Furutech Digiflux NCF cables released

[Piotr_905]

Furtuech has released new digital cables with the NCF technology. Have any of you had an opportunity to use them yet? Or the older non-NCF version of the Furutech digital cables? If so, how do they compare to notable rivals? NCF has been widely appreciated in power cables and accessories but I do not see much content about signal or digital cables, either from users or reviewers. Does NCF work just as good in signal cables as it does in the high-power products? Unfortunately, I haven't had any experience with the Digiflux NCF yet, but perhaps somebody has The Digiflux NCF is not even listed yet on my local distributor's site. I currently use a DIY cable using Furutech's silver cable plus the new CF-102 NCF RCA plugs. At first, it sounded pretty much awaful, but then, after extensive break-in, it sounds quite good. Notable features: powerful but controlled low end, neutral mids, no trace of harshness in the highs. But honestly I do not have much experiience with diital cables, to say the least... In Poland, people are giving rave reviews to the Transparent Reference XL, I wonder how it would compare to Furutech, which I find often represents good value overall.

 

[hongkongfoufou]

Hello,

I have it, the old version, without NCF.
It is connected between Grimm CC1 and K-03XS.

Regards

 

[Piotr_905]

Hello,

I have it, the old version, without NCF.
It is connected between Grimm CC1 and K-03XS.

Regards

Have you comapred it to other digital cables? If so, were the differences between digital cables clear? Thank you for responding.

 

[hongkongfoufou]

Have you comapred it to other digital cables? If so, were the differences between digital cables clear? Thank you for responding.

Hello Piotr_905,

I have two cables AES/SBU

Esoteric K-03XS -> CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms -> Grimm CC1 v1 ( use in slave mode) -> Furutech Digiflux -> Mark Levinson N 360S


I compare it with :

- Professional cable : CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms ( I have two of this )
This cable is good but all everything is on the same sound plane.

- Van Denu Hul The Second AES/EBU 110 Ohms ( I have two of this )
Forget this cable...

- Furutech Digiflux ( I have one of this )
You have every details you want.
All instruments are present and distinct. The voice of the singer is well in front of the stage.
On my system, the voice is warm, contrary to what people say about Furutech.
It's night and day with this cable compared to the other two cables, but it's 10 times the price of the Van Den Hul...

The price to pay is justified in my opinion because the difference is too great to ignore.
But this cable costs a little bit less than my Mark Levinson N360S DAC bought second hand.
It's still unfortunate to see that.
But what's the point of having a Ferrari with a 50 HP engine?

Thanks to you, perhaps I will buy another Furutech Digiflux to replace the CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms between K-03XS and Grimm CC1.

Setup like this is bad !!!
Esoteric K-03XS -> Furutech Digiflux -> Grimm CC1 v1 ( use in slave mode) -> CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms -> Mark Levinson N 360S

I suppose limited by CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms cable.

Setup like that is excellent !
Esoteric K-03XS -> CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms -> Grimm CC1 v1 ( use in slave mode) -> Furutech Digiflux -> Mark Levinson N 360S

It's depend your system.
Before, I don't need Furutech Digiflux in my old setup. CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms is sufficient in my old setup.

 

[Piotr_905]

Hello Piotr_905,

I have two cables AES/SBU

Esoteric K-03XS -> CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms -> Grimm CC1 v1 ( use in slave mode) -> Furutech Digiflux -> Mark Levinson N 360S


I compare it with :

- Professional cable : CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms ( I have two of this )
This cable is good but all everything is on the same sound plane.

- Van Denu Hul The Second AES/EBU 110 Ohms ( I have two of this )
Forget this cable...

- Furutech Digiflux ( I have one of this )
You have every details you want.
All instruments are present and distinct. The voice of the singer is well in front of the stage.
On my system, the voice is warm, contrary to what people say about Furutech.
It's night and day with this cable compared to the other two cables, but it's 10 times the price of the Van Den Hul...

