Thanks @charles1dad I will be very interested in your findings. Cables are obviously very system and taste dependent, but I’ve got a feeling these guys might have a thing going on that is really undercutting the big guys on silver cables. I don’t know how they do it, but what I hear is top notch sound. This is only from my headphone system and interconnects only, but if the quality of those is anything like their other cables I think your gonna be very happy unless you like warm, syrupy, and colored sound. These cables are not for that purpose. To me, they’re dead on balls neutral and true to the sound of the music. Just my take, and hope the new power cables please you and treat you well. Cables, as you well know, are a hit and miss option given your tastes and system. But my take is these guys shoot it straight down the fairway — no coloration and all the detail and 3D imaging/soundstage you could want. Like I said, I have no experience with their power cords, but if they in any way replicate the house sound I’ve heard in their other cables I think you’ll be very happy if you’re not looking for a warm tone control. They very, very much sound like my excellent Acoustic Zen Silver Ref interconnects that I’ve had in my system for 20 years, but at a huge discount. I’ve now got Cullen power cables in my HeadFi system, but when I get my amp back from being upgraded at SMcAudio I’m gonna be looking for new power cords and would very much value your thoughts. Please let me know what current PCs you’re comparing them to so I have a basis for comparison. I have a real feeling this is a sleeper company offering quality silver cables at something like half the cost of the larger manufacturers. I will need to see how they perform in my home system when I get my amp back because a HeadFi system just gets you only so far and I don’t have 100% confidence in my impressions of 3D imaging/Soundstage etc. to make a more accurate review. But they’re damn good in my HeadFi system. If you really like your power cables I’ll be installing them in my home system when I get my amp back. I’m honestly already leaning toward them given the sound quality of their interconnects. What most intrigues me is how silver cables can sound detailed yet tonally correct. If you were to ask me I’d assume they were cryogenically treated because they have that smooth kind of sound. They remind me a lot of the Voodoo interconnects I reviewed years ago and also my much beloved AZ Silver Refs, but at like half the cost. I have a feeling you’ll love their power cords, but let’s see.
Price Isn't Always Indicitive of Quality or Performance
I had spent over $1000 on a Synergistic Research Cable. The Atmosphere Level 1 level, to be exact. I was using this as my main source cable to my powered speakers. It was absolutely DE-MOL-ISHED by Lavricables' Grand line for a mere $500. It isn't that the SR cable wasn't good. I was impressed with it and it was a major upgrade over their Foundation line and a phenomenal upgrade over Audioquest's Yosemite cable.
SR and Lavricables use similar tech, but only Lavricables uses pure silver practically throughout.
Here is the over all make up of the $1000 SR Atmosphere cable:
4 conductors.
Conductor: Silver/Copper matrix. Or....silver and copper wire twirled together. Purity unknown. Actual wire gauge unknown.
Dielectric: Teflon
Source Connector: gold plated copper, cryo treated and has graphene applied.
Speaker Connector: Silver plated silver, cryo treated and has graphene applied.
Has a silver-plated copper mesh as a floating shield.
Uses a Tesla Coil to burn the cable in (quantum tunneling) prior to shipping out.
Now...Lavricables' $500 cable:
4 conductors.
Conductor: 20 awg 6N pure silver. Each group is laminated separately in Teflon before being encased in Teflon dielectric insulation. Graphene is applied at key points through out the cable. The cable was cryo treated.
Dielectric: Teflon
Source Connector: Trillium Copper plated with gold. Cryo treated and has graphene applied.
Speaker Connector: AECO ARP-4055 Pure Silver RCA Connectors. Cryo treated and has graphene applied.
The unbelievable sound quality from pure silver was so immense and powerful. It was no longer like listening to music as it was more like experiencing the music. The music was pushing into you. Similar to going to a concert and having the music beat and play in your chest. There were songs that had distortion at either loud, high pitched, or at peak cacophony that I attributed to being part of the recording. The Lavricables proved that it was simply that the SR cable was incapable of reproducing those notes. WHAT!?! I mean, how do you engineer a cable to fail at $1000? I guess so it doesn't out perform or come too close to your $10,000+ cables. In Lavricables, the Grand line is tops; there is nothing higher. They pour *ALL* their knowledge, best materials and techniques in the Grand line.
I thought long about this and I think I figured it out. It isn't that Synergistic Research is necessarily trying to rip anyone off. It's the cost of doing business in the United States. Lavricables are located in Latvia. Synergistic Research and Audioquest are based out of California. The average MSRP markup on goods in CA is 3000%. To compare, Texas's MSRP markup is 300%. So the cost of materials will be higher to make the same product in CA than it would in TX. Synergistic Research and respectively Audioquest, has to charge what they do to maintain living and operating out of CA. But in Latvia? It is clear to me that the materials, tech and know how isn't that expensive there. So it can be surmised that the cost of living and operating out of Latvia is less expensive, which means they can offer the highest grade product at a much lower cost than if the same cable were made here in the United States.
I am thinking of replacing *ALL* my cables. O_O
- ...
- 89 posts total
So my audio system system is based upon a tube foundation. A Canadian brand, Coincident (Not sure if you are familiar with them). 300b SET mono blocks and Line stage which utilizes the 101D (DHT) tube. They aren’t what some may stereotype as “Tubey “. They strive for purity of sound/tonality and avoiding gratuitous coloration, but rather preserving the natural color and harmonics. In my opinion they have succeeded smashingly. Their power cable adhere to the same goal , pure, transparent with minimal editorializing. Constructed with 6N copper and shielded. They have been my power cables since bought new in 2009 along with the sibling Coincident components. As mentioned previously, my Ocellia Reference speaker cable/IC are silver. The current power cables are just wonderful. Charles
|
Just to be clear my Coincident power cable has been replaced in their line with a newer version that has OCC copper and revised cable geometry. No doubt an improvement over my older generation (Yet excellent) cable. I have considered these latest Pure copper -OCC and imagine that they are truly excellent given their track record. Yet the allure of the silver beckons at less cost than the OCC Coincident (Who historically has always priced very fairly). I just find that well implemented and good quality silver just seem to get the resolution, openess and tone/timbre so right! Charles |
@charles1dad You might be in for a new awakening, but we shall see. I think it’s great that you’re willing to try something so different. That’s the spice of life. |
@charles1dad Never occurred to me silver PC would be a voicing I'd seek, YMMV per usual. For me, keeping silver and copper in good balance has been key, spot on for the last few years.
One adjustment made with pc's in just the past couple months. We both run BPT PC, @williewonka made me aware balanced PC should have balanced power cables as well, balanced in the sense of having exact same conductor on neutral and hot. Recently changed my Helix Image (williewonka design) from asymmetrical hot and neutral to symmetrical, in my case going to VH Audio Airlock on both hot and neutral. This change on both pc to dac and Statement, extremely nice improvement, higher level of transparency vs prior.
Point is, for those of us using balanced isolation transformer based pc, make sure power cables have exact same hot and neutral conductors. |
- 89 posts total