Speaker Cables for Sonus Faber Olympica III

" I am looking to stay at $2,000 - $3,000 new or used. I've had recommendations from various dealers pushing mainly Transparent Audio cables or Nordsot cables, and have no idea who to believe or where to start. I am an audiophile newbie and building my system from scratch. Thanks for your help!"

People usually get mad at me because I don't always share the same opinion that they do. I'm sure this won't be an expectation, but the truth of the matter is, you're in no position to buy cables that expensive. Given some of your descriptions, it looks like you've been reading a lot of reviews. And there's 2 things that reviewers are really bad at. The first is they do a poor job of putting differences in perspective in relation to other components.

" I've read some reviews online and it seems very difficult to purchase cables without auditioning, but this is my situation. I really want to bring out the best of the Olympica III's, the soundstage, midrange warmth, instrument/vocal placement, and overall seductiveness of the speakers."

The only thing I can tell you for sure is that its not going to happen. What you're talking about are major component differences and qualities. Amp, preamp, speakers etc. Cables may effect those areas, but nowhere near the level that components do. When you read reviews, the descriptions they use make it sound like a pair of cables will have the same impact on your sound as a pair of speakers. The differences with cables are usually much less.

The second, and more important thing that reviews lack are difficulty levels. If you're new to audio, its not easy to pick through a bunch of cables looking for differences. The differences are there, but there's no guarantee that you're going to find them. It takes a lot of listening and experience to do this. The last thing you want to do is rush in and spend a lot of money.

So my recommendation would be to keep your 3k in your pocket, and spend about $100-200 on speaker cables. At least for now.

Zd542, I appreciate your input. Not sure what I'm going to do, but being the differences are very subtle about improved performance with cabling, it seems difficult to make a decision. So are you saying that spending $200 vs. $3,000 in say, a Nordost came line (for example a Nordost Blue Heaven cables vs. a Nordost Frey 2 cable) won't make my speakers come alive any differently that could be appreciate by someone new to audiophile equipment? I agree that some expensive cables won't sound good based on their characteristics, but that is from my humble inexperienced opinion (which should be taken with a grain of salt), there should be some very good cables in a moderate price point that mesh very well with different products. If certain audio equipment with its various circuitry, specifications, design and materials sound good and bad with other components, why wouldn't cabling act the same, even if to a lesser degree? I'm not necessarily disagreeing with you, but just trying to make a wise decision with enough information to ensure I am comfortable with it. I do agree, reviews tend to paint a picture as if cable differences are much bigger than they are...

When it comes to high end audio, any question can be answered with 2 words. It depends.

"So are you saying that spending $200 vs. $3,000 in say, a Nordost came line (for example a Nordost Blue Heaven cables vs. a Nordost Frey 2 cable) won't make my speakers come alive any differently that could be appreciate by someone new to audiophile equipment?"

That's definitely a possibility given your level of experience. My best guess would be that you would hear a small difference. More importantly, though, there is no guarantee a $3000 pair of cables will better than a $200 cable. They can easily sound worse.

"If certain audio equipment with its various circuitry, specifications, design and materials sound good and bad with other components, why wouldn't cabling act the same, even if to a lesser degree?"

That's actually my point. Anything can happen. The problem is making the right choice. You can't rush that, its something that comes with experience. Not only that, your personal taste is a huge factor. Good for me will be different than good for you. If you want an example of what I mean, just look at this thread. Besides you and I, there are 5 other posters that bring up 10 different cables. These cables are more different, than alike, in both price and design. How would you go about picking the best one for yourself?

Here's a thought and one that's worked for me really well throughout the years, first of all always buy used cables the depreciation is fast and furious. If you buy used and are reasonably patient and get a general idea of what things cost you can pretty much buy a cable, try it out for a while in your system, then resell it for whatever you paid for it originally. I have done this countless times and have pretty much kept at a break even point as i did my auditioning. I've become a fan or Robert Grost's Cerious Technologies cables. I'm not saying they will work for you but they seem intelligently designed and well priced. But I guess my main point is buy smart, buy used, and don't be afraid to try a cable out if you feel like its a good deal. Good luck and happy listening!

That's great advice Jond! Thanks for your input - and will definitely be keeping my eyes out for used gear. It does seem that many on Audiogon really seem to ask for unrealistic prices for some of the used gear (especially stuff that is years or older) and makes it harder to find a good deal, but hopefully something will turn up! Much appreciation for your time and input.