MIT Cable Purchasing . . .

SolidSqual

Ok, I am positioning myself for my first wave of MIT purchases. I'm thinking speaker cables and source components first. With these purchases, I have a few questions/comments:

First, please tell me these cables are worth it because they approach the cost of some of my components!

Second, my system requires literally twice as many cables as the regular system, and many of my ICs must be XLR, thus I am thinking I can only afford the Shotgun S3 gear at the moment. Is S3 a good solution throughout? Or, should I hold out even longer to afford all S1? Can you mix S1,2,3 gear? Is there a substantial difference between S1 and S3 gear?

Third, any idea why there are not a lot of reviews on MIT cables? I've been really interested in Acoustic Zen as well, and there are a ton of there cables in reviews.

Fourth, what do you think of the construction of Shotgun gear? I hopes its better than the AVt gear. I hated the AVt stuff.

Fifth, does the iConn system make you want to punch a baby? Those little connectors look cheap to me.

Thanks,

Mike

Polkitup2

I am happy with my S2 speaker and IC cables. Here are my thoughts about your questions:

1) So far they are the only cables I've tried where I have noticed a significant difference in sound quality. Sort of like focusing binoculars to get a clearer image. For my system and ears they provided an improvement in bass response and cleaned up some shrillness in highs that I used to notice. I can listen to my system for hours with zero fatigue. Personally I would only buy used or refurbed because otherwise for me they are expensive enough that it would probably make more sense to upgrade my source or amp first.

2) I recall in some other posts here that MIT said you can mix within the Shotgun line and be okay. I had an S3 IC that I replaced with an S2 IC and did not hear a difference. I think the biggest bang for your buck would be the S3s.

3) Not sure, many members here like them.

4) They look like speaker cables on steroids, like something you'd hook to your RV to drain the tank, and the bricks, well you'll get use to them. I would describe them as a serious looking cable. I had the same feeling unpacking my Shotguns as I did when I unpacked my SVS pb12 plus/2 - it was like Wow, this is big

5) Yep, they do look cheap. My first thought when I opened them was that geez, they could have spent more than 10 cents each on them. But I tell you, they work great and the cables look real nice when plugged into the gear.

hearingimpared

I love my S3s. I have five set throughout my rig. From what I understand the biggest difference between S3s and S1s is that the bass is more pronounced with the S1s. I am very satified with the bass response of my S3s.

BTW Another cowardly tag.

Ricardo

I have a 1 M S3 XLR source-pre, a 5 M S3 XLR pre-amp, and S3 speaker cables. They are here to stay.

Face

First: Yes, at one time some of the cables were more than the individual pieces they were connected to.

Second: I can't tell a difference between S2's and S3's. I believe Doro has said he can't hear discern between S1's and S3's.

Third: No idea.

Fourth: It appears to be a notch above the regular AVt gear.

Fifth: Never had an issue with the iConn system.

thsmith

Solid, I am new to the S3s ICs and I think everyone above has covered it. Joe Abrams is the man to call when ordering. I have them on my Pre to AMP, DAC to PRE and tomorrow I will receive the ones for my Phono stage to PRE.

Next is the speaker cables.

As far as improvements, tighter and punchier bass which is leading me to Dyna matting my MW and PR.

Highs are wider and more detailed and still coming out since they are not burned in.

VR3

I have two pairs of the Shotgun S2 and Shotgun S2 Bi-Wire SpeakerCables...

The ICONN connection is pretty solid. It does not feel flimsy and is pretty convenient. Luckily for you I also own a set of AVT1 ICs as well.

I can confidently say the Shotguns are a notch higher in build quality and the RCA connectors on the source end is extreme. But the cable itself is twice as thick with a FAR nicer jacket. The boxes of course are just basic plastic like the AVT - but about three times the size...

I would rate them very high and definitely among some of the best cables I have ever owned. Hands down.

SolidSqual

Thanks for the input guys. Your comments are really helpful.

SolidSqual

Where do you all place those boxes? My normal 3 foot cord doesn't touch the ground. Am I going to have to fin Shotgun cable stands?

thsmith

I Let mine hang. Does not seem to put any stress on the RCAs.

SolidSqual

thsmith wrote: »

I Let mine hang. Does not seem to put any stress on the RCAs.

Yeah, I bet I would be ok letting mine hang too. My connections are seriously solid on all my gear, but I'll have to see what my instinct tells me once they are installed.

janmike

Not much stress on the IC's, but make sure the tails on the speaker cables are long enough so that the interface box rests flat on the floor. Some speakers have their binding posting up high.
Just get a good price on them Mike so that if you decide they are not worth the money you can sell them at a zero or minimal loss. I did that with all of the Shotgun S1's in my system and guess what, I still have have them. BTW, I purchased them all brand new. Good luck.

