Anybody here terminate DH Labs BL-1 cable?

@williewonka , I just wrote you a novel, but it wasn't posted for some reason. 

I definitely noticed more of a difference when I put a power cable on the amp than when I put one on the pre.. But the amp has a switching power supply, so I think they are more susceptible to current restriction..

I'm waiting on a small inline component before I build any new ICs.. Then I'll start messing with building them, as the component well require different terminations.

My speaker cables are DIY, braided cat5 plenum cable. 7 lengths braided to form a 9awg cable, terminated with audioquest silver plated BFA bananas. I love their sound..

Thanks for all your posts, by the way. They've been a great source of info.

I think I will try the KLE connectors though. I'm curious how much better than the standard cardas silver plated copper they are.

Todd - regarding the Harmony connectors...

I have tried all of the connectors on both analogue and digital versions of my Helix cables and here are my observations/opinions...

For digital SPDIF interconnects...
--- I found the Silver Harmony were more than adequate and provided better SQ than the Copper Harmony
--- using either the Pure Harmony or Absolute harmony did not improve SQ in my system
--- having said that - my highest digital resolution is 24/192

For analogue interconnects...
--- I would not bother buying the Copper Harmony because the Silver Harmony are so much better and well worth the additional expense
--- I would also not bother with the Pure Harmony because for the additional expense of the Absolute Harmony they provide much better SQ

I have also tried them all on my TT’s once piece loom and stand by my findings for Analogue IC’s above

Having said that - we all have a budget that constrains us, so pick the very best RCA you can afford for the application it is to address.

When soldering the Harmony RCA’s - plug them into an unused component (if you have one) or get an RCA socket - it helps dissipate the heat so as not to melt the plastic housing and also makes for a much better joint

FYI - the Harmony RCA's take time to settle and burn in also - so give them lots time.
- 1-2 days to settle after connecting OR re-connecting them
- upwards of 100 hours to burn-in - 200 hours yields their best performance

Regarding Speaker cables...

My only stab at DIY was using CS-122 and D-352 bulk cable from Van den Hul, which performed very well and were in my system for a very long time

I did try a couple of models of Kimber Kable, but found the Van den Hul performed better in my system

But just as an FYI...

I later had the opportunity to try KLE Innovations gZero 2, gZero 6 and an older version of one of their newer ZPURITY cable.
- the gZero2 bested my DIY cables significantly
- the gZero6 provided faster dynamics, deeper bass and better image than the gZero2
- The zPurity provided marginal improvements over the gZero 6 in my system - but not enough to warrant my buying them
- I had all of the above cables in my system for 2-3 weeks, which allowed a certain amount of settling and burn-in time

At first glance, I found the KLE Innovations cables skinny, compared to my 10 gauge D352's, which left me wondering how they would compare - it only took one track to hear the vast improvement.

I currently use the gZero 2 on my AV system and gZero 6 on my Audio system and have stopped looking.

I have also tried some other pretty expensive big name brands, but have not found anything that outperform the KLE Innovations products - yet :-)

I have not tried a DIY solution along the lines of the Helix geometry for speaker cables - mainly because making long cables in the Helix style becomes very difficult.

But I’m still pondering a solution :-)

Regards...

Dude, thanks or that list! A great starting point for me. 


I could conceivably do helix speaker cables since I only need 5 ft cables.. Though might length differences in the + & - adversely affect the sound? I understand why they won't in the power circuit, but I don't know enough about the speaker output circuit to know if length differences matter. Do you?
 
Again, thanks for the knowledge.

Todd - The extended length of the neutral conductor will not impact SQ at all - in the grand scheme of things, when you are travelling at close to the speed of light - a few  extra feet is nothing.

What's more important in the helix design is the low capacitance and inductance and their ability to reject EMI/RFI.

You will notice that for the power cable and the IC's, the neutral conductor is thicker than the signal/live conductor - so adhere to that design point.

For Speaker cables I would try a high quality solid copper conductor of 14 gauge  and for the neutral I would use two 14 gauge stranded standard quality conductors  (equivalent to 11 gauge)

Keep me posted as to how you get on

Cheers