My take on the Wireworld Equinox speaker wire - thanks Skip
Joey_V
Posts: 8,552
Just want to thank Skip for the opportunity to hear the WW Equinox speaker wire, I finally completed my research in my lab. The WW Equinox does impress. I don't see the flaws in it for the price charged.
The Wireworld Equinox was compared in my system against 2 units. Stock 12g speaker wire... the original bad boy. Also in comparison was the Audioquest WEL speaker wire. I did have another speaker wire on hand, the Audioquest Aspen speaker wire which could have been a better comparison to the WW Equinox given the pricing, but I kinda got tired of having to swap so many cords, so I gave up and stuck with the 3.
I will say this: there is not much to lose with the WW Equinox.
I mainly played 2 songs:
Rebecca Pidgeon - "Spanish Harlem"
Adele - "Someone like you"
I was about to play more but I kinda got tired.... haha.... running theme here.
The 3 Cables:
1. 12g OFC wire - first impression, plays flat, but the tone is good. Voice is nestled about a foot too high for my liking, the stage is noticeably restricted laterally as well. The bass is still there, sounds warm and sounds good actually. The piano sounded like it was just glossed over, you can hear it, but you can't hear it if you get what I'm saying.
OK.. I am turning up the volume, there is no volume scaling... things just get louder and it becomes slightly a mess. It takes you a few seconds to refocus and then your mind puts the stage back together.... the singer is in the middle, but kinda large... I follow the sibiliants to find the tip of the lips.... ah, there it is, still kinda tall... freakishly tall. Not good.
Too much going on... seems akin to not having a filter, just the entire sonic landscape dumped on your lap from a basin.
2. Wireworld Equinox - first impression, OK is this the WEL? NO seriously, is this the WEL? Voice nestled in the middle, the vocalist's mouth is pretty darn close to where I would expect it, maybe a couple inches too tall?... but not bad. The piano sounds better, but there is still some haze. The bass is rhythmic, warm, cuddly even hahaha.... The soundstage has opened up some, but I still think the stage front to back is still a little contracted, but not bad. Let's open up the volume... ok, there it is, it likes to be turned up. Now that I have the volume turned up, the sound stage is more solid and more formed, the singer is more holographic and dense and seems to have taken a step or two forward towards me.
The imaging is still a little larger or wider than I'd like (vocalist), but a significant improvement from the 12g stock wire.
The tone is good, nice and warm, very pleasing. Easy to listen to, reminds me of a nice cup of Joe.
There was one thing I did notice, I'm not sure if it's because it is so transparent... but the WW Equinox has a slight reverb that I'm hearing on some tracks, especially in the first 10 seconds of Spanish Harlem, perhaps that's the recording, but it definitely was not as pronounced on the other units. It's gotta be in the recording but it definitely accentuates it.
3. Audioquest WEL - ok, so this is how the WELs sound. Even if you blinded me, A/B, I can tell the WEL between the rest of the cables. The WELs sound better still. In what ways?
The singer is better defined in as an image, no matter the volume, low or high. On the WW Equinox, things to start to come on its own when you increase the volume, not that the imaging was lacking before when it was on a low volume, I'm talking in relative terms when you back to back it to the AQ WEL.
The WEL is better at having the vocalist glow from within, there seems to be an intrinsic energy to the singer, comes from the feet to the mouth, almost like a phantasm standing there (kinda scary at times).
I also feel like it gives better dead space between instruments, there isn't as much blur to the edges of the images, not to say that the imaging of the WEL is sharp and hi-fi, but it sounds like someone actually put a diorama together rather than a photo for show and tell.
There is less opacity to the notes, you can definitely tell on the piano and the guitar, and the maracas.... more immediate sounding without sounding brittle or harsh.
Bass is even to the WW Equinox, I can't tell a different, or atleast a signifncant difference.
The WEL is also smooth, it's not like other silvers that can be bright and displeasing, this is Patron Tequila (for those who like tequila), it's just smoother to down than something like Souza.
Conclusion:
I can recommend the Wireworld Equinox without reservation, at a price for an 8 ft biwire pair of $725 (correct me if I'm wrong Skip), it is a great cable and is a significant step up from your stock 12-16g copper wiring. It gives you a few things that the higher/highest end cables give - itll give you a better sense of space, stage, it removes a layer of sheen from the notes, it will respond to the volume control better and not just spill the entire orchestra on your lap, rather it tucks in the musicians in their own little space but adjusts the intensity of the play.
It also images the voice/lips well, not too tall, near ideal height.
It may not have the clarity or utmost dead space as the higher up wires, but it is easily discernable to be a significant step up from stock cabling.
CAVEAT:
I used a full Audioquest loom above the speaker wires.
It went AQ WEL power cord into the TORUS RM15 power conditioner. Then 3 AQ WEL power cords into the Emm Labs TSDX transport/Emm Labs DAC2x/Cary SLP05 tube preamplifier.
