Well, I took a chance and ordered the one that I provided the link for. I don't know when it will get here, but I'll let you know what I think of it when it does, I ordered it directly from Xangsane as aliexpress didn't sell that particular model.
Xangsane SP-9001AG silver interconnect
So, encouraged by friends I've bought some bulk Xangsane SP-9001AG silver cable.
The cables has two squarish/flat solid core silver conductors (purity supposed to be 4N), one silver plated copper drain wire, teflon, cotton, copper foil, and finally silver plated copper mesh.
Jacket says OCC.
Well, it's been playing in my system since a couple of days, burn-in is far from being over, but I can already tell this is a very very good cable, with great tonality, fantastic transparency, dynamics, taut and strong bass... this is the best cable I've heardin my system (by hundreds of miles), and according to some friends you need to go very, very high in price to find a better silver cable.
I was trying to determine the difference between the model I ordered and the one that @rolox bought. On aliexpress, it doesn't mention that his has a rectangular silver wire, although they do mention it on the Xangsane site. What I did notice was that the actual RCA on the one I ordered is said to be gold plated copper, and the other model is gold plated, but they don't mention it being copper. I also notice some differences in insulation materials. I am looking forward to hearing it for sure, and if it is as good as @rolox and some others say, $160 for a meter pair is a giveaway. |
Looks interesting, but my radar is up to say the least. For example, I bought these 5N silver interconnects from LavriCables that, in RCA form (I bought balanced for my HeadFi rig), would be about $185USD for a 1m pair, so to be able to buy a 1m pair of 6N interconnects for $160 has me a little skeptical. I haven’t compared the AWG of the wire used so that might be some part of it, but my understanding is that 6N silver costs MUCH more than 5N. I get it — it’s China so things can be done cheaply, but then again, it’s China and things can also be done dishonestly. Looking forward to thoughts from users. https://www.lavricables.com/cables/reference-silver-rca-interconnects/ |
Guys, not willing to create an argument but, the SP-9001Ag seems to be VERY special. I’m not sure ordering the 9003Ag is the right move. Just because it says "6N" doesn’t mean it sounds better. According to the friend who recommended it to me, the 9003 is bound to sound less good because the conductors have an individual shield on top of the external shields common with the 9001. According to him, that additional shield around each conductor is the perfect recipe for reduced dynamics. He knows a thing or two about those things, as he builds tube electronics and high sensitivity speakers for a living. He also compared the 9001Ag to AudioNote AN-VX, AudioNote Sooto, and Neotech Nemoi 1220. According to him, the 9001Ag is much better than AN-VX, better than Neotech 1220, and comes very close to Sooto being just "a tiny bit less fruity and expressive" (his own words). It should be noted that Neotech 1220 and 9001Ag use a very similar geometry with rectangular conductors. Not that it wouldn’t be interesting to compare 9001 and 9003, but at the very similar prices, I wouldn’t take a chance and would just go for the 9001. It’s not clear wether one of the two should be superior to the other, maybe different uses, different preferences or the need for an extra layer of shielding in ultra polluted environments for the 9003. That same friend has also noticed that 9001Ag sounds better for RCA with one square conductor on signal, one on return, shield connected at source end and drain wire cut flush at both ends, than using both square conductors on signal and drain wire on return. I have just sent a mail to Xangsane to ask how the finished cable using 9001Ag they sell on their website is terminated. |