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from CAT5 to Kimber 4TC--where's the bass?

Hello! I'm fairly new to all this, so I hope you'll bear with me. Recently, I purchased a Cambridge Audio D500SE CDP from a dealer who was going out of business. He threw in 2 pairs of Kimber 4TC cable (8')at a _very_ good price. I was excited. When I arrived home, I hooked up the CDP to my Cambridge Audio A3i int. amp. and sat down to do some a/b comparisons between the Kimber and my DIY CAT5 cable (made following the FFRC recipe on the TNT website). In both cases, I biwired my speakers. I felt the Kimber really opened up the top end and slightly improved the midrange, but in comparison to the CAT5, the bass had almost completely disappeared. I mean, I could hear the bass and it was very tight and very lean, but the "punch" was gone. My speakers (PSB Image 4Ts) are certainly no monsters with the bass to begin with, but the Kimbers made them sound like small, high-quality bookshelf speakers. This problem existed whether I was playing the CDP or listening to vinyl on my Rega P3 (so I know it's a cable issue). I listen to about a 50/50 mix of older acoustic blues and a variety of pop. With the blues (e.g. Fred McDowell), the absence of bass isn't really a problem, and I like the Kimber very much; but when switching over to pop (e.g. Stevie Wonder), the Kimber doesn't come close to cutting it. So, I'd like to find a cable that combines the good qualities of both cables. Do you have any suggestions? I live very close to AudioAdvisors' H.Q. in MI, so comparing cables would be easy. I prefer buying used, I'm not married to bi-wiring, and I'd like to stay under $250. Thanks again.
shersta
Post removed 
thebrock
8 posts
 
I agree with both ozfly and Tsugury. Kimbers are known to be a bit "bright" even when burned in, which will take some time. But they are a good cable for the money. I currently biwire (which IMHO is the way to go) with
Kimber 8TC on top and Analysis Plus Oval Nines on the bottom. So have your cake and eat it too by using both of your cables. But if you must buy a new cable, you might try the Oval Nines which I got from Audio Advisors. The bass is awesome once burned in.
BB.
philjolet's avatar
philjolet
2,306 posts
 
I agree the cables have to break in but, are you sure the Kimber is not showing the truth about how your speakers sound? Just a thought.

I have 8TC and think it is a little lean as well.
sean
6,231 posts
 
I have 4PR, 8PR, 4VS, 8VS, 4TC and 8TC. They are all slightly lean sounding, some more-so than others.

While i am not directly familiar with the TNT variant of CAT 5 speaker cables, i found the Chris VH 54 conductor / 27 pair design to have phenomenally powerful bass. I do think that the TNT version is constructed somewhat differently though and not as heavy of a gauge, so i don't know how closely your results would parallel mine.

As someone else mentioned, why not use the TNT CAT 5 for bottom end and the Kimber for top end in a bi-wire configuration ? Sean
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shersta OP
140 posts
 
Thanks for all the suggestions. The Kimbers were demos, and so I assumed that they were already burned in, but I could be wrong. I'll give them some more time and see. I did try biwiring using the CAT5 for bass and the Kimber for the tweeter. It resulted in a very unbalanced sound--kind of boomy in the bottom and very bright on top. I also stopped by a local stereo shop, and they loaned me three different cables. I really liked one--Synergestic Research (I'm not sure what model). It presented a very organic and integrated sound--nice big, rich, and focused bass; a smooth and "real" sounding midrange; and a good, if slightly edgy, high end. All in all, a big, bold, foward sound, which I like. I know the Kimbers are well-regarded, and I can see (or "hear" I suppose) how they would be a good cable in some systems. I just don't think they worked well in mine. Thanks again.
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