I have a mid-fi system (Dynaudio MkII, NAD c320BEE, Canare wires) and recently acquired a 6-foot Audioquest King Cobra cable for next-to-nothing. My first inclination was to cut it up to make a pair of extremely short IC's to replace my pre-to-power amp jumpers and then to make one or two pairs of short IC's for component-to-pre connection.
I have since become aware that the King Cobra has connectors which are welded, not soldered. I'm not concerned about losing value as I have little in the cable and do not plan to sell it. I am concerned with losing a high percentage of sound after splicing and adding standard audio RCA connectors using solder.
I expect a small loss from the process. Am I likely to be disappointed?
Is there anyone here with some experience in this realm?
I (finally!) had the single King Cobra cable turned into a pair. Right now they are being used to connect the preamp of the NAD integrated amp to the power amp section. It sounds great--much better than any other stereo pair I tried and they blow the doors off the sound of the original little metal jumpers.
So, I now plan to trim a little off to make a short pair for the NAD so that I can have a longer pair for CD-to-preamp.
I post this in case anyone else ever does things "on the cheap"--if you can get a long enough piece of good cable for a good price it may be worth your while to buy a few RCA's and splice away. It certainly has been worth it for me. My overall sound is greatly improved (warmer, no loss of detail if not an actual gain in that respect, better soundstage, just more natural overall) and it didn't break the bank. I just know I would not have had a couple of pairs of cable of this quality otherwise. Can't wait to get the second pair up and running.
Thanks again to all who responded. Can't say enough good about the folks here.
"Zd542, wouldn't it be the opposite? One of the original RCA's has the arrows pointing in, the other out. So I think one should be in the preamp, the other in the source component or in the power amp (if used as jumper). Right?"
No. The arrows are for the cables themselves, not the connectors. They are used for break in. You can run them the other way, but it will just take a little longer for the cables to re-break in for the change in direction. If you are making a pair of IC's or jumpers, you want them exactly the same.
Zd542, wouldn't it be the opposite? One of the original RCA's has the arrows pointing in, the other out. So I think one should be in the preamp, the other in the source component or in the power amp (if used as jumper). Right?
Of course you can hear it. It opens highs. My brother has NAD and has the same AQ jumpers. I believe AQ uses same materials as KC. Jumpers are only $28 while used 2m King Cobra runs at least $100. It used to be called Python and was twice more before AQ moved production to China, lowered prices (to stay competitive) and change names (perhaps to avoid upsetting current users). My previous IC was King Cobra.
Sorry. I didn't realize you only had 1 actual cable. Since were are talking about IC's I just naturally thought one pair. You definitely did the right thing by listening to it and confirming a difference. There's only one thing left for your to do: Chop! Have fun, just watch your fingers.
One last thing. If you are planning to use the 2 original factory terminated RCA terminals, make sure that use use them in the exact same application. For example, if you make a pair of IC's, you'll have to add a connector to each piece. When you use the cable run the like RCA's together and not at opposite ends. Needless to say, if you make more than 1 pair, keep the originals together in 1 pair. Anyway, I'm sure you would have figured all this out yourself, but it doesn't hurt to be careful.
Kijanki, I actually was looking at the AQ jumpers for some time before this cable came into view. That's still an option.
Zd, I have compared the KingCobra to the NAD metal jumpers and the difference is obvious, it's a slam dunk. I could hear it, my son could hear it and my wife could hear it. The NAD and Dynaudio speakers (these are not the lower-line Audience series) are that good, at least. As for keeping the cable as-is, I'm not sure what to do with one cable in a two-channel system--or am I missing something here (besides the second cable)?
Elizabeth, I have been thinking about that very thing. But I can make the ultra-short "jumpers" and still have enough left over for a pair of 2.5 foot cables at least. Some of my present cables are 18" and in ten years I haven't had a problem with that. Presently I can get by with one or two pairs much shorter than that with no change in the foreseeable future. And I'm no spring chicken.
I don't know if your current system has enough resolution to benefit from all that work. Try using the cable from a source to your NAD and see if it makes a difference over what you are currently using.
Either way, if the choice were mine, I wouldn't cut it. Its a great sounding cable. Just use it in your system the way it is, and enjoy it.
You must have a verified phone number and physical address in order to post in the Audiogon Forums. Please return to Audiogon.com and complete this step. If you have any questions please contact Support.
