Your "BEST" best speaker cable to date!

13

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  • NotaSuv
    NotaSuv Posts: 3,851
    edited January 2011
    AudioArt SC-5SE Speaker Cables with Furutech FP-202(G) Locking Banana Plugs BiWired
    used with TOTL AudioArt ICs..............very nice synergy between all,their ICs have worked the best to date with my W4S int amp
    These cables bested my MIT 750s which had been top dog till that the AudioArts showed up.
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  • acmf74
    acmf74 Posts: 936
    edited January 2011
    Went from AR 18ga---> Audioquest type4---> Signal Cable Ultra.

    So far I'm very happy with the Signal.

    MIT maybe next
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  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 19,033
    edited January 2011
    Alright, I went ahead and took some time to tally up what folks have chimed in so far to give a nod to the SC they consider the best of what they have heard to date. I did not double count those who have chimed in more than once so the tally should be as accurate as possible. Here goes....


    5 nods for best sounding SC category category -
    MIT Shotgun or an unspecified type of MIT SC's

    4 nods for best sounding SC category category -
    homebrew SC's

    3 nods for best sounding SC category -
    AQ CV-8
    MIT Shotgun S1
    MIT Shotgun S3
    Audio Art (silver or copper)

    2 nods for best sounding SC category -
    Greg Strailey Reality (bi-wire)
    Kimber 8TCv.2 (1 was an unspecified Kimber)

    All of the rest of the cables mentioned only have acquired one nod so far in this thread's history. The following are listed in the order they came in...

    MIT Shotgun S2
    AQ CV-4
    coat hanger
    MIT Avt MA
    AQ Bedrocks (biwire)
    Totem Rainmaker
    DH Labs Q10
    Blue Jeans - Belden 5000 series
    DH Labs T-14
    MAC CuQ
    MIT Terminator2
    Mapleshade Double Golden Helix
    Luminous Audio Synchestra
    AQ Gibralter
    AQ Mont Blanc
    MIT MH750 Shotgun (biwired)
    Grover Huffman "SC" (biwired)
    Tara Labs RSC500
    AQ Midnight
    PS Audio Prelude
    Speltz Anti-Cables
    Nordost Flatline
    Wireworld Eclipse
    Signal Cable Ultra
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
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  • B&W802d
    B&W802d Posts: 72
    edited January 2011
    My choice is Abbey Road Reference. I am a fan of B&W and figured if it's good enough to use in one of the best recording studios in the world it will be ok in my modest system.
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  • fbm211
    fbm211 Posts: 1,488
    edited January 2011
    Ive moved on to the DH labs Q-10 signature.And there better than the T-14.
    I plan to move on to a set of RAL cryo-silver soon.
    SDA-2BTL with custom IC
    Adcom 565 monoblocks--Monarchy Audio M-10 preamp
    Theta Data Basic Transport--Stello DA100 Signature DAC--Camelot Dragon Pro2 MK III
    Harman Kardon T-55c TT
    DH Labs Q-10 Signature Speaker Cables With Furez silver plated copper bananas
    Revelation Audio Labs Prophecy Cryo-Silver Reference AES/EBU
    Revelation Audio Labs Prophecy Cryo-Silver i2s digital cable
    4 Furutech FP-314Ag with FI-11cu Plugs/FI-11AG IECs--- Power Cords
    DH LABS REVELATIONS ICs-amps
    Revelation Audio Labs Paradise cryo-silver ICs-Source to pre
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  • erniejade
    erniejade Posts: 6,321
    edited January 2011
    On one of my riggs, I am running a old set of audioquest Crystal. I also have type 4's but, the crystal I like a bit better.
    Klipsch The Nines, Audioquest Thunderbird Interconnect, Innuos Zen MK3 W4S recovery, Revolution Audio Labs USB & Ethernet, Border Patrol SE-I, Audioquest Niagara 5000 & Thunder, Cullen Crossover II PC's.
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  • phipiper10
    phipiper10 Posts: 955
    edited January 2011
    I really loved the last MIT demo. Sadly I didn't own those.


    The best I owned:
    AQ CV-6 36v dbs (w/King Cobras)
    Audio Art SC-5 (w/AA IC3-SE)

    AQ Copperhead and Diamondback brought me to the Cobras
    Signal was a great start
    Didn't care for Nordost
    Analog Source: Rega P3-24 Exact 2 w/GT delrin platter & Neo TT-PSU Digital Source: Lumin T2 w/Roon (NUC) DAC: Denafrips Pontus II Phono Preamp: Rega Aria MK3 Preamp: Rogue RP-7 Amp: Pass X150.8 Speakers: Joseph Audio Perspective 2, Audio Physic Tempo Plus Cables: Morrow M4 ICs & Audio Art SC-5 ePlus, Shunyata PCs Misc: Shunyata Hydra Delta D6, VTI rack, GIK acoustic panels
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  • Conradicles
    Conradicles Posts: 6,081
    edited January 2011
    phipiper10 wrote: »
    Didn't care for Nordost

    I've heard that said before. Interesting.
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  • PolkClyde
    PolkClyde Posts: 662
    edited January 2011
    Man, you guys know monster cables rules...who like MIT Cables,Now a Days? :) Well, I did like Monster cables back in the 80ties.Back then, I thought Monster Cables were a worthy upgrade from Radio Shack Cables.
    PolkAudioClyde
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  • BlueFox
    BlueFox Posts: 15,251
    edited January 2011
    Here is one vote for my current cable, Omega-Mikro Planar V with an active DC biased shield.

