Calling all Audiophiles : Recommendations on speaker cables.


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behyx

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Jun 15, 2002
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I need to get a new pair of speaker cables for my humble setup:

Musical Fidelity Elektra E10 Int amp
Marantz CD63mkII KI-signature.
Tannoy MX-2

Bass is slightly mellow, highs are a little to the bright side for my preference.
Which speaker cable should i get to compensate the brightness and induce slightly tighter bass and smoother midrange? My speakers are biwire-able, banana plugs (same for amp).

I don't have a budget in mind, but will be better if it's not too expensive, i'm looking closely at the price-performance ratio.

*I also post a thread in echoloft to get more response. Want to gather more info before i go down Adelphi.
 

wow how much did you pay for these man?
 

kit_fisto said:
wow how much did you pay for these man?
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Bought them years ago, the amp was $200 2nd hand, CDP was $600-700 2nd hand, SPK was $2xx first hand..

u into audio stuffs too?
 

You can this 2 methods (for cable), one is to change the interconnect and the other the speaker cable.

I've no idea whether your amp or speaker is on the bright or warm side, what I can think of is for you to use a neutral cable to test it out. Once you know the characteristic of your system, you may start playing with cables which will alter the sounds (be it more neutral, bright or combing warm). ;)
 

behyx said:
Bought them years ago, the amp was $200 2nd hand, CDP was $600-700 2nd hand, SPK was $2xx first hand..

u into audio stuffs too?
Click to expand...

yeah, but no money buy good speakers:( . if got money i would want to have my own mini theater man
 

behyx said:
I need to get a new pair of speaker cables for my humble setup:

Musical Fidelity Elektra E10 Int amp
Marantz CD63mkII KI-signature.
Tannoy MX-2

Bass is slightly mellow, highs are a little to the bright side for my preference.
Which speaker cable should i get to compensate the brightness and induce slightly tighter bass and smoother midrange? My speakers are biwire-able, banana plugs (same for amp).

I don't have a budget in mind, but will be better if it's not too expensive, i'm looking closely at the price-performance ratio.

*I also post a thread in echoloft to get more response. Want to gather more info before i go down Adelphi.
Click to expand...

Go to adlephi the bottom floor and in a shop with a huge pioneer sign above the entrance and ask for the blue canadian speaker cable, there very good, but i have forgot their name, sorry
 

behyx said:
I need to get a new pair of speaker cables for my humble setup:

Musical Fidelity Elektra E10 Int amp
Marantz CD63mkII KI-signature.
Tannoy MX-2

Bass is slightly mellow, highs are a little to the bright side for my preference.
Which speaker cable should i get to compensate the brightness and induce slightly tighter bass and smoother midrange? My speakers are biwire-able, banana plugs (same for amp).

I don't have a budget in mind, but will be better if it's not too expensive, i'm looking closely at the price-performance ratio.

*I also post a thread in echoloft to get more response. Want to gather more info before i go down Adelphi.
Click to expand...


Greetings,

It's great to know another hi-fi enthusiast of the Marantz CD63mkII KI-signature series. :thumbsup:

I'm partnering that with the Arcam Aplha 8 pre/power amp and for cables look no further than Kimble Kable 4TC or the 8TC if you could stretch a little. Note that these could be dated models.

http://www.kimber.com/Products/LoudSpeakerCables/default.aspx

The last agent I know of was Atlas Hi-Fi but that was in the mid-late 80s. Not too sure now.
 

There's a lot of really dodgy claims made about cables and interconnects and frankly most aren't worth the money as any cable that is capable of carrying the required voltage and current that has a suitably low R/C values is going to perform fine provided the cable is suitably well made and shielded as required.

If you don't believe me then do a blind test on your favourite system using what ever cables you like vs regular mains cable for the speakers. Have a friend connect the cables without telling you which pair is in use. (leave the room while they change the cables) and cover any way of telling which cables are connected. Then write down which cable you think is being used and have them swap the cables over. Repeat the listening test and go for the pair you think sound best.
 

behyx said:
I need to get a new pair of speaker cables for my humble setup:

Musical Fidelity Elektra E10 Int amp
Marantz CD63mkII KI-signature.
Tannoy MX-2

Bass is slightly mellow, highs are a little to the bright side for my preference.
Which speaker cable should i get to compensate the brightness and induce slightly tighter bass and smoother midrange? My speakers are biwire-able, banana plugs (same for amp).

