That is welcome news and might be enough to sway me towards their top model network cable. I want to explore replacing my Transparent ethernet cable which is decent but I've never really loved it. I have some other things to sort out first so this upgrade won't be for a few months, nice to know pricing will remain by then.
Veritas Cables a new brand that I found
Always been a big fan of smaller cable makers. I've had great luck in my system with brands like Audio Art, Cabledyne (RIP), Audio Sensibility, and Triode Wire Labs. These and others I'm surely forgetting seem to offer so much bang for the buck compared to the more mainstream brands. Not exactly cheap but usually a great value for what you get. It's noteworthy that most of these are most easily found by cruising Audiogon, US Audio Mart, Audiocircle, etc and if you only ever read Stereophile/TAS you'll probably never be exposed to all these great options.
As with most people around here I've also had my fair share of Audioquest, Kimber, Shunyata, Cardas, Wireworld, MIT, and the rest of the big names. Some of those were very enjoyable but I have a hard time when I think about how big their marketing budgets are. And when my local dealer will always give me a deal for a very substantial discount, it makes me realize how inflated the regular pricing is. Not to mention I notice that many of these don't really get good until you move fairly high up the line, with their entry and mid priced options often being pretty uninspiring.
A few weeks ago I was browsing the various classifieds as I often do and stumbled across a name that was new to me. Turns out that's because they are new, period. Veritas Cables calls themselves a boutique hifi cable company specializing in small batch creations. That sounds reminiscent of early Black Cat Cable which they actually reference as an inspiration. This immediately caught my attention as I used to work with Chris Sommovigo at one point and loved his approach to building cables. The company had 3 items listed at the time: RCA interconnects, a power cable, and an ethernet cable. I liked what I saw but was actually in the market for an XLR interconnect, so I checked out their website (still under construction) which indicated more cables were coming soon. I figured it was worth an email inquiry to see what the time frame might be.
I got a quick response stating that they had just completed a batch of XLR cables and while most were spoken for via local word of mouth sales, they did have one extra set they could sell me. The price was well within my target and actually much more affordable than the others I had been looking at (Audio Art Copper Cryo, Morrow Audio MA6, Silnote Anniversary being the main contenders). So I took a chance on it, although with their in home trial terms it wasn't a huge gamble. They sent over an invoice with paypal and due to Veritas being in California like me the cable arrived very quickly.
When the company told me they don't use any fancy packaging, they weren't kidding. It was more like buying a second hand cable off a forum with no original packaging. But I've never cared about any of that stuff and would rather have that money go towards the actual product. In that sense I was not disappointed. Veritas calls this their Magnus cable and it shares design cues with the rest of their line I had seen listed on USAmart and the Veritas website. Specifically that means the use of a metallic silver braided jacket instead of the usual plastic or fabric sleeving most other cables have. This is the same approach used by Ed Bowman with his Cabledyne brand which I miss dearly. Back in the day my entire system was Cabledyne Reference Silver, then upgraded to their Vanguard line and was happy with that for quite a while. So I am very pleased to reintroduce a similar looking cable. That said the Veritas Magnus is somewhat thicker yet more flexible than the Cabledyne models which makes it easier to deal with.
Veritas doesn't come right out and list exactly what the internal composition is on their designs. When I asked directly they were happy to answer so it's not a complete secret, but I guess more of a marketing choice. Discussing this with them also reminded me of chatting with Ed Bowman, where there is clearly a lot of knowledge but also a desire to simplify things for a dumb end user like me. I tend to agree with their philosophy that says silver doesn't always have to sound bright and copper isn't always warm. Designers can do a lot based on geometry and purity and shielding and a dozen other factors to where a silver cable might actually be warmer and smoother than a copper cable. Or a copper cable might be more focused on speed and treble extension. Honestly I don't care as much about the specifics as I do about the end result, just give me an excellent performing cable no matter what it's made of.
