to compare outlet A to B to C, then back to A severely tests one's perseverance, patience, memory, and sanity. There is good reason one does not see this type of reviews very often, but it has to be done, so here it is.

The reason one cannot simply ignore AC outlets in the audio system is that they can make rather large differences in sound quality, as much as different cables, tubes, and even entire audio components can make. The fact these audiophile outlets tend to be relatively affordable compared to major components is the other reason audiophiles should experiment with them to find ones that synergize with their systems. However, it would be a mistake to assign absolute rankings to various outlets and expect the same results for different people's systems and tastes, so this article is an attempt to describe some sonic characteristics and personalities that others may find useful when they decide to choose outlets they would like to experiment with. In order to maximize the ease of comparison as well as to preserve consistency and repeatability, the outlets were installed in my DIY outlet boxes, which enabled fast switching.

Oyaide SWO-XXX
There has been a lot of ink spilt over Oyaide outlets. Since many audiophiles have tried the SWO-XXX and are familiar with their sound, they may be a good reference for comparing sound signatures. SWO-XXX, which is often thought of as their "palladium" outlet, utilizes highly polished deoxidized phorphor bronze as base metal, which is plated with 1.5 micron thick gold, then again plated with 0.3 micron of palladium. Oyaide has since come out with SWO-XXX Ultimo, which uses the same base metal and plating, without a clear explanation of what exactly has changed. Comparatively, SWO-DX series uses the same base metal plated with silver, then rhodium, while SWO-GX series is basically gold over gold, resulting in extra thick (2 micron) gold coating.

Audiophiles who have not experimented with "audiophile" AC outlets may be shocked at first to hear the sonic difference between a normal household AC outlet and Oyaide SWO-XXX, especially as the quality of AC outlets seems to keep going down in these new track homes being built. SWO-XXX will redefine what a mere outlet can do for "air" and "smoothness" in a system. There is oodles of air cushioning each sonic note and performer, seemingly lifting them upwards in the soundstage, while traces of brittleness, hardness, and grit are removed, resulting in a more liquid, smooth textures. Having a good amount of experience with palladium or platinum based conductors and cables, I recognize the great air and speed as a trait shared by both materials, usually with palladium sounding softer and smoother than platinum which tends to be airy yet more immediate, less soft. The final layer of palladium gives Oyaide R1 its unique flavor of smooth liquidity, which numerous audiophiles have loved and settled in with.

All is not perfect, however, as when one part of the sonic spectrum is so spectacularly noticeable, long-term listening usually bears out issues elsewhere. In the case of SWO-XXX, there is a sense that quite a bit of editorializing has been done to the sound, akin to photo's that have had slightly too much "photoshopping" done to them. One keeps thinking "this recording shouldn't sound this liquid" or "that note was never that airy." Also, the deep bass foundation appears to lose a bit of quantity and aggression. Now, many systems out there sound the exact opposite, i.e. rolled-off highs with dry textures and overblown bass, in which case SWO-XXX will do wonders to push those parameters the other end. SWO-XXX can certainly be an impressive life-saver for many systems out there, but as usual with these tweaks, try in your own system before deciding.

Oyaide R1
After the SWO series have become very popular, Oyaide rolled out the R1 as their premium AC outlet. While the SWO series starts out with phosphor bronze as the base metal, R1 uses beryllium copper as the base metal. What's the advantage of beryllium copper? To quote Be Cu Manufacturing Co, Inc:

"This malleability provides outstanding precision for critical miniature parts. However, unlike pure copper, beryllium-copper can be heat treated to harden the alloy into an extremely strong and durable metal. Stamped and formed shapes, such as springs, retain their performance characteristics for long spans of time. The inclusion of up to 2% of beryllium to copper enables the alloy to retain high electrical conductivity. Equally important, heat-treated beryllium-copper features excellent dimensional stability, fatigue resistance and corrosion resistance. Its strength is greater than ordinary copper alloys and many steels."

