Zavfino

It depends on what you are using it on @pguezze 

Majestic MKII is 12 gauge. For amps I would recommend Prima MKII which is 10 gauge, and a more advanced shielding. They are both OCC conductors.

There is also Fina at 14 gauge, cheaper, also OCC

Audioquest power cords Hurricane and up are very good. I used to own a few Hurricanes, and a few below. At this point becomes a personal preference, and value for the dollar. As cliché as this sounds, you will need to try and compare in your own system to really know.

Thanks for sharing your initial impressions @juanmanuelfangioii ! These are indeed great cables for the price. And since I completed my Zavfino loom a while ago (as I have continuously updated earlier on in this thread) I have honestly stopped looking & purchasing other cables.

Congratulations @larsman . I am assuming you know they are directional? They are somewhat non traditional (no arrows). 
 

@larsman : I have a picture Raymond emailed me when I bought mine. Did you buy yours from Zavfino USA? He always sends the picture to buyers. I don’t know how to post that picture here. You can PM me your email address. Basically, Zavfino letters up on the speaker cable going to left speaker, and upside down to the right speaker

They all lean to stiff side. The Silver Darts are certainly the stiffest. This is not an issue for me, but I realize it may be for others, depending on the physical arrangements of gear

Good to know. I would however put them in the right / recommended direction from the start. And why not. Set them and forget them.

I would do speaker cables first.

If one is not marked as "MK2", it is likely the original (MK1)

Well, @lalitk made me do it 😂🤷‍♂️. The only thing I did was posting a new dedicated Zavfino thread.

Honestly, since I went all in Zavfino, full loom, I stopped looking at cables. Which is a big deal for me. I have spent years, time, and (a lot of) money swapping cables. Until now. That’s it for me

@jaymark : you should have started with the Fusions first, then worked the way up to the top with the Silver Darts 😂. Congratulations, going to the top tier leaves no room for regret down the road, and merry go around of selling and buying.

One thing I can tell you from my experience, the Darts require a substantial break in. A lot. Substantially more than the Prima power cords and speaker cables. Maybe because of the Graphene? Give them a couple of weeks of continuous play, and you will then no longer want to switch around. 

Yes. The Silver Darts XLRs. My system is pretty simple: one pair of interconnects only, from streaming DAC to Integrated amp. No analog. It’s in my profile under Systems 

I would not call Prima (and the Darts) having the stage placed behind the speakers. I have had many speaker cables over the years, and some were really behind the speakers. Some too forward. IMO, from all the cables I have owned, and I don’t claim to have owned them all, the Zavfino are just right on that regard 

@toolbox149 : I posted something on this back on my 11/5/2021 post. Copy / paste a portion of it:

I touched upon this briefly on my previous (long-ish) post above, but a to expand a bit further:

The only cables I was able to compare (and own) direct between Prima MKII and Silver Darts are power cords and speaker cables. Interconnects --- I only own the Silver Darts which I bought from the start.

Silver Darts are NOT a huge improvement over Prima MKII, and Prima is definitely better value for the money. Of course, this is only valid for me, my equipment, my ears, my room. Other people with more elaborate systems and better trained ears may think otherwise.

If someone forces me to "quantify", Silver Darts are perhaps 5-10% better than Prima MKII. Same overall tonality and timbre, but maybe a bit more coherent / focused, and a bit more "airy".

My advise, if someone is looking at Zavfino: if in budget - you are better off doing a full loom of "lesser" tiers (i.e. Prima, majestic, Fusion, etc.), than buying one or two silver darts.

jayctoy2,661 posts10-11-2021 10:49amLalitk mentioned this Cables to me as well, I thought they are very expensive.I need powercord.

lak3,989 posts10-13-2021 5:00pmI just received my pair of Fusion interconnects. I noticed there is not a direction arrow, does that mean that these are non-directional? Just continue to always use them in the same direction regarding input and output?

OP here, quick update:

My pursuit of Zavfino is now over. Because the full Zavfino loom is complete.

My system is pretty simple. Digital only. Streaming DAC, transport, integrated amp, speakers. Here is my Zavfino lineup:

1. Speaker cables, two runs as I biwire. Silver Darts for HF, Prima MKII for LF
2. Two Silver Darts power cords, one for Integrated amp, one for DAC. Prima MKII for transport 
3. Silver Darts XLR interconnects from DAC to integrated amp

The non-Zavfino stuff is the Ethernet cable (Synergistic Research Atmosphere X Reference) and the Shunyata Omega XC power cord for my Shunyata Everest power distributor. They will both remain as is.

The last piece of the puzzle was the pair of Silver Darts speaker cables for the HF run, which replaces the Prima MKII (shortly up for sale, maybe this weekend). The second run for LFs will remain Prima MKII.

I could not be happier with Zavfino, especially as I gradually added more. The improvement is definitely cumulative, and the “full loom” concept in full display. If I were to describe the sound I get with one word, it would be “natural”. To my ears, best tonal accuracy I have ever had, and a very pleasant timbre, the one I like. Additionally, my sound opened up way more than I thought would ever be possible given the limitations of my room. I struggle to remember better sound (fellow audio lovers local friends, audio shows). Not trying to brag. Ok… maybe a little bit 😂😂

From my short / mid term observations: you don’t need to pay a lot of money to get the Silver Darts. The lower tier models are most definitely great value for the money, and the law of diminishing returns kicks pretty hard when paying a lot more for the Silver Darts. That’s of course with my ears and my equipment/ room combination, so your mileage may vary. So why I did mostly Silver Darts? Two reasons: 1) avoid future regret and prevent the thought of upgrading down the road, losing money in the process, and 2) while Silver Darts are not cheap, they are definitely very reasonable price wise compared to the top performing cables from the usual brands. Have been there, done that, so I am very familiar. My total full loom Zavfino cost is lower than the cost of several full looms from other more mainstream brands I have had in the past. It’s all relative, and we all have the anchoring biases, which I am cognizant of.

Finally, the built quality, packaging, presentation are all top notch. Those who have bought brand new can attest I am sure. They look top quality in presentation & packaging, and let’s face it: this matters in terms of brand perception. Buying process on website is extremely easy and convenient, here in US one central location, buy direct, online, no dealers. One guy to deal with, Raymond, who has been extremely helpful, knowledgeable, and professional.

I am curious @ozzy what did you do with your broken Silver Darts power cord? 

@ozzy thank you for the update. Glad you were able to get a brand new power cord

@abd1 The standard bananas are BFA , not locking. You have to specifically order locking bananas. I know very well, I have ordered and own their speaker cables with BFA bananas 

Thanks for sharing your impressions @sdl4 and thanks for pointing to that fairly recent review on Zavfino I was not aware of. Simple writing but to the point. 
 

I would also say, like I have said earlier, the Zavfino effect in one’s system is cumulative. The more you add in the chain, the better everything sounds as a whole. The full loom concept. So if you can, get some Nova or Prima speaker cables, Majestic or Prima power cords. Just my two cents