That alone will change the sonic output of the units/speaker wires. A layer of haze, a layer of grunge would be removed by the aforementioned WEL power cords. Dynamics would have been improved as well and soundstaging dimensionality as well. Imaging would be moved up a notch as well.
I think the best experiment for this would have been stock cords on all, remove the power conditioner, just use the speaker wires in a/b/c fashion.
However, once I realized this, I was again too tired and gave up.
NEXT:
The WW cord is being mailed to Jeff in Indiana... have fun! (not sure of the polk forum handle)
The Wireworld Equinox was compared in my system against 2 units. Stock 12g speaker wire... the original bad boy. Also in comparison was the Audioquest WEL speaker wire. I did have another speaker wire on hand, the Audioquest Aspen speaker wire which could have been a better comparison to the WW Equinox given the pricing, but I kinda got tired of having to swap so many cords, so I gave up and stuck with the 3.
I will say this: there is not much to lose with the WW Equinox.
I mainly played 2 songs:
Rebecca Pidgeon - "Spanish Harlem"
Adele - "Someone like you"
I was about to play more but I kinda got tired.... haha.... running theme here.
The 3 Cables:
1. 12g OFC wire - first impression, plays flat, but the tone is good. Voice is nestled about a foot too high for my liking, the stage is noticeably restricted laterally as well. The bass is still there, sounds warm and sounds good actually. The piano sounded like it was just glossed over, you can hear it, but you can't hear it if you get what I'm saying.
OK.. I am turning up the volume, there is no volume scaling... things just get louder and it becomes slightly a mess. It takes you a few seconds to refocus and then your mind puts the stage back together.... the singer is in the middle, but kinda large... I follow the sibiliants to find the tip of the lips.... ah, there it is, still kinda tall... freakishly tall. Not good.
Too much going on... seems akin to not having a filter, just the entire sonic landscape dumped on your lap from a basin.
2. Wireworld Equinox - first impression, OK is this the WEL? NO seriously, is this the WEL? Voice nestled in the middle, the vocalist's mouth is pretty darn close to where I would expect it, maybe a couple inches too tall?... but not bad. The piano sounds better, but there is still some haze. The bass is rhythmic, warm, cuddly even hahaha.... The soundstage has opened up some, but I still think the stage front to back is still a little contracted, but not bad. Let's open up the volume... ok, there it is, it likes to be turned up. Now that I have the volume turned up, the sound stage is more solid and more formed, the singer is more holographic and dense and seems to have taken a step or two forward towards me.
The imaging is still a little larger or wider than I'd like (vocalist), but a significant improvement from the 12g stock wire.
The tone is good, nice and warm, very pleasing. Easy to listen to, reminds me of a nice cup of Joe.
There was one thing I did notice, I'm not sure if it's because it is so transparent... but the WW Equinox has a slight reverb that I'm hearing on some tracks, especially in the first 10 seconds of Spanish Harlem, perhaps that's the recording, but it definitely was not as pronounced on the other units. It's gotta be in the recording but it definitely accentuates it.
3. Audioquest WEL - ok, so this is how the WELs sound. Even if you blinded me, A/B, I can tell the WEL between the rest of the cables. The WELs sound better still. In what ways?
The singer is better defined in as an image, no matter the volume, low or high. On the WW Equinox, things to start to come on its own when you increase the volume, not that the imaging was lacking before when it was on a low volume, I'm talking in relative terms when you back to back it to the AQ WEL.
The WEL is better at having the vocalist glow from within, there seems to be an intrinsic energy to the singer, comes from the feet to the mouth, almost like a phantasm standing there (kinda scary at times).
I also feel like it gives better dead space between instruments, there isn't as much blur to the edges of the images, not to say that the imaging of the WEL is sharp and hi-fi, but it sounds like someone actually put a diorama together rather than a photo for show and tell.
There is less opacity to the notes, you can definitely tell on the piano and the guitar, and the maracas.... more immediate sounding without sounding brittle or harsh.
Bass is even to the WW Equinox, I can't tell a different, or atleast a signifncant difference.
The WEL is also smooth, it's not like other silvers that can be bright and displeasing, this is Patron Tequila (for those who like tequila), it's just smoother to down than something like Souza.
Conclusion:
I can recommend the Wireworld Equinox without reservation, at a price for an 8 ft biwire pair of $725 (correct me if I'm wrong Skip), it is a great cable and is a significant step up from your stock 12-16g copper wiring. It gives you a few things that the higher/highest end cables give - itll give you a better sense of space, stage, it removes a layer of sheen from the notes, it will respond to the volume control better and not just spill the entire orchestra on your lap, rather it tucks in the musicians in their own little space but adjusts the intensity of the play.
It also images the voice/lips well, not too tall, near ideal height.
It may not have the clarity or utmost dead space as the higher up wires, but it is easily discernable to be a significant step up from stock cabling.
CAVEAT:
I used a full Audioquest loom above the speaker wires.
