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Sakura Systems OTA Cable Kit

Has anyone tried this "minimalist" cable kit? After receiving a recommendation from someone with similar musical values to myself, and whose ears I trust, I could not resist ordering one. I will report on how they sound in a few weeks, but am interested in others' opinions too.

For those that have not heard about them look at www.sakurasystems.com for an interesting read. The cable sounds as if it is very close to the specification of the conductors in Belden Cat5. So I may have spent around 100 times what the kit is worth. We shall see.

If you have not heard this cable, please don't bother posting your opinions of how it MUST sound here. Nor am I that interested in hearing how stupid I must be to order this kit - it's my money and you are free to make different decisions with yours. Sorry for this condition, but I am bored with those that have nothing positive to offer on this site, and post their opinions based on deductive logic rather than actual experience.
redkiwi
kitch29
316 posts
 
Hey Brulee, we're waiting!
brulee
564 posts
 
Hi Kitch29, how you been?
What are we waiting for? I'm thicker than most.
moto_man
323 posts
 
Sorry to be a skeptic, but why is $600 for a 50 foot (meter?) spool of 24 guage copper wire and a few terminators a good deal? What, if anything, is the difference between the OTA 24 guage OFC solid core copper wire and 24 guage copper wire purchased at an electrical supply house at substantially less? I'm not trying to rain on anyone's parade . . . just wondering why I shouldn't just DIY for a lot less . . .
dekay's avatar
dekay
5,381 posts
 
Moto: Because it does not sound the same. I have already experimented with the OTA plastic RCA's and (26) gage solid core silver and copper "quality wire" from other sources and cannot achieve the sound of this cable. I came up with one set of IC's using a pseudo air dialectic design, that sounded good, but after a few weeks listening concluded that they (though better to me than some pro IC's that I have used in the past) are not nearly as good as the stock OTA. The kit contains 50 meters of cable, by the way. Consider me an audio fascist if you must, by I tend to judge items by the end result (how they sound), not by how that sound is achieved and this stuff is apparently not your average run of the mill 26 gage Teflon insulated cable. So, for $600 I have enough cable to install speaker wire in two systems, plus have three sets of IC's at my disposal. The fact that both the IC's and the speaker cable are by far the best sounding that I have ever used, makes it a frugal purchase I would say. I will still play around with different IC designs, because it is cheap fun and I figure that I can't burn down the house doing so. Anyway, give it a try and see what you come up with. Oh, and I am pretty sure that the copper wire is 26 gage, but am not positive.
redkiwi OP
1,092 posts
 
Dekay, to answer your previous question, my beach house is undergoing work at present and so the system is stored (too cold here right now to crave the beach anyway). Well-spotted, it would have been an ideal way to run in the OTA cable. When I set it up again it will probably soak up all the remainder of my OTA kit, so I am thinking about getting another one.
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