Polkitup2

SolidSqual wrote: »

Where do you all place those boxes? My normal 3 foot cord doesn't touch the ground. Am I going to have to fin Shotgun cable stands?

Initially I tried various stands and even built a little shelf behind the speakers on the wall that the boxes could sit on. In the end they all looked silly and now I just let them hang from my monitors. It works just fine.

SolidSqual

janmike wrote: »

Not much stress on the IC's, but make sure the tails on the speaker cables are long enough so that the interface box rests flat on the floor. Some speakers have their binding posting up high.
Just get a good price on them Mike so that if you decide they are not worth the money you can sell them at a zero or minimal loss. I did that with all of the Shotgun S1's in my system and guess what, I still have have them. BTW, I purchased them all brand new. Good luck.

Thanks I'm talking to Joe Abrams who is working out a deal for me.

Face

Let em hang.

hearingimpared

I let mine hang from the speakers and components.

SolidSqual

Update: I just purchased a full set of Shotgun S3 cables to cover the gambit of cabling required by by CS2.3s. Joe Abrams conjured up a fantastic deal that I simply could not walk away from.

I've yet to buy some Shotgun S3 speakers cables. For now, I am going to let my new speakers break in with my Signal and BW Audio cables, then add the S3s and let them break in, then test my fully broken-in AZ Satori and MAC AuQ speakers cables. Finally, I will borrow a pair of Shotgun S3 Speaker cables for a final speaker cable showdown.

This whole process will probably take me a few months to complete, but I am looking forward to it.

SolidSqual

Update: I just purchased a full set of Shotgun S3 cables to cover the gambit of cabling required by by CS2.3s. Joe Abrams conjured up a fantastic deal that I simply could not walk away from.

I've yet to buy some Shotgun S3 speakers cables. For now, I am going to let my new speakers break in with my Signal and BW Audio cables, then add the S3s and let them break in, then test my fully broken-in AZ Satori and MAZ AuQ speakers cables. Finally, I will borrow a pair of Shotgun S3 Speaker cables for a final speaker cable showdown.

This whole process will probably take me a few months to complete, but I am looking forward to it.

SolidSqual

Man, on another note, my first system here at club polk was a Yamaha HTR5890, Polk Rti6 speakers, Blue Jeans Belden Cables and ICs, and an Xbox CD Player. And that was only back in 2006. What have you guys done to me?

Atif

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VR3

Just a FWIW --

My ICs sounded horrid with regular speaker cables. I have no idea why??

SolidSqual

Vr3MxStyler2k3 wrote: »

Just a FWIW --

My ICs sounded horrid with regular speaker cables. I have no idea why??

Well shoot I hope this does not happen to me! Thanks for the info! So should I just assume the ICs are sweet and under no review?

VR3

With just the ICs -- there was an improvement...

But it was very very very shrill and harsh on the top end. When I plugged in the speaker cables this issue immediately went away???

I do not know why - but there is a reason they rec. you buy the ICs AND speaker cables and use the same series. They definitely, some how, work together.

F1nut

I would have just thought that MIT should have put the boxes in the middle of the wires and not 9" from one end.

Why does that matter Sal?

There's actually a reason they are closer to one end, but it escapes me right now. Call MIT, they will explain it to you.

madmax

The MIT cables just sounded better than anything else on my system. I had them, sold them, was sorry and re-purchased them. I also use some S2's and S3's together, no problem. I tend to use the S2's between the phono preamp and preamp but using the S3's there didn't seem to make a difference. I let mine hang except for the speaker cables, they are too heavy to feel good about. Personally, I've never even thought about punching a baby while using the icons. Reviews on the MIT cables? Never looked for or read a review after listening to them, they were so obviously better than others I had heard.
madmax

gavn8r

Lasareath wrote: »

I just got my first pair yesterday. They are not that heavy. I would have just thought that MIT should have put the boxes in the middle of the wires and not 9" from one end.

Because MIT's networks are corrective to the inherent problems in transporting a signal through a cable, the best locations to place those networks are at the input and the output of the cable. Most MIT cables not only have a network near the end, but a small one at the input as well. Most don't even notice the network on the input end.

freshoss

There is a package deal for the AVT-1 Line on the MIT discount site. You get (2) AVT-1 1m Interconnects, and a pair of AVT-1 8ft speaker cable for $423.56. The cable is NOS with the old jacket design. Sounds like a very good deal. Any thoughts?

http://www.mitcablesdiscount.com/