Ethereal Audio - Analog - Review/Demo

dorokusai

Please refer to this thread before posting:

CABLE DEMO PROGRAM - GUIDELINES

Ethereal Audio - Analog Interconnect - 1M

The Cable-

Our in-the-trenches experience led Ethereal to completely rethink cable construction. Instead of spinning intricate theories about the most effective way to send audio/video signals and data streams down a wire, we've corrected the major design flaw that has prevented optimal performance – be it consistent 75-ohm impedance or near-total noise rejection.

No matter how high the quality of the cable materials and construction, the greatest amount of signal loss and distortion occurs at the cable termination point. Here, the solder gap creates an FM antenna effect that pulls in distortion, defeating the performance features of even the most expensive cables. Ethereal's exclusive compression method eliminates this gap by making a firm, seamless connection between cable and termination for optimal unimpeded signal transfer and accuracy. Manufactured to our strictly supervised specifications, Ethereal cables deliver the full performance potential of home theater equipment.

shack

As was the case for the Ethereal speaker cables, I'm also first in line for these. And like the speaker cables, since I got these analog interconnects brand new I let them burn in for a few days just to say I did it. Didn't listen to set a benchmark before or after "burn-in" so I can't say wheter or not they sound better, worse, or the same...just that I simply wanted there to be no issue as to this fact.

In the box with these inteconnects was a pair of AudioQuest King Cobras. Soon after came a box with the Signal Cable Analog 2s and I was comparing the Ethereals, King Cobras and SCs to my AQ Sidewinders and newly acquired AQ Diamondbacks. Unfortunately the Ethereal analog just wasn't in the same class as these other interconnects. They just didn't have the same clarity and depth of the others. I then realized that the comparison wasn't really fair. If price is any indicator then the other cables should sound better. I will admit that I am an AudioQuest fan and the SCs are considered to be the equal of some very highly regarded cables.

So to compare apples to apples, I took a set of AudioQuest G-String/G-Snakes out of my HT rig. They are AQs entry level interconnect and very close in price to the Ethereals. In this comparison the Ethereals compared very favorably. The SQ was very similar (which is a good thing). IMO they are much better than the MC, AR, RS and even some Blue Jean inteconnects that I've heard. I would categorize these as a very good upgrade cable for above average HT systems or a decent entry level cable for a 2 channel rig.

I did some research on the Co. and their website states these are cables designed for the HT enthusiast with design input from the professional installer (paraphrased). Makes sense. These cables are very easy to work with. They come standard with a very nice gold RCA termination that are well marked in red and white and very easy to use. The fabric cover over the wire itself is not as preferable to me for interconnects as it was for the speaker cables but the cable being very flexible is a good feature. It makes for an easy install and cable management.

The bottom line is....while these Ethereal analog interconnect cables compare favorably with my existing HT interconnects, I still prefer my G-strings for my system. The Ethereals are very reasonably priced, well made and easy to use. I would certainly rate them as good or better than most of the mass market offerings from AR, RS and MC and as good as some of the entry level "specialty" mfgs. They are definitely worth consideration if you are setting up a HT rig or looking to upgrade.

Thanks to Brent McCall for providing these cables to the Cable Swap program. You too Doro.

Brent McCall

Shack:
Thank you for the reveiw.
I am glad that they held up well.

Thank You Again

dorokusai

CLOSED

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