The price to pay is justified in my opinion because the difference is too great to ignore.
But this cable costs a little bit less than my Mark Levinson N360S DAC bought second hand.
It's still unfortunate to see that.
But what's the point of having a Ferrari with a 50 HP engine?

Thanks to you, perhaps I will buy another Furutech Digiflux to replace the CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms between K-03XS and Grimm CC1.

Setup like this is bad !!!
Esoteric K-03XS -> Furutech Digiflux -> Grimm CC1 v1 ( use in slave mode) -> CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms -> Mark Levinson N 360S

I suppose limited by CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms cable.

Setup like that is excellent !
Esoteric K-03XS -> CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms -> Grimm CC1 v1 ( use in slave mode) -> Furutech Digiflux -> Mark Levinson N 360S

It's depend your system.
Before, I don't need Furutech Digiflux in my old setup. CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms is sufficient in my old setup.

Thank you so much for a such a detailed answer. Much appreciated!

 

[hongkongfoufou]

Thank you so much for a such a detailed answer. Much appreciated!

Hello,

I have made a big mistake !!!
Sorry.

I have just check my setup :

Setup like this is bad !!!
Esoteric K-03XS -> CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms -> Grimm CC1 v1 ( use in slave mode) -> Furutech Digiflux -> Mark Levinson N 360S

CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms cable seems to be neutral.

Setup like that is excellent !
Esoteric K-03XS -> Furutech Digiflux -> Grimm CC1 v1 ( use in slave mode) -> CANFORD Audio DST AES/EBU 110 Ohms -> Mark Levinson N 360S

Perhaps, I will buy Furutech Digiflux NCF...

 

[Piotr_905]

No worries. I can see you have Esoteric, this is something really special.. You say your digital Digiflux doesn't sound cold, quite warm on the voices. Well, this is also what I think of my simple Furutech DIY digital silver cable with NCF RCA plugs. I guess Furutech sometimes takes a little bit longer to break in to appreciate, but I don't think think it's true what people sometimes say that it sounds on the cold side, without body. I love my Furu power cords (Nanoflux), as they sound neutral to me while showing incredible detail...

 

[hongkongfoufou]

No worries. I can see you have Esoteric, this is something really special.. You say your digital Digiflux doesn't sound cold, quite warm on the voices. Well, this is also what I think of my simple Furutech DIY digital silver cable with NCF RCA plugs. I guess Furutech sometimes takes a little bit longer to break in to appreciate, but I don't think think it's true what people sometimes say that it sounds on the cold side, without body. I love my Furu power cords (Nanoflux), as they sound neutral to me while showing incredible detail...

Yes, the Esoteric has a bad reputation : cold and analytic.
But I listen my CD with the Mark Levinson N360S, better than the internal DAC inside the K-03XS.
ML N360S outperforms the Accuphase DC-37.
And I have Hijiri Nagomi power cord...
The only Furutech Nanoflux NCF I have is connected with the Jeff Rowland Model 625...just made for me ( C19).
They need a long time to break in to appreciate it.

 

[DaveC]

I have the new NCF RCA and XLR plugs but recently got them so not a ton of experience... IME NCF does a similar thing to the Furutech demag products, and they use some of the same materials. So they reduce noise due to triboelectric effects and likely a lot more, and the result is cleaner highs, a more relaxed and less fatiguing sound. IMO the new NCF signal plugs will be seen as the best available because of this, and the carbon fiber/stainless bodies do the same as a good footer on a component in terms of managing mechanical vibration. Other top-end plugs like WBT are excellent and use good materials, but Furutech's attempts to control vibration as well as electrical noise is unique and makes them a superior product.

 

[Piotr_905]

Yes, the Esoteric has a bad reputation : cold and analytic.
But I listen my CD with the Mark Levinson N360S, better than the internal DAC inside the K-03XS.
ML N360S outperforms the Accuphase DC-37.
And I have Hijiri Nagomi power cord...
The only Furutech Nanoflux NCF I have is connected with the Jeff Rowland Model 625...just made for me ( C19).
They need a long time to break in to appreciate it.