I don't have a budget in mind, but will be better if it's not too expensive, i'm looking closely at the price-performance ratio.

*I also post a thread in echoloft to get more response. Want to gather more info before i go down Adelphi.
Click to expand...

Best price performance I have ever come across: Canare 4S11

It's a fat yet pliable 4 core all copper cable. Cheap like hell. Absolutely the best value for money. Obviously not the best cable around, but for the money, it can't be beat, even puts many much more expensive cables to shame. That Sim Lim Tower cable shop: LHS Electronics Enterprise (Unit #02-27) is a good source. Tip: buy the cable from the boss, not the worker, for the best deal.

BTW, Canare's GS6 guitar cable makes for the best budget interconnects I have ever come across.

You should know of course that at the end of the day, it's still really about component synergy......
 

IIRC, the boss of LHS's name is Robert.
 

kit_fisto said:
yeah, but no money buy good speakers:( . if got money i would want to have my own mini theater man
Click to expand...

Spend less on photography equipments and more on your HT :devil: :devil: :devil: hehee!
 

Ironman said:
u may want to try silver cables... brand not very impt (i feel)...
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I'm actually thinking of asking my friend to get some of this silver cables from China, if he happens to go there again for business.. Just like you, he thinks those cables are wonders.. Price is low too. Haha!

yyD70S said:
It's great to know another hi-fi enthusiast of the Marantz CD63mkII KI-signature series. :thumbsup:

I'm partnering that with the Arcam Aplha 8 pre/power amp and for cables look no further than Kimble Kable 4TC or the 8TC if you could stretch a little. Note that these could be dated models.
Click to expand...

Awesome! my CDP is the only thing in my system that i don't wish to sell after some downgrades over the years.. Used to be using a really good Class A amp, but sold away after some financial crisis.

May i know approx how much does the Kimble Kable 4TC cost?? Dated models isn't an issue here.. Now who still spins vinyl here? I still think they sounds way better than CD, but i just don't have much extra $$$ to spend on a good turntable.. haha!

Ian said:
There's a lot of really dodgy claims made about cables and interconnects and frankly most aren't worth the money as any cable that is capable of carrying the required voltage and current that has a suitably low R/C values is going to perform fine provided the cable is suitably well made and shielded as required.

If you don't believe me then do a blind test on your favourite system using what ever cables you like vs regular mains cable for the speakers. Have a friend connect the cables without telling you which pair is in use. (leave the room while they change the cables) and cover any way of telling which cables are connected. Then write down which cable you think is being used and have them swap the cables over. Repeat the listening test and go for the pair you think sound best.
Click to expand...

Well firstly, i don't have much friends around who plays with these stuffs, so it's kind of difficult to do on-site testing.. And i do believe that higher end cables do really make a difference, in terms of tightness of bass to smoother midtones and better soundstage.
 

kahheng said:
Best price performance I have ever come across: Canare 4S11

It's a fat yet pliable 4 core all copper cable. Cheap like hell. Absolutely the best value for money. Obviously not the best cable around, but for the money, it can't be beat, even puts many much more expensive cables to shame. That Sim Lim Tower cable shop: LHS Electronics Enterprise (Unit #02-27) is a good source. Tip: buy the cable from the boss, not the worker, for the best deal.

BTW, Canare's GS6 guitar cable makes for the best budget interconnects I have ever come across.

You should know of course that at the end of the day, it's still really about component synergy......
Click to expand...

Actually i never hear of canare before, but i think it's on the same league as Belden is it? Does LHS also do canare cable to banana plugs? Approx how much is it? If it isn't too expensive, i might buy some and try it out..
 

Canare cables are widely used in the pro audio industry.

I'm using them for my projector component cabling as well as interconnect linking my DVDP to my AVR. Using them to bi-amp a pair of mission floorstanders as well.

For my room, i'm using XLO Pro. :sweat: Cost me nearly $300 for just 2m of cables - linked to a pre-power with a pair of Spirit Absolute Zero monitors...
 

Ian said:
There's a lot of really dodgy claims made about cables and interconnects and frankly most aren't worth the money as any cable that is capable of carrying the required voltage and current that has a suitably low R/C values is going to perform fine provided the cable is suitably well made and shielded as required.

