Comments on interconnect cables

I auditioned a pair of Magic Link IIs when looking for ICs. I ended up preferring WyWires over them as the WyWires (to my ears/brain/system/room) were far better balanced across the freq. spectrum and far more natural sounding (timbre, tone, especially piano, cymbals, and muted trumpet). Just my $.02.

I had the HT myself and they were OK. I wouldn't spend $900 on them. If you would consider a different brand, you may want to consider a pair of AQ Columbia. I feel that its a much better sounding cable.

"02-27-15: Dweller
Wireworld uses OCC copper (like HT) but wraps it in some super new material to"

Unless nothing has changed with WW, they use stranded copper, where HT uses solid core. If you have a system that gives you enough detail to hear the differences between cables like this, I think you would easily here that those 2 cables will not sound alike. No guarantee of course, but its a likely outcome.

What are your listening preferences - what type of music do you listen to?

Do you attend live performances as a reference when evaluating your system's performance?

Is your system set up to recreate the recording as it was performed? Is it optimized for frequency response?

Most people don't ask these questions yet these issues are critical when considering equipment.

Many audiophiles don't have their system set up to recreate the performance - the image and dimensionality of the performers playing in the room.

Speakers set up against a wall with a high vertical equipment rack in between the speakers, while possibly getting high WAF ratings, compromises that systems' performance.

Making recommendations (wire or other components) for such systems is difficult because fidelity (how well a recorded performance is recreated) isn't a criteria used to gauge performance. Or, if it is - the ability of the system to do so is limited at best.

I hope I'm not sounding like I'm on a rant. I'm an engineer, and if you ask for help from a qualified person (me or anyone else asking for suggestions) - these are prerequisite issues that must be addressed before a recommendation can be offered.

Time Portal Reference XLR are one in that price range that did well with me.
good luck

Tjassoc: Thanks for asking those great questions. I listen to classical, jazz, blues, country and new age recordings and streaming (uncompressed Tidal and Pandora). I listen to live music at San Francisco Symphony Hall and Freight & Salvage (amplified and un-amplified Jazz, Folk, etc). I also listen to music at various San Francisco Theaters.

My system was tuned by my local retailer to capture "the image and dimensionality of the performers playing in the room”as much as possible. My Sonus Faber Olympic II Speakers are slightly away from the wall and to the left and right of my fireplace. My equipment rack is on the left side of my living room. The IC cable goes from my Ayre QB-9 DSD DAC to my Luxman L-590ax amplifier. I have a MAC Laptop connected to the Ayre QB-9 DAC using the Synergistic Research Active SE USB Cable (powered). CD's were ripped to my LaCie 3TB d2 USB 3.0 Thunderbolt Series Hard Drive (AIFF Format).

Several people have listened to my system and felt it sounded excellent.

Since my Harmonic technology Magic Link Two IC is 7 years old, I thought it might be time for an improvement. I am asking this question but might decide to keep my HT Magic Link 2 IC's. I am in research mode and in no hurry to make a decision. To be honest, it is more fun to just listen to the music. Thanks again for your input.