MIT Shotgun S3.3 Cable Demo/Review Round 4

Clipdat wrote: »

Is there a minimum baseline equipment/speaker "spec" that would be needed in order to demo these cables?

I will let F1NUT chime in but I believe the answer to that is a resounding NO. As long as you provide your contact info and meet the other requirements there is not one for gear.

I will however say whatever F1NUT says is the truth on this (in case I am wrong)

Hey, Jesse. I thought more folks would be up on the list. Kinda surprising with the few amount of folks that seem to be interested in checking them out. Anyhoo, I'm currently running the Transparent Reference IC's between the Dodd, Jolida and MF amp with the AQ CV-8's w/ the 72v BP upgrade for SC's and I'm open to trying these out if there are no objections. I believe you still have all of my contact information as nothing has changed there but I'd be happy to provide it all again if needed. Call me if you wish.

Just LMK bro'.

Tom

Good write up Shaun, It seems to be a common denominator that the MIT's bring "Detailed and Revealing" to the table, without being harsh or overly bright. A tough nut to crack for some cables.

I'm looking forward to this demo myself one day!

I wonder if any of the gain is diminished by not upgrading the SDA IC along with the 3.3. I very well could have missed it but I do not recall any on es review of an upgraded IC beyond what was already in place. Thought's?

No problem! I am planning on sticking around the forum, so eventually I will have my chance to try out the cables! :biggrin:

Yea. Good point. Sorry for the derail..

Thanks Jesse and MIT for the opportunity to try some very impressive cables and learn something along the way.

I joined the forum about a year ago and haven't attended any events, so no one really knows me from Adam. You can see my system is meager compared to most here, but I am very pleased with it at this point and hope I've reached a sort of plateau where I can be happy for a year or two. I was very curious to learn how much a lower end system like mine might benefit from a cable upgrade. Value is the primary factor in 95% of my purchase decisions, so my goal was to get a better picture of the cable cost/benefit curve by participating in the demo.

Equipment Used
Source: Squeezebox Touch (Welborne PS)
Cable: MIT T3 coax
DAC: Arcam rDac
Cables: MIT EXP1 rca
Pre-Amp: Dared sl2000a (Telefunken 5965), Adcom GFP-750
Cables: MIT Proline xlr's
Amp: Emotiva XPA-2
Cables: MIT EXP2
Speakers: Polk SRS 1.2 (rdo's, rings, dynamt, armacell)

Listening
In order to avoid confusion, I did not use any other sources, speakers, or electronics until after the testing was completed. All tunes are flac, some are 24-96, and, wherever available, mfsl versions. Here's what I did:
1) Listened to several familiar songs in a demo playlist with existing cabling (EXP2's)
2) Installed the Shotgun S3.3 SC's and IC's
3) Listened to demo playlist for ~2 hrs, making notes on all
4) Listened to other music without making many notes
5) Following night - listened to assorted music ~2hrs, adding just a few notes as needed
6) Following few days - tried other sources, vinyl, tubes for ~ 1hr each night

Tasting Notes
Steely Dan / Aja /Black Cow - Background vocals much easier to discern individual voices. Voices seemed more natural & lifelike. Cymbals sparkle.

// Aja - Percussion like raps on the little wood thingies really pop. Metallic tinkles really shimmer. I'm feeling very giddy at this point hearing the system sound so good. Familiar songs sound new somehow. Sax solo seemed to be inside the room. Lower end seems to extend a bit lower than before. Cymbals sound amazing. Kettle drum (?) sounds true, more realistic.

Steely Dan /Gaucho / Third World Man - Less mid warmth but, but string texture on guitar seemed fuller with added detail.

Adele /19 / Make You Feel My Love - Voice, when starting a phrase & going lower with a bit of growly grain, sounds more detailed and organic.

Ortophonk / Massala Films / Han's **** - LOW, muscular, tight, room-shaking bass. I was apparently liking it - I scrawled "Extra large funk for you! Cood gawd ya'll!"

Rodney Hunter / Hunter Files / Work That Body - Everything just seemed a bit smoother and more detailed. Lower bass extension. At this point I realized I had been moving, couch-dancing, tapping, whistling etc a whole lot. Really enjoying the music.

