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Anti Cables with Simaudio

Here is yet another opinion/experience with speaker cables.

I use Green Mountain Speakers, a Monarch DAC24, and was using an Arcam A90 amp. As a non-believer in expensive cables, I seek out well made reasonably priced cables. For a long time, I didn't even think any cables made a difference. I now have a different opinion.

Three cables compared:
Cobalt Cable - 10 gauge heavy multi-strand solid copper.
KnuKfoncepts - 10 gauge light multi-strand silver coated copper.
Anti cables - solid copper cable with no shielding or insulation other than a light coating.

All these cables cost under $200, I run 4 meter lengths.

I bought Cobalt Cables Ultimate cable and used them with the Arcam/GMA setup. This setup had a very tranparent and detailed sound. I could listen to this for hours without losing interest or fatigue. For an experiment, I bought the KnuKoncepts silver cables. The sound was compressed, the highs truncated and well, the magic was gone. So I packed them up in my closet and forgot about them.

Recently, I sold the Arcam and bought a Simaudio Moon I-5. Nice little amp with great reviews. I hooked it up and wham - it sounded bad. Compressed sound, hard to listen to with little detail or definition, exagerated upper mid-frequencies. Needless to say I was disappointed and thought about listing the amp immediately and buying another Arcam. As I read some articles and got some feedback, I decided to experiment with some cables - so I pulled out the silver stranded cables and hooked them up. The transparency and detail returned but with some additional benefits, the amp sounded more dynamic, more powerful. I went back and forth for a couple days but the silver cables were significantly better sounding and brought the magic back.

So next, I thought, this can get even better and bought some anti cables after reading so many great reviews, hooked em up and the highs and detail were gone again. They still sounded pretty good but not nearly as refined as the silver stranded cable. Again I was dissapointed, the anti cables will be available on audiogon soon.

As I have heard very expensive cables at my local high-end dealer, I have come to the following conclusions from this experience:

1. a speaker wire that sounds good with one amp may sound terrible with another. It doesn't matter how much you spend.
2. The configuration and material (silver vs copper, twisted vs solid, etc).
3. All these cables are decent, one is not better than the other, it depends on the synergy with the amp and speakers.

The reference tracks that I use for my testing are:

Kaki King - "Legs", track 1 - Frame (this is a great close mic'ed acoustic guitar track with ringing harmonics, and natural reverb.
Crosby, Stills, Nash, Young, - "So Far" - track 2 - Helplessly Hoping and track 10 - Gueniverre.
Rachel Podger, Solo Violin - Bach Sonatas and Partitas - various.
Bruce Cockburn - "Breakfast" - Track 4 - That's what friends are for.

If you made it all the way through this, you must be more nuts than I am for writing it - thanks!
drewh1
carl109
134 posts
 
Drew, I don't think it's so much to do with synergy of amp and speakers, but more to do with your own personal tastes when it comes to the way YOUR ears hear and YOUR mind interprets the signals.
The change you noticed (more detail and better dynamics) is also what I found when I switched to stranded silver cables, along with a lift in the upper treble; such characteristics are often applied to silver cables. But are my silver cables "better" than the copper I replaced? I don't know, but they sound better to me, and that's what matters.
drewh1 OP
115 posts
 
Carl,

I hope I made it clear in my post that I was not favoring one cable over the other, merely pointing out that a certain cable performed differently in one system than the other.

However I do not agree that it is only a matter of personal preference. There is clearly a goal of recreating the music the way that the artist and engineers intended it to sound. I do not think that Rachel Podger or Yo Yo Ma would want to hear there million dollar instruments on a system that truncated harmonics and bloated the base, which is what some people prefer to hear. As a musician that has been in and out of recording studios my whole life, I can tell you that artist work diligently at getting a specific sound during the process in recording and audiphile gear should strive to reproduce that sound faithfully, not create a sound that is pallatible to the consumers ears. It is a matter of experience and education learning how to hear faithfully reproduced music.

So I do believe there is a synergy between components that more faithfully reproduces the intent of the artist and that is what I spend my hard earned money on!

I also understand this is a long standing debate among audiophiles.
carl109
134 posts
 
The statement "There is clearly a goal of recreating the music the way that the artist and engineers intended it to sound" is certainly an ideal aim. I too have spent many years playing live gigs and recording, so I know where you're coming from.

The big problem with this, however, is that the vast majority of 'audiophiles' (you and I included) were not in the studio when most of our fave tracks were recorded, nor have we heard the original master tapes in the studio. We only have the CD/LP, and ultimately cannot know how closely our system reproduces the music compared to the original.

I've argued in other threads that unless our system is comprised of the same source, amp, cables and monitors as the studio, it simply cannot sound the same as the original.

That's why I tend to believe chasing perfection in a hifi setup is a bit pointless. To me the key is choosing components by specifications, then fine tuning with your own ears to achieve a sound that sounds balanced, accurate and of course "musical" (very subjective term).

Happy Listening!
drewh1 OP
115 posts
 
I have to reverse my position a bit on my earlier declaration that the silver cables were superior. AFter spending some weeks with them, I have been starting to have that feeling that something was not quite right, definitely a bit of magic missing. The sound was a bit "too bright" on many recordings with a sort of fatiguing upper mid range and lack of mid-bass. So I went back to the Anti-cables and discovered a rounder, more musical sound, a bit more mid-bass and although the highs were not as "sparkling", I feel that the sound of most instruments, especially horns and flutes, is more natural. (still no break-in period)

I think I was initally impressed with the highs of the silver wire and more so since I listened to so much guitar in my comparisons. Long listening to a variety of music left me feeling that they were cold and too sharp.

Anyway, I am happy to report that the anti-cables seem to have brought everything back to where I really enjoy listening to everything again. Really good cables and I personally like that they are stiff and can be shaped to fit my runs.

and Carl109, if you happen to read this - I agree with you, perfection is not the goal! I don't know what I would do if I actually did get anything "perfect" in my life.

drew.
danlib1
819 posts
 
Ahhhh- report back from time to time and let us know how things are sounding. Enjoy!
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