Oyaide takes beryllium copper, polishes it highly, then plates it with platinum, then again with palladium. Basically, R1 uses platinum plating instead of gold plating stage of SWO-XXX while outside stays palladium. Platinum and platinum alloys in past have struck me as having a bit more immediate, resolved nature compared to palladium while still leaning to the fast, neutral mien instead of warm and romantic like gold. This trend bears out for R1, which sounds significantly more resolved, less soft, and less ethereal than SWO-XXX. There is more definition to images and more bass foundation compared to SWO-XXX. While many loved SWO-XXX after its release, there were some grumblings on the ‘net talking about how SWO-XXX was too cool or lean in their systems. The R1 should fit in more comfortably into many more systems, providing meaningful improvement over generic outlets. Compared to something more upfront and vivid like Teslaplex, R1 still has the Oyaide signature of refinement and liquidity, just not to the same degree as SWO.

Synergistic Research Teslaplex
The outlet under comparison is the original Teslaplex, which has since evolved into Teslaplex SE, which has different material for the back strap apparently. Reading about the Teslaplex outlet on the Synergistic Research website will likely cause a non-audiophile to burst into laughter or question whether it's April Fool's:

"The Synergistic Research TESLA Plex SE is our Quantum Tunneled duplex outlet. Quantum Tunneling is a process that changes the way a conductor works at the sub atomic level, impacting the entire TESLA Plex SE assembly. By applying a two million volt signal to each individual unit, at a specific pulse modulation and an ultra-high frequency, for an exact duration of time, we transform the outlet at the molecular level. This process is also performed on all TESLA Series cables, from Accelerator to Apex. The ‘before and after' is startling, with a lower noise floor and improvements in inner detail, air, low frequency extension, and overall transparency."

Yup, it's a tough pill to swallow even if you are an audiophile. Frankly, there is a lot of language on Synergistic's website that describes some incredulous stuff like active shielding for cable, "quantum" fuses, EnigmA valve power supply for active shielding, and Acoustic Art room resonance control cups. Putting all the baggage aside for a moment, the jist of Teslaplex seems to be zapping an outlet with very high voltage (two million volts) to change its sound. Well, what does that do?

Apparently, the extreme-voltage zapping really makes Teslaplex sound clear, vivid, and involving. This is not a ethereal, warm, or forgiving outlet; instead, it's very "open," super-resolving, crisp, dynamic, and engaging. In some systems that already accentuate upper-mids and lower-treble, it may even come across as unforgiving and bright, but in well-balanced systems, it is all about throwing away that veil and making music come alive. Perhaps because it tends to enhance edge-definition and highlight outlines, it seems to present more defined images to voices and instruments compared to outlets like Oyaide and ACME.

Its personality tends to suit tube-based systems better, especially the single-ended triode variety, when the main voice or instrument is helped to project energetically into the room with exciting clarity and bite. Still, as usual, one will need to be careful which components would work best with Teslaplex and how many is too many in one system.

ACME Audio Silver Plated Outlet
ACME Audio Labs outlet is definitely an "oldie but goodie." ACME takes the Pass and Seymour 5242 outlets, silver-plates the metal parts and screws, then cryo-treats whole thing. The ACME outlet has been around a very long time, and while many other audiophile outlets have been brought to market since, it still sounds excellent while maintaining a budget price. The main hurdle to enjoying the ACME is the seemingly ridiculous amount of time it takes to break in, and it's probably a good idea to just install them into other rooms, connect some lights, refrigerator, etc, and just forget about them for a few weeks before actually installing them into the audio system.

If hastily installed and listened to right away, the ACME will likely introduce the proverbial Audio Hell to the owner, who will likely be disappointed and give up on this great outlet before the good stuff starts. At first, music will sound rigid, bright, rough, without any natural flow, and over the next few weeks, there will be a rollercoaster ride of improvement here and there while some things take a step forward then a step backward. When all said and done, the ACME presents a clear, resolute view into the recording with superb dynamics and definition. While it's probably not an outlet to use to soften and hide system faults, it will likely secure a place in a system, perhaps to feed some good tube amps, while another outlet that's a little more forgiving feeds the digital source, for example. It's difficult to beat the price-to-performance ratio of ACME outlets in this day and age when boutique outlets can cost an order of magnitude more.

Hubbell IG 5362 Double Cryo'd AC Outlet
Hubbell IG 5362 should not be confused with the regular Hubbell 5362. "IG" stands for Isolated Ground, and this model also happens to be built from phosphor bronze, which is very rare in non-audiophile, off-shelf outlets.