Fleetwood Mac / FM1968 / Long Grey Mare - Snare very realistic! Harp sounds a bit thin and harsh at times. Overall the sound was a bit too dry (not something I've noticed before). Disappointing as this is one of my all-time faves.

Fleetwood Mac / Blues Jam in Chicago / Horton's Take 1 - Separation and location is improved. Excellent guitar! Drums and bass are pushed way outside left to ~ 9:30 or 10:00. Sounds so good!

ABB /Eat A Peach / Mellissa - Rhythm guitar is detailed & sweet. Instruments are a bit easier to precisely place in the soundstage. Keys near the end sound truer somehow.

Earth Wind & Fire / All'n'All / Runnin' - Rhythm and keys stand out. Everything seems fast and more detailed. Smooth vocals. Dense sections are a bit clearer than before. Horn solo decay and syncopated percussion POPS! End section GROOVES!

Cracker / Kerosene Hat / Kerosene Hat - Noticeably bigger bass, more detailed guitar strumming. Wow! The band is right here in front of me. The whispers have never been this clear. In fact I didn't realize they continued for that long a stretch til now. Cymbal taps are crystal clear and just magical.

Linn Selektions Demo / Black Coffee - Keys are fantastic! Voice not too far forward, very smooth and organic. Lovely.

Elton John / Honky Chateau / Rocket Man - Less warm - very disappointing since this is a fave demo. Background vocals pop out better.

//Honky Cat - Keys are better, banjo a bit more prominent. Great detail.

Apples / Buzzin' About / Stack It Up! - Group vocals more discernible as individuals. Good punch. Bass line KICKS! Noticed toy piano (or xylophone) for first time.

Art Blakey / Caravan / Caravan - Drum intro excellent - when he moves to rim & cymbals, it's like the drum kit is in room with me. Unbelievably accurate instrument location. Horns' every nuance is revealed. Sax seems thin however. Drum solo amazing. Very engaging overall.

Eric Clapton / Slowhand / Lay Down Sally - Both guitars seem lighter on their feet. Less warmth - "prancing ponies" iso "wild thundering herd". Acc vocals more pronounced. I like this better overall, even though I'm usually a warmth addict. Better soundstage here too. Best I've heard this sound.

World Party / Goodbye Jumbo / Way Down Now - Opening too harsh. I think this is an example of revealing a poor recording even though this is remastered.

// Take It UP - Guitar so good. Better detail throughout. Improvement.

XTC / Apple Venus / River of Orchids - Amazing detail in water dripping & strings. Drips seem to linger 3-dimensionally in space.

Conclusion
As compared to MIT EXP2 speaker cables and lower level MIT interconnects on my system, the Shotgun S3.3's provided improved detail, more precise location of sources, improved bass extension, outstanding shimmer on cymbals & other UHF. Voices, drums, and other percussion seemed more organic. Even on my meager system, the improvement was easily noticed and not insignificant. And, although I am not likely to purchase these in the next year or two for this system, when I do start making wholesale upgrades, I am very likely to consider the S3.3's.

Craig

Nice review Mike, listening is believing and that really is the ticket, so to speak, in this hobby. Many, many years ago I was skeptical of MIT cables and their cost. Once I got it in my fat head to try several lines, I finally settled on The Shotgun series for my main rig and Terminator 2's for my two secondary rigs.

They are the real deal and cables matter.

H9

If you are vigilant and scour Ebay and Audiogon a few times a day, you can find some great deals, but you have to act fast. I paid a fraction of retail buying used and all mine look brand new. The only downside to being "cheap" :cheesygrin:, is I waited quite awhile to get a complete set of Shotgun cables for my rig. But for the price I assembled it all, it was worth the wait.

H9

Hey Mike, nice review! You did a great job describing the build quality and fit & finish of these high end cables.

Can only imagine how awesome the tube amp & CDP sounded together with the MITs - Looks like we know what you want for xmas!

Hats off to Jesse and MIT for the opportunity to audition a grand set of interconnect and speaker cables at such an outlandishly low cost. Anyone considering an upgrade of this type should definitely get on the list for what is, if nothing else, an opportunity to verify or put to rest the great cable debate.

