I will post my usual disclaimer and state up front that my impressions and opinions will be based on my tastes, preferences, system and room. That said, it is fuuny you should post this question as I was JUST going to post some comments on them. I must also state that I am a reviewer for an audio magazine and have had the opportunity and privilege to own and hear many cables [my old reference was Nordost Quattro fil and SPM speaker cable, I have also owned Cardas, Transparent, Straightwire, Harmonic Technology, Kimber, Stealth, and auditioned many more).
One fact of high end audio that bothers me a bit is that there are many "snobby" (of which I have been guilty in the past) audio types that feel that if a component is not "mega" priced it will not compete with the "big boys!" In fact, I had a respected high end manufacturer tell me that he would have priced his megabuck transport and D/A MUCH lower but then nobody would have taken his product as a "reference" product. Well, in my experience we have in the CST interconnects and cables REAL megabuck killers and I don't just mean they are good for the money but that they are GREAT at ANY price! I did an extensive audition over the last two months between my Quattro fils and the CST. The comparison was with the interconnect between my DAC (Sonic Frontiers Processor 3) and preamp (Hovland HP-100) and between my pramp and amps (Lamm M1.1s). I really doubted whether the CST's could compete with the mighty Quattro fil (I have used the Quattro fil for a couple of years now and know it well). Well, the CST beat it hands dowm - yes, you heard that right, in MY system and for MY tastes, the $299 CST bettered the $1600 Quattro fil! How? Better resolution, image and focus, better timbre (I was a professioanl trumpet player and this is the closest my system has come to sounding like the real thing), deeper and more tuneful bass, but most of all a spatial impact that was stunning. The instruments and voices just hung in space more naturally which resulted in a gorgeuos soundstage.
I do own a set of Coincident speaker cables and a set of Super Eclipses but use these in my bedroom system which I don't do any critical listening to. Therefore, my impressions above are based on the interconnects only in my main system. However, I belong to a small audiophile club in my area in its infant stages. Two months ago at our initial meeting, I happened to have the CST speaker cables, Stealth cables and Harmonic Tech Pro 11 speaker cables in my car when I went to the meeting. The owner who's house we were at had a Sony 777 SACD player, Atma-Sphere M60s and preamp and Waveform speakers. He was using Audioquest speaker cables (Forest?). We decided to play with all four sets of cables. I did not tell them which cable was in when and ALL of the others unanimously stated that the one cable was heads and tails better than the others - that cable was the CST (so take that for what it is worth). I have not tried the CST speaker cables in my main system but have a set of the CST Reference Cables coming for my main system and will keep you posted.
I have to admit (Israel, if you are reading this, I apologize!), I thought that Israel Blume (the owner and designer of Coincident Speaker Technology) was doing the normal sales pitch about his cables and I almost dismissed his claims of his cables strengths and I almost decided to leave them in my bedroom system without auditioning them in my main system - what a mistake THAT would have been. It still boggles my mind just how good these things sound at a FRACTION of the price of the cables it has eaten for lunch. Finally, I am NOT associated in any way with Coincident or Israel Blume and my magazine (Ultimate Audio) has never even reviewed any of his stuff. I must say that his cables are a true bargain in this world of superpriced wire. I would HIGHLY recommend giving these interconnects a try - and I will update this post as I audition his speaker cables (which I now anticipate with high expectations).
One fact of high end audio that bothers me a bit is that there are many "snobby" (of which I have been guilty in the past) audio types that feel that if a component is not "mega" priced it will not compete with the "big boys!" In fact, I had a respected high end manufacturer tell me that he would have priced his megabuck transport and D/A MUCH lower but then nobody would have taken his product as a "reference" product. Well, in my experience we have in the CST interconnects and cables REAL megabuck killers and I don't just mean they are good for the money but that they are GREAT at ANY price! I did an extensive audition over the last two months between my Quattro fils and the CST. The comparison was with the interconnect between my DAC (Sonic Frontiers Processor 3) and preamp (Hovland HP-100) and between my pramp and amps (Lamm M1.1s). I really doubted whether the CST's could compete with the mighty Quattro fil (I have used the Quattro fil for a couple of years now and know it well). Well, the CST beat it hands dowm - yes, you heard that right, in MY system and for MY tastes, the $299 CST bettered the $1600 Quattro fil! How? Better resolution, image and focus, better timbre (I was a professioanl trumpet player and this is the closest my system has come to sounding like the real thing), deeper and more tuneful bass, but most of all a spatial impact that was stunning. The instruments and voices just hung in space more naturally which resulted in a gorgeuos soundstage.
I do own a set of Coincident speaker cables and a set of Super Eclipses but use these in my bedroom system which I don't do any critical listening to. Therefore, my impressions above are based on the interconnects only in my main system. However, I belong to a small audiophile club in my area in its infant stages. Two months ago at our initial meeting, I happened to have the CST speaker cables, Stealth cables and Harmonic Tech Pro 11 speaker cables in my car when I went to the meeting. The owner who's house we were at had a Sony 777 SACD player, Atma-Sphere M60s and preamp and Waveform speakers. He was using Audioquest speaker cables (Forest?). We decided to play with all four sets of cables. I did not tell them which cable was in when and ALL of the others unanimously stated that the one cable was heads and tails better than the others - that cable was the CST (so take that for what it is worth). I have not tried the CST speaker cables in my main system but have a set of the CST Reference Cables coming for my main system and will keep you posted.
I have to admit (Israel, if you are reading this, I apologize!), I thought that Israel Blume (the owner and designer of Coincident Speaker Technology) was doing the normal sales pitch about his cables and I almost dismissed his claims of his cables strengths and I almost decided to leave them in my bedroom system without auditioning them in my main system - what a mistake THAT would have been. It still boggles my mind just how good these things sound at a FRACTION of the price of the cables it has eaten for lunch. Finally, I am NOT associated in any way with Coincident or Israel Blume and my magazine (Ultimate Audio) has never even reviewed any of his stuff. I must say that his cables are a true bargain in this world of superpriced wire. I would HIGHLY recommend giving these interconnects a try - and I will update this post as I audition his speaker cables (which I now anticipate with high expectations).