I'm going slightly mad (got a pair of AQ Jaguar!)

organ · May 2006

I guess the upgrade bug really hit me hard this spring. During my break at work today, I walked over to a high end dealer in the downtown area called Bay Bloor Radio. I was planning to get a good quality power cord for my CD player. Wasn't planning to spend more than $150cdn. They ran out of 3-prong cords, so I was like, maybe I'll try a different IC for my cd player instead. Currently using AQ Diamondback from source to pre and XLO/Pro 100 from pre to amp.

I told the salesguy my set-up and he recommended a pair of Jaguar and said it would be a significant upgrade from the Diamondbacks. He showed me the cable and talked about it. This is the one with the built in batteries. I thought it was pretty cool. Then, I asked him the price. He said $450 retail but is onsale for $360. I was like, wtf, that's way over my budget and walked out.

Got back to work and told my boss about it. He asked me "what the hell is wrong with you? Go for it. You have to treat yourself once in a while". So I decided to go for a smoke brake to think this over. After my cigarette, I went back to the store and purchased them!

Just like Queen and the title says, I'm going slightly mad!

Gonna hook them up now and listen all night. I was told, these cables don't need break-in because of the battery/dialectric stuff.

Man, first my new kick **** cdp and now a pair of Jaguars! I'm effed.

Maurice

Toxis · May 2006

awesome! Now you gotta A-B them and let us know the differences and if it's worth that much dough.

organ · May 2006

It's gonna take quite a while before I can do a fair A-B because I just got the new cd player on Wed. I'll probably start swapping cables in a few months for A-B testing after I really farmiliarize myself with the new sound. I'll definitely let you know the difference when I do it.

schwarcw · May 2006

Maurice, Congrats on the new cables! I have a pair of Jaguars and Panthers and I love them, they were a big improvement for me. My seller told me that despite what AQ says, he still found these cables need some burn in time, but I heard the difference right away. Listen and give us your perspective on the SQ improvement. Happy listening!

janmike · May 2006

Congrats Maurice. I 'd be interested in your analysis.

organ · May 2006

Carl,
I'm warming up the rig right now. Will listen very soon.

The HT shop I worked for last summer had a pair of them, not IC's but speaker cables. They also talked about how the improvement could be heard right away and how the difference was big.

I have them going from source to pre right now and using XLO from pre to amp.

What I'm gonna do is, listen to the same stuff I've been listening to for the past 2 days on the Original. I'm already farmiliar with how these few cd's sound with the Diamondback.

Is there a big difference between the Jaguar and Panther? I noticed the Jaguar is their entry level into the battery powered IC's.

organ · May 2006

Michael,
You might want to hear Carl's analysis instead. My problem is, I just got a new cd player on Wed and I'm still getting used to the improvement. So my judgement could be a little cloudy and off target for the first few months on these IC's.

Early B. · May 2006

So is everybody on this forum switching to Jaguars? Got a set of Heros right now that I plan to swap out for Jags in the next few weeks, so I am very interested in your assessment of them. I recently bought a pair of AQ CV-8 speaker cables with the battery packs. I figured I'd go with AQ for all of my cable needs. They make great cables. Jump on those deals when you find them.

mantis · May 2006

Early B. wrote:

So is everybody on this forum switching to Jaguars? Got a set of Heros right now that I plan to swap out for Jags in the next few weeks, so I am very interested in your assessment of them. I recently bought a pair of AQ CV-8 speaker cables with the battery packs. I figured I'd go with AQ for all of my cable needs. They make great cables. Jump on those deals when you find them.

I switched to Jag's awhile back from Hero's. The difference isn't that huge. The Hero's are Incredible interconnects but the Jag's have more detail and air.My overall sound is improved as I also swapped 8tc to CV8 speaker wires in at the same time.I liked the Impprovement so much in my system I wired all Analog Interconnects in my system with Jaguars. Expensive but well worth it.

Break in I didn't notice as much with Audioquest as I have with other brands. The batteries I believe keep them broken in all the time.The CV8 speaker wire also have batteries on them.

The Diamondbacks are good 2. But the Hero's I liked better when I did a shootout with them.

Audioquest makes very good products. I can see why alot of people are switching to them.They also seem to be very neutral like cables should be. Everything I wire with them has excellent results.Even there low end bulk speaker wire sounds fantastic.

Dan

Schris22 · May 2006

i hang out at an audioquest dealer all the time and switch cables with the owner and I think these cables are a great deal. I think you'll enjoy them.