Unlike the ACME, which took an extremely long time to settle down, the Hubbell sounded good right out of the box and didn't exhibit much "nasties" during break-in. Compared to a "normal" household outlet, both IG5362 and ACME cleared away a veil, removing a ‘wooly gauze' over music. Images snapped into focus with better 3-D density. Bass was warm and popped with authority when called for, but not cyborg-uptight. While it is possible to imagine a system that is very rough around the edges that may benefit from the defocusing effect of a "regular" outlet, in order to extract that last 10% from the system, strategic use of good outlets is a must.

Compared to the double-cryo'd Hubbell, the ACME seemed to have a slight amount of glare and hardness riding on top of upper-midrange to low-treble area, which is an effect very similar to silver-plated solid-core copper wire relative to plain copper. It's not very noticeable with most music, but with music containing lots of energy in this area, such as a trumpet or female vocals at top of the range, there's a certain "tearing" effect with the ACME. Luckily, having used the ACME outlets for many years in various rooms, I can report that when they are truly well-used, like many months, this hardness eventually disappears, leaving a nicely extended, dynamic, clear-sounding outlet, if not exactly forgiving.

When thus fully burned-in, ACME can demonstrate what may be a bit of a problem with double-cryo'd Hubbell, which is a mild attenuation of frequency extension at the extreme top and bottom. IG 5362 probably has the most rich and bloomy midrange of all the outlets mentioned here, a delight and an almost tube-like response curve. Certain solid state or class-D amps with strong top and bottom response but somewhat reticent midrange may in fact pair beautifully with the Hubbell, as well as digital front-ends that exhibit similar subjective response. My personal reference systems revolve around tubes and refined digital sources, which is the reason my system synergizes better with Teslaplex and ACME.

cruzeFIRST Audio Maestro Outlet
cruzeFIRST Audio takes a completely different approach to audiophile outlets compared to a company like Oyaide. Their Maestro outlet eschews any plating, which cruzeFIRST Audio strongly believes benefits the unobstructed power flow. Instead, they concentrate on starting with sound materials by the way of commercial-spec outlet made to their specifications with high-purity copper/brass alloy. This is not a simple off-the-shelf outlet one can buy anywhere. This outlet then undergoes precise deep cryogenic treatment, special coating to reject RFI / EMI, then mechanical dampening applied. That's not all, as it then goes through a two-week break-in process before being sealed into its packaging.

The very first thought that occurred when plugging into the Maestro outlet was how supremely clean it sounded. It's not so much that other outlets did not sound clean before; many of them certainly sounded quite clean, especially when compared to run-of-the-mill household outlets. However, Maestro outlet seemed to open a new level of clean sonics that's revealed best in direct comparison. The lack of any plating may have something to do with this impression, among other factors, as there was almost a subliminal sense of less "stuff" between my ears and the music signal, less make-up and gloss being placed on music. This meant that less-than-perfect recordings with passages with some irritating texture or peaky brightness came through without these imperfections being thrust into one's face. They are still there but not as aggravating, which allows a deeper relaxation into one's favorite tunes, a boon for sure.

The second thought that came into mind was how delightfully natural the Maestro sounded. "Natural" is not exactly a heart-pounding, exciting description and is easily lost in the sea of audiophile verbiage; but it also happens to be one of the toughest attributes to achieve in an audio component. Take for example the Teslaplex, which at times comes across as more spot-lit, exciting, and engaging, which is a pleasing effect for many systems out there. Unfortunately, with certain recordings, it can have almost a "crispy" type of brightness which is unpleasant and distracting. The Maestro presents the performers a bit less forward and less thrusted toward the listener, more properly set back within the soundscape. There is less tension in the audio frequency "presence region" with the Maestro as well as a bit more natural bloom and weight in the mid-bass; as a result, some tracks that are overcooked and close-mic'ed are more enjoyable via Maestro, but all without losing true resolution or detailing because they are just slightly less forward. In fact, it is evident that the Maestro is neutral and natural enough to fit into a vast majority of audio systems out there without throwing off the system balance way too much, which cannot be said about many other audiophile outlets out there.

