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Stunned by a cable upgrade

Yesterday I received a 12ft. pair of Analysis Plus Oval Nine speaker cable and I am absolutely stunned by the positive difference they have made in my setup. They replaced a 14 ft. biwired pair of DH Labs Silversonic T-14s. I ordered these on the advice and glowing reviews of fellow members of this forum in an attempt to tame my bright system. I am currently using a Sim Audio Moon I-5 integrated, Sonus Faber Concertinos, Musical Fidelity E60 CD player and NHT SW3P subwoofer.

I must say I've never had the experience of one component making such an audible difference. The DH Labs have a very in-your-face presentation, and the soundstage is flat by comparison. Changing to the Oval Nines I was shocked how much width and especially depth were added to the soundstage. It had the effect of opening backwards like an accordian. Amazing! All the glare was gone and the music became bigger, fuller and just seemed to roll out effortlessly. So full in fact, I had to adjust my subwoofer to compensate for the increased bass and corresponding mudiness.

I spent the entire evening marveling at how the music of Robby Longley, Sunny Sumter, Diana Krall, Jesse Cook, Inscendio, Yo Yo Ma, and Oscar Lopez came to life. My gold Dave Brubeck Time Out CD had always sounded so thin, but now flowed with an ease and roundness I had never enjoyed before. Paul Desmond's sax was so real. The instruments and voices on every CD I tried seemed more lifelike and natural.

Previously, I had tried various affordable interconnects from Cardas, Kimber, Tara, Monster and DH Labs thinking this might help. While the different interconnects did change the character of the sound, the shifts were pretty subtle. A pair of Cardas Golden Cross proved to be the most effective and expensive, but the problem still persisted. It's almost as if everything was bottlenecked at the speaker cables, and now the music seems to flow unrestrained.

The DH Labs are in biwire configuration. The Oval Nines are a single run. I would have thought the biwired cables would have an edge in spaciousness, but this is not the case in my system. I had considered changing out the Moon I-5 for a tube preamp/SS amp combo hoping to cure the leaness. With the Analysis Plus now in my system, I no longer have the urge to change my amp. I'm starting to see how good the Sim Audio really is. I also have on order a Bel Canto DAC 1.1 and I hope this will reap even greater rewards.

I know this must sound like a cheap plug for a product by a manufacturer, but it's not. I'm still amazed by the transformation my system made last night, especially since both cables have been so well reviewed and are fairly close in price. Has anyone else experienced such an improvement in their setup by changing cables? And if so, what were the components involved?
gunbei
gunbei OP
2,327 posts
 
Great article Sean! I have only had two cables in my system. The AP 9s and the DH Labs Silversonic T-14s they replaced. I must admit when I had a chance to sit down and listen to my setup again on saturday, it didn't have the same magic as thursday night. Could it be the amount of people watching basketball and hockey on a saturday afternoon mucking up my apartment's electrical circuits? That being said, I still preferred the Oval 9s to the T-14s in almost all areas.

I appreciate your consideration for my positive experience in warning me not to read your review. But hey, we "philes" are always looking for that next step up aren't we? For now, I'll just enjoy what I have. I'll be getting the BC DAC 1.1 soon and that should change the character of the sound. I'm also considering other speakers just so I'll have a second flavor and can jump back and forth according to my tastes at that moment.

Goertz MI-2's, huh? :)
bear
141 posts
 
I wouldn't do it that way...

Using your cables to effect a "complementary coloration is rarely a completely succesful way to go. The problem is simple, you are attempting to employ some sort of filter, and a filter can only remove information, never add. So, while you can get the overall sound to be more pleasant, and perhaps easier to listen to, it is rare that this method results in a truly "trancendental" system.

Much better is to work through your system and eliminate components, parts, and gear that is (in effect) causing the problem to begin with. Admittedly, this can be a daunting task, since everything *is* hooked together, and it is very difficult to *know* in advance what is actually "correct" and what is "warped."

