Preamp Deal of the Century

6) "A voice of wisdom at last."
Really? What specific wisdom? What actual questions were asked by Joe? None,just feel good thoughts meant to soothe. You two want your hands patted,go find your Mommies.

Zachdb,
My comments were not meant to "soothe" anyone. If you re-read my post, you will see that I have never reported any glare in my system. Further, I believe that my source components and downstream components are of sufficient quality to support MY PERSONAL observations and my belief that Supratek preamps are world-class. The glare others have reported in their listening experiences were THIER PERSONAL observations. In re-reading the posts, I do not see any evidence of Maril555 or Opus88 "slamming" Supratek or saying anything that could scare potential customers away. You said it best yourself when you commented that they are in the distinct minority. Ilia (Maril555) has enough faith and respect for Mick's products to upgrade to the Cortese from the Chenin. Perhaps both had issues with system synergy that emphasized the glare they were hearing. I haven't heard their systems. Agree to disagree with them and leave it at that.

I want to say that I appreciate sincerely you Audiogoners who have expressed a desire to help out with the issue at hand, and I would imagine that Maril555 feels the same way. Jtgofish, your comments about silver cable might bear looking into. For those who might mistake my meaning, I have absolutely no quibbles about silver cable per se. I've used it before, and I'm currently using it, and my experiences with it so far have been very positive. In fact, I've been waiting to receive some Poiema 3 interconnect, and of course am curious about its interaction with my system. Anyhow, based on a suggestion from Ecclectique, whose views I have consistently respected, here's what makes up my system: My amps are Air Tight ATM-3 monoblocks, turntable is VPI HW-19 Mk 3, tonearm SME IV.Vi, speakers are Dunlavy SC-4s and a dipole, ribbon/driver hybrid, made by a former friend who worked in audio and whom I consider to be brilliantly talented. If any of you are responding with "hmmm, those speakers might be problem source", I will assert that over the dozen years I have owned and listened to them, I have never experienced the slightest sound or spectral imbalance coming from them. While being extended and detailed, the treble range is smooth and very well integrated into the rest of the system. I only heard glare if other components up the chain had it, and that was pretty uncommon with the other equipment I was using. I am using the Hovland 2 phono cable, Goertz TQ2 interconnect, and bi-wired Siltech speaker cable which was purchased about a dozen years ago, and whose designation or model I cannot recall. I have not previously had any problems soundwise with the Goertz or Siltech, however, if I had to speculate as to what, if anything else, might be a contributor to my current problem, I might single out as possiblities, either one or both of these cables working in tandem. Jtgofish, you could be on the mark. Oh, I forgot to mention, though I think I did in a previous entry, that I've been using the low output (1.5mv) version of the Grado Sonata. I just purchased, and am awaiting receipt of the Benz micro L2 wood cartridge. So, that's it, and many thanks to any others out there who can offer suggestions or comments---I welcome them.

Opuss88,

I think many people must trip up with cables that do not sound neutral.Such cables might sound good in one system but not another-and because they sounded good in that system the assumption that they will still sound good when you try a different component is a flawed one.
I tricked myself for a while into thinking that silver cables sound good but their appeal starts to wear thin when you realise they are just imposing a forced and unnatural presentation on your system.To me this presented as a sort of glare-although on some recordings this glare is not as noticeable.To use a visual analogy it is a bit like watching TV with the brightness and colour turned up too high.

I know that Mick Maloney hates silver cable.If you want to make the guy squirm in discomfort just sit him down in front of a system with siver interconnects.
And he is right of course.These things are changing the sound in a very unnatural way-which may not be a problem in a low resolution or coloured system -but that is still not an excuse for their acceptance.

jtgofish:

that's odd that mick has such an aversion to silver cables. from what i recall, he wires the entire preamp with silver wire. i once asked him which cables he preferred to which he stated that anything over $200 for a pair is ridiculous in his opinion. i guess that's his way of staying neutral in the great cable war.

Kgtuner,
The internal wire might be silver coated copper but it is definitely not solid silver.I believe this cable is used due to its excellent soldering performance.
I once used a Glass Audio designed preamp that used solid silver internal cabling.It sounded horrible.