Audience Au24 vs. Ridge Street Audio?

I have selected the Poiema cables over the AU24. I alternately used both single ended and balanced pieces from both companies....during the same time period in my system. The balanced cables were used between an AtmaSphere MP3 and AtmaSphere M60's. The single ended pieces were used between an AudioLogic MXL DAC and the MP3 AtmaSphere. I also had both single ended and balanced digital links which were alternately used between the AudioLogic and a CEC TL1-X transport. Speaks are Mini Utopias/Utopia sub and power correction is my own proprietary design. The AU24 took on a seductive, "you are there" type sound that was....well...interesting. Initially it is pleasant, but I grew tired of it fast. It gave way to a slow sound with muted highs. I would think that the AU24 may work very well in a system that suffers from aggressive high frequency abnormalities coupled with a recessed midrange. The "you are there" sound that has been previously identified is present for sure and could be very helpful in some set-ups. The AU24 digital cables muted the highs but produced the "you are there" sound to a much lesser degree than the interconnects. The Poiema cables not only better the AU24 cables, they are my reference after years of buying and living with many of the more popular high end designs. I never went as far as throwing down hard earned green for the ridiculously expensive MIT/Transparent products, but I have over extended myself at times just to hear what some of the Golden Ear boys are raving about. I can tell you this: you can spend a lot more than what you need to lay out for the RSD Poiema cables but I have yet to find ANYTHING that betters it. Poiema is true to the music that it passes from component to component. They will not color the signal in any way and will not restrict any of the dynamics that are essential in providing a realistic reproduction of a musical event. I love'em!

I didn't know Deano could be so *eloquent*...

I truly believe the RSA Poiema's are very high quality cabling and most likely will work great in most systems. However, it is also worth noting that system matching is critical. I know RSA claims they are not a tuning cable, however there are certain factors out there, such as some speakers will not work well with silver speaker wire or cabling. I called the Cable Company and talked extensively to find out many speakers don't mate well with silver, no matter the brand. I had that unfortunate experience with the Poiema's on my Meadowlark Nighthawks, in which should never sound the way they were interracting with the silver cabling. I was told from the research done in their records Meadowlarks prefer solid core copper, etc. I switched everything out to Synergistic Research Resolution Reference X2 and am astounded. Center image and pinpoint imaging in focus... sounstage well behind the speakers, well outside the speakers, almost as wide as the walls in the room. Harmonics, timbre, in spades, yet much quieter background.

I don't want to inflame any of the RSA camp, trust me, I kept wanting them to work and get better, but well into the extended trial period it was obvious it was not a match for my speakers/system.

With that being said, if or when in question on cabling I would strongly suggest looking into the Cable Company or the like in which you can borrow 3 or 4 different companies products that are already broken in and compare as to what works best with your system.

Kirk, the Poiema's were too much cable for your system. They would be too much in mine, too. When you e-mailed me asking about the cables and listing your gear I knew it, but wasn't going to knock down your enthusiasm. Some poeple must have the 'best', whatever that means. Because of that the Poiema's have been Robert's best seller, even though he wasn't promoting them at all. The Midnight Silver Edition's are as far as one should go in a class B system, IMO.

Copper cables quieter? You mean rolled off! Silver cables like the Ridge Street will let noise & digital glare through. If your electricity & digital glare are not under control then it's not fair to blame the silver cables.

Just a friendly reality check..

Whoa , hold on boys. If I knew nothing about Ridge Street Audio's Poeima's and read the above two posts , I would conclude that the cables only sound good with special speakers and a $100,000 system. The basics on my system are a Classe CDP-10, a Classe SSP-60, a Classe 301 and Legacy Signature III speakers. In my system the Poeima's sound great. I discovered this when I owned Audience AU 24 cables but this applies to any cables as far as Im concerned. On your digital front end , you should use some type of PC filtering whether it be a Power cord , Power conditioner or both. {Every cable, interconnect and speaker} should never touch a power cord . This reduces dramatically any "noise" or "glare" coming down the stream. I would hardly call my system Class A, and the Poeima's in my system are not "too much" , they are "perfecto" .