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Clear Day vs Acoustic Zen

As I mentioned in another thread, I am looking to make one or two upgrades to my system this year. Total budget is around $500 - 600. My current system is:
B&W CM10
Parasound A21
Cambridge Audio Azur 851D (preamp + DAC)
Cheap Audioquest wires (I think I paid around $50 for an 8 ft pair).

The two speaker cables that I've seen mentioned a lot here are Clear Day and Acoustic Zen Sartori. I almost pulled the plug on a pair of used AZ Sartori a week ago, but it was sold before I could make an offer.
There are other AZ Satoris on sale here at agon but they're all over 8 ft, which is not what I want.

However, I see that for the same $$$ for used AZs, I can get brand new Clear Day Double Shotguns.

Has anybody compared these two in their systems? Given that B&W is generally considered to be a tad bit on the bright side, I wonder if the silver in Clear Day might not be the best choice?
128x128arafiq
mtrot
804 posts
 
I'll give you a bump, as those are two of the cables I'm also considering but have never heard. I'm also considering the new(ish) Cerious Technologies Graphene Extreme, which is also in that general price range.
milpai's avatar
milpai
2,407 posts
 
And what is keeping you guys from ordering a free demo set from Paul at Clear Day? All you'll pay is return shipping - which should be less than $10.
jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
Well I have not heard the Clear Day cables, but I have seen that they use silver conductors. I have heard many cables that use silver conductors, and I have owned the Satori Shotgun speaker cables. Both can be very good in the right system, but you would need to decide which way you want to go.
You say that the B&W are generally considered bright speakers, but the question is: Do YOU think they sound bright? It doesn't matter what others think.

That said, the AZ Satori is fuller, warmer, with bigger bass than any silver conductor cable I've heard. However, silver can also sound very good in the right system, more revealing, more definition. I actually have a couple of AZ Absolute power cords and a pair of Absolute interconnects, which sound better in my system than the Satori did. Absolute is a mix of silver and copper, but probably out of your price range.

If you are looking for musicality, full bass, and warmth, I would recommend the AZ Satori. If you want higher definition, more transparency, I would look for a Clear Day trial. Very different cables that can both work well with the right gear.
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