Some audiophiles might not be very impressed by an outlet that is described as "clean and natural," but that would be a mistake. The Maestro clearly has been painstakingly tweaked and optimized to arrive at those underappreciated goals, and what is truly wonderful is this outlet sounds natural because it is transparent, not because it smooths over details. It seems kind of odd to call an outlet transparent, but the Maestro certainly deserves that credit.

Furutech GTX-D Rhodium Outlet
The Furutech GTX-D is built like a jewel and sounds like it, too. Unfortunately, such quality does not come cheap, and those who are used to $1 light-weight, plasticky outlets used in most large residential developments these days may be somewhat shocked by the $239 price tag for the Furutech GTX-D Rhodium. Going straight to the source, Furutech, there are reasons their top-of-the-line outlet costs what it does.

In an ideal world, pure copper would be used for power connectors and outlets, but unfortunately, pure copper is quite soft and malleable, which would deform and loosen over repetitive use, leading to a potential disaster for AC power chain. This is the reason most power connectors and receptacles are made with materials with worse conductivity such as brass or phosphor bronze. Furutech has developed a technique that allows the use of their best conductor material, Alpha-treated pure copper, as the base conductor. Alpha-copper means being blessed with Furutech's patented cryogenic treatment and demagnetization process, good enough to be used in Furutech's premium signal cabling products. This copper is strengthened with nonmagnetic stainless steel spring system that maintains a very firm grip on power blades while avoiding damages to male connector blades. These receptacles receive the world-renowned Furutech rhodium or gold plating, becoming (r) or (g) versions of GTX-D.

Attention to detail does not stop there, and in order to minimize vibration and resonance, the receptacle body is made from a heavy-duty composite of nylon and fiberglass, which is impregnated with carbon powder and "piezo nano" ceramic. This technique is used to convert mechanical resonance into heat while performing shielding duties from EMI. Some of the other features include a curved pressure clamping system that increases surface contact area between the electrical line and the receptacle, accommodation for either spades or bare wire, special protective clamp cover, patented wire clamping system, nonmagnetic stainless steel mounting strap, and an anti-resonant rear dampening clamp.

If still not convinced regarding the price, one just needs to hold the GTX-D in his hand to realize this has to be the best built, most sturdy, meticulously thought-out, non-resonant piece of audio outlet available. Every moving part, screw, strap inspires confidence that this jewel will last for generations and still deliver. If still not convinced, one only needs to listen to it. Before listening to the Furutech, I was initially worried the rhodium plating may sound too analytical, which is the somewhat accepted reputation for rhodium; the corollary is that gold plating yields warm and euphonic sound. This description somewhat matches my previous experiences with these plating methods with other products, but GTX-D (r) managed to walk the fine line between resolution and warmth, while definitely avoiding any hash, grit, sheen, brightness, or harshness.

GTX-D achieved the highest levels of both resolution and smoothness, something usually not seen together in one product. If one switched from the $1 house outlet to GTX-D, the staggering amount of previously-unheard resolution, clarity, and dynamics will likely be startling to the listener. All that extra information and energy is delivered in a defined, controlled way, without various sound bites getting out of control and ragged as can happen with lesser outlets. Bass is not overblown or obscuring; instead, it is tight, defined, and extended with energetic dynamic punch. Tiny sounds from various nooks of soundstage come alive with crystalline and pure delivery while instrument positioning, layering, and depth become effortlessly obvious. To make matters worse (?), GTX-D delivers a gorgeous, tasteful, 3-dimensional solidity in the all-important midrange without going overboard with overly round and thick presentation. This outlet is not held back by a overly "balanced" but boring presentation with polite, reticent midrange presence, either. The voices have superb reach into the room and soundstage, vivid and forward enough to be engaging while not overcooked, especially in the sibilance and presence region.

What are the flaws? Well, Furutech must have a reason for making the gold plated version of GTX-D as well for a different flavor. Some of the Furutech vendors recommend the rhodium version for neutral to warm systems, probably with tubes, which may mean the gold version, may fit better in neutral to cool systems. Not having the GTX-D Gold in house to compare to Rhodium, it is difficult to say for sure, but going by prior experience with gold vs. rhodium plating, one might presume that GTX-D (g) might have a warmer tonality with possibly more bass quantity, albeit with less tightness. It may also have more forgiveness but not as much detail resolution. Would that make (r) version any less worthy and flawed? Any well-heeled audiophile would already know that systems are different and that one does not fit all. One outlet may serve a certain type of system better while the other outlet may synergize a little better with a different type of system, with final results heavily being dependent on the listener's personal tastes as well. Once again, there is no substitute for actually trying the product in one's own system, and for those audiophiles who are willing to pay the tariff and do the hard work, the Furutech should be on the rather short list.

my post was an extensive hard ache testing that was crazy to have to go though to the begin with, it's an absolute to everyone, this kind of difference was substantial!

