Would silver cables beat UP-OCC copper?


All things considered, which is the better choice for best sound, silver (for example, Siltech) or UP-OCC copper, such as Furutech or Neotech? Thanks.
dave_72
Talk about a 180. Listening to the cooper set up I was noting the pluses and minuses. It was when I put on a solo cello was when I heard the grossest event. The cello was playing dead center and as it played, some of it went about 1/3 of the way to the left when it always stayed nice and centered. 

I chalked that up to the stranded wire. There was also some sibilance in the upper mids where it never existed before. Enough of this.

When putting the Cabledyne Virtuosos back it (and not looking forward to using the Tempo Electric) I remembered the lower line of Cabledyne SCs that I had and put them in. It's their entry line of silver cables that also uses OCC stranded silver but in a lower tech jacket, sheathed in copper with BFA bananas. 

The last time I tried them in a bi wire set up was before I got my power conditioner, footers and before I switched the filter setting on my SACD player. It had an etched sound to it. Wondering how I was going to use two banana connectors on one input, I just unloosened the plastic cover on the speaker output as far as it would go and saw my opening: the bare wire insert was large enough to accommodate the banana so I put it in, tightened it down, and use the regular input for the other banana.

It's game over for me now. With OCC stranded silver in both cables of the same make and length, my speakers now sing with one unified voice, the likes of which I've never experienced. 

As Alex said, in A Clockwork Orange, "it's clear as a sky of azure blue: clear as an unmuddied lake." 

Now I know what coherence is. There's no sign of aggressiveness, glare, bite, etch, or forwardness. No leading edge to speak of. Just music that's full, detailed, balanced and natural. There's real silence when the music pauses.

I don't know why Cabledyne went out of business but that former Belden engineer who designed these cables knew what he was doing.

All the best,
Nonoise 
Listening to the copper set up I was noting the pluses and minuses. It was when I put on a solo cello was when I heard the grossest event. The cello was playing dead center and as it played, some of it went about 1/3 of the way to the left when it always stayed nice and centered.

I chalked that up to the stranded wire.


You honestly believe the location of an instrument shifted what, 10-20 degrees because of stranded wire?  You do realize that makes almost anything you write suspect?   Perhaps you could discuss how we perceive instrument location and how stranded wire shifted the image 10-20 degrees?


Are you familiar with Occam's Razor?  ... the simplest explanation is usually the right one.


Did it occur to you that you had a bad connection that worked its way loose? It wasn't stranded wire that caused the image to shift. It may have been a bad connection. That could have explained the other issues too.


Sorry, many faces of whatever, but the connections were tight. It was the image that was smeared. Notice in the quote that I said some of it went about 1/3 to the left, not all of it. In your eagerness to be a PITA you pounced before you looked. But being you, I don't expect you to say anything productive. 

All the best,
Nonoise
I have used QED silver anniversary cable for years in my system. Silver plated ofc copper. I find it provides excellent high frequency detail, yet retains informative tight bass frequencies. I use the biwire version of the cable. I see no reason to change it out as I’m happy with the way it sounds. Orton seems to like to use silver in the construction of some of their cartridges, the 2m silver and both the 2m bronze and 2m black.. silver plated copper wire. I use the 2m bronze, it's a fantastic cartridge. 
Notice in the quote that I said some of it went about 1/3 to the left, not all of it. In your eagerness to be a PITA you pounced before you looked. But being you, I don't expect you to say anything productive.


Again, we go back to Occam's razor. Some of it went 1/3 to the right, so like 10-20 degrees. You do realize this is a major change?  Stranded wire does not do this. Copper / silver does not do this. A significant shift in the frequency response on only one side could do this. In your eagerness to blame stranding, you did not think.  You have assigned a conclusion without any consideration to whether that conclusion even makes sense or is possible.