I just found out that interconnect RCA connectors also play a significant role in performance.
I had read about Eichman connectors and their supposed impact on performance.
The design point for the Eichman's is that the large neutral sleeve of a standard actually limit the ability to conduct electrical current', so they use a polymer body for the shell and have a small pin embedded in the inner side that makes contact
I purchased a set of 4 Silver Bullet RCA's and installed them using WBT high content silver solder onto my Stager Silver Solids interconnet.
The result was ...
- a significant improvement in spatial image in all three dimensions
- noticeable improvement in textural detail - especially venue acoustics
- a warmer presentation - especially strings and sibilance
- deeper and better control of bass frequencies
All that from an RCA connector!
Granted - changing from a gold plated brass RCA to a silver played a large part in the fine details, but I believe the Eichman design is largely responsible for the improvement in spatial image
I will be adding DIN connectors to one end of the RCA's in the next couple of weeks - so if the Eichman "small pin theory" is correct, performance should not be impacted - since the DIN connector has small pins
Why DIN? - that is the preferred connector for Naim components - I have a Naim amp