Upgrade from Cardas Neutral Reference speaker cables

The original Cardas golden cross are the best I have used.

No longer made but can be found used.

I have been using Golden Cross now for about 7-8 years and have actually been looking at switching to Golden Reference. I am holding off on buying as I am looking at the possibility of mono blocks and that would allow me to buy shorter cables. I see NR a lot on Cable Co. and have wondered why they are getting traded in and what they are being replaced with. Seems like the few responses here seem positive, so I ask the OP why are you wanting to move on?

One thing about Golden Reference ... it can be too much of a good thing when using an entire loom (i.e., ICs and Speaker). When I did, I heard a distinct bloat in the mid-bass. So, I removed the ICs and kept the GR speaker cable in the system. The GR ICs are now collecting dust in my closet, and I have replaced them with Audio Envy.  

i am sure cardas makes even more expensive cables than the neu-ref!

surely a major sonic upgrade, for sure!  neutrality can be sooo overrated... :)

happy hunting...

@theo I have been using Golden Cross now for about 7-8 years and have actually been looking at switching to Golden Reference.

That’s partially what I did. Golden Cross was a very good match and musical with my brighter solid state amps of the past. Golden Cross was definitely too veiled over laid back for my prior and current tube amps. The next goal was to figure out something 1/2 way between.

Currently using the original standard "Cross" bi-wire for my speaker cables; not so veiled over. And, paired with the updated Golden Reference interconnects it's a nice mix. It’s more open and transparent yet retains the musicality and some of the weight keeping it all Cardas in my system. To open it up even more or to add a tad more detail, I mix in one pair of Analysis Plus OCC crystals anywhere in the chain. Allows for a few different presentations. The blend of the two brands and these models can also be very nice for those who prefer big open sound. It’s been fun and interesting to mix these for a hybrid result. Your results may vary.