Veritas Cables a new brand that I found

@tubeguy80 

Thanks for the update.

I've been meaning to get back to this thread but haven't found time until now. Still very impressed with the Veritas Connexa network cable which I run from the wall jack to my Innuos Zenith mark III. It is so much better than the Wireworld Starlight 8 I used to have. I also tried Audioquest Diamond and Cardas Clear, the Connexa is better than both of those by a noticeable margin. The Audioquest Vodka was a tough challenge, I prefer it over the more expensive Diamond. The Veritas Connexa beats Vodka by just a touch, better imaging and feels more open. Close competition in sound but the Connexa is more affordable so that helps.

I also grabbed a Veritas Praesto power cable when they had them in stock. It replaced an ASI Liveline cable that I've owned for quite some time. I liked the Liveline well enough to keep it around for many years so it must have done something right. I want to say it cost around $1100 when I purchased it back then. Connected to my Luxman MQ-88uC amplifier the Veritas Praesto makes my system sound a little bigger and bolder than the Liveline. I hear what feels like better midrange articulation, like notes have slightly more weight to them. I am not great at describing what I hear so I will stop there. 

I'm impressed the Praesto beats the ASI cable that sold for double the price. The rest of my system uses a mixture of old Cardas power cables and very old Stealth M7 power cables from back when Stealth didn't cost a fortune. I've always been happy with them but now I'm probably going to swap them all for Veritas Praesto once those are available again. 

@samureyex ..in your cable break-in experiment :-) assuming you didn’t change eardrums + and speakers!

cables are degrading performance with time, resistance increases, electrical length (derivative of phase velocity) increases, leakage increases, shielding isolation decreases. In some cases, listeners like worse performance cables over better ones, some amp manufacturers have damping factor degradation dial, and some ppl like it! 

@westcoastaudiophile really? Not the speakers or the eardrums?

"Good lord these 2 cables are blowing my mind."

yeah, “mind” could be the biggest variable.

@lak thanks for the PM earlier today. I couldn't directly reply.

To the guys that break-in their cables by music listening, have you noticed the cables shift from sounding a little dull to perfectly right and then back and forth?

@v-fi Thanks!! These cables have had wild changes since hr 1. Wild improvements to be more accurate. I’m curious to hear what’s in store at hr 50.

I'm enjoying your updates. Fun times with new gear, always an adventure.

27 hours on the pair of cables. Some more updates. These cables have excellent dynamic range for the mids and treble, lots of layering and details. Soft notes and vocal can be exquisitively soft and vice versa.

The combination of these 2 cables also result in quite a forgiving sound. Mids and highs do not sound boosted in the slightest. It is also nicely smooth. I listened to many very poorly recorded tracks on soundcloud to reach this conclusion. They are not dark or sit to the warm side, so if these criterias are required for a forgiving sound, these are not it.

Good lord these 2 cables are blowing my mind. The first 12 hours I highly doubted myself. Asking what have I done with $1,100.

Now they are extremely detailed and balanced sounding. Mids and highs I can only describe as ethereal and seductive. Expressive, highly detailed, greatly nuanced. These are the best $1,100 I’ve ever spent. Even a better purchase than the Isoacoustic Gaia which I love.

Slapping myself in disbelief.

Hr 14. It’s sounding amazing. Almost all negatives have disappeared. Tone and timbre are exceptional. The sound has this sweetness and delicacy in instruments and female voices. Veritas described the sound as "exposed". I believe it sounds somewhere between pure and unrestrained. It’s not bright but the highs are fully "exposed" and it is splendid.

Turning up the volume to 90db, the sound remains fully composed. Not a hint of harshness and stridency.

I tried to find songs where it would be unforgiving. Couldn’t find many. Songs like "Kiss My (uh oh) - Anne-Marie" during the chorus are where it can be fatiguing after a bit.

I don’t get the sense that Argentum and Aperta together are track dependant, they feel more like system dependent. Something like a Bright focal is probably not a good match. A warm or neutral system needing more details and clarity, these are probably it.

@tkrtrb125 He's right you know. It's all in ny head. Afterall, that's where the sound go.

After 13 hours, much of the problem has subsided. I really like whatI'm hearing but I hope it gets smoother.