IF the cable that was replaced, was replaced by an essentially "transparent" cable, *then* by all means the change is warrented and merited. But, IF this particular brand of cable is known to "smooth" out "bright" systems, then I would urge caution, and tell you all to beware.

My philosophy is to work to find the most transparent, and clean elements for my system, especially the cables, and then IF color is needed, to apply that judiciously and with purpose and control. This, rather than apply multiple colorations in an attempt to arrive back in the "center."
I've found that by striving for clean and transparent first that the ultimate results are far more satisfying and apparent.

This stands for everything, especially amps and speakers. I've never found it possible to make an average speaker or average amp sound any better than average - finding a cable that makes it listenable, is doing only that, making it listenable. Which, is not *all* bad, since listenable is better than not. However, if your system is really "tuned-in" and is really clean and clear, you'll be able to instantly hear the effects of things like a single length of new cable without a moment's hesitation, whereas in a system with "complementary colorations" you'll likely hear a change, but be hard pressed to clearly identify precisely what and where it is coming from or going to.

Of course, getting a system together like the one I suggest takes work and testing, and a bit of effort too...

_-_-bear (email me for my URL)
jim
418 posts
 
Sean, what a great cable shoot-out. Very thorough and objective. This is an interesting thread in the sense that it clearly points out how system dependent components can be.

I am currently using AP Oval 9's but without the negative effects that came across in your system. Maybe it's my speakers or the way that they are set up... I was using AQ Midnights on ML CLS's in the "full range" mode. I moved the Midnights to my SW800 subs which are crossed over at 100 Htz with an 18db per octave Butterworth high and low pass slopes. My only comparative reference points with this set up were AQ Argent and DH Q10. In my system the Oval 9's gave me the same positive sound staging effects that Gunbei described, which I why I kept it in my system.

I really wanted to try the Goertz MI2, based on all the good things I heard about them, but was concerned about their high inductance qualities -- reportedly not a good thing with electrostatics. I was also informed that my low output imedance amp (Mesa Baron) would compund this. Any experiences or informed opinions regarding this?

In regards to the bi-wired T14/ single Q10 question... according the DH Labs, Q10 solo is supposed to outperform bi-wired T14 in all areas... YMMV.

Good thread, folks.
pcc
150 posts
 
I experienced the same when I tried a pair of nordost speaker cables with my ML aerius i. The sound was ear piercing with the nordost. The dealer suggusted transparent and that fixed the problem. I bought a new component, bat vk200 and was not willing to pay the price of the transparent balanced interconnects so I bought analysis plus(rca to balanced) do to my current setup. I am happy with them. My dealer who sold me the transparent cables thinks I should switch everything over to analysis, I'll audition before I do this. I agree cables do make a big difference, but its just like all the other equip., no dealer cares everything.. Good thread.. Pete
wellfed's avatar
wellfed
690 posts
 
FWIW, both my brother and myself are using the Analysis Plus Oval Nine speaker cables in somewhat similar systems. We have exactly the same speakers and preamps. He uses a single run of 8' AP Oval Nine cables. I am using a 4' bi-wire pair. We have different, but similarly power rated, tube amps.

His system has very, very good bass reproduction(quantity and quality). My system is bass shy in comparison but still satisfactory.

Even though there are many similarities to our systems, there also many things that are disimilar, for one, he has a smaller listening room with 8' ceiling, I have a larger room with a cathedral ceiling that is 13' high on the left wall and 9' high on the right wall and a large opening to another room.

Since we live 250 miles apart I have never played with swapping out each others components, but it would be interesting. It is apparent that system synergy, acoustic environment, or both are actively involved in this equation.

Since the AP cables do not hinder excellent bass reproduction in his system, I believe it is IMPERATIVE for potential AP Oval Nine purchasers to audition the cable in their own systems to determine the suitability of this cable.

BOTTOM LINE, I think there are too many variables involved to make a valid general judgement about the bass performance of the AP Oval Nine cables. Even though I do not get the deep bass my brother gets I still love mine.

God bless.
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