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Shunyata Venom IC's review

I have been an denier of the benefit of pricey cabling, but got a pair of Grove Huffman's IC's a while back and they were a clear improvement over my Signal Cable IC's.  Later, a pair of Morrow MA2 IC's was a sonic improvement in my bedroom system.  I read a recent review of the new Shunyata Venom cables, which was laudatory, but not over the top.  For some reason I can't recall, I was prompted to order a pair of them from The Cable Company and got them a couple of days ago.  I swapped the GH cables for them and right out of the box, the Venom ICs sounded great.  They have wonderful extension and great inner detail without a hint of stridency.  I interchanged the GH and Venom IC's several times and the Venom's seemed to my ears to sound "just right", clearly preferable to the very good GH IC's.  I never would have expected myself to drop a $300 on a pair of IC's, thinking it out would be a waste of money, but I am at the moment quite enthralled with the sound of these Venom IC's.  I see dozens for IC's for sale on AG at what I consider to be budget-busting prices, but I will say the outlay of $300 for these Venom cables appears to be a worthwhile investment.  Just my two-sense worth.  Mark

whitestix
lak's avatar
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lak
4,623 posts
 
Thanks for your thoughts and taking the time to post.
I've never tried the Shunyata Research interconnects, but I have heard improvement by trying many other high priced interconnects. At times it's like being on a marygoround and eventually one needs to just be happy and listen to the music.
Best regards...

whitestix OP
709 posts
 
I have been swapping my current power cord for the new Shunyata Venom power cord ($120) and by gosh do sense lots noise, a darker background, and a more lively presentation to the music with the Shunyata's.  I will continue the swapping, but so far, I think both the Venom IC's and power cables are sonic improvement in my system at a a reasonable price.  Overall, my system just seems to have more "jump" to the sound, as inarticulate as that sounds.  
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communique1
64 posts
 
I've been listening to IC and Speaker cables VS Analysis Plus Solo Crystal IC and speaker cables for the past few days. Thus far the speaker cables have made the greatest positive impression. Quieter background, less stringency, awesome placement of instruments across the soundstage.  Timbre has also improved. I'm impressed. Less forward than the Analysis Plus but no details are lost. Yet to get a full grasp on the IC comparison, but certainly less dramatic influence on the system than the speaker cables.
whitestix OP
709 posts
 
As I see the hundreds and hundreds of pricey IC's and speaker cables for sale on AG and Audio Mart, I guess it must be the case that as one follows the cost curve upward with respect to cabling, additional artifacts of music can be revealed.  I am now also auditioning the Silnote Morpheus ICs cables and they sound quite good right out of the box.  I do think both the Shunyata and Silnote IC are preferable to my less expensive IC's so I think the shoot-out will be better these two IC's.  I wouldn't want the job of being a reviewer as it is difficult to focus on the sound of different components and judge their differences.  Honestly, my $35 DIY IC's sound fantastic and I could live with them very happily.  But I do sense some subtle, my not insignificant improvements in the sound of my system with the pricier IC's.  I am very happy with my Mogami 3103 speaker cable which is a bargain as I need 25' runs of it under my house from my amp to my speakers.   

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