Transparent Audio: Gen 6 Announcement

[Karen Sumner]

Thanks for your input, Karen!
Yes, the GenV XL speaker cables are calibrated for my Rowland 925 mono amps (dual speaker terminals on each amp). These cables supply the Mid/Tweeter terminals on the MBL 101's.
The other Reference cables are just supplying the Low/Bass terminals on the MBL's, so they are not as critical for calibration.
This combination seems to work remarkably well, except for the expense of the 2 cable combination.
The 18" jumpers do seem to be the logical alternative choice for the Bass terminals.
Thanks again!

Thanks for your reply, and thank you for being so gracious about your speaker cable purchase decisions.

There is a lot more than calibration involved here, however, and you would get far better results using the Gen 5 XL cables calibrated for your Rowland 925s combined with Transparent XL Jumpers on the other set of speaker terminals. Even though there are 2 sets of terminals on the back of each amplifier, the terminals on the back of each amp are still fed by the same amplification stage. Hooking up 2 pairs of network cables to these 2 sets of terminals will create a sonic picture that while perhaps OK to your ears is absolutely not what we intend. The combined electrical characteristics of the 2 cables on each channel (which is what your amplifier sees) affects the entire presentation, not just the low frequencies because a single amplifier output feeds both sets of terminals on each amp. The fact that the 2 sets of cables are different models makes whatever you are hearing even more random in terms of results.

Here is a summary of the best ways to hook up your system with Transparent XL from least expensive to most expensive:

1. One pair Gen 5 XL SC with XL Jumpers with a pair of mono amps or a single stereo amp
2. Two pair Gen 5 XL SC with two identical stereo amps
3. Two pair of Gen 5 XL SC with 4 identical mono amps

Your situation is exactly why I wanted to join WBF. I really want to help those of you who like to experiment with preowned gear. The intent of that approach, I thought, was to have fun and experiment and keep your level of investment within reason. It's not fun to invest in something, and get less than optimum results. I think buying preowned gear is a great idea, and Transparent has a a very strong commitment to help customers shopping for preowned cables make good purchase decisions and get great results, regardless of whether the cables are purchased from an authorized dealer or a 3rd party source. I hope everyone out there who is considering a preowned Transparent Cable purchase will at least consult with us to avoid buying things that are not really suited for a system and a particular set-up. We are really here to help. It doesn't do Transparent any good in the long run if a customer purchases preowned cables from a third party and ends up being dissatisfied. We have a huge database of the impedance characteristics, physical layouts of connections, and type of connections for most associated components. We have another data base that tells us the details of the exact specifications of every cable we have ever built that is calibrated and custom-made for a specific component. We can tell you exactly what the ideal application is for a preowned cable you are considering purchasing, and we can tell you what needs to be done, if anything, to make the cable work optimally in your system.

Please call 207-284-1100 or email info@transparentcable.com. We are happy to help.

 

[Lagonda]

So just disregard MBL's strong recommendation in the manual to use separate cables, not jumpers, or use a different brand of cables !

 

[Karen Sumner]

So just disregard MBL's strong recommendation in the manual to use separate cables, not jumpers, or use a different brand of cables !

I'm not sure that MBL has had much experience with cables that have a built-in optimizing network. MBL's recommendation is correct if one uses non-network cables. If anyone finds that using a single pair of Transparent Speaker Cable with a set of jumpers is not as good as using 2 pair of non-network speaker cables on a pair of MBLs, then they should definitely do what they think sounds best. Transparent works with MBL dealers and distributors, and we've gotten excellent results with Transparent on MBL Speakers.

 

[gfroman]

Karen, you are definitely an asset to WBF, and we appreciate the wealth of knowledge you share.
Thanks again!

 

[dcathro]

Very interesting!

I used to biamp and biwire many years ago, but eventually chose a single amp and single cable configuration as I found it more emotionally engaging.

I understand that Wilson audio only provide one set of binding posts on their speakers for the same reason.

It is interesting that there is no consensus and different manufacturers recommend different approaches.

By the way, I have never had the pleasure of using Transparent cables, although friends have informed me that they are superb.

 

[Karen Sumner]

Very interesting!

I used to biamp and biwire many years ago, but eventually chose a single amp and single cable configuration as I found it more emotionally engaging.

I understand that Wilson audio only provide one set of binding posts on their speakers for the same reason.

It is interesting that there is no consensus and different manufacturers recommend different approaches.

By the way, I have never had the pleasure of using Transparent cables, although friends have informed me that they are superb.

I thought your statement introduced an important point: "It is interesting that there is no consensus and different manufacturers recommend different approaches."

