Has anyone heard the Shunyata Cables?

My experience with Shunyata power cords is that they have a very substantial impact on sound, usually adding tremendous refinement and then depending on the choice, either melloning out the sound or adding dynamics.

After experimenting with the power cords and developing my own opinions, I asked the folks at Shunyata about them. They seemed to have a very accurate impression of the sound quality of each power cord; it was consistent with my own personal experience. If anything, they understated the effects.

The same is true for their (now discontinued) Hydra power conditioner.

SO, this is a long winded way of suggesting that you call their customer service and ask their opinion of the sonic effects of the speaker cables and interconnects. My personal experience of them is that they will be pretty straight with you and the information will be useful.

Cardas Golden Cross sounds like an excellent choice for the system you have designed. You are setting a high hurdle, but Shunyata does great work. Should be a real contest.

Art

I compared the Audience, Shunyata and AZ Holograms in my system (X-1 & X-250, Sony 777ES. I preferred the AZ speaker cables for their more natural sound and details. I felt the Shunyata was a little bit forward with a slight emphasis in the high end. Having B&W Matrix 803s in my system, I preferred the slighlty warmer sound of the AZ. I also found the Shunyata Tiapan power cord to do the same in my system and at the dealers with the system below. I heard the Shunyata ICs with the X-1 & X-250 (also with the Edge 10 amp) with Piega P-5 Ltd speakers with Metronome CDP and it sounded good but I still preferred a little more warmth in my system.

I tried the XLR Aries a few months ago ( Cable Co. rental). They don't sound anything like Golden Cross. The bass and mids are very natural but they seem to have a rising high end. Very clear, with lots of harmonic detail and a wide and deep soundstage. In the end, I didn't buy them because the rising high end caused listening fatigue for me. I bet they'd work great with tubes. You could try them out with a Cable company rental.

You didn't say why you want to switch. If you want a little more detail but keep the Cardas basic sound, try Neutral Reference.

Hi Nighthawk,
The reason I'm switching is that after upgrading my source, I've come to the decision that I may want to listen to more of my components and less of the cabling. It is my hope the Shunyata will give me a more"honest" less colored sound than the Cardas Golden Cross. The Cardas are very good but I'm looking for a more detailed less "bloomy" sound. I shall try the Shunyata and hope for the best.Thanks for your responses.