Well, I ended up returning them since I could not afford them. I was originally going to demo the metacarbons, but my dealer suggested I try the prototype petite dreams. At the time, there was no pricing. Alas, I should have never demo'ed since I loved them. It was VERY difficult to part with them. I have PGS 3D interconnects that I love. I've tried the Indra, but again, a bit too expensive for me...let me know what you decide! At least try them, they are AWESOME. |
Ceilalex, I was curious if you went ahead and kept the Stealth. I have an Indra which I use for CDP> Preamp, and definitely have considered trying more when the right time presents itself. At this point , maybe a Metacarbon for my longer IC, and the Dream Petite for SC. I like my Kubala Sosna Emotion very much. It has just been a long stretch since I have tried another cable. |
I had the opportunity to demo these cables for a couple of months and they just BLEW me away. Unbelievable soundstage, detail, transparency. Definitely highly recommended! |
Hi John,
I like the idea of shot gun cables. What you really could call excess!
Coming back to the VD cable, for sure they dont have 3D soundstage. Although extremely solid imaging. It seems to show every strike of a drum with amazing clarity. |
I haven't heard the AP cables, but I do agree that when I demo'd the VD Revelation's their bass was stunning, the best I've heard. Unfortunately, I had problems with other areas of the VD, so I did not keep them. I've probably only heard a couple of dozen speaker cables, and none of them have it all. I don't think it is possible, not with synergy and personal tastes involved.
I would not say the Stealth bass is rolled off, more that the VD bass is 'enhanced' by it's fullness. The VD goes deep and is full, which makes it sound 'bombtastic'. The Stealth cables go deep, but are tighter and better defined, so they don't sound as powerful. The bass is there if it's SUPPOSE to be there, no artificially created bass for the bass lover's though.
I also own a pair of Jade Audio's Vermeil speaker cables. Both the Jade and the Stealth cryo-treated Hybrid MLT's have the same 3-D soundstage. The Stealth has better extension, while the Jade has that glorious golden midrange. Many times which cable sounds best will depend on the recording. One of these days I'll get around to running them in 'shotgun' formation, and hope for the best of both world's.
Cheers,
John |
Hi John,
I felt I should report back some findings. Though it is still early days burning in wise. Sorry to mess up this thread but...
The VD LE compared to my Analysis Golden oval is definitely more dynamic and robust in the bass. In fact the bass must be the best I have heard. Its electrifying. But the AP Golden oval is much more transparent in the highs and midrange with better soundstage depth, but seeming to roll off as you get into the bass frequencies. I wonder if this is similar to the Stealth?
If only there was a cable that took the best of the AP golden Oval and the VD! That would be the end of it. It is very frustrating.
Any thoughts? |
wow snapped off!
It seems that it takes a lot of care to work with these cables. I used a VD digital XLR cable between my old ML31.5/30.6 and it lifted the transport up at the back! The Levinson is not light. |
They are a major pain to fit.
Chadeffect I know! When I was demoing a pair of VD Revelation speaker cables a while back, the cables snapped the binding posts off of one of my JRDG monoblock amps. Cheers, John |
Hi John,
my VD cables are still new and had no real hours on them. So I will wait to see how it balances out.
Regarding soundstage I have found the same as you. I am not using VD powercords as they cannot fit in the tight area that houses my power conditioner.
I use the latest AP power cords and some nirvana digital cords too all terminated with Oyaide plugs and sockets. I use the gold Oyaide plugs as I find they give a nice warmth with clean detail.
I would love to try the stealth maybe just the power cords would work for me.
My main problem is housing the VD cables at the moment. They sound great. Amazing focus with the best dynamics I have heard, with maybe a slight copper darkness in the highs (which I think you mean).
The biggest problem is my hifi cant fit inside the cabinet with the VD cables connected at the moment. They are a major pain to fit. |
Chadeffect, to be honest, no, I haven't found anything that presents depth and width. I've also noticed that the more depth I get in a soundstage the narrower it gets, and bringing the stage more forward increases the stage width and height. I did find at one point my stage got too deep, I felt like the band was out in my driveway. I was able to move several rows forward by placing a DCCA Reference Master on my power conditioner. However, for the most part I like a deep, 3-D presentation, say around row 12.
It's all a matter of balance, you may just want to change one cord to move forward or back. It sounds like you want to move even more forward, are you using all VD cables and cords? If not, try adding some more.
FWIW, it may be hard to believe, but the Stealth cables/cords will provide more detail and air in the high's. However, if you feel that your dcS already is providing great high's with the VD, the Stealth may be too much of a good thing. I do know some who find the Stealth sonic signature 'bright'. My system is a bit on the warm side, so the more abundant detail of the Stealth is well appreciated here.