I think that our industry is very unique. The goal of course is to give customers great sounding systems, but individual manufacturers create their vision of what they think is the perfect thing with little or no cross pollination with the companies and products that are needed to create an entire system. Putting together a high end audio system is like building something from a kit, except the kit doesn't even come with pre-selected parts. Audiophiles have to go out and purchase the parts to the kit with little reliable guidance, and who knows what the end result will be once it all comes together? I suppose that is part of the mystery and excitement of the hobby, but that can wear off in time particularly if one is not lucky enough to find their musical sweet spot as a result of all this experimentation.

I think you are wise to simplify your approach to hi fi. While it is possible to make a complex system of components sing and truly wow with its performance, it is a little like keeping an exotic, high performance, antique automobile in top running shape. The thrilling driving experiences from such a vehicle have to offset the fact that the car is always on the edge of collapsing and has a tendency to blow up while you are at a peak level of enjoyment. In contrast, a well-balanced simpler system always delivers on its promise.

Early in Transparent's development, we decided to structure the line-up and develop our technology to make it easier for music lovers to hook up a variety of high performance audio components and get the results that they are looking for. We don't work in isolation. We are constantly on the look out for new components to add to our collection to make sure that our products interface compatibly with a wide variety of systems.

 

[dcathro]

I thought your statement introduced an important point: "It is interesting that there is no consensus and different manufacturers recommend different approaches."

I think that our industry is very unique. The goal of course is to give customers great sounding systems, but individual manufacturers create their vision of what they think is the perfect thing with little or no cross pollination with the companies and products that are needed to create an entire system. Putting together a high end audio system is like building something from a kit, except the kit doesn't even come with pre-selected parts. Audiophiles have to go out and purchase the parts to the kit with little reliable guidance, and who knows what the end result will be once it all comes together? I suppose that is part of the mystery and excitement of the hobby, but that can wear off in time particularly if one is not lucky enough to find their musical sweet spot as a result of all this experimentation.

I think you are wise to simplify your approach to hi fi. While it is possible to make a complex system of components sing and truly wow with its performance, it is a little like keeping an exotic, high performance, antique automobile in top running shape. The thrilling driving experiences from such a vehicle have to offset the fact that the car is always on the edge of collapsing and has a tendency to blow up while you are at a peak level of enjoyment. In contrast, a well-balanced simpler system always delivers on its promise.

Early in Transparent's development, we decided to structure the line-up and develop our technology to make it easier for music lovers to hook up a variety of high performance audio components and get the results that they are looking for. We don't work in isolation. We are constantly on the look out for new components to add to our collection to make sure that our products interface compatibly with a wide variety of systems.

Thank you very much for your thoughts Karen!

My own relatively limited experience is that the more complex a system is, the more difficult it is to keep coherence, pace, rhythm and timing. Big complex systems, to my ears, tend to be like big cinema soundscapes full of colour, detail and energy, but have difficulty maintaining the relationships within the detail.

I had a "big rig" system many years ago (Alon Phalanx/Poseidon) with quad wired mains and separately powered subs. I had so many amps (Boulders) and cables (VDH) it was snake city. That system could fill the room with incredible sound, including tremendous deep bass, incredible detail and a huge soundstage, but could also sound soulless.

With some help, I rebuilt the speakers replacing all the internal wire with high quality silver/teflon cable and tuned the crossover to work with one set of inputs. I lost some of the hifi attributes, but the improvement in the musical aspects was immense.

That was in a professional mastering room, which had the most amazing acoustics, and the system was supplied with an industrial 240V separate electrical phase from the rest of the building with 4 times 100A spurs. There was incredible energy available, and I found that I could hear things that should not have made a difference - such as the dressing of power cords - and I was always having to work to keep it in tune or, as you said, keep the tyres connected to the road.

Today I have a much more humble room with an even simpler modest system.

Best Regards

David Cathro

 

[Karen Sumner]

Thank you very much for your thoughts Karen!

My own relatively limited experience is that the more complex a system is, the more difficult it is to keep coherence, pace, rhythm and timing. Big complex systems, to my ears, tend to be like big cinema soundscapes full of colour, detail and energy, but have difficulty maintaining the relationships within the detail.

I had a "big rig" system many years ago (Alon Phalanx/Poseidon) with quad wired mains and separately powered subs. I had so many amps (Boulders) and cables (VDH) it was snake city. That system could fill the room with incredible sound, including tremendous deep bass, incredible detail and a huge soundstage, but could also sound soulless.

With some help, I rebuilt the speakers replacing all the internal wire with high quality silver/teflon cable and tuned the crossover to work with one set of inputs. I lost some of the hifi attributes, but the improvement in the musical aspects was immense.

That was in a professional mastering room, which had the most amazing acoustics, and the system was supplied with an industrial 240V separate electrical phase from the rest of the building with 4 times 100A spurs. There was incredible energy available, and I found that I could hear things that should not have made a difference - such as the dressing of power cords - and I was always having to work to keep it in tune or, as you said, keep the tyres connected to the road.

Today I have a much more humble room with an even simpler modest system.