    I tried to use MIT Shotgun 1.3 cables, but there was an electrical mismatch between my bridged mono-mode amps and the cables. All they did was produce buzzing and popping out of the speakers. I was looking forward to them since I have MIT Shotgun S 1.3 ICs throught the system.
    Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
    Sony XA-5400ES SACD; Pass XP-22 pre; X600.5 amps
    Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes

    Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
    Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
    Shunyata Sigma HC (2), Sigma Analog, Sigma Digital, Z Anaconda (3) power cables

    Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
    Three 20 amp circuits.
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  • playback
    playback Posts: 101
    edited January 2011
    Morrow Audio SP3 bi-wire gets my nod prior cables to these where AQ's cv6(non dbs) and cv4.:biggrin:
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  • organ
    organ Posts: 4,969
    edited January 2011
    I haven't tried that many speaker cables yet, but the best sounding for me is the Polk Audio Cobra speaker cables.
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  • Conradicles
    Conradicles Posts: 6,081
    edited January 2011
    Did anybody mention Cardas?
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  • schwarcw
    schwarcw Posts: 7,338
    edited January 2011
    MIT Shotgun S1's for me. Tehy sound better than anything else that I have tried.
    Carl

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  • megasat16
    megasat16 Posts: 3,521
    edited January 2011
    Monoprice Ultra Premium Reference Clear Zip Cord With Braided Shield Biasing with 12V 750A CCA with Magik Krikets Boxes on both ends. Hand Made in the Good O' U.S.A! :wink:
    Trying out Different Audio Cables is a Religious Affair. You don't discuss it with anyone. :redface::biggrin:
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  • inspiredsports
    inspiredsports Posts: 5,501
    edited January 2011
    ShinAce wrote: »
    Coat hangers. The plastic kind. Wood is ok, but lacked bass.

    Honestly though, I'm more anal about the connections(terminal cups, and internal speaker wiring) than the external stuff. It's like running a 4 gauge piece of wire for an amp in a car when the car's own battery ground is 10 gauge. You need to rewire the whole system to see full benefits.

    And with that said, I'm out.


    Heavy gauge white painted coat hanger wire from "The Fussy Cleaners" here in town, silver-soldered directly from speaker outs on my amp to the Cardas binding posts on my SDA's. No other dry cleaner's hangers sound as musical.
    VTL ST50 w/mods / RCA6L6GC / TlfnknECC801S
    Conrad Johnson PV-5 w/mods
    TT Conrad Johnson Sonographe SG3 Oak / Sumiko LMT / Grado Woodbody Platinum / Sumiko PIB2 / The Clamp
    Musical Fidelity A1 CDPro/ Bada DD-22 Tube CDP / Conrad Johnson SD-22 CDP
    Tuners w/mods Kenwood KT5020 / Fisher KM60
    MF x-DAC V8, HAInfo NG27
    Herbies Ti-9 / Vibrapods / MIT Shotgun AC1 IEC's / MIT Shotgun 2 IC's / MIT Shotgun 2 Speaker Cables
    PS Audio Cryo / PowerPort Premium Outlets / Exact Power EP15A Conditioner
    Walnut SDA 2B TL /Oak SDA SRS II TL (Sonicaps/Mills/Cardas/Custom SDA ICs / Dynamat Extreme / Larry's Rings/ FSB-2 Spikes
    NAD SS rigs w/mods
    GIK panels
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  • Face
    Face Posts: 14,340
    edited January 2011
    ShinAce wrote: »
    Coat hangers. The plastic kind. Wood is ok, but lacked bass.

    Honestly though, I'm more anal about the connections(terminal cups, and internal speaker wiring) than the external stuff. It's like running a 4 gauge piece of wire for an amp in a car when the car's own battery ground is 10 gauge. You need to rewire the whole system to see full benefits.

    And with that said, I'm out.
    I agree that these are often overlooked areas. Repeat after me, brass sounds like ****.
    "He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you." Friedrich Nietzsche
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  • kawizx9r
    kawizx9r Posts: 5,150
    edited January 2011
    Speaker cables huh?

    I'd like to try others out, but so far the best I've owned are Ben's Silver speaker cables.

    I've heard other, more expensive cables. However, they were not in my system so it was hard to tell how much of a difference the cables alone had on the system they were connected to.