In any case to my eyes the Veritas Magnus looks every bit as well made as the other options I had been considering. Those range from $630 for the Audio Art, to $1250 for the Morrow, to $1500 for the Silnote, all for 1.5m XLR versions just to give you a general idea. Meanwhile the Magnus was $389 which is almost what I would call entry level territory with the price of cables being what it is these days.
So far I've been using the Magnus to connect my Eversolo DMP-A8 to a variety of tube and SS headphone amplifiers in the $2-5k range, then feeding the amazing Raal Requisite CA-1a ribbon headphones via the Raal transformer box. It's a pretty simple system and this is the only interconnect involved, making it easier to spot the contributions versus a system with separate transport, DAC, preamp, and amplifier and of course cables running between each of them.
The sound I heard was shockingly open, clean, detailed, and smooth. Huge staging with impressive depth and even height on the right recordings. Very convincing tone on violins, guitars, and vocals both male and female. The Raal headphones are pretty ruthless and reveal all sorts of upstream shortcomings, but I got the feeling I was bouncing up against the limits of the DMP-A8 D/A conversion rather than the cable/amp/headphones. I'll test this out soon when I switch to my bigger system with a better/more expensive DAC, and I'll report my findings when I have some thoughts on that.
Checking my cable collection for things with a vaguely similar price as the Magnus. I rounded up a Harmonic Tech Truth Link, Analysis Plus Copper Micro, Anticables 3.1, and Moon Audio Black Dragon, all of which sold for somewhere in the sub $500 space (I think) at some point in the last decade. It was no contest, the Veritas Magnus outclassed them all by a significant margin. These are all decent cables with something to offer which is why I keep them around in my stash, but compared to the Veritas they all sounded either dull, thin, slow, compressed, or some combination of those traits. I also note that each of them looks and feels like more of a budget product (which I guess they are) where the Veritas Magnus seems like it belongs in an entirely higher class despite the price not reflecting that.
My next goal is to compare it to some others in my arsenal priced around the $1K range. So far, from memory I would say it feels very competitive even in that class, but I want to be more specific about it so no comments for now. The crazy thing is that Veritas told me they have another XLR option (didn't catch the name or other specifics) positioned higher than the Magnus, for what is likely still a pretty reasonable price considering their approach to the market. All of those were spoken for at the time but did ask to be notified when the next batch is ready so we can discuss that. I had been considering the Infigo Audio Sparkle or maybe even Sparkle Signature XLR down the road but I might detour to the Veritas instead, just for the sake of adventure. But that depends on the pricing and specifics they give me, if and when we have that discussion. I'm also curious about their power cables or maybe a USB down the line. Sometimes when cable companies try to do everything, they bite off more than they can chew, or seem to excel with digital rather than analog or vice versa. So it would be interesting to see if Veritas can do the full line of cables to this same high caliber.
In closing I'll say (and it's probably obvious) that I'm extremely impressed with this product so far. It's the most dramatic result I've had from a cable in quite some time, and I appreciate that it didn't involve spending thousands of dollars. The folks at Veritas really seem to be on the right track in terms of quality and value. Which is not to be confused with being very good at marketing a product, which honestly they don't really seem to be, nor do they seem to even care all that much at the moment. They definitely have some improvement to do when it comes to optimizing their operation, but they told me their focus is on organic growth and quality over quantity. That seems like a noble approach so I can't fault them for it. Their website also could really use more specifics but at least they answer emails quickly and are easy to deal with that way.
I'll be back in the next week or so with additional updates. Maybe some downsides will present themselves. But so far it's been a totally positive experience. Next up is my bigger system with more expensive components and cables, we'll see how the Magnus holds up in that context.