The misinformation in this thread is amazing, God help any newbie turning to some of the above posts for advice...

Cables like the Audioquest Wel Signature give you a new level in lstening to music. It has to do with more details, beter blacks and a superior physical stage. When you use cables like MIT and Transparent to make the mid and high freq. more involving you loose a lot. I have auditioned many sets with some Krell and Wilson speakers that you needed cables like Transparent to make it more involving. They forgot that they needed thse cables caused of the properties of their speakers and amps.

I agree with your very last post Bo, exactly how I build!, your quote,why you need to adapt the other tools to create a musical involving sound, my quote, I believe power should be the most transparent sounding as possible, a good basis to build off of to create your own tast of sound of music.

You are right, but gold is less precise. I really F. hate inferior details and precision. That is why you need to adapt the other tools to create a musical involving sound. For me it is very easy to solve it!

Gold and or brass sound warmer than Rhodium or Silver IME

Again AL, in the case of the GTX-D it would be wrong to assume the more precious?/expensive plating material is better as the base material (pure copper) dominates the sound of the wpo, and Furutech are only using a thin plating on top. It is more of a slight shade/lean toward transparency resolution (Rhodium) vs warmth/harmonic richness (Gold). It depends how you use it and what the rest of your system is like. That's why Furutech make two versions of their flagship.

TBG, thankyou for the reply, must be nice to have alot of equipment to do such review's, I do like stereo time's quite alot, they did a really good review on my amp beating out pass Lab's and Roland back in 2003, would be good if krell would get back to those glory day's of the golden age of audio.

Melbguy1, I didn't say that you wanted to say I was a commercial member. What I said was that Audiogon has no provisions for noting reviewers. I had sought to do so as I did on Audioasylum.

I sorry if you thought I over-reacted but I found your posting very accusatory.

Audiolabyrinth, I don't exactly know what a pro reviewer is but thanks. If it means that you think I am paid, you are wrong. I am a retired college professor and entertain myself with audio. Like all trade, reviewers usually get "accommodation" pricing, which mainly is about wholesale pricing.

Remember that it is often useful for a reviewer to have multiple amps, line stage, phono stages, cables, pcs, etc. when doing reviews.

Audiolab, I think what you were hearing in your system is the result of natural synergy between the GTX-D(R) and your tubed Vincent cdp/linestage, warm sounding connectors (079's) and vintage JBL L7 speakers. Chris told me he has as many positive reviews about the GTX-D(G)in his email box as the GTX-D(R). If the gold version were so dreadfully veiled as you described, then the outlet would be panned in favour of the rhodium, which it is not. It's just synergy man.

To make thing's clear here, The wife gave me an interesting understanding of Rhodium and Gold, The gold was $49.27 a gram, and Rhodium is $750.00 a gram, I am shocked that furutech does not charge double the amount of money for the R version over the G version, and Rhodium is a member of the platinum family of metal.

TBG, that's a good review you did, I am impressed that you are a pro reviewer,I would assume that you got free or a really good discount on the high-fidelity cable's for such publicity for them, nothing wrong with that at all Norm, as exspensive as this hobby is, why not do what we can to get what we want, cheers.

Melbguy1, hey, I am serious about how much more the veils was lifted with the Rhodium version's of the furutech GTX-D wpo's over the Gold version, that is what happend on my system, and yes, Chris know's that I am useing a tube cd player direct to amp, even before I bought any thing from him, I understand that both have the same base metal, that is where it end's, for some odd reason, the R version cost more money than the Gold version,I did extensive agonizeing test of changeing out wpo's of four different kind's 25 to 30 time's, week's of making sure what to buy, as I said, the Rhodium version won every time on my system, solid state and tube hybred solid state front end, btw, I do like the way palladium sound's that oyaide uses, cheers.

