Quick cable shoot out: MITs and AQs
Erik Tracy
Posts: 4,673
I had the day off and decided to do a quick and admittedly informal IC cable shoot out.
1) AudioQuest Columbias w/ 48dbs
2) AudioQuest Jaguars w/ 36dbs
3) MIT CVT Terminator 1s
4) MIT Shotgun S3s
Source component:
Marantz SA-KI Pearl SACD player
Amplification:
Musical Fidelity A5 Integrated Amplifier
Speakers:
B&W CDM 1NTs, with an Epik Valor sealed sub
Speaker cables:
MIT Shotgun S2s
No bass management: just preouts from the MF to the sub using the low pass on the back of the sub.
Source Disc:
Steely Dan's Aja on SACD
All the cables have been in my system between various components: BDP, SACD, CDP and have been burned in.
I kept the MF A5 at the exact same volume position when swapping between cables by powering off the player and amp.
The MIT Shotgun's impedance switches were set to 'high' (above 90Kohm) as my A5 has 220kohm for line level input impedance.
As I said very informal:
* MIT CVT T1s: highs seemed a tad recessed and rolled off. Emphasis was bass heavy (strong actually).
* AQ Columbias: brightess of the bunch - lots of detail up top. Bass sounded a tad 'loose'.
* AQ Jaguars: surprisingly good - liquid highs with good detail. Ooodles of mid bass clarity and thump.
* MIT Shotgun S3s: nicely balanced from top to bottom, bass is well defined and controlled, warm (biased?) midrange, very very slight high end roll off.
I would not generalize what my impressions are for any other system. And this was just for one source disc - and not over any extended listening sessions.
ymwv (you mileage will vary).....
I think I'm going to spend more time with the Jaquars (surprise there) and the Shotguns.
1) AudioQuest Columbias w/ 48dbs
2) AudioQuest Jaguars w/ 36dbs
3) MIT CVT Terminator 1s
4) MIT Shotgun S3s
Source component:
Marantz SA-KI Pearl SACD player
Amplification:
Musical Fidelity A5 Integrated Amplifier
Speakers:
B&W CDM 1NTs, with an Epik Valor sealed sub
Speaker cables:
MIT Shotgun S2s
No bass management: just preouts from the MF to the sub using the low pass on the back of the sub.
Source Disc:
Steely Dan's Aja on SACD
All the cables have been in my system between various components: BDP, SACD, CDP and have been burned in.
I kept the MF A5 at the exact same volume position when swapping between cables by powering off the player and amp.
The MIT Shotgun's impedance switches were set to 'high' (above 90Kohm) as my A5 has 220kohm for line level input impedance.
As I said very informal:
* MIT CVT T1s: highs seemed a tad recessed and rolled off. Emphasis was bass heavy (strong actually).
* AQ Columbias: brightess of the bunch - lots of detail up top. Bass sounded a tad 'loose'.
* AQ Jaguars: surprisingly good - liquid highs with good detail. Ooodles of mid bass clarity and thump.
* MIT Shotgun S3s: nicely balanced from top to bottom, bass is well defined and controlled, warm (biased?) midrange, very very slight high end roll off.
I would not generalize what my impressions are for any other system. And this was just for one source disc - and not over any extended listening sessions.
ymwv (you mileage will vary).....
I think I'm going to spend more time with the Jaquars (surprise there) and the Shotguns.
H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music.
Post edited by Erik Tracy on
Comments
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Hi Erik, can you tell me what is your cross over setting for your SUB?Current HT setup
Mains: B&W 804s
Center: Polk CSi5
Surround: Polk FXi3
Sub: Velodyne DLS-3750R
Receiver: Pioneer SC-07
Amplifier: Sunfire TGA5200
TV: Sony KDS60A2020
DBP: Sony DBP-S350
CDP: Pioneer DV-48AV
Interconnect cables: SignalCable analog II
speaker cables: SignalCable Ultra Speaker Cables Bi-wire -
I like a quick shootout like this and thanks for putting in a little time to do it!
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Hi Erik, can you tell me what is your cross over setting for your SUB?
About 68Hz.
The B&Ws have a -3db point at about 60Hz.
I've played with the xover and 68Hz seems to be 'it' for now.
I'm still playing with sub direction - I've read you don't want to 'point' your sub directly at the listening spot, so I'm adjusting the angle bit by bit.
I'm in a 'happy place' right now.