It went AQ WEL power cord into the TORUS RM15 power conditioner. Then 3 AQ WEL power cords into the Emm Labs TSDX transport/Emm Labs DAC2x/Cary SLP05 tube preamplifier.
That alone will change the sonic output of the units/speaker wires. A layer of haze, a layer of grunge would be removed by the aforementioned WEL power cords. Dynamics would have been improved as well and soundstaging dimensionality as well. Imaging would be moved up a notch as well.
I think the best experiment for this would have been stock cords on all, remove the power conditioner, just use the speaker wires in a/b/c fashion.
However, once I realized this, I was again too tired and gave up.
NEXT:
The WW cord is being mailed to Jeff in Indiana... have fun! (not sure of the polk forum handle)
Magico M2, JL113v2x2, EMM, ARC Ref 10 Line, ARC Ref 10 Phono, VPIx2, Lyra Etna, Airtight Opus1, Boulder, AQ Wel&Wild, SRA Scuttle Rack, BlueSound+LPS, Thorens 124DD+124SPU, Sennheiser, Metaxas R2R
Comments
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Nice review Joey. I found your comments regarding the performance of the generic 12 gauge wire especially insightful.
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Thanks!
If my notes are correct, I might be able to compare the Satori to the Equinox and decide on a winner Atleast in my systemMagico M2, JL113v2x2, EMM, ARC Ref 10 Line, ARC Ref 10 Phono, VPIx2, Lyra Etna, Airtight Opus1, Boulder, AQ Wel&Wild, SRA Scuttle Rack, BlueSound+LPS, Thorens 124DD+124SPU, Sennheiser, Metaxas R2R -
Also I was surprised to read that you primarily used only two test tracks. I usually use several different albums when I'm trying to evaluate some new gear/cable/tweak.
You must've listened to those two songs quite a bit! -
I did listen quite a bit going over it again and again and stopping or rewinding at certain points.
I could’ve used more tracks to test bass etc but when I test I test mostly for imaging and dead space in addition to tone.Magico M2, JL113v2x2, EMM, ARC Ref 10 Line, ARC Ref 10 Phono, VPIx2, Lyra Etna, Airtight Opus1, Boulder, AQ Wel&Wild, SRA Scuttle Rack, BlueSound+LPS, Thorens 124DD+124SPU, Sennheiser, Metaxas R2R -
NEXT:
The WW cord is being mailed to Jeff in Indiana... have fun! (not sure of the polk forum handle)
That is me Joey. I am looking forward to the shipment.
Thanks for the review. -
Just out of curiosity, what part of Indiana? Above or below Indy?
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joey, but can you prove it ?
Amplifiers: Norma IPA 140, MasterSound Compact 845, Ayre v6xe, Consonance Cyber 800
Preamp: deHavilland Ultraverve 3
Dac: Sonnet Morpheus 2, Musical Paradise mp-d2 mkIII
Transport: Jay's Audio CDT2 mk2, Lumin U1 mini
Speakers: Rosso Fiorentino Volterra II
Speaker Cables: Crystal Clear Magnum Opus 2, Organic Audio Organic Reference 2
Interconnects: Crystal Clear Magnum Opus 2, Argento Organic Reference 2, Argento Organic 2
Power Cables: Argento Organic Reference, Synergistic Research Foundation 10 and 12 ga.
Digital cables: Crystal Clear Magnum Opus 2 bnc, Tellurium Q aes, Silnote Audio Poseidon Signature 2 bnc
Puritan PSM156 -
Slightly above. -
Magico M2, JL113v2x2, EMM, ARC Ref 10 Line, ARC Ref 10 Phono, VPIx2, Lyra Etna, Airtight Opus1, Boulder, AQ Wel&Wild, SRA Scuttle Rack, BlueSound+LPS, Thorens 124DD+124SPU, Sennheiser, Metaxas R2R
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From the way you described the standard 12ga wire vs. the Equinox, I would be willing to put money on the fact that you would be able to identify what cable is what during a blind test.Haha I can’t I guess haha
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It’s possible yes.
But the difference between the Equinox and the Wel is greater than the difference between 12g to Equinox.
So if I was a betting man I would bet on the Wel vs anything on a blindMagico M2, JL113v2x2, EMM, ARC Ref 10 Line, ARC Ref 10 Phono, VPIx2, Lyra Etna, Airtight Opus1, Boulder, AQ Wel&Wild, SRA Scuttle Rack, BlueSound+LPS, Thorens 124DD+124SPU, Sennheiser, Metaxas R2R -
He's in the greater Indianapolis are, not too far from me "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963) -
Of note, listened to my system again.
I am a wireworld believer. Good cables especially at that price.
Makes me wonder what their top of the line sounds like.Magico M2, JL113v2x2, EMM, ARC Ref 10 Line, ARC Ref 10 Phono, VPIx2, Lyra Etna, Airtight Opus1, Boulder, AQ Wel&Wild, SRA Scuttle Rack, BlueSound+LPS, Thorens 124DD+124SPU, Sennheiser, Metaxas R2R