Tbg, I did not mean to imply you are a commercial member, only that you have some association to HFC by way of your position as a professional reviewer and owner of their cables. It is disappointing you felt the need to descend into this response -

But it suggests your desperation to denigrate the High Fidelity cables that you would dig it up

I in fact stumbled across your review by chance. I did not as you wildly assumed troll the internet to "dig up" dirt on you. And no, I have no association to disclose of any nature.

Melbguy1, I sought to do just that but Audiogan has no such provision. I am certainly not commercial.

But it suggests your desperation to denigrate the High Fidelity cables that you would dig it up. I make no effort to deny my reviewing. Do you hide some of your association?

@Tbg, is your name Norm Luttbeg and did you write this article? http://www.stereotimes.com/post/high-fidelity-cables-ct1-ultimate-series/ If so, you should disclose your commercial association when commenting on HFC cables.

Right Bo, on a good day Dutch are like a sour German with a bad toothache.
Nice Dutch speakers are the Flemish.

Audiolabyrinth, in your long discussions with Chris, did you mention you were using your tube cd player as linestage? That effectively means you're running a tube preamp and changes the equation. Btw, Chris's advice that the gold version is recommended for ss and tube cd players is echoe'd by other sellers such as The Tweek Geek. I'm having a hard time believing the Furutech GTX-D(R)removes "litterally veils up-on veils were taken out of the sound" compared to the GTX-D(G). Something else must be going on there since the base metal (pure copper) dominates the sound of the GTX-D. As Chris remarked, the slight lean towards warmth vs resolution in the gold vs rhodium (respectively) is more related to a slight 'shade' vs night/day difference. In the end, you're running a valve preamp so I am not surprised you preferred the rhodium version.

I have to wait until my Vitus SCD-025 arrives in a couple of months before I can see how the GTX-D(G) sounds in my system, then I will have to wait for atleast 250hrs for my new player and Jorma Statement cables to play in. But I suspect the combination of the Oyaide platinum & palladium-plated P-004 connectors, Jorma (copper) cables and Vitus amp and front end will have good synergy. (And I have to remember that only one pc will be connected to the GTX-D. All my other pc's will be plugged into my Gigawatt PC-3 SE Evo conditioner which uses in-house designed cryo'd and demaged silver-plated brass wpo's). If I feel i've got a good balance between neutrality, transparency, speed, warmth, naturalness & harmonic richness with the P-0004/GTX-D(G) combo, I will likely re-terminate all my Prime pc's with Oyaide M1/F1 hardware later in the year.

I have mentioned this before, when people use a different connector to get a more musical sound it is caused by the properties of the other tools. So they use a connector or other cable to create a more musical sound.

That is why when you are not aware of each property a tool owns you never will understand how the overall sound is made.

The reason that I test so much is to get known with all the properties of new tools. When you are aware of all the properties it is a lot easier to create the sound you want.

This is the main reason that I can outperform all my competitors. This way the endresult always will be better. As you know the best and most convincing sound alwys will win in audio. This is what make audio the most easiest!

Hi Melbguy1, Chris told me on the phone before I did all these direct comparisons that the Gold version was suited for any kind of digital, even if it was a tube based machine,also, the krell sound's better with the Rhodium, however, I admitt, I do like the treble better with the gold wpo's, it's a trade off, everything else sound's alot better, litterally veils up-on veils were taken out of the sound, the way the Rhodium does vocal's and mid-range snare drum's, mid-range in general was the decideing factor for my choice, the most realistic vocal's I have ever heard, Melb, I really believe these wpo's have more to do with one's cable's than solid state or tube's, you know my amp in it's orginal state before I had it modded was kinda of a transparent dark sound, now it's extrodinary transparent with the GTX R and the modds, also, you may be very well correct about staying with the same wall plug as the wpo, the reason I believe you can mix the wall plugs, is because I have a mix currently to decent prevail, like I said, when I tried that on the wall power, it was an incredible disaster, it was worse than useing the $6.00 industrial 20 amp wpo I took out, and the $.50 house wpo combo, melb, as good as your speaker's are, transparent!, you likly done the correct move with the Gold, will add some balance that should be appealing.