If you don't believe me then do a blind test on your favourite system using what ever cables you like vs regular mains cable for the speakers. Have a friend connect the cables without telling you which pair is in use. (leave the room while they change the cables) and cover any way of telling which cables are connected. Then write down which cable you think is being used and have them swap the cables over. Repeat the listening test and go for the pair you think sound best.
Click to expand...


Agreed... but only to a small extent.

Between very good speaker cables, and interconnects for that matter, say between a very good Kimble Kable and a very good van den Hul, it may be difficult (althou not very) to differentiate the make (the technicalities & reasons would take a page or two here).

However, between say...

(a) different grades of the same brand
(b) different brands - from above average grade downwards
(c) etc

... believe me, it really makes a difference!

Yes, the difference would not mean much to me (an old man now) whose hearing has somewhat aged with the times but you could still tell the signatures of the different makes and base quality.

Having said that, there's a saying in the audiophile market that one should only spend about 10% on cables & interconnects. The rest on the source, amp and speakers.

If one is starting out from scratch, the source (CD players, vinyl players) and the amp are the main drivers and are the ones that one should build the system up from.

I guess it's the same with photography. There's no holy grail. We pay premium for just a small but significant improvement in quality.

Enjoy.
 

behyx said:
I need to get a new pair of speaker cables for my humble setup:

Musical Fidelity Elektra E10 Int amp
Marantz CD63mkII KI-signature.
Tannoy MX-2

Bass is slightly mellow, highs are a little to the bright side for my preference.
Which speaker cable should i get to compensate the brightness and induce slightly tighter bass and smoother midrange? My speakers are biwire-able, banana plugs (same for amp).

I don't have a budget in mind, but will be better if it's not too expensive, i'm looking closely at the price-performance ratio.

*I also post a thread in echoloft to get more response. Want to gather more info before i go down Adelphi.
Click to expand...

What cables are you using at the moment? And what interconnects are you using? I think you should start tracing from the source first. And have you tried tweaks? ie, isolation cones, speaker placement, etc?
 

behyx said:
I need to get a new pair of speaker cables for my humble setup:

Musical Fidelity Elektra E10 Int amp
Marantz CD63mkII KI-signature.
Tannoy MX-2

Bass is slightly mellow, highs are a little to the bright side for my preference.
Which speaker cable should i get to compensate the brightness and induce slightly tighter bass and smoother midrange? My speakers are biwire-able, banana plugs (same for amp).

I don't have a budget in mind, but will be better if it's not too expensive, i'm looking closely at the price-performance ratio.

*I also post a thread in echoloft to get more response. Want to gather more info before i go down Adelphi.
Click to expand...

My Hi-fi systems comprised as follows, a bit ageing but the satisfaction and enjoyment last long :

Amp - Pioneer A300X 1992
CD - Marantz CD67SE 1997
Speakers - TDL RTL 2 1997 Floorstanding Speakers with Spike
Loudspeakers Cables - Cable Talk 3
Interconnect : IXOS 103

MF10 Amps are highly regarded amps are more well known for classical, jazz and ochestra player coupled with excellent Marantz CD63MKII Ken Ishiwata Signature, you have one of the most outstanding set up. But when it comes to rock, dance, etc. you will get harsh sounding sound and the trebles are biting your ears. I did recall that for your kind of set up, you may want to try Cable Talk2 3 for loudspeaker. Other alternative, get rid of the Tannoy and find yourself those Missions speakers. I've seen in What Hi-Fi Magazine your amp and cd players are well connected to the Missions...i.e. either 780 or 782 series. Whatever it is...be sure to bring along your amp and cd player to audition with the Mission...trust your ears...Good Luck.
 

canare makes quality connectors and cables. their premium RCA crimp-type connectors cost $7+ per connector. i have them custom-made for my 6-channel car audio using Extron cable for about 200+.

LHS has plenty of Belden cables. can also consider Klotz cables. check with LHS to see if they have stock.

one point to note about silver wires. most generally affordable cables aren't really pure silver cable. they are more of silver-plated or silver-tinned cables.

behyx said:
Actually i never hear of canare before, but i think it's on the same league as Belden is it? Does LHS also do canare cable to banana plugs? Approx how much is it? If it isn't too expensive, i might buy some and try it out..
Click to expand...
 

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