Equipment;

Sunfire TGP3, Sunfire Sig425/5, Oppo BDP-93, Belkin PureFilter60, Technics 1360 TT

Current cabling;

Monster Cable single Helix 16ga, DHLabs Optical Toslink, DHLabs Prostudio XLR, Peps Power cables all around. Furutech plugs on the Oppo. Kaptain Cables on the TT.

Speakers;

SDA1C-boards, caps, resistors, spikes, rings, Dynamat baskets, Rd-0194 tweets.
RTA11T-caps, resistors, rings, Dynamat baskets, spikes, Rd-0194 tweets.
5JR- Bone stock all factory original.
DCM Timewindow-Vifa Tweets.

Room size and dimensions-16x24x8 feet all calculations for timing and distance handled through the TGP3 all settings on the Oppo zeroed.

When I received the cables I opened them with my UPS driver watching. We both went ohh and ahh when I unwrapped them. What a spectacular looking cable! Well built and of a no nonsense size. They really command respect from their appearance alone. I set them out for the night contemplating where I would start.

I began with a CD version of The Cult-She Sells Sanctuary/Live. I have heard this a million times and can even add to the drum solos hehe. I then switched the cables to the Shotguns. The best way to describe it would be the music seemed to move forward towards me as if I had gotten closer to the stage. I also noticed the tweeters picking up detail in the CD that was not previously there. Small minute details, some good some bad, but more detail none the less. I noticed no difference on CD with the changes in impedance if switched at the boxes. I put my originals back in place and grabbed the Vinyl. With The Cars-Heartbeat City I reminded myself why I like dynamics. I then switched to the Shotguns and again I gained a sort of 3 dimensional widening and felt a bit closer to the music. I realized the same differences in the Vinyl that I noticed from the CD. Pops are a bit poppier and the cymbals rang a little longer. The two comparisons proving the same results satisfied my question of whether or not cables make a difference. To me they certainly do. Curiosity getting me now, I decided to actually read the brochures and do it ?Their Way? LOL. Noting these have their best foot forward when used in conjunction with one another I promptly plugged in the first set of IC to the Oppo, fl and r, and to the CD in of the TGP3. I then went to the front current source on the Sig425 and disconnected all of the other XLR cables. Now is when everything should shine it?s brightest, no extra cables or connections and all channels freed no the amp. Unfortunately I didn't notice a discernible difference from the original setup telling me I couldn't completely agree that having nothing in the chain but MIT makes that big of a difference. I even noticed a bit of smoothness with the XLR from the Pre to the Amp that the MIT didn't provide. What I concluded was the speaker cables made the difference not necessarily the IC. I tried every speaker set I own with the same enhancements in detail and dimension. I firmly attribute this difference to the Shotgun S3.3 Speaker Interface Cables.

There were a couple things that turned me off, first of course is price. If I were to put the sonic differences I noticed in financial terms based on bang for the buck compared to the board and crossover component upgrades done previously I would give the Boards a 10 and the cables a 3.5. Second is the enormous size of the boxes that are said to work the magic. I had a hard time concealing them and frankly I think they are a bit on the gaudy side but if you take away those two negative aspects they are quite a nice set of cables. After this demo am I looking to buy a set of these?? Not really. I like them and they sound good, I can?t take anything from their sound and will certainly hand them some in certain areas, which to me is a good thing, but the boxes are over the top in my view and can say they probably wouldn't stay long if I were to buy a set. The improvements, to me, do not warrant the price and the extra real estate required to house them.

Thanks again, Jesse, for an awesome opportunity to try out some really great cables. My hat is off to MIT for allowing this traveling audition to take place. I learned quite a bit to further my journey, had a great time and thoroughly enjoyed the MIT Shotgun S3.3 Interconnects and the MIT Shotgun Speaker Interface Cables.

Mike Reeter wrote: »

Good review 1C, I have to agree with your size comments, they are huge to say the least. The magic boxes on the speaker wires look as if they need their own stands just to support them.

The MITs are a special cable though, and some things you just have to overlook!

Agree.The boxes are a PITA but if that is what it takes so be it.I love my MIT's.

Nice review Dan!