Shunyata cables vs Nordost Frey

IMO. I wrote about the characteristics of the shunyata in review here on Audiogone. helix version I had last summer. I have no idea where you wish to place the ICs.

having heard the majority of what components you list recently aside from the amp, (I heard the MXR? 400 MONOS), on sophias all too briefly. I would want a Nirvana SX in there somewhere or a Synergistic.

with the bass the Ayre provides that Altair might do well as the main IC. or as source, but I would not think as both. Depends on waht you are shooting for.

have you asked Shunyata or Nordost?

I have auditioned the Shunyata cables and found they had a big soundstage and were very neutral but dry and little bright. Then I got the Synergistic Tesla Accelerators. They are as fast as the Nordost plus nicely warm, musical and the tightest bass I ever heard.

Personally I would prefer the Shunyata. Prime reason is I am a tonal balance guy and find the Shunyata a more natural presentation than the Nordost.

Expect members to vote positive for both of these cables, it has a lot to do with personal preference and associated equipment.

I auditioned the nordost frey interconnects and speaker as well as Shunyata Aries interconnects and Gemini and Andromeda speaker cable.

Of the speaker cable I liked the Andromeda the best, The build quality of Shunyata Helix cables is stunning. I found the Shunyata very balanced top to bottom with great detail. The Frey was also well balanced but I found both Shunyata's slightly more musical and balanced. I think the three were all great though. I ended up with the Gemini as I could not justify the cost difference with my speakers. I have spent time with the Utopia Diva and I would put the Andromeda high on my list.

As for interconnects I really liked the Frey for its detail but found in picked up a little noise on my preamp. The Shunyata Aries is a very balanced interconnect but perhaps not a revealing as the Frey. A recent upgrade in my listening room required a change in placement and I tried a 3m version of the Blue Marble Audio silver interconnect. Had all the balance of the Shunyata, the detail and clarity of the Frey and a bass extension and tightness that I have not heard before. I love the BMA and plan on trying it on my sources. My system is not currently updated so as of now I use the BMA between the Belles 21A and Ref. 150A. I also found the BMA worked well with the Shunyata. I did not audition the higher end Shunyata interconnects.

Other cable you can consider would be the Audience AU24.

what kind of sound are you looking for.....because I know the properties of all the Nordost cables?

Albert's comments are spot on. Likewise to my ears the Shunyata cables sound more natural. I would up the ante and suggest their Antares interconnects if you can swing it. The Altair and Antares ICs may be one of the best kept secrets in the current crop of cables. They have that magic combination of speed and phase coherency while delivering a deep tonal palette across the frequency spectrum. The Nordost I've heard have excellent quickness and clarity though they tend to be a bit harmonically thin - this may work better in some systems than others. Imo, the story remains the same with the speaker cables.

Good luck with your cable choices.

Tim

PS - try a set of Stillpoints under that Ayre CD player.

I have a total Ayre System with Wilson Sophia 2 speakers. I have heard power cords and cables make subtle differences such as Shunyata in a friends system. BUT I feel I have made the discovery of ALL TIME in hi fi, and would love to share it. On a lark, I tried some VIRTUAL DYNAMICS power cords. The improvement in soundstage, detail, and musicality in my system was not subtle, but staggering, astounding. A whole new world opened up, and I am getting sound like I never thought possible!!! I now have my entire system wired with VIRTUAL DYNAMICS power cords and cables, which are a relative good deal financially, and my audiophile friends simply cannnot believe it. It is THAT GOOD. I recommend caling James in Sales at VIRTUAL DYNAMICS
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Cables are so different that you really do need to listen to them before you buy. You might be very surprised at what you like and don't like about certain cables. It also
seems to take a lot longer than you think to come to any real conclusion (ie. thoughtful)about the merits of one cable over another IN YOUR SYSTEM. There is simply no shortcut to achieving what you hope to with other peoples recomendations. Find a dealer, ask for a weekend trial, and get ready for some long and thoughtful evaluation, then buy em.
Shortcuts just make the journey longer and longer with no REAL benchmark for you to sink your teeth into and ultimately end up in confusion and going in circles instead of forward.

The Shunyata Anaconda family AC cords work very nicely for me wherever I apply them. (VX on digital, Alphas on everything else.) 'kind of Goldilocks cables, not too dry or bright or bassy or anything... just right.