Wireworld Platinum Starlight® 10 Twinax and AQ Diamond

I have own and have used Starlight and a number of other Wireworld cables. I have not been impressed by any of them. They seem to me to be simply the choice of a conductor (e.g., copper or silver) and molded plastic coating. I would look at DHLabs for budget, Audio Quest (contemporary, Cardas (warmer and more natural sounding), or for high end Transparent. Nordost are amazing... but only in the upper tier. 

Thanks. The model I’m inquiring about is their TOL Platinum 10 that uses silver conductors. 
DH Labs is a budget cable not a fit in this system - I have experience with with their Mirage USB as well as AES and SPDIF coax cables. They’re ok if that’s all you can spend.

I am auditioning Audience Hidden Treasure 🐈‍⬛ 7 now and I’m extremely impressed. However before I make my decision I wanted to hear thoughts on TOL AQ (I liked their Diamond USB a lot) and WW (had their cheap usb didn’t like). 

Snake River Audio as well as Revelation Audio Labs make very fine digital cables including ethernet. Worthy of your new DAC.

Thanks @fthompson251 !

I’ve spent a few hours listening today with the Audience Ethernet cable and I think I have a winner even without comparing to anything else. I don’t know what WW can do better and AQ should be good but I have this synergy now that I can’t walk away from. 

My dealer also gave me a new FrontRow Reserve Coax that I’m trying between my Audiolab 6000cdt transport and Meitner DAC. It’s just simply incredible what this cable did. I just can’t justify a $2500 coax on a $700 transport and with streaming being 99% of music source it just doesn’t make sense. But for someone who’s got a nice spinner and listens to CDs a lot this digital cable is a game changer. 

Glad to hear you have a winner! I can relate to the FrontRow Reserve quality, I have the Reserve USB cable coming from my Aurender N200. I wish I had a dealer nearby, that would make things easy.

Thx! Listening last night when the house was quiet confirmed that I love the sound. 

@audphile1 , the front end of my system is as you have: Aurender N200 to Meitner.  Currently the Meitner is MA3, and it literally just arrived in Calgary for an upgrade to the "i" version.  I have been using the Hidden Treasure, which was a big bump from an older Shunyata Alpha ethernet cable, very pleasing to these ears.  Then I upgraded my home theatre side (the lion's share of my entertainment time), plugged the Hidden Treasure into my new video streamer for giggles (a whole other story) and the Audience cable made things pop.  I had to wonder what an even better cable would do, found a used Shunyata Omega cable that needed a home, and went for the gusto.  In fairness, all the pieces of the puzzle are still on the coffee table, but the Omega is an excellent cable, better than the Audience.  Worth the extra cost?  Hmmm...   I considered the AQ Diamond but it has silver conductors, which can be problematic for me.

When the Meitner comes back and the puzzle is put back together, I will compare the Audience and Omega cables on the stereo side to see where they work better.  I agree the Hidden Treasure is a keeper.  I even thought of getting a second for the home theatre side, but couldn't resist seeing what a purportedly better cable would do.  We should all be saddled with such dilemmas.

Good luck and happy listening.

Btw, I wondered whether the upgraded MA3i could be used as my primary streamer to replace the Aurender, but the fact that you have the N200 in your system indicates the MA3i is good, but the N200 is better.  Care to comment on that?  Thanks,

Robert

@traubr I tried the new Shunyata Alpha X USB cable. While very good and more detailed than the Audience FrontRow USB cable I have now and the Stealth USB I had for a brief period of time, I find Shunyata lean and cool sounding. It’s not as musical, not as colorful as Audience and Stealth. Their Alpha power cords have exactly the same sonic signature. So I ruled Shunyata out for my setup. 
 

As to Meitner DAC…it’s awesome. I heard the MA3 in my system and loved it. Ended up getting a new MA3i. I have been comparing N200/MA3i to MA3i alone and I can tell you in my system to my ears they sound slightly different with N200 being a bit rounder and slightly less fleshed out but a bit fuller than the MA3i when used as a roon end point. I can say it boils down to preference. One’s not better than the other. These differences are very slight and require a trained and strained ear. I will most likely be selling the N200. Further testing needed but that’s my preliminary findings with about 240hrs on the Meitner. 

@audphile1 , thanks for your review.  I was ready to pull the trigger on the new Alpha cable but there was a long lead time, so went with the Omega.  I don't find it lean sounding at all, but in fairness it has yet to be tested on the stereo side, where the rubber really hits the road.  Time will tell on that one.

After a mini DAC merry-go-round, the Meitner has been a joy, so much so that I decided to (again-- notice the trend?) go for the gusto and upgrade to the "i" version.  Your comment about preference vs. better is spot on: it's different, and therein lies the beauty .  It's easy enough to A-B the setups, with and without N200, and use one or the other as the mood strikes.

Robert

@traubr you won’t regret upgrading to the latest “i” version. It’s a great DAC. 
I’m right there with you on being able to revert to ether a streamer in the Meitner or the N200. My approach is - do I miss the sound one of them offers to want to switch back? I actually prefer the airier and more alive presentation produced by the MA3i alone. My N200 has been off for a few days now as an experiment. I feel I compared apples to apples using audience hidden treasure ethernet cable to both and audience studio one USB from N200 into Meitner. Keeping the audience house sound and level of cabling the same. When I auditioned the MA3 I preferred the N200.
The upgraded streamer in the MA3i bridged the gap. 

@audphile1 ​​@ghdprentice , May I ask a side question please ? This is regarding Ethernet cables. Are the sound characteristics similar in your systems that you experienced with Ethernet cables the same as the similar brand USB cable ? I’ve played with USB and I’m getting ready to add a noise suppression devise and upgrade my Ethernet cable. Thanks , Mike B. 

@buellrider97 

Are you asking if the sonic characteristics are shared across, say interconnects, usb and power cords of the same brand and tier?

I have noticed that the same brand and tier of speaker wire, interconnect and power cord has the same sonic effect. Most of my USB experimentation was not in parallel with my other comparisons. I think USB would be the same. But I don't have enough experience to confirm that. 

@buellrider97 yes. I think Audience Ethernet and USB are cut from the same sonic cloth. Even the coax resulted in the same improvement. 
In talking to a sales rep at The Cable Company it’s not an uncommon trend. Usually manufacturers who make excellent usb cables make excellent digital cables (Ethernet, spdif). 

I would highly recommend best possible quality USB cable you can afford and ditch the tweaks like USB decrapifiers, etc. unless your dac benefits from these devices in which case you should probably be looking to upgrade your dac before you buy more cables. Otherwise…address the Ethernet after the USB upgrade. 

NeoTech 

@audphile1 ​​@ghdprentice , Yes that’s exactly what I’m asking. I have the Wireworld Platinum Starlight 8. I went AQ Cinnamon, Cardas Clear, AQ Carbon, before the Platinum Starlight 8 usb not trying the AQ Diamond. So I’m trying to gauge my purchase for an Ethernet cable. I have a patchwork of Ethernet cables that make about a 100 foot run from router to my streamer. Although I’m at a lower equipment level than both of you , I value your opinions and cutting to the chase advice. I’m currently waiting on the Townsend podiums and then it’s my Ethernet cabling. At first I’ll pony up for a nice cable ( short ) and a modest Ethernet noise filter. After that a higher quality of CAT for the total run and possibly better isolation through other means. I apologize for being a distraction, but it’s my learning opportunity. Respectfully, Mike B. 

@buellrider97 no problem  don’t get too hung up on network filters. I don’t find them to be a necessity. But that’s system/setup dependent.