@squared80 YAWN. 

Glad you like your cables. Also, they don't sound any different than any other cheap OFC wire. It's all in your head. 

Bass in terms of quantity is more than all my other cables. It’s not a bassy cable, I think the word is unrestrained.

I've had 1 bassy cables before. Loaned from a friend. Very thin solid core cables. Made my floorstanders at the time sounded like they were subwoofers 🤣😂🤣

@lak 👍👍👍

Bass suddenly comes to life at hr 12. It's crazy. From -70% bass to proper bass. Wonderful extension for mids and highs. Female vocals are wonderful and airy.

The negatives, borderline bright, actually it's pretty bright, lots of treble glare. Female vocals a bit sibilant on a few tracks. Sibilance is something my system never had. Separation is still not good especially on pop songs, treble glare. 

Keep in mind these are all early impressions of burn-in and prone to change. Bass is great. I'm terrible at describing bass. All the usual words apply, fast, punchy, textured, nuanced. 

I prefer the Argentum R and X over the Fidelis interconnects. The Fidelis interconnects are good, the Argentum are silver and in my systems sounded more realistic for my taste. The speaker cables did take longer in order to reach maturity for whatever reason. As I have said before these Veritas Cables are very well built and very sexy in appearance. Now I'm not saying there are not better sounding cables out the in audiophile land some place but for the Veritas Cable pricing they are fantastic. I just received two more pair of the Argentum R interconnects yesterday (USPS must be doing something correct because they arrived one day earlier also) and currently have them on my cable cooker.

@v-fi I’m very relieved to hear your comment about the bass. I’m not a basshead, far from it. But when I had the cables in, it sounded like someone took the bass knob and turned it down by 70%.

I imagine this is the doing of both the Argentum and Aperta. At hour 10 and the bass is still far from what it should be. But I’m eager to hear how it changes over time. The Summit X as you probably know, has 4 10-inch woofers in total and has 4 internal amps powering those woofers.

I turned the bass knobs on the speakers to +4 and it didn’t increase much which is unusual. +0 has sounded the best to me in the past. It can go from -10 to +10 so a swing of 20.

@mbolek You have a great system as well, seems like this whole discussion thread is full of people with good taste. I bet those Nova 5s sound amazing. I used to have their Guarneri Homage monitors a few decades back and still wish I held onto those. 

I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts when you've had enough time to spend with the Magnus in your system. I still very much like the Magnus even if I am tempted to grab their Argentum X as well. In my system the Magnus outperforms quite a few other cables, including some I really like a lot. And even when others do certain things better, the Magnus seems to offer a total package with no weaknesses. I appreciate that. 

@samureyex Nice system there, love those Summit X. And I agree, the pictures don't really capture the metallic sleeving very well. I had the same thing when I first ordered from Cabledyne back in the day, where I was expecting a simple silver colored cloth braid but was surprised to find actual metal instead. I wonder if Veritas uses a similar sleeving because it sure looks similar. Btw both the Magnus XLR and Argentum R RCA sets that I have felt a little bass shy when brand new, but that shook out in the burn in after a little while. Now the bass is one of my favorite parts on both models. 

@mbolek eager to hear your experience.

As for me I have clocked in 10 hours today. Keep in mind the burn-in is for both the Aperta and the Argentum. The Argentum (XLR) is +6 hrs of burn-in. Still waiting for improvements in some aspects but I can say the combo is exceptional at soundstage depth and macro dynamics. 

Not a lot of bass.

The cables are beautiful in person. From the pictures, it seems to have this typical dirty yellowish look. But in person it's more of a silver. Looks and feel premium.

Interesting thread. Since these guys are local to me I decided to reach out and learn more. I have been building my own cables for years and followed these simple guidelines....good conductors, low mass or sometimes no connectors and solid connections.

I have really been impressed with Steve’s (williewonka) Helix designs and found that they have performed very well for me. Built several different variations using UP OCC, Triple C, UP silver. Low mass connectors from AECO, KLE, ETI.

With that said, just received their Mangus XLRs to see how they sound. I have an ES A8 and use that to stream Qobuz to a Laiv Harmony (I2S). I’ll add the Veritas XLRs to connect to a Rose RA180 that feeds SF Nova 5s.