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I let the Nexum A digital cable burn in for a couple hundred hours by now, and it is sounding even better than it did out of the box. Really excellent cable, blowing away my previous reference which is a Kimber Orchid I've been using for years. I don't know how many people still use AES compared to USB, but if you do I would recommend the Nexum A. Still need to write up my thoughts about the Aperta SE speaker cables when I get a chance. |
Well after being so impressed with my Audex USB and my Argentum IC’s I went all in and picked up a set of Aperta SE Speaker cables and two Praesto power cables. I think that speaks for itself what I think of Veritas cables. I need to break-in the Aperta SE’s and Praesto cables before commenting…but they do sound good out of the box and keep getting better. |
@tksteingraber Nice, I was the same way. Started with just one pair and ended up with most of my system being Veritas now. I don’t remember if I posted about it but I picked up a Connexa and Mirus network cables over the past month. Very pleased with both of them (used in different systems), they offer so much bang for the buck. My plan is to go with speaker cables next, trying to decide between their Aperta or Aperta SE. As usual they were very helpful in giving information without trying to upsell me on the more expensive option. I’ve always liked pure copper in my speaker cables so I’m not sure which way I’ll go yet. |
I'm back to post my thoughts on the Aperta SE speaker cables. By now I've got hundreds of hours on them and I feel like I know them well. This is not in my main system but in a spare bedroom. I use a Hegel H400 all in one that does streaming, D/A conversion, and integrated amp. Speakers are the Lawrence Audio Violin SE. Prior to the Aperta SE I used an older set of JPS Labs Superconductors. I always loved the sound but they were starting to really fall apart physically. I don't know why, never seen a cable do that before. The Aperta SE ended up being a major upgrade over the Superconductors. Much more open and clear up top, not bright at all just better. The best way to describe would be how back in the day I upgraded from the original Lawrence Violin speakers to the Violin SE. The new model swapped out the ribbon driver for a new AMT driver design, and added another rear firing tweeter for more spacious sound. It really felt like a worthwhile improvement without taking away anything I loved so much on the original speakers. Changing from the JPS Labs cables to the Veritas Aperta SE felt like almost as big of an improvement. I would characterize the Aperta SE as being mostly neutral but maybe just a little on the warm side. Not enough to unbalance the presentation, just a welcome touch of richness that would make nine out of ten systems sound better than pure neutral. It is a very resolving sound though. I think if your system isn't up to it you might do better with the regular Aperta instead of the SE version. I also had a new Straightwire Crescendo 3 to try out and I thought that was a great cable as well. It made a nice upgrade over my JPS Labs, did a lot right and very little wrong. I would be really pleased with that for the price if I had not heard the Aperta SE do even better for less than half as much money. Both are incredibly well built and look like they should last decades. Which I appreciate after seeing the Superconductors unravel. I sent the Crescendos back and happily kept the Aperta SE, it is that good. Won't mention the other speaker cables I've tried over the past year which could not beat the Superconductors even though they also cost double or triple the money. That's my experience with the Aperta SE. Again really impressed and will be using Veritas for more cables in the future.
