strange rel subwoofer cable phenomenon


I've been using a Rel Storm III sub hooked up both ways (sunfire theatre grand II to the rel for .1 and bryston amp to the rel for 2-channel). I've been using a cheap interconnect for the .1 track (Ultralink Subsonix) and decided to give some higher end cables a try. The Cable Company sent me some Synergistic Research interconnects (one at $350 and one at $550). I like the brand and have the Kaleidoscope Phase II DAC-Pre and Pre-Amp after extensive testing. However, in this application I literally could not hear a difference between any of the 3. I heard only a tiny degradation when I tried the thin plastic cables that come with most popular-brand equipment. Is there something wrong with my ears or is this sub cable-proof? Anyone else out there found this to be true? I've been told that both XLO and Synergistic make neutrik connectors that will make a huge difference for the Rel, but now I'm not so sure...
dbw1

Showing 1 response by seandtaylor99

I have found that interconnects usually make most difference at higher frequencies, as one would expect since it is the capacitance that is the key design parameter for interconnects, and the effects of capacitance are proportional to the frequency. Since the sub isn't carrying high frequency information you won't hear the difference.

The neutrik connection to the subwoofer is electrically quite different from the RCA connection so I'm not sure that you can infer from one to the other. However the neutrik connection is also from a very low source impedance (speaker terminals at the amp) to a very high input impedance (the REL input is really a voltage sensor). For this reason I would not expect a marked improvement from using expensive speaker wire, and I would even go as far as to say that speaker wire is the wrong wire to be using for the neutrik connection, since the connection to the REL is carrying virtually no current. It is probably better to use a low guage (say 24) PTFE insulated wire, not braided, to minimize the capacitive load on the amplifier.

Having said all of that the proof is in the listening, so if you have can demo the cables then give it a try and let us know what you find.