Out of the box, build quality is great (always been a fan of Viborg terminations). Looking forward to swapping out my reference Helix’s and take a listen.

@v-fi 

The cables arrived a day early. Pleasant surprise.

The system consists of my much beloved Martin Logan Summit-X, along with BMC Ultradac and BMC CS3 amp from Germany. 

I've had 1 hour in, will have plenty more tonight but so far, I feel it needs some significant burn-in. It might be because the cables were literally cold.

@samureyex Congrats, that should be fun. What amp and speakers and such are involved?

Expecting to receive the Aperta (speaker cable) this Friday. My system will consist of said cable and the Argentum X (XLR).

Will share my experience from its sound characteristics to its burn-in process.

@samureyex That's tempting but probably won't happen until 2025. I already have some Cerious Technology Graphene Extreme that I'm pretty happy with.

Is that enough though? Of course not. Which is why I also have a few different speaker cables that I picked up on forums or Agon just sitting here waiting to try, including some  older Verastarr Grand Illusion, Wireworld Silver Eclipse 7, Audience Ohno III, and a few others from Audioquest and Kimber that I can't remember the specifics at present. I keep finding crazy low prices on lightly used cables in excellent shape. It can be hard to pass up. But I need to actually try them all out and sell the ones I don't love, before I can pick up any new speaker cables. 

Power cables are fine though, I don't have many extras of those so I can justify trying more.

@V-fi

Are you considering trying the speaker from them to see what kind of synergy can be had?

I could also share my experience of both in the near future, but I’ll don’t have any kther comparable cables. Just some decent silver plated copper.

@samureyex Thank you, I don't always know how to describe what I hear but it's  still fun to try. Hopefully my ramblings are useful to someone. 

I can see how some systems would favor the WyWires Diamond over the Veritas Argentum R. I actually felt the same way after I got the Diamond, and was comparing it to the WyWyres Platinum. At first I thought the more expensive Diamond was a total waste. The Platinum seemed better. Later I swapped some components and things changed in favor of the Diamond. In my speaker setup the Argentum R is the better choice. With my headphone rig I can swap amps and headphones until one or the other cable is superior. 

I love reading reviews and forum discussion about audio gear. But I also know that what I experience may not be the same as what the writer heard, because our systems aren't the same. And we might just value different things for our music reproduction. That's a big reason why I always say try it for yourself if possible. 

@v-fi

Great write-up!

Now that I’ve spent some time with the Veritas Argentum R, I wanted to share my thoughts in a bit more detail. To start, I was originally using the Eversolo DMP-A8 paired with a Holo Audio Bliss headphone amp, driving the Raal Requisite CA-1a headphones through the Raal transformer. The sound was beautiful, but the Argentum R didn’t really have a chance to shine in this setup. That’s because this particular system really thrives with XLR cables, and at the time, I was between DACs. So I was just relying on the built-in conversion in the Eversolo, which, though surprisingly good, was probably limiting the full potential of the system compared to something like a dedicated $3k+ DAC.

I switched gears and moved the Argentum R into my speaker-based setup, which is centered around single-ended connections. This system is made up of an Auralic Aries G2.2 streamer, Lampizator Golden Gate 2 DAC, Primaluna EVO 300 hybrid integrated amp, and Dynaudio Confidence 20 speakers (I originally had the Confidence 30, but they were a bit too much for my smallish room). This setup is great for testing cables, as it only uses one interconnect between the DAC and the integrated, making cable choice pretty crucial.

Over the years, I’ve cycled through a variety of interconnects from Cardas, Kimber, Audioquest, Shunyata, MIT, and others. I eventually landed on the WyWyres Platinum, which I was very pleased with. But of course, I got restless. So this year, I experimented with several Kubala Sosna interconnects, but really didn’t like them at all. I ended up moving up the WyWyres ladder to the Diamond, and that’s where I’ve been happiest.

Now, let’s get to the Veritas Argentum R. Despite being significantly more affordable than many of the other high-end cables I’ve used, the Argentum R holds its own as far as build quality and appearance. And, frankly, outperforms some of them, like the Kubala Sosna. The WyWyres Diamond, which I think retailed for over $4k, is a direct comparison here, and I’d say the Argentum R is right on par with it in terms of build quality and feel—it’s a premium product all the way.