Chris

audiobliss · May 2006

Whao. You paid $360 for a set of IC's that you'll still have to pay for (new batteries when these run out), and you're only slightly crazy?!

Schris22 · May 2006

If I recall correctly you don't replace the batteries in these.

EDIT: Looked on website. Ok suppose to last for many years. so once in a long while

Chris

organ · May 2006

EarlyB,
Did the speaker cable improve the sound? I was doing some reading and found out that the cheapest version with the batteries cost $400 for an 8ft pair. I really like AQ as well. I started out with the Diamondback and love their neutral sound. That's what I want in a cable. Nothing added and nothing taken away. Clean and pure signal.

Dan,
Have you tried any other AQ IC's with batteries like the Panther, Cheetah and Sky? I was reading around audioasylum a few people said that the Panther is the sweetheart of the group. A more refined Jaguar.

Chris,
Oh yeah, I am enjoying them. I'm gonna post a little bit of what I heard on further down the page.

Bliss,
According to AQ, the batteries will last for years. There is a button and an LED light on each IC to test battery life.
lol:D. Only slightly crazy because I haven't upgraded the power cord on my source yet;).

OK, here's what I heard last night. I listened for a total of 2hrs to cd's that I've been listening to non-stop since I got the Original cdp (Andrea Bocelli's "Romanza" and "Sogno"). So I pretty much knew what to expect.

The first thing I noticed is the smoother overall sound and a much darker background. The dynamic contrast in vocals and acoustic intruments really stood out. You know, how acoustic guitars have that nice ring and texture. At first, it felt like the bass was a *tiny* bit less than the Diamondbacks but after a few minutes it actually made the system sound more balanced.

Is this what you guys heard when you upgraded to the Jaguars? I want to make sure I'm hearing improvements provided by the cables and not my ears still getting used to the Original cdp. Like I said before, I've been listening to those cd's like mad since I got my cdp.

madmax · May 2006

organ wrote:

Got back to work and told my boss about it. He asked me "what the hell is wrong with you? Go for it. You have to treat yourself once in a while".Maurice

Sometimes we just need to be told the truth, no matter how much it hurts.

madmax

Early B. · May 2006

organ wrote:

EarlyB,
Did the speaker cable improve the sound? I was doing some reading and found out that the cheapest version with the batteries cost $400 for an 8ft pair. I really like AQ as well. I started out with the Diamondback and love their neutral sound. That's what I want in a cable. Nothing added and nothing taken away. Clean and pure signal.

I went from AQ Bedrocks to the CV-8. Both of them are awesome cables, with a slight preference for the CV-8's. The CV-8's offered slightly more detail, but the Bedrocks seemed to have slightly better bass. You'd really have to be listening pretty hard to discern the differences, though. The other reason I preferred the CV-8's is the cool factor. I actually like the "ballsy" look of batteries dangling from my speakers.:eek:

mantis · May 2006

Organ,
The Jaguars are the highest I tried. I'm afraid to go higher. Not to mention the price gets out of hand. I'm 2 anal I would re wire the entire system with the Sky's if they make enough difference. they alone would break the bank and my wifes sanity....LOL

But one day when I upgrade my speakers and pre/amp to the next level, you know me I will be searching for the next level cables. Audioquest is cool that way I still have room to grow, just the prices outgrow me...I'm at a level where it's starting to get questioned if spending more is worth it. I'm so happy with where I'm at but I still look at the Krells and wonder.

Dan

mantis · May 2006

I forgot to mention the balance I have in my system. I have such a well balanced system right now. I love it. Everything works well together and I don't wanna disturb that anytime soon. The Jag's and the CV8's mated with my Dynaudio/Rotel setup is magic. to top it all off the Panamax M5500ex and all my upgraded Audioquest and Kimber Powercords is another magic. Finishing all that off is the PS audio outlet wired to a deadicated 20 circuit.I feel good about it.

Dan

Zen Dragon · May 2006

audiobliss wrote:

Whao. You paid $360 for a set of IC's that you'll still have to pay for (new batteries when these run out), and you're only slightly crazy?!

Well in all fairness it was $360 Canadian

janmike · May 2006

Which equates to $320.51 USD. The dollar is gaining momentum.

ckpiv · May 2006

If you check ebay you can pick up Jaguars for around $200 for 1m rca's. I picked up 2 pair for $185 and $200, brand new in the box. I also got a pair of .5m XLR Cheetah's for around $225.

