Hi All,
I did a speaker cable comparison and I would like to share my thoughts with you guys...
How does DH Labs favor vs. Audioquest? I just picked up a pair of DH Labs Q-10 speaker cable (older version) from a local audio friend of mine for $45. I had to re-terminate them, so I used my Cardas banana on the speaker side, and bare wire (for now) on the amp side.
Like I said, I’m currently using Mogami W3082 speaker cable and Mogami interconnects. I played a couple tracks to get a reference. I then swapped out the Mogami speaker cable and installed the Q-10. The first thing I noticed was that they were brighter than the Mogami’s. Not in a bad way, but in a more revealing way? Is that what PRESENCE is described as? Bass was tighter and perhaps deeper and more defined, but definitely tighter. Highs (i.e. cymbals) at first seems a little shrill, but the more and went back and forth between the mogami’s and Q-10’s, the more the shrillness went away. These Q-10’s are used cables and have been sitting for a while. Perhaps they just needed some "juice" to get them going again?
As I went back and forth between the two cables (Mogami W3082 vs Q-10’s), the Q-10’s seemed to sound better and better. Total listening time was about an hour or so. By the end of my testing, the best word to describe the difference between the two is that the Mogami’s now appear to sound "veiled" compared to the Q-10’s. Soundstage appeared to sound a little wider. Imaging was pretty much the same (didn’t really notice a difference). Another thing I noticed is how the music seemed closer to me and/or more "out of the speaker" if that makes any sense?
Time will tell if this is something that will last or not. I've been down that road before when you introduce a new piece into the stereo mix (and think it's great) then later your ears begin to tell you is not as great as you though. I’ve read that silver coated copper wires have a tendency to make the music sound brighter, so one will need darker equipment to compensate? The Vandersteen's are the more neutral speaker I have ever owned, so I wouldn't think they would be an issue. Same with the Creek integrated. Some have said (even Stereophile's article) that the Apollo cd player can have a slight brightness in the upper mids, but I haven't noticed anything. I will have to compare it to my Micromega Stage 3 to be sure.
As for interconnects, I wonder how the matching DH Labs Air Matrix would sound with the rest of my gear?
I did a speaker cable comparison and I would like to share my thoughts with you guys...
How does DH Labs favor vs. Audioquest? I just picked up a pair of DH Labs Q-10 speaker cable (older version) from a local audio friend of mine for $45. I had to re-terminate them, so I used my Cardas banana on the speaker side, and bare wire (for now) on the amp side.
Like I said, I’m currently using Mogami W3082 speaker cable and Mogami interconnects. I played a couple tracks to get a reference. I then swapped out the Mogami speaker cable and installed the Q-10. The first thing I noticed was that they were brighter than the Mogami’s. Not in a bad way, but in a more revealing way? Is that what PRESENCE is described as? Bass was tighter and perhaps deeper and more defined, but definitely tighter. Highs (i.e. cymbals) at first seems a little shrill, but the more and went back and forth between the mogami’s and Q-10’s, the more the shrillness went away. These Q-10’s are used cables and have been sitting for a while. Perhaps they just needed some "juice" to get them going again?
As I went back and forth between the two cables (Mogami W3082 vs Q-10’s), the Q-10’s seemed to sound better and better. Total listening time was about an hour or so. By the end of my testing, the best word to describe the difference between the two is that the Mogami’s now appear to sound "veiled" compared to the Q-10’s. Soundstage appeared to sound a little wider. Imaging was pretty much the same (didn’t really notice a difference). Another thing I noticed is how the music seemed closer to me and/or more "out of the speaker" if that makes any sense?
Time will tell if this is something that will last or not. I've been down that road before when you introduce a new piece into the stereo mix (and think it's great) then later your ears begin to tell you is not as great as you though. I’ve read that silver coated copper wires have a tendency to make the music sound brighter, so one will need darker equipment to compensate? The Vandersteen's are the more neutral speaker I have ever owned, so I wouldn't think they would be an issue. Same with the Creek integrated. Some have said (even Stereophile's article) that the Apollo cd player can have a slight brightness in the upper mids, but I haven't noticed anything. I will have to compare it to my Micromega Stage 3 to be sure.
As for interconnects, I wonder how the matching DH Labs Air Matrix would sound with the rest of my gear?