H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music. -
Very cool shootout and thanks for taking the time to write about it.
I think the Jag's are fantastic IC's , they really lack nothing. For the money I don't think there is a better IC. It would be nice if you had a pair of CV8's to compare to the MIT's in a true VS.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
Very cool shootout and thanks for taking the time to write about it.
I think the Jag's are fantastic IC's , they really lack nothing. For the money I don't think there is a better IC. It would be nice if you had a pair of CV8's to compare to the MIT's in a true VS.
Alas...at one point I did have CV4.2s (48 dbs), but parted with them when an amazing offer and swap came up for the Shotgun S2s....I really do like these for my setup.
Just one stop on the path....
H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music. -
Hey Erik Thanks for the replay it seem I am going in all kinds of directions. I want to beef up my PC sound and I am looking to improve my sub in my HT.
The sub I have today is a Velodyne DLS-3705R, I am very pleased with it for movies; the rumble shakes everything in the house.
When it comes to music, I get almost nothing from the sub and most of the bass is coming from the front speakers, while it is very fast and tight it is not as wow as probably would sound coming from the 12in sub.
I have it set to 80 Hz cross over but I wanted to see if the sub would take more of the bass and Dump sounds but I want them to be tight and precise and not just the rumble.
I was hoping you tell me that you have your cross over at around 150 Hz but instead you are lower than mine… I think I am going to try setting it higher and lower and compare the results.
I am hoping that I can find a way to set it and not have to purchase a new sub. But at this point I don’t know if it is the Sub or the AVR that it is just not sending the signal properly in Stereo mode.
I have tried increasing the signal by +3db when in stereo and it help just a bit but not much…Current HT setup
Mains: B&W 804s
Center: Polk CSi5
Surround: Polk FXi3
Sub: Velodyne DLS-3750R
Receiver: Pioneer SC-07
Amplifier: Sunfire TGA5200
TV: Sony KDS60A2020
DBP: Sony DBP-S350
CDP: Pioneer DV-48AV
Interconnect cables: SignalCable analog II
speaker cables: SignalCable Ultra Speaker Cables Bi-wire -
Thanks for the review. I haven't had a chance to hear AQ's yet. I also had a similar take on the shotgun IC's I demoed.
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Hey Erik Thanks for the replay it seem I am going in all kinds of directions. I want to beef up my PC sound and I am looking to improve my sub in my HT.
The sub I have today is a Velodyne DLS-3705R, I am very pleased with it for movies; the rumble shakes everything in the house.
When it comes to music, I get almost nothing from the sub and most of the bass is coming from the front speakers, while it is very fast and tight it is not as wow as probably would sound coming from the 12in sub.
I have it set to 80 Hz cross over but I wanted to see if the sub would take more of the bass and Dump sounds but I want them to be tight and precise and not just the rumble.
I was hoping you tell me that you have your cross over at around 150 Hz but instead you are lower than mine? I think I am going to try setting it higher and lower and compare the results.
I am hoping that I can find a way to set it and not have to purchase a new sub. But at this point I don?t know if it is the Sub or the AVR that it is just not sending the signal properly in Stereo mode.
I have tried increasing the signal by +3db when in stereo and it help just a bit but not much?
Try posting your question/problem in the subwoofer forum.
What AVR do you have - depending on how it operates, what you describe as "Stereo mode" may be a mode where the sub output turns off - which might explain why you get no sound from the sub for music.
H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music. -
I too felt the highs roll off with the MIT's that I have tried. The sound stage wasn't as good either. Bass was fuller, but I ended up prefering the AQ CV4's. Much more open IMHO.Please. Please contact me a ben62670 @ yahoo.com. Make sure to include who you are, and you are from Polk so I don't delete your email. Also I am now physically unable to work on any projects. If you need help let these guys know. There are many people who will help if you let them know where you are.
Thanks
Ben -
I too felt the highs roll off with the MIT's that I have tried. The sound stage wasn't as good either. Bass was fuller, but I ended up prefering the AQ CV4's. Much more open IMHO.
Right now, I am really digging the 'synergy' I'm getting with the AQ Jaguars and the MIT Shotgun S2 speaker cables.
I had the Jaguars relagated to doing AVR to Integrated Amp preout duty, but moved them to my SACD player....I'm in a 'happy spot' right now.
The bass/mid-bass is really sweet - balanced nicely thru the treble as well.
As Goldilocks would say "juuustt right...." :biggrin:
H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music.