Jeb, i'm confused. Your friend did "the Furutech GTX duplex outlet taste test", but "The clear winner was the Rhodium plugs"? That just tells me your friend preferred FI-50M(R) connectors with a GTX-D wpo. That said, it's not surprising he preferred Rhodium to Gold given he has a mostly tube-based system.

In your system, i'm not surprised you prefer the GTD-D(R) given you have a vinyl front end & are already using Furutech Rhodium connectors. It's all a question of synergy. In general, the commentary on this forum about Furutech GTX-D and FI-50M hardware is heavily biased toward rhodium. If I were a lay person reading most of the commentary, I would assume the Rhodium version of the GTX-D and FI-50m sounds better in most cases than the gold version without stopping to ask how their amps, front end, cables, pc connectors & wpo influence the sound, and thus their preference.

My audio buddy did the Furutech GTX duplex outlet taste test. A Gold GTX in one outlet, the other was a Rhodium GTX outlet.

Most of all his gear is tubes, SS amps. The clear winner was the Rhodium plugs. He had on order 2 more GTX Gold plugs from the Cable Company, changed them to Rhodium. The Gold plugs messed up the bass a little , much preferred the Rhodium.

I'm very happy with the results from changing out all seven my R1's to the GTX duplex outlets in Rhodium .

My words can sound quite hard, in the Netherlands I think we are a little harder. We prefer sarcastic humor.

I am a very honest person who hates inferior quality. Because these products are the ones who limit the better qaulity products. In 17 years I have seen and heard many times how low the endresult is of many people who bought audio. This alwaya had a very big influence on me as a person. That is why I want to do it differently. To create a better level in audio for every single person. More openness and honesty in the world of audio!

01-23-15: Audiolabyrinth
Hi Melbguy1, I do not understand why Chris said he uses both the gold and Rhodium in his system, I tried that, it was horrible!, they worked against each other, a real train wreck, weeks of testing revealed someone can only use one version or the other through out a system, atleast that is what happened to my system any way..I do not believe at this point untill I do more auditioning that one would have to use the same wall plug's through out, just the wpo's.

Audiolabyrinth, you're comparing apples and oranges. Chris correctly recommended the Furutech GTX-D(G) for solid state systems which are not overly warm. You are using a tube cd player as your source/pre and warmer, gold plated connectors (079’s), so I am not surprised you prefered the GTX-D(R) in your system. If you ran a ss cd player & Oyaide P-004 connectors, it could well have been a different story. As for mixing Gold and Rhodium wpo's, obviously that works in Chris V's system, but I would personally not advocate mixing gold and rhodium hardware.

01-23-15: Audiolabyrinth
Chris was dead wrong about what his recommendation's were for my system, The Rhodium over and over again was the clear winner on my solid state amp and tube/solid state Hybred digital cd-player that run's direct to amplification, extrodinary transparent hugely

I thought Chris V's advice was to go for Rhodium "on tubey sounding equipment, or tube amps or pre-amps, and gold on tube cd-players"? You're running tube preamp & warm sounding gold connectors, so his advice that Rhodium best suits that mix is correct.

01-23-15: Bo1972
When you compare the Oyaide with gold against the 004/M1 the difference is quite clear!!

Bo1, I think you completely missed my point. I provided a detailed commentary supporting the view there is in fact a small, not night/day difference between the FURUTECH copper/rhodium and copper/gold products given a tonally neutral system. I don't doubt there is a clear difference between the Oyaide P-004/M1, but you are talking about apples vs oranges. Firstly the Oyaide P-004 is a lower range connector compared to the M1. And secondly, Furutech's FI-50M(G) is much superior imho to any Oyaide gold connector due to their superior materials, design and metallurgy. As far as the FI-50 and M1 goes, Chris expressed a personal view that he prefers the FI-50, but noted the M1 is a very good connector. He also qualified that in some systems, the M1 may have better synergy (eg: if you're running R1's). In my ss/digital system, I would likely obtain better synergy using FI-50M(G)'s as i'm already running a GTX-D(G) wpo. I'll have to have a think about that one as both are excellent connectors.

I compare many, and always keep the one who are the best. I am not brand loyal. I am loyal always to the best!

Bo1972, I admire your patience with assessing outlets and plugs. For once I wish there was total agreement on these.