Cheers,
John |
John,
thanks so much for your very clear response. I know exactly what you mean.
In my system I am finding the slightly forward presentation more useful. Due to my slightly insensitive planar speakers, I find that a slight injection of impact is rewarding.
I have a lot of detail and depth, but I was looking for that last bit of front row! The AP gold I was using is a brilliant cable, but it maybe a little laid back in comparison to the VD master LE in dynamics.
You mention the Stealth has more detail in the highs which is interesting. I run a DCS source, and it has incredible definition especially in the highs. I cant imagine there is more to be had. I seem to have a lot of air above the note. Things like ride cymbals shimmer with detail after the hit of the drum stick.
I do take your point about depth.
I have found it hard to get both width and depth at the same time in soundstage, especially if you have pinpoint type imagery. In my experience I seem to get one at the slight expense of the other.
Have you found the anything that can do both? I have had tube amps that give the impression its happening but usually with a problem somewhere else. |
The Stealth cables have more detail than the VD line, but the VD line has more dynamic impact. I was originally impressed with VD cords/cables for their dynamic, powerful presentation. However, I find them to be too forward, and the soundstage too flat and 2-Dimensional for my tastes.
The Stealth cables/cords won't give you that gut-wrenching bass, and if you like a front row presentation you will probably prefer the VD line. I have moved on to Stealth because I do not like the immediacy of the VD line. I prefer the Stealth's more relaxed, laid back, 3-D presentation. Some may call this a mid-hall presentation. These two cable lines could not be more different from a soundstage perspective.
The Stealth has good bass, it goes deep, but is better defined or tighter than the VD. The VD's bass is more robust and therefore sounds more powerful. The Stealth has more definition throughout the audio band, IMHO. You will hear details in the high's that you will never know existed with the VD line. The Stealth presents these details in a non-fatiguing fashion though, unlike the Nordost Valhalla, which IMHO provides stunning detail, but can sound thin and harsh. Stealth seems to provide the detail of the Valhalla, while still sounding musical.
Cheers,
John |
Hi,
I was wondering your thoughts on the VD. What I like most about them is their speed and dynamic contrast. I find they have a very low noise floor too allowing details through with good soundstaging.
I have had major problems fitting them though, in fact a total nightmare. Do the stealth cables have the same impact and detail as the VD LEs etc? |
Oh, how I miss just a few years ago when Stealth was selling directly to the customer for a reasonable price. Maybe when they see that other manufacturers,i.e. Virtual Dynamics, BMI,etc, who went back to selling direct after a dealership trial,will start to sell directly once again to be more competitive. I would love to try some day the Stealth dream line, but the prices through a dealer at this time are waaaay out of my budget. |
I was chatting on-line with a Stealth dealer today about the Dream Petite. His comments somewhat dissapointed me though, since I can't really afford the full Dream either. He said: FYI - Dream Petites are a clear upgrade to MLTs, but standard Dream simply destroys the Petites (I've had three customers, after making the A/B or upgrade, indicate that Serguei should not even bother making the Petite, since the standard outperforms it by so much). He also mentioned that Stealth was planning to raise prices across the board by about 10-12% in two weeks. It looks like the Dream is over for me..... Cheers, John |
I think it is a good strategy of Stealt to make the 'little' Dream, since the 'big' Dream is out of my budget at this time.
Does anyone has experience with the Nanofiber, which I also ordered?
Thanks |
Thanks John. Not sure how I missed it, but found it this
time. |
Directly from the bottom of the Dream Petite page: Suggested retail price is $5000 for a 2 meter pair, and $2000 for each consecutive meter.
(1.5 and shorter pair of Dream Petite speaker cables is $4250) Cheers, John |
I see the dream is listed at $7,200 for a 1.5 meter on
the Stealth audio cable website. I am using one run of
Indra from my digital source to pre, but Kubala Emotion
throughout the remainder of my system. Anyone know the
retail on the Dream petite, as it is not listed on their site. I use two seperate runs of Emotion SC to bi-wire,
so the regular Dream is out of my $ range. |
Marasplunge, Thanks for the complement I really am enjoying it, you also have a really nice set-up. You have a Doshi pre that is on my short list that I want to hear in my set-up. Is yours the original or the new MK2 version?
Your Stealth Indra's are they all RCA as I believe the Doshi is single ended, are they Stealth's latest with their own connectors?
Regarding bi-wiring do also have the MBL 101'E's, very easy because that is how they are designed with four speaker binding post and the CAT amps actually have two sets of speaker binding post, one on each side of the amp so it makes it very convenient for hook-up.
