Copper v. Silver IC sound

I agree with JK on this. I think that most sound differences between copper and silver ICs has to do more with the construction of the IC than the metal conductor itself. The only physical "edge" that silver has over copper is conductiveness. I'd say that even material cost is a wash when you start getting anywhere above 99.9% purity. Gold brings up the rear as far as electrical conduction goes, however it does not oxidize, so it is useful as a connector. If everyone knows this, well then sorry for stating the obvious. :-)

Jk: Thank you for avoiding flames. :)

OK, now back to the show...

Silver produces a higher quantity of quantum noise known as "Phononic Energy". In layman's terms, silver generally will produce a high frequency coloration ranging from a shimmer to outright hashiness depending on the quality of the silver. Lower purity, more hash. Higher purity, less hash, but still shimmery.

Some people just like shimmery and for some systems in need, silver may add to the quality of the acoustic illusion.

Phononic Energy?! Just means LOUDNESS, right? Correlated to sones, etc....
Yet indeed I find a shimmeriness (good word) for the silver IC I used from CDP to pre. A great all copper cable seems fuller in the mids, but I believe only because the silver cable's mids are laid back. What's the absolute reference here? I dunno...either the copper has a bump at 1-3k and/or rolls off up top AND/OR the silver has a dip and/or peak, respectively.
If this is all it's about, then sure you can mix and match, without respect to additive/subtractive order, right?
My Pass amps LOVE the silver in Red Dawn, but only after the copper Discovery Essence perfected (filled and flattened?) the source (EC EMC-1 MkII); the Pro-Silways are lean and WAY laid back by comparison, with a wispy shimmer up top.
So for me, great copper and then good silver works fine....
Keeping to one manufacturer for all cabling needs is a notion I still can't give much credence to, as the components (especially the transducers: source and speakers) and room are far more responsible for spectral and timing phenomena.
In the end, you'll just have to trust your ears, and perhaps avoid the extreme mismatches, like lean silver with cheap ss or extra-warm copper with high-output impedence SETs, etc.

Argent: You are correct with your statement regarding silver and conductivity, but only in regards to DC. From my understanding, anything above DC is an entirely different stroy.

Subaruguru: Phononic Energy does not mean "LOUDNESS." It has to do with "Josephson Junctions" and would take way too much room here to explain, and, it is not really forwarding this thread. I am sure if you have a book on Quantum Physics laying around, you can find a better answer than I can give. If not, call Jack Bybee, he certainly is quite knowledgable in the field. On another note, I will always have a fondness for the Pass amps. I owned the Aleph 0 monos and some of my best listening was with them. What speakers do you use them to drive?

Silver is a better conductor than copper at any frequency. Radio Frequency (RF) cables of higher quality are typically silver plated copper when cost is not an object. Some antennas even make use of silver plating to increase their conductivity. They can get away with just plating the conductor as RF is ALL "skin effect" and travels on the surface of the conductor.

Audio frequency ( AF )cables may be either silver or silver plated. Obviously, the more silver used, the more expensive the cable SHOULD be. Since AF signals tend to ride both through the core of the conductor and on the surface ( skin ), you might run into some type of problem when using multiple types of materials within the same cable. My guess, based on a limited understanding of electron flow, is that a distortion may occur when a signal "crosses" between the top layer of silver plating and the core of the center wire which is copper. As such, i've seen others that are more "in the know" state that in order to minimize this problem, the silver plating must be applied relatively thick. I would assume that the evenness of plating may also come into play.

As to using silver IC's or speaker cables, can't pass judgment there. Never felt the need to use any. I would suggest that if you have an IC that seems bright or edgey, try letting it burn on a Mobie for a while. It can make a world of a difference in terms of smoothness, clarity and transparency. I would not have believed the difference if i had not experienced it myself. I had tried lesser cable burners with little to no difference being discernable results.

As to using copper to replace what was lost with silver or vice-versa, that is not possible. Adding to or removing from a signal is simply a distortion. You can, however, end up with additive or subtractive distortions that compliment each other. The end result is that it may present what is a pleasant sonic picture to you. Don't get me wrong as i'm not criticizing here, i'm simply saying that this is where system synergy and personal taste come into play. Sean
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