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@kclone Audio Envy on my system were very nice but the Veritas took my system to another level and made me realize just how important cables are to the SQ of better components. Both AE and Veritas are very well priced for the SQ they provide and are considered a great value in the crazy cable world IMO. When I first received the Veritas cables I started by adding the Audax USB and it made an incredible improvement. The Argentum IC’s were not as significant improvement at first. They seemed a bit thin and bright but after about 50+ hours they were much improved, sounded fantastic, a definite step up from AE and keepers. The Aperta SE speaker cables are just fantastic after 50+ hours and keep getting better but still need some more break-in hours. Praesto power cables are a noticeable improvement over AE as well and still need break-in hours. These Veritas cables need some decent break-in hours on them to smooth out and come alive. Very happy with my decision to try Veritas. |
After reading this thread, I contacted Veritas on May 3rd about the Aperta SE speaker cables. I need 10' cables and was looking for cost and availability for them. Veritas indicated that someone had placed a large order (including a 10' pair of the Aperta SE speaker cables), then was struck with a major health issue forcing them to cancel their order. I decided to purchase, and received the order on May 8th. I don't have the experience that most here do, and I've never bought any cables that i paid $1000 for. That said I have had several different brands of speaker cables, and I can say that these Aperta SE speaker cables are worth every penny paid for them. I have about 200 hours on them, and they did seem to go through a short period of time when it seemed they were bass heavy. But they have taken my system (Simaudio Moon 600i integrated amp to Focal L&R Utopia Be loudspeakers) to a level of performance that is, well, almost stunning. To say I'm satisfied is an understatement, and I'm quite sure this won't be the last time I purchase from Veritas. |
@gakman Off topic but that’s a great system you have there! I used the L&R Utopia BE for years when they first came out, wonderful beasts they are. Do you run them with a sub at all? I never felt I needed one in my room. Sorry totally not related to the topic at hand, I just got excited because I haven’t heard anyone mention those in far too long. |
With the speaker cables tried prior I found that the bass response was too heavy. This had me plugging speaker ports, (theirs two ports per speaker) sometimes one, sometimes two, I always wondered why a speaker of the Focal Utopia pedigree wouldn't be better balanced for sound. Well, the Aperta SE cables have fixed that problem, allowing me to run them unplugged and even less toe in. As for your sub question, I do have a JL e110 for my 2-channel system side, and I'm still working out whether or not it will be used. I'm not using when listening to my FM tuner, not done trying various options with my analogue play back, so time will tell. And since I have a recently purchased Benchmark DAC3 B (should be delivered today) that will lead my digital playback it remains to be seen if the sub will be used or not. But back to the Aperta SE speaker cables, they have allowed the Focal's to sound more like what I would imagen Focal intended. To clarify my first post, I only purchased the Aperta SE cables, not any of the other cabler. |
@twoleftears I use several Aeris power cables in my main system and I love them. I believe they are hybrid design with 7N UPOCC silver and copper. I either read that in this thread or heard it from Veritas directly, can't remember. Not sure if they ever mention the exact awg but these are pretty thick cables. I would guess at least 10 awg at minimum.
@charliee I was debating those Zavfino models but never got a chance to hear them. I skipped the Majestic because I didn't feel 12 awg was quite enough for my amp. It probably is but you know, more is better mentality. The Prima would probably be perfect for me. I went with Veritas because the pricing was better and after emailing them they recommended the more affordable Aeris over the Praesto based on my stated preferences. The Aeris is sort of stiff, just flexible enough to work in my system. I've had worse. They said Praesto is more flexible but I'm glad Aeris worked out for me. |
I bought a pair of Argentum X to go between my Coda S5.5 and Aric Audio Motherlode XL which he just finished. One of my friends just bought the LAIV Harmony GaNM monoblocks and he is raving about them, so much so that he is selling all his beloved, very expensive amps. He is using long runs of Blue Jeans XLR at the moment, cant imagine what long runs of Veritas XLR would cost. He has a huge audio room with all the gear on the right hand side of the room, except the mono blocks that sit behind the speakers. How long is the new pair that you ordered going to be? |
@charliee my Argentine X are only 1.5 /M long, running from my RCA to XLR converter box located under my preamp to the mono blocks. I’m running longer speaker cables to the speaker regardless of the various amps I use the sound is good with 8’ speaker cables. I’m extremely impressed with the Laiv GaNM. |
I have a Mirus ethernet, Nexum digital cable, 2 Praesto PCs, Argentum X balance IC, and the Aperta SE speaker cables. Just received the speaker cables two days ago and have them burning in on a secondary system. All the other cables have somewhere between 150 to 250 hours on them (I put them in at different times). In short these are terrific regardless of price. I can't wait to put the speaker cables in the main system. Hopefully it is not to much of a good thing. Debating on waiting until the Aperta SEs get over 100 hours or wait until it gets to 200 to install it in my main system |