In terms of sound, both the Diamond and Argentum R are quite close. The WyWyres may have a slight edge in treble clarity, offering a touch more precision, but the Argentum R has a wider, more open presentation that gives the music more space to breathe. I also think the Argentum R has better low-end authority, delivering a tactile bass texture that allows me to hear more detail in the lower frequencies across all types of music. The Diamond isn’t lacking in bass, but the Argentum R just gives that extra punch and presence. The Diamond, on the other hand, tends to be a little more forward in the upper midrange, which can be exciting at times but, depending on the track, may lean toward the fatiguing side.

If I had to choose between the two, I’d say the Veritas Argentum R feels more natural and realistic overall, whereas the WyWyres Diamond has more of an “exciting” sound, which makes it great for short listening sessions or showing off your system to friends. I was really happy with the Diamond during my time with it, but for longer listening sessions, the Veritas is just more engaging and satisfying, making me feel more connected to the music.

If the two cables were priced the same, I’d say they’re pretty evenly matched, each with its own unique character that might suit different systems or preferences. However, considering the WyWyres Diamond sells for about 8 times the cost of the Veritas Argentum R, the value proposition is clear—the Argentum R is an absolute steal in comparison. In fact, I’m likely going to sell the WyWyres Diamond and put that money toward some Veritas power cables or maybe even try out their speaker cable. This whole experiment has been a lot of fun, and I’m genuinely glad I stumbled upon the Veritas brand. For my system and listening preferences, it’s a perfect match.

Bugredmachine what is the price difference between siltechs princess and Argentum.

https://www.siltechcables.com/products/princess/

That is the older version I have. The newer versions are Crown Princess.

Not the end-all cable but the quietest brand I ever owned. My ultimate goal is to own KS Elations throughout the system. Having a 1 meter and a 6 meter run makes it financially challenging.

 

I wrote the review for Veritas. It was their suggestion to post it. Otherwise I would have been more brief on this site.

@bugredmachine Thanks for taking the time to complete a very thorough review of the Argentum X interconnects. A very nice listening room and system you have there. For clarification purposes I was attempting to identify which specific interconnects you were making a comparison to. Is it the Siltech Crown Princess Interconnect? I found the Siltech website a bit overwhelming.

Thanks the info on different small cable manufacturers. I suggest checking out the cables from Pine Tree Audio. A small manufacturer in Fitchburg, MA. They make reasonably priced cables with a choice of cool colors and lengths. They sell their items through their website and on eBay. Purchased a black and blue twist 2 foot USB cable. Looking at their Ethernet cable too.

Note to self and maybe to others. I will note down on the sound of Veritas cables and how they may or may not change every 10 hours and see when they stop changing.

 

Also, Veritas has publicly stated their Argentum has fantastic synergy with the Aperta speaker cable. It’d be great to hear more on how each cable perform individual and also as a pair.

Powerful force above, please give me the strength to wait out for my Aperta cables.

Veritas reply to my pontification:

"

Hi Pete,

 

Thank you for taking the time to evaluate the cable and to put your thoughts into a cohesive write-up. While we obviously would have loved an over-the-top raving review, real life doesn't often work like that. And it's a testament to your character that you gave a fully considered, nuanced take on what you heard, for better or for worse.

 

It is interesting to note that some of the attributes we value most - a natural, non-analytical presentation, a lack of treble etch, a focus on layering and instrument separation - were things you identified yet didn't always resonate with. Also interesting is your mention of sounding more like live music in the venue versus the studio presentation - the live aspect is very much more to our preference, but that's going to be different for every listener. 

 

In the end, no arguments here, you seem to hear the cable similar to us in many ways (ok we might argue the bass aspect but different systems and all that) so it just seems like not an ideal match in terms of priorities. We still appreciate your perspective and hope it helps educate others in terms of what our cable does and what it doesn't do.

 

We'll get a prepaid label sent over to you later today so you can send the cable back at no charge. No rush, just throw it in the mail whenever you get a chance.

 

Thank you again for the opportunity and for taking the time to investigate a little brand like us.

 

Cheers!

