Purist Audio Speaker cable question

The Proteus cables are Purists only (I think) solid core conductor cables; and for ease of management, the speaker cable comes in two separate runs (+ and --) per cable like the Virtual Dynamics cables.

There are certain considerations when choosing speaker cable (i.e. making a short list) that are speaker-dependent. For instance, the solid core Proteus has the lowest capacitance of any of the Purist line (due to the solid core and the separated runs) making it ideal for driving electrostats. Around 14 ppf/ft compared with, say, almost all the Cardas (multistranded) cables which average around 300 - 400 ppf/ft! Which is why Cardas speaker cable (or any speaker cable with over 25ppf/ft) will degrade electrostat performance.

My Venustas (driving my ML CLS's) are almost as low capacitance (around 20ppf) as the Proteus, but because this issue is so important for stats, I A-B'd the Venustas with a demo pair of Proteus from Albert Porter, and (I (think!) the Proteus had the edge, but not enough to open my wallet that time ;--)

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Corvus is a relatively new cable in Purist line. I haven't heard it or read much about it. So, who knows, maybe it is the best value for most systems? I just like their fluid cables for that incredible midrange and soundstage depth. Never tried their Contego cables which is a kind of mixture of fluid and Ferox. Some say the Canorus top of the line cable is beyond belief.

Other than the Proteus Provectus, which has solid conductors, the rest of the Purist line (as you go up the model range) varies as follows:
1.) Conductors: total wire gauge (AWG = American Wire Gauge)) as caluclated for EACH conductor (signal, signal return, and ground) increases. This applies to IC's, speaker cables, and power cords.
2.) Conductor material: As you go up the model range, the metallurgy of the conductors becomes more sophisticated, eventually incorporating alloys of gold, silver, and copper in various combinations.
3.) Conductor topology: refers to the number of conductors (and insulators/separators) and the complexity of their arrangement within the jacket. Both increase as you go up the model range.
4.) Regarding the Fluid, Ferox, and Contego attributes:
a. -- Fluid (only,) makes the most managable cable (of the three) especially speaker cables and power cords. It provides good mechanical damping (conductors vibrate when they carry a signal) and (less important) isolation from airborne or floor vibration.
b. -- Ferox is a kind of 'paste' made of iron oxide, In addition to providing the mechanical attributes of fluid jacketing, it offers additional EMI/RFI shielding. The downsides are: heavy and not as 'bendable' as fluid alone, and the proximity of such a mass of iron-bearing material would have to affect the inductance properties of the cable. IIRC, some people who have extensive experience with both, say the Ferox cables are a wee bit darker sonically. Not an issue with my system ;--)
c. -- Contego: is a mixture of the two as I understand it, and presumably provides some of the features of both, i.e. manageabiliy AND shielding.

One quality all Purist owners mention, regardless of model, it the utterly SILENT background of PAD cables (most important with IC's of course.) I feel this is due to the way the jacket material absorbs (internal) mechanical vibration (from the conductors.) Further, the fact that the jacket diameter gets larger and larger as you go up the model line, is more than affectation, since larger conductors need more mechanical damping.

I still think the Venustas cables represent the most VALUE in the Purist line; in as much as it incorporates MODERATELY sophisticated conductors (both the metals, and the topology/layout) combined with enough jacket material to provide good mechanical damping and that super-quiet background.

Hope that helps in understanding the how/why of the inreasing complexity of the various cables' construction as you go up the model line.
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I just checked their website and proteus is now absent-looks like discontinued. Only fluid cable I see now is Poseidon. For the record I own Venustas praesto revision and I agree it is probably their best value in the entire line. It is a great sounding cable and has been around forever-probably why Jim keeps it going. why mess with something that works, right? To my ears you cant go wrong with it.

Hello dear fellows.I tell my experience with the PAD Musaeus praesto and PAD Aqueous 20th anniversary biwire speakers cables, which is the one I`m actually using in my system. I agree about the dark background, more evident in the Aqueous version.Comparing Aqueous to Musaeus, the differences are more extention, better silences,fuller and tighter basses, ,bigger voices with velvety character and of course soundstage yes; beautiful soundstage with every instrument in its place.At the moment Aqueous is the best cable I`ve ever had.It utilizes Contego as shielding material, Musaeus has ferox instead.I haven`t tried Venustas yet but I suspect it will be a good upgrade to make in future.Question:has anybody compared Aqueous 20th anniversary with Venustas praestro??....For the record I use in my system PAD Maximus as inteconnets( fluid cables) and PAD Musaeus as power cable.
Hope this helps.Cheers.Raf