The Accustic Arts new hybrid tube dac, I had the AA MK4 Dac prior to this and that Dac was great but this new one sets new standards. I am really impressed with it, it is absolutely a amazing piece and going to be tough to improve.
Where are you located, you can send me off a direct message if you wish and I can send you some pics.
|
Dev Nice set-up! Truly biwiring the stealth dreams! Now that is fantastic. Tell me, how do you do that with these speakers. I was contemplating getting them internally biwired but decided to forgo that for now. Can you explain the hook up process for using two sets of dreams per speaker? Also how do you like the Acoustic arts? I almost went that way with their separates.
Thanks for the rec on the Jeff Rowlands. I've since moved on from that current system, haven't had a chance to post newer stuff.
So far I've got:
Doshi pre
Lectron JH 50
Amazon ref TT
ZYX Atmos cart
Triplanar arm
Esoteric x-01 D2
Merlin VSM mxe
Stealth dream as the speaker cables, indra between amp and pre and betwen pre and CDP.
Thanks for sharing
Cheers |
Mariasplunge, I looked at system have you ever auditioned the Jeff Rowland 312 amp? I have heard from a few individuals that it is suppose to be a great amp., actually surpassing the 501's by far. I personally have not heard the 312 but I have heard the 501's.
|
Mariasplunge,
MBL 101E's
Audio Research Ref3
Accustic Arts New Hybrid tube dac
Oracle 2000 transport, latest version
CAT JL3 Sig. MK2 mono blocks
Currently I am evaluating different amps but so far the CAT's are way ahead of the rest.
Cables all Stealth;
Sextet digital between dac and transport. I have a Sextet AES and also a BNC digital cable which I am comparing the two in my set-up mainly because Oracle refers to the transport sounding best hooked-up via BNC connection.
Indra Balanced latest version from and dac to pre, I have a second pair but not being used currently due to that the CAT's only offer RCA so I have a Indra again latest version in RCA configuration from pre to mono blocks. All my digital and IC's cables have Stealth's connectors on them and are the latest versions.
Speaker cables, Dream, two sets per speaker so my MBL's are true bi-wired.
Power cords, 5 Dream associated types for gear.
|
Thanks Dev for the assessment. If you don't mind me asking, what's the rest of your system like.
Cheers |
Mariasplunge, Stealth sounds totally different than VD. Stealth cables in my system do not add anything, they just connect each component getting out of the way which is what I'm looking for. The VD cables while in my system have this signature like so many other cables out there adding something which over time is annoying. Using VD product the top octaves are restricted compared to Stealth. The sound with VD cables in my system is like something is being held back, the bass too much at times not sounding natural. Regarding cables in general you need to try due to system matching and synergy but to me using the Stealth cables I specifically use they just get out of the way and letting me listen to my components which I'm personally after.
Having a proper snug connection is very critical, think of it like this; if your vehicle had a sloppy battery connection would you leave it that way? no. If you have ever used VD product you would have experienced that their connectors are sloppy fitting (my experience with XLR connectors)well this is not acceptable.
|
I had VD Master LE 2.0 speakercable for about two months in my system and compared to the Hybrid MLT, the latter sounds more 'organic' (in my system). The VD had a kind of hardness in the sound, which I don't experience with the Stealth. That's why I'm going up the Stealth line. |
Dev, Thanks thats good to hear. That certianly was a concern with choosing VD. I heard they can be unruly in the ridgid department. Any comment on sound difference?
Thanks |
Mariasplung, I had VD Genesis in my system and Stealth Dream and Indra replaced it which I greatly prefer, defiantly don't miss the rigidness and sloppy fitting of the VD. |
Matteus, I'm sure the Petite dream is just killer as well! I've never heard that cable but if stealth says it's better than the hybrid then It's got to be great. I really enjoyed the Hybrid!
I compared the Dream to Tara Labs the 0.8, Acoustic Zen absolute, Cardas golden reference, and VD revelation. The dream just seemed right for me in my system.
I did not get a chance to listen to Prana, Jena, or VD Genesis, unfortunately. I pretty much stopped at the Stealth:-) Plus I have stealth throughout my system so it made sense.
Enjoy! |
Mariasplunge, going for the Dream is not possible at this moment. That's why I'm happy I can get the 'little' Dream. Whith what other speakercables did you compare the Dream?
Thanks |
This is a bit off subject, as I have not hear the Dream Petite, but I do have the Dream, and they blow me away. I'm not sure about your budget of course but I would spend the funds to go all the way to the Dreams if at all possible.
Good luck |