Veritas Cables"

Okay, Veritas has responded and I will post my observations and their response so we have both sides. They are a stand-up organizaion.

11/9/2024

Trial run of Veritas Argentum silver XLR cables on loan.

System: https://www.audiogon.com/systems/10635

A little background on me and my experiences and love of music; still practicing engineering full time after 43 years while passing through General Motors, BF Goodrich Aerospace, Eaton Corp., and Parker Hannifin and others, started drumming at 8 after 2 years of piano, owned a grand piano for a decade, own 2 drum kits, played in jazz bands, rock bands, polka band, big band groups, and played internationally one time as a teen.

The Veritas folks generously offered to loan me a pair to evaluate before deciding on a purchase. I decided to evaluate the Argentums after 4 days of Hagerman burn in (48 hours voltage method then 48 hours current method) without refreshing my memory with my current setup. I always keep notes on a 5x7 notebook and rattled off 3.5 pages on Friday night going through favorites within 4 different playlists. System is all digital served up by an Aurender X100L through a Shunyata Sigma USB to a Bricasti M1.

I won’t bore you with all the nitty gritty detail notes of each song. Learning what this cable is all about was quite a ride. I was taking a positive approach for all the tracks I now claim (in hindsight) to be the warm up songs. Carlos Mombelli and Dave Holland/Pepe Habichuela tracks were musically engaging, Guitar plucks were strong, soundstage was wide and came from the back wall. I wrote “everything is coming through.” Overhang and sustain of mallets and sticks on cymbals was very evident and realistic. Smooth sound with no silver wire etching.

I had to make sure I was considering all the parameters and then realized the bass was a little shy on Sunshine by The Neurotics. And then I wrote that the voices are not as clear as my Siltech Princesses on One Day Like This by Elbow. The male voice was front and center, but not as clear as I was used to.

I did not recognize at the time that I was on a roller coaster as I am getting more familiar with this cable and comparing to my memory of the Siltech. About this time I am beginning to note that the sound is continually making me feel like I am in the venue. The Siltechs put you in the studio. Hold that thought.

Miles Davis – The Man I Love had the trumpet front and center and tonally correct and the marimba being struck with the mallets was spot on. When I put on Banjo by Leonard Cohen, the soundstage was wide and the voices were very separate and well delineated. I wrote that the band is in the room with me.  Cohen’s – The Night in Santiago opens with a guitar and it was very clear and his voice was full throated (which is why I love his deep voice from his later years).

Esbjorn Svensson’s Believe, Beleft, Below track displayed nice brush work that made the snare sound realistic, the piano was realistic, and everyone was in the room. It was not half-baked stereophonic. I made a note that the female voice was “less sterile than the Siltech” with Old Note by Lisa O’Neill. This could go either way.

Etta James was in the venue and not coming from the speakers in Trust in Me. A little spooky, especially for decades old recording.

At this point in time I was formulating a negative view. While I was getting some interesting ambience, like the venue portrayal on many tracks, my gray matter was being pinged with several areas that bothered me:

• Were these cables noisy?
• Were they crowding some players in a way that made it somewhat of a sloppy presentation?
• Were the Siltechs too clinical and my paradigm locked in to that approach?
• Was the musicality of the Argentum a result of a different presentation that kept the individual instruments sacred but at the expense of the tidiness of the group playing as a unit?

So now that I was somewhat perplexed (using nice words here), I decided to pull out my most most highest greatest super-duper favorite tracks etched into my brain from a multitude of cable testing sessions. I wrote on my page that NOW I will get serious and truly test these cables. The previous 90 minutes was a warm-up. Call me a putz.

Joan of Arc by Leonard Cohen is my favorite track because it has his deep voice, the female solos floating over the top, soulful violin, and a lilting female chorus that just makes you want to sway back and forth (roll with me here). His voice lacked the solid bass he possesses and there was a mush of the instruments and voices. That wass not enjoyable in that monent. This track and the next few sealed my opinion.

Taylor by Jack Johnson starts out with his voice and guitar until the bass and drums kick in. The bass was boomy and the tune was incohesive. Brian Bromberg’s rendition of The Saga of Harrison Crabfeathers has got to play deep and tight. The Argentum displayed realistic tone but the bass was not deep and room filling.

