I decided to evaluate the recent digital cable HAVE sent to me. The cable is a 2-ft run Dual Canare StarQuad 110-ohm assembly terminated with Canare RCA connectors, wherein the assembly includes two paralleled Canare DA202 IC’s spliced together in the assembly (
that is, a Shroeder Method paralleled IC assembly without splitters). My comparator is a 2-ft run stock (i.e., single-run) Canare StarQuad 110-ohm IC terminated with AES/EBU connectors, wherein the cable includes a slightly higher gauge Canare DA206 110-ohm IC. So both digital cables include the same type of Canare StarQuad IC conductor "DNA". See the following links for a description of the two Canare digital cables:
http://www.canare.com/ProductItemDisplay.aspx?productItemID=67http://www.canare.com/ProductItemDisplay.aspx?productItemID=66The test set-up is as follows: CAL Delta CD Transport (output clock jitter at 50psec); test digital cable(s) connected to relevant digital outputs of the Delta; Theta DS PRO Basic IIIa DAC; Dual Assembly Canare audio cable (2-ft length) connecting DAC to Audible Illusions M3A; Teo Audio Ultra (6-ft length) from AI M3A to powered ATC SCM20-2A’s monitors.
I’m hearing even more detail in the complexity of musical presentation with the Dual Canare StarQuad assembly digital cable over the stock Canare StarQuad AES/EBU counterpart. For example, one Radiohead track from Disc 2 of OKNOTOK (#4) include a set of chimes or bells that continuously play throughout the most of the complex portions of that track that I never heard before. On that track, for example, while both cables provided sonic cues to the chimes within the track, the dual assembly displayed greater openness, microdynamics, less smear and more relaxed, organic presentation than the stock IC.
By the way, I had removed my Sonic Frontiers Ultra Jitterbug reclocker from my system before doing any tests. In a slightly different configuration (Teo Audio Liquid Pre passive line stage in place of the AI M3A active preamp), the introduction of the 2 stock Canare AES/EBU digital cables and the SF reclocker introduced smearing into the resultant SQ from the digital signal path, based upon my conclusion of using only one stock Canare AES/EBU digital cable. And I say this with my informed appreciation the Teo Audio passive is a cleaner signal processor than the AI M3A active preamp. The SF reclocker only provided a marginal improvement in jitter reduction (40psec with the reclocker installed vs. 50psec with the reclocker removed). It’s clear the digital cable contributes a lot to the final resultant SQ achieved.