I actually meant to say Esoteric is an excellent product

 

[bazelio]

I have only compared pro audio 110ohm AES cables. Of those I've tried, I felt Mogami Gold to be the best. The others sounded lightweight in comparison to the solid foundation of the Mogami. Granted, I've only tried a few other cables, including Canare, Hosa, and Gotham. If anyone compares Mogami Gold to this high priced Furutech, I'd be curious to know the results!

 

[GSOphile]

Yes, the Esoteric has a bad reputation : cold and analytic.
But I listen my CD with the Mark Levinson N360S, better than the internal DAC inside the K-03XS.
ML N360S outperforms the Accuphase DC-37.
And I have Hijiri Nagomi power cord...
The only Furutech Nanoflux NCF I have is connected with the Jeff Rowland Model 625...just made for me ( C19).
They need a long time to break in to appreciate it.

I had an Esoteric K-03X and ouldn't disagree with your characterization of the old Esoteric sound..... until I replaced it with a new K-01XD. Its new generation Master Discrete [component] DAC yields a major improvement in the Esoteric sound. The new DAC technology replaces AKM chip solutions present in prior generation Esoteric products and gives Esoteric in-house control over their DAC technology.

 

[hongkongfoufou]

I had an Esoteric K-03X and ouldn't disagree with your characterization of the old Esoteric sound..... until I replaced it with a new K-01XD. Its new generation Master Discrete [component] DAC yields a major improvement in the Esoteric sound. The new DAC technology replaces vendor sourced DAC chip-based solutions present in prior generation Esoteric products and gives Esoteric in house control over their DAC technology.

Thank you for this information.
I use K-03XS only with SACD and I use the very old Dac Mark Levinson N360S for CD, so K-03XS is only used as a drive.

 

[thyname]

Yes, the Esoteric has a bad reputation : cold and analytic.

Current Esoteric is definitely NOT your old father’s Esoteric. What Esoteric do you currently own or have owned and when?

 

[thyname]

And I have Hijiri Nagomi power cord...

How is Hijiri working for you? Lots of hype on Audiogon forums from very reputable and experienced audiophiles, but very little information on Hijiri’s poorly written website. Thank you

 

[Piotr_905]

A friend of mine has an Esoteric K-01XD and this may well be the best thing I have ever heard. Detailed but also very smooth, built like a tank. But it's very expensive, too.....
Meanwhile, Furutech releases another new product: DAS-4.1...

 

[hongkongfoufou]

How is Hijiri working for you? Lots of hype on Audiogon forums from very reputable and experienced audiophiles, but very little information on Hijiri’s poorly written website. Thank you

Hello

you can find here the post about Nagomi.

Hijiri Nagomi

Hello, I have connected Hijiri Nagomi with my preamplifier Jeff Rowland Corus... It's a very good cable for its price. It is very musical. I have bought one to test if. It's a very good surprise.

www.whatsbestforum.com

Regards

 

[hongkongfoufou]

Current Esoteric is definitely NOT your old father’s Esoteric. What Esoteric do you currently own or have owned and when?

My dealer is very cool.
He rent me the Esoteric K-03X for free.
I keep it 3 days, but the first hour is beautiful.
I say : bye bye Marantz SA7 S1...
I pass an order for K-03XS.

I have listen many Esoteric CD player in the past and I have been very disappointed...

But now, I have one ....

 

[hongkongfoufou]

I have forget to say : I have a Furutech Flux 50 Gold between K-03XS and Hijiri Nagomi.

 

[thyname]

My dealer is very cool.
He rent me the Esoteric K-03X for free.
I keep it 3 days, but the first hour is beautiful.
I say : bye bye Marantz SA7 S1...
I pass an order for K-03XS.

I have listen many Esoteric CD player in the past and I have been very disappointed...

But now, I have one ....

Cool! Just FYI, current generation of Esoteric is XD. X and then XS are previous generations