This week, I took a trip down memory lane and purchased a pair of Cardas Golden Cross speaker cables. For a few years, I have been rotating between speaker cables from Harmonic Technology, Furutech, DIY WE wire, and my favorites made from Jupiter Condenser Company’s solid core copper in cotton wire.
I previously owned several types of Cardas speaker cables including Golden Cross. I nostalgically remembered the full, tuneful sound of the GC speaker cables and I was curious to hear if anything had changed. This pair is terminated for bi-wiring. While I typically like double runs for bi-wiring, with a wopping 5.5 awg aggregate wire gauge, the internally bi-wired GC certainly provide more than adequate copper to both the highs and lows.
Cardas says:
"One of the most sought after second-hand Cardas cables, Golden Cross remained at the top of our cable line for many years. Revered for its warmth, musicality and richness, Golden Cross cables command high prices on the used market."
To me, there is something about the sound of speaker cables constructed with individually insulated, solid core, copper wire that I simply like better than any stranded wire cables I have heard. My three favorites here are certainly different with the HT cables being insulated by foamed PE, the Jupiter wire by cotton, and the Cardas by an enamal coating. The geometries are also different with the Cardas being based on the golden ratio.
Cutting to the chase, these GC cables are everything I remember. I am not sure that the common description of "warmth" is appropriate, because they don’t seem to be masking anything, but they do exibit what I would describe as a dense body, and a rich, melodic tone. They seem to slightly round off rough edges, and display treble that is smooth, sweet, and never in your face. I find the GC speaker cables very enjoyable to listen to and, so far, I am glad I took the opportunity to give them another try.