Well I don’t think you can have too much of a good thing with Veritas cables. They remind me every time I listen to music just how much of a difference reference quality cables make on SQ. I now have Audex USB, 2-Argentum IC’s, 2- Praesto PC’s, Aperta SE speaker cables. I have had all cables over 3 weeks and 100+ hours of usage. They definitely improve with hour use and patience is required. When I first received the cables I was skeptical but wow they are just stunning now. Couldn’t be more pleased with my choice of cables. |
It’s great to see more satisfied users just like myself. I’m currently using multiple Aeris power cables, Audax USB, Argentum R interconnects, and a Connexa network cable all in my main system. Only thing missing is their Aperta or Aperta SE speaker cables which I plan to get once I finish adjusting furniture in the room. I have other systems in the house using the Magnus interconnects and Mirus ethernet cable. Still very impressed with each and every one of these cables. Has anyone asked Veritas about I2S cables? I’m currently investigating that format for a headphone rig I’m building using Denafrips gear that supposedly works best with I2S. |
@v-fi Can you give me your opinion on the Connexa and Mirus ethernet cables And how they impacted your sound quality? I have tried several network cables and none of them provided better SQ than the standard well shielded Cat 8. I have a lot of isolation (Optical EtherRegan, Stack Smoothlan, LPS on routers…) so I’m wondering if buying nice network cables is not needed. Any insight? |
@tksteingraber Not sure how helpful I can be since I use the Connexa and Mirus in different systems. I never really compared them in the same setup. In general I hear ethernet cable upgrades as being maybe about the same impact as power cables. Meaning in some cases it is pretty substantial, other cases not really big or maybe not noticable at all. For power I guess that depends on the quality of grid in your area, plus the noise profile in your home, any ground loop issues, do you use a power conditioner or regenerator? And the list goes on. Not to mention the power supply quality of the gear being connected, as some do a lot more than others in making cables irrelevant. For network it has its own set of conditions to determine the impact. Like you said, tons of isolation and power supply upgrades mean in your case maybe not a factor or at least a really small one. For me I tend to have more straight forward basic connections and I feel that probably makes it more cable dependent. Maybe something I should work on (where to start...) but I am happy with where I'm at so far. @lak Thank you. I've been experimenting with a bunch of I2S HDMI cables and the quality is highly variable, seems not connected to price for the most part. I just emailed Veritas to see if they maybe changed their minds about making one. We'll see what they say. |
I thought I would check in and ask any fellow Aperta SE owners how they are liking their speaker cables. After 100+ hours I am experiencing mixed results. They sound incredibly detailed, very clear with quiet background. On occasion an instrument will just jump out and surprise you… Quite captivating. On the down side the bass has never come alive and seems soft, recessed or veiled a bit. The 3-D sound stage isn’t quite as good as my Duelund 10Ga tinned copper cables with oil impregnated sleeve.The Aperta’s just don’t come out into the room and seem to stay close to the speakers no matter how I adjust the speakers. The Aperta’s also just don’t fill the room with the live “in the room” realism sound my other cables provide. I do really like the Aperta’s but I keep thinking the Duelund’s just sound better to me. Just my experience on my system… |
@tksteingraber I have the Aperta SE and I feel like they took forever to break in. At least in my system. I was told around 100 hours which seemed about right for the Nexum A digital cable I have. I just feel like the Aperta SE takes way longer than that. Maybe I'm crazy. I've always felt speaker cables seem to continue changing long after interconnects are pretty well settled. Even when I added both at the same time so they have identical hours. I'd say give them more time and I bet you hear an improvement like I did. |
@996turbo911 Yes you and the rest of us in this hobby are crazy! Thanks for the input…I have many hours past 100 I just stopped keeping track. My feeling is they have changed for the good with use but they seem to have settled in I now don’t seem to hear them change. If you don’t mind can you explain how your cables changed with use? Highs, bass, soundstage etc… |
@tksteingraber |
@tksteingraber No argument there, guilty as charged! I really didn't keep track of hours but I want to say it was several months of pretty extensive listening before mine really took shape. That sounds insane when I do the math and figure it might be 500-1000 hours since most days they are playing the majority of the day. I've seen other cable threads here where people swear a cable needs that many hours and I always thought it was nuts. Still do in most cases. Now I'd say there might be a few exceptions like the Aperta SE. I think they always sounded pretty great from brand new. Burning them in brought out more impact and depth the the bass. Fine inner detail was easier to pick out. Highs maybe a little more clear. Most importantly for me, they started sounding more anchored in the room, not just open but convincing as to each performer being in the right space. I use Duevel omni speakers and this part is very important to me. Lots of other cables get the technical foundation right but fail this part. I'm probably not describing it very clearly, sorry. @ampus I don't think he mentioned the bass response declining after burn in. Just that part was never very impressive to him. I do feel my bass started strong and also got quite a bit better with time. Not overbearing though, just more realistic or natural I guess.