The sound on the Jaguars is very neutral, smooth and balanced. The highs are also a bit more detailed and they also tightened up the lows. I am currently using them from my Rotel cdp to my Dodd MLP and from the Dodd to my Parasound Halo A21 amp. They are by far the best IC I have used to date. I have the Cheetah XLR connecting my SS Parasound pre to my amp but have not used them much to give an oppinion since I hooked up the Dood MLP.

mantis · May 2006

Any Listening comments yet???

Dan

schwarcw · May 2006

ckpiv wrote:

If you check ebay you can pick up Jaguars for around $200 for 1m rca's. I picked up 2 pair for $185 and $200, brand new in the box. I also got a pair of .5m XLR Cheetah's for around $225.

I didn't hear much difference between the Jaguars and the Panthers. Maybe a little more detail in the Panthers, very close. AQ's can be found for a good price on eBay or Audiogon. The Sky's are just out of this world in price. Maybe that's why they call them Sky:D

Carl

polkatese · May 2006

Did you guys pick up a matching AQ speaker wire to go with the IC? I am curious. Tempted to try the Cheetah for a duel against MIT S3 Shotgun. But then, debating of upgrading to MIT S2, instead. Decision, decision.

Btw, has anyone compared SC Analog 2 with any of the AQ line? better, worse, different, or indifference?

ckpiv · May 2006

I am using AQ Bedrock bi-wire in my rig with the Jaguar IC's.

organ · May 2006

Madmax,
lol:D. The only thing hurting right now is my empty pocket.

Early,
Thanks for the info. When I'm ready, I'm getting a pair of AQ speaker cable. Maybe the Bedrock but if the money is there, then something better. I'm very happy with my AQ Type4 that I've been using for almost a year now.

Dan,
That's cool. You feel like there's still something to strive for when you start at the lower level stuff (not saying AQ is low level at all, I meant compared to the sky, cheetah, etc). But don't you get good discount on AQ? I thought your store just started carrying them.
Isn't it great when your system is balanced and you're happy with everything? That's how I feel right now and I'm still confident it will get better when I do more wire upgrades. Next up will be power cords for my cdp, pre and amp.

ckpiv,
Damn, didn't know you could get them THAT cheap online. I'll probably buy my next set of cables online.

Polkatese,
Everything in my system is by AQ except the IC running from the pre to my amp. I'm using XLO for that. I have a pair of AQ Diamondback that will probably go in that spot. For speaker cables I'm using AQ Type4.

I don't want to post listening comments yet. I feel it's too early for that, BUT one thing I did notice from the Jaguar compared to my Diamondback is that the gain increased. I don't have to turn my pre amp as high anymore to get the same spl.

organ · May 2006

I did a little more reading about these cables. It seems there are a few versions out there.
The earliest ones were 12V, then they used 36V and now they have one with 48V. I hear, if you have the lower voltage, it can be upgraded to something higher. I think my AQ dealer does this.
I have the 36V. Which version do you guys own? Do you think the upgrade to 48V is worth the money? I think it's $150 for the upgrade.

Early B. · May 2006

organ wrote:

I did a little more reading about these cables. It seems there are a few versions out there.
The earliest ones were 12V, then they used 36V and now they have one with 48V. I hear, if you have the lower voltage, it can be upgraded to something higher. I think my AQ dealer does this.
I have the 36V. Which version do you guys own? Do you think the upgrade to 48V is worth the money? I think it's $150 for the upgrade.

Can you send us the links for this info? I'm interested in knowing the differences between the voltages. Thanks.

ckpiv · May 2006

I have the 36volt versions. You can buy the 36v Turbo Kit to upgade to 48v or 72v. Music Direct has the kits for $125. From what I have read the big change occurs at the 72v level, which is what the Sky IC's are. I probably will give this a shot later on.

organ · May 2006

Awesome! I'll definitely look into that. Thanks for the info. Is it an easy DIY upgrade? Do you change the entire pack or just the batteris?

ckpiv · May 2006

From the picture in the catalog you get two "rca end covers" that has two battery leads comming out so you can hook your current battery and the new 36v battery. They also supply some extra bands to strap the batteries to the cable. They say it only takes a couple of minutes to change out.

Here is an interesting article on the DBS http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue18/audioquestdbs.htm

organ · May 2006

Cool. Thanks for the link. That was interesting. I will give the upgrade a shot when I get some cash.

I'm going slightly mad (got a pair of AQ Jaguar!)

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