    PS Hey Ben! Your speaker cables are awesome! Too bad you don't make them anymore, though I might be interested in your interconnects for another rig :wink:
    Truck setup
    Alpine 9856
    Phoenix Gold RSD65CS

    For Sale
    Polk SR6500
    Polk SR5250
    Polk SR104


    heiney9 wrote: »
    Any clue how to use the internet? Found it in about 10 sec.
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  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 19,033
    edited January 2011
    Conradicles wrote: »
    Did anybody mention Cardas?
    Cardas was mentioned but IIRC they were mentioned on all homemade brew cables.
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
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  • headrott
    headrott Posts: 5,496
    edited January 2011
    Alpha Core Goertz Python copper cables.

    They have great frequency range, especially the low end. Very nice soundstage (width and definition) and don't cost an arm and a leg either. (It only takes one arm to aquire them). :biggrin:

    Greg
    Relayer-Big-O-Poster.jpg
    Taken from a recent Audioholics reply regarding "Club Polk" and Polk speakers:
    "I'm yet to hear a Polk speaker that merits more than a sentence and 60 seconds discussion." :\
    My response is: If you need 60 seconds to respond in one sentence, you probably should't be evaluating Polk speakers.....

    "Green leaves reveal the heart spoken Khatru"- Jon Anderson

    "Have A Little Faith! And Everything You'll Face, Will Jump From Out Right On Into Place! Yeah! Take A Little Time! And Everything You'll Find, Will Move From Gloom Right On Into Shine!"- Arthur Lee
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  • kevhed72
    kevhed72 Posts: 5,055
    edited January 2011
    Here's my list from best to worst:
    MIT T4
    MIT EXP1
    Blue Jeans 10awg

    next up: MIT AVT1 speaker and IC cables.
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  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,538
    edited January 2011
    I've been happy with my Kimber 8TC's, and don't think I'd spend much more given my system. I've owned AQ Type 4 and Granite in the past.
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
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  • pearsall001
    pearsall001 Posts: 5,068
    edited January 2011
    Mapleshade Double Helix w/ PLUS upgrade...replaced my MIT S2 shotguns. Just plain better across the board for my listening preference.
    "2 Channel & 11.2 HT "Two Channel:Magnepan LRSSchiit Audio Freya S - SS preConsonance Ref 50 - Tube preParasound HALO A21+ 2 channel ampBluesound NODE 2i streameriFi NEO iDSD DAC Oppo BDP-93KEF KC62 sub Home Theater:Full blown 11.2 set up.
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  • Flash21
    Flash21 Posts: 316
    edited January 2011
    I have had Analysis Plus Oval Nines for years. Big, natural, full sound, with deep authoritative bass.
    Steve Carlson
    Von Schweikert VR-33 speakers
    Bel Canto eVo2i integrated amp
    Bel Canto PL-2 universal disc player
    Analysis Plus Oval Nine speaker cables and Copper Oval-In Micro interconnects
    VH Audio Flavor 4 power cables
    Polk Monitor 10B speakers, retired but not forgotten
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  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,538
    edited January 2011
    I almost ponied up for Analysis plus oval 9's quite a few times....
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
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  • fishbones
    fishbones Posts: 947
    edited January 2011
    There are some MIT Terminator 3's about to show up at my door from UPS any hour now. I'll let you know...
    ..... ><////(*>
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  • zingo
    zingo Posts: 11,258
    edited January 2011
    I just received a pair of unterminated, Jantzen Audio speaker cables. They are solid core copper, PE insulation, quad conductor construction with a 17AWG and 20AWG for each side; a result of 12AWG cable when combined. I'll be very interested to see how they sound tonight and compare them to my silver-plated and stranded 10AWG DH Labs Q-10 Signature. Retail is $6.25 a foot, so it should be an interesting comparison as the per foot cost of the Q-10 is twice the Jantzen. I really like their caps, resistors, and inductors, and never have heard solid core speaker wire before, so my ears are tickling until I can get home and hook it up!

    banana-ter-800.jpg
    Jake
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  • SolidSqual
    SolidSqual Posts: 5,218
    edited January 2011
    I'm really diggin my MAC Shotgun Cables.
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  • doctor r
    doctor r Posts: 837
    edited January 2011
    Zu Libtecs in a system with all Zu cables. Nice synergy in my system.
    integrated w/DAC module Gryphon Diablo 300
    server Wolf Alpha 3SX
    phono pre Dynamic Sounds Associates Phono II
    turntable/tonearms Origin Live Sovereign Mk3 dual arm, Origin Live Enterprise Mk4, Origin Live Illustrious Mk3c
    cartridges Miyajima Madake, Ortofon Windfeld Ti, Ortofon
    speakers Rockport Mira II
    cables Synergistic Research Cables, Gryphon VPI XLR, Sablon 2020 USB
    rack Adona Eris 6dw
    ultrasonic cleaner Degritter
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  • miner
    miner Posts: 1,305
    edited January 2011
    Kimber Kbale 12TC
    [
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