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I'm about at 200 hours with my Aperta SE speaker cables. I haven't notice lack of bass or anything off with the spacing. I'll try and pay close attention over the next two hundred hours to see if things change some more. tksteingraber,,maybe try in your main system, which I assume is a bigger room? I would be curious as to how it performs there. |
Don’t get me wrong the Aperta SE speaker cables do sound fantastic in many ways. I am just struggling with a few minor qualities and I wanted to see how other owners experiences with the cables have gone. Along with the bass, I have noticed on vocals there is a slight scratchy/lisp sound at the end of words as well as on some instruments. It could be a case where they need more playing time or that my Duelund cables are just a better match for my system, room and my sound preferences. So far, my take on my system is that the Aperta’s sound slightly more focused, detailed, clinical while the Duelund’s sound more analog, 3D and realistic. @996turbo911 Thanks for sharing your detailed experience @ampus The bass has not degraded. It is strong just doesn’t come out a fill the room, isn’t tight/crisp and just doesn’t sound as realistic. Piano solos really display the difference.
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I have the Duelund speaker cables, but they are in a second system. My current speakers for my main system, KEF R5 Meta, have 4 binding post whereas the Wharfedale Lintons (second system)only have two, so I would have to find some jumpers or just run the single Duelunds through the terminals for each side to do a comparison. However, if the Aperta SEs really do take 500 hours to come into their own, I think I would want to wait until I get a couple of hundred more hours on the Aperta SEs before I do the comparison. |
As many know here on Agon, I used to build cables using the Duelund stranded and tinned copper wire in cotton for a couple of years. They are very musical for sure. I recently purchased the Argentum R interconnects and I really like them. I feel they are the best value currently available in ICs. They dig out the recording’s inner details without sounding forced or exaggerated in the presence area. They are dynamic and smooth with perfect tonal balance from top to bottom. Easy best buy based on my experience. I can understand how some people and systems may prefer Duelund’s sonic character in a specific position. For some the silver content in Veritas’s top tier offerings may not appeal to their sonic preferences. Duelund is warmer sounding with a more rounded leading edge and polite dynamics. |
@grannyring Appreciate your input on your experience with Veritas and Duelund cables. I only like and use Duelund cables for speaker cables (10ga Tinned Copper with oil impregnated fabric twisted with cotton sleeve and braided stretch cover) and speaker cabinet wiring (12ga Tinned Copper with oil impregnated fabric) wiring. I was not impressed using Duelund wire for interconnects. |
Use 16 gauge, not 20, for ICs and the Duelund will sound much better than you realized as ICs. Still not as good as the Veritas 😀. Also use KLEI connectors. Agree on using the 10 gauge Duelund for speaker cables unless one is using a 2-8 watt tube amp where 12 gauge is fine. Your system synergy with Duelund speaker cables just plain works and the only way you would know is if you tried! Great that you tried and gave it the effort! |
@grannyring Sorry I'm new here, did you have a brand name for your cables? Or more just a DIY fun thing? Either way you clearly know your stuff, so your high praise of the Veritas designs goes a long way. |
