Cardas Interconnect Placement


I just bought a run of cardas golden cross interconnect (1m) in addition to my existing cardas cross interconnect.
My question is this, what would be better:

A) Gold Cross between CD/Pre; Cross between Pre/Amp

B) Cross between CD/Pre; Golden Cross between Pre/Amp

C) Does not make any noteable difference.

Thanks for the help fellow audiogoners!

Bobby
aggiebob98
Always put your best interconnects between the source component and preamp. In this case between your CD player and Preamp.
Hi Bobby,
why dont you try for yourself? Seems like the obvious solution.
Peace
Hans
I disagree with Artistic Audio. There are very few absolutes in this hobby. I would be wary of someone who uses the term always when making a recommendation.

Ingvar is correct. Get up from behind the keyboard, walk over to your system and try it both ways. The way that sounds the best is the correct way to do it. If you can't tell any difference then sell the more expensive cable.
Folks:

The gold cross has not arrived at my house yet and will not for the next week, hence why I was asking for input ahead of time. Thanks for the rude answers from two of you.
Aggiebob98,

I have tried my ICs in various configurations and I always find that my system sounds best with my RSC Air1 (my 'best' IC) between my CDP and preamp. While (as previously stated) there are no absolutes in this hobby, I generally believe that the 'best' IC should go between the source and preamp.

Naturally, you will probably try them the other way around, but I'll bet that you will come to the same conclusion that I have come to.
The fun of playing here is the dorks with their stupid answers! Some people know everything and want to pass that knowledge on to you. When you disagree just laugh at them, since they deserve to be laughed at!
Anyway, the best results I have experienced coincides with previous comments: use the best cable closest to the source. Use the lesser cables to beat people who make stupid comments. I could be wrong about the last part, but it sounds like fun!
I had no intention of being rude. If it came off that way then I apologize.

If I am a stupid dork for suggesting that it should be tried both ways, then I will just have to accept that I am a stupid dork because I still agree with Ingvar that is the obvious thing to do.

As for Nrchy's suggestion to laugh at people who disagree with you, that is about as closed minded a comment as I have ever heard. I welcome people who disagree with me in the hope that I may learn something from them.
Bobby, having owned the Golden Cross myself I would suggest trying it in different positions in the chain. It's a great cable with distinct qualities and you'll never know which placement you'll prefer until you try it.

Interestingly, a friend of mine tried my Golden Cross as his digital cable and really liked the results. That demonstrates that you shouldn't rule out even what might seem like a goofy idea beforehand.

Although what Ingvar and Herman suggested may have sounded rude to you, I was expecting someone to respond in that manner since your original post didn't state both cables weren't already in your possession. I'm just sorry those were among your first responses.

That being said, I too tend to follow the method of placing the better or more revealing cables closer in the chain to the source. I'm not suggesting that more revealing is better, but I do prefer to do less coloring at the beginning of the cable chain and introduce warmth or whatever coloring I'm aiming towards further down the signal path if desired.

For example, I am using an all Acoustic Zen cable configuration with an MC2 between transport and DAC, Silver Reference II between DAC and preamp and Matrix Reference between preamp and amp. I did this on the advice of many other AZ owners in these forums who combine these cables and have found it yields a very nice balance of detail and warmth.

Experiment and listen. And just because some answers rubbed you the wrong way don't let that inhibit your forethought or asking questions here in the future. No one knows everything and I've learned to expose my own ignorance and accept all responses to my often obviously goofy queries.

Good luck!

Dean
Gunbei:

Thanks for the response. I fully planned to try multiple configurations to see what worked best for me. I was just trying to get some input to see if a general feel already existed with what the better configuration tended to be. I appreciate the thoughts beforehand. I should have explained earlier that one of the cables was not yet in my possession though. Thanks for the help!

Bobby
Bobby, having never owned the Cross I'm very curious as to what you'll perceive as the differences between the two. Should be fun.

It was very tough for me to sell the Golden Cross as it has a very special sound. I should have kept it around for reference or for those times when I craved that sound.
Herman, nice system!

I was not neccesarily refering to you in my comments. There are some people who use the forums to ridicule everyone that does not agree with, or own all the same gear as them. These are some of the people who have even gone so far as to contact me directly and continue their attacks. I find these people amusing, and I do laugh at THEM.

A person has to have a point of reference when building, buying, or shopping for their system. Input from multiple sources can be helpful, or possibly harmful when many 'experts' disagree. Based on your system it could be safe to assume you to be a reliable source, not everyone who posts has the experience you possess. The opinions of people who do not have credibility are of no value. To keep an open mind can allow your mind to be filled with foolishness. A person has to earn the right to be trusted. There are many here who are of the opinion that ICs speaker cables, and power cords are all the same. Would you trust one of these people to make valid points about; for instance, where to place cardas ICs in a system?

If a person has exhibitted the credibility to be trusted then it is worthwhile to engage them in discussion to learn if their points are valid. Otherwise it is a waste of your time. Just because someone disagrees with you doesn't mean they are right and you are wrong. I'm fairly sure you and I agree on most, if not all of this.
Nrchy, now that you have complemented my system we can be friends again. I have updated it since you looked earlier so you might want to check it out, and yes, I agree with your last post.

My apologies to Bobby for hijacking his thread.
Bobby, here's some information that can also help you in your decision on where the better cable should be placed. Cardas cables don't like to be moved around much. In fact if you were to unplug a pair of golden cross interconnects from your system and move them to another location it could take hours or even days for them to settle back in and sound like they just did. Many cables do this, but Cardas cables seem to have a major effect on the sound when disturbed. Happy listening!
I didn't think anybody was rude until the thread-head was (is that rude enough for everybody?).

Here is the only 'rule' I can give for this kind of question: If you run multiple sources, as I do, it makes common sense to insert your best interconnect between the preamp and power amp - that way all your sources get the benefit of it. As for a single-source system, I defer to the original common sense of Ingvar and Herman.