At this point in time I turned to a hard no on these cables.

I kept going anyway.

I literally wrote at the end of the Friday session: “Presents very realistically and I have to adjust. Will go back to Siltechs and repeat these tomorrow. Am I not used to “real”, am I too analytical?” This was after sampling Oscar Peterson’s Trio – You look Good to me where the instruments were realistic, but the tune was not gelling.

So, now it is the next day and I put the Siltechs back in and run through these last several tracks and all was right with the world again. Dead quiet background, every instrument and voice in its place, smooth and seamless presentation. Not clinical – whew! I would be proud to show off this presentation to a room full of critics and feel confident I would receive positive comments.

I really wanted the Argentum’s to be the Holy Grail. They did many things realistically and in a fun way. But as an engineer tends to do, we analyze and desire perfection. I rode the roller coaster up and down in my heavy desire to like the cables enough to own them. In some cases my own notes are deceptive because I wanted them to have attributes that I had felt the Siltech’s did not have.

So, in summary I would wrap my comments up by saying what I experienced while questioning my paradigm about the sound I am digging on a daily basis. The Argentums were light on bass, a little sloppy in bringing the band together as one, made some tunes sound disjointed while simultaneously bringing forward realistic instrument sounds. In some cases they were super fun in making the soundstage into the live venue and layering the sound front to back more than side to side.

All the normal caveats apply: my system, my ears, my paradigms, my experiences, expectations, and preferences, so YMMV.

Veritas congenial reply is next and they nailed it. I heard things they like about their own cable and I did not like things that were personally outside my desires.

 

I sent my write-up to Veritas. I will await their acknowledgement before posting it here.

@wig 

I have the Argentum X cable which is the xlr cable and it is pure silver occ. Does not sound like a silver cable at all. It sounds supremely balanced and open. I cannot speak more until I have a better speaker cable (the Aperta is coming).

 

Regarding the Aperta which is the speaker cable, it is a combination of copper/silver. Veritas Cable has said publicly that they don't believe in material having a certain definite sound signature.

@lak 

I totally value your experiences and look forward on your evaluation as those cables settle with more time.

Wig👍

@wig 

I totally understand your though.

@jayctoy (Bon) Thanks for your kind words. When I can, I like to pass on good finds to our fellow audiophiles etc. If it were not for @v-fi who started this thread I might have missed this company and there fine products.

@lak 

I may try them but typically  I'm not a fan of silver as I prefer a richer and broader soundstage and silver tends to minimize that effect but provides a tighter image focus and deeper soundstage.

Wig

Lak (Larry } knowing you how honest , and you having a good experience in this hobby . I believe your findings on this cables.Veritas cables are lucky for you to share your experience on their cables. Readers will be benefited as well. Thank you

@wig, (Hi wig)

I was told: "It took about a dozen prototypes to arrive at this final version but it was absolutely worth the trouble. It’s a hybrid silver/copper design with unbelievable clarity and realism – hence the name Aperta which roughly translated from Latin means “open, exposed, uncovered, clear.” "We humbly submit that nothing else on the market comes anywhere near the Aperta without a four figure price tag".

@lak

Are your Veriras speaker cables copper or silver?

Thanks,

Wig

@denon1, as soon as I took the Aperta speaker cables off the cable cooker (3 days) and into my system they sounded as good as my Audioquest William Tell speaker cables (I really like my William Tell and my Lavricable Grand 5N speaker cables) and now that I have 5 hours on them I believe the Aperta speaker cables are doing a better job picking up micro details, with excellent lows, mids, and highs, very realistic music including jazz, piano, vocals, violins and timbre sound. I do believe that the Argentum interconnects have a part to play in this also.

I do like the bananas used, they have some sort of a device that holds them in securely and feel tight, they are easy to remove. I don't recognize the brand of the bananas. The Aperta speaker cables are more flexible than the William Tell and easy to work with.

 

@lak, thanks for update, I know the new cables still need to be burned, but how they compare to Audioquest William? Also, how do you like banana plugs on Alpert’s cables? Do they stay secure and tight or they easy to remove?

@denon1 

I’ve had the Aperta speaker cables on my cable cooker for a few days and today I put them into the system that I’m currently using for the Veritas Cables.