Cable upgrades
Happy Holidays to all!
I’m reconfiguring my system and am interested in upgrading my interconnects and possibly my speaker cables, and I was wondering if you could make some recommendations.
I was running Audio Sensibility Impact SE XLR between my Benchmark DAC3 HGC (as a DAC/pre) and my Benchmark AHB2 power amp. The amp is running bi-wired Kimber Cable 8TC (I think that’s the model #) to a pair of ATC SCM40 tower speakers. In this setup the bass is tight and the mids are clean - overall I’m quite happy - but sometimes I feel, for my ears, I’d love a bit more openness / brightness in the higher end.
My questions are: would improved XLR interconnects help to open up the top end a bit, without being harsh, and perhaps increase the dimensionality of the soundstage? Or would I be better off starting with upgrading the speaker cables? I’ve been looking at the Cardas Parsec level of cable, and could perhaps stretch to the Clear line, pending your recommendations.
Also, one other question: pending the possible move to 2 AHB2s (in mono-block configuration), do both XLR interconnects have to be the same length? If not, would it cause any timing issues between, say, a 2' XLR and a 6'?
I’d appreciate any guidance. Many thanks in advance.
Best, JAMES
Just fyi, there’s not a lotta difference between the Silver Ref l and ll — I have and still use both. The good thing is there’s a fluid market for AZ cables so you can likely try them and sell for little/no loss if they don’t work out, but I’d say they’re well worth a try |
Thanks @soix Good to know. Is there a good place you’d recommend to look for AZ cables (other than Audiogon)? Not sure, but is AZ still in business? Best, JAMES |
Hifishark.com is a good site that tracks many sites including Audiogon. Here’s a link… https://www.hifishark.com/search?q=acoustic+zen New AZ products are still being sold so they must still be in business. |
@soix thanks for the information and clarification of AZ status. I was only wondering because a local dealer said the cables are ‘pretty rare’ nowadays…perhaps he was referring to his experience in the used market in Canada. Will keep an eye out for a pair of Silver Reference XLR, either generation. Best, JAMES |