Best Regards

David Cathro

Hi, Dave -

Thank you for sharing your experience. I agree that simpler systems are more simply satisfying in many ways. One could run around in circles in perpetuity trying to figure out ways to improve a complex system because it requires such a delicate balance for everything to work as intended. In sound, everything matters. One might be lucky and pull together an amazing result with a big rig for at least a period of time. Perhaps for some, the purpose of such a complex system is more related to the process than the result. There's nothing wrong with that if that's what one wants to do with one's time. It is a lot easier to figure out what needs to happen in a simple system to achieve the musical sweet spot than it is to figure out what needs to be done in a more complicated system.

For example, the various systems we set up to do our listening research are very simple because it would be impossible for us to design, for example, a speaker cable if we needed to use more than one pair of speaker cables in our reference system. Conversely, keeping the interconnect path as simple as possible is important. After the electrical properties have been adjusted by measurements to be in the ballpark of what we want to achieve, long-term listening and a lot of experimentation help us to end up with a speaker cable and an interconnect at a specific performance level that have the same sonic presentation. Once we have established the sonic standard, we can figure out what needs to be done to create different lengths of different cables for different applications that deliver the sonic standard.

I invite WBF readers, if they have not done so already, to spend some time with my WBF threads entitled "Karen Sumner Talks Audio and Music" to learn more about our perspectives on music and hi fi.

 

[Steve williams]

Hi Karen

Out of curiosity and in your opinion is it easier to achieve that tonal balance, dynamics and timbre by using electronics (amp/preamp) from the same manufacturer as well as using a complete loom of cable from a single manufacturer. I would think, if anything it should be easier but I welcome your opinion

 

[Karen Sumner]

Hi Karen

Out of curiosity and in your opinion is it easier to achieve that tonal balance, dynamics and timbre by using electronics (amp/preamp) from the same manufacturer as well as using a complete loom of cable from a single manufacturer. I would think, if anything it should be easier but I welcome your opinion

This is a great question. It’s kind of at the heart of what drives audiophiles to try different combinations of things.

As far as amps and preamps are concerned, I think there are many excellent choices. If one chooses Transparent to hook them up, it is more likely that an amp and preamp of different brands will get along great In a system because we optimize the cable for that combination of components.

Cables are the most problematic because they are a part of every part of a system and have a tremendous effect on overall performance particularly with respect to tonal balance. Mixing cable brands might be fun, but it would be a totally random event for such an approach to produce a level of performance that approaches that of a well-optimized system.

We design our speaker cables and interconnects in tandem so that they have the same sonic attributes. Rather than compensating for each other, we have designed them to build upon the desirable attributes of tonal balance, dynamics, and timbre when used together. If you like our “attributes”, just go with Transparent all the way through. We ask our customers who are interested in trying Transparent to audition an entire loom of cables and listen over the long term.

 

[Steve williams]

It just makes the most sense to me and my ears to use a full loom of the same cable. Mix and match is something I have never done

 

[jfrech]

Hi Karen,

As a long time Transparent user/lover I have to weigh in on your Gen 6 updates as well as ask a question.

First, I wasn't thrilled to know about the gen 6 update, the price, etc. I loved my Gen 5's. So my dealer sent in one interconnect (DAC to PRE).

My dealer and I both know the history of Transparent upgrades so I knew I had little risk. My dealer packed up em and sent them in. When they are arrived, I was out of town on a business trip, I told my dealer, "hey try em and see what you think". (Dealer has all Transparent cabling and the same dac, amps and speakers)

His reply after a day of listening "me thinks you need to come home pretty fast..."

The dealer, and Transparent, are right. The Gen 6 is update really is quite amazing. And looking back the upgrade fee, in consideration of the rest of my system, was highly appropriate. In fact, given the improvement the Gen 6 update made, there is no other upgrade for that kind of money that would have made that kind of impact. Since then I've updated 2 other interconnects to Gen 6 and my speaker cable goes back in Jan for it's update. I am guessing the speaker cable maybe even more of an improvement.

Question, anything you can share on your power cords, conditioners or digital cables? Any updates down the road?

 

[Karen Sumner]

Hi Karen,

As a long time Transparent user/lover I have to weigh in on your Gen 6 updates as well as ask a question.

First, I wasn't thrilled to know about the gen 6 update, the price, etc. I loved my Gen 5's. So my dealer sent in one interconnect (DAC to PRE).

My dealer and I both know the history of Transparent upgrades so I knew I had little risk. My dealer packed up em and sent them in. When they are arrived, I was out of town on a business trip, I told my dealer, "hey try em and see what you think". (Dealer has all Transparent cabling and the same dac, amps and speakers)

His reply after a day of listening "me thinks you need to come home pretty fast..."

The dealer, and Transparent, are right. The Gen 6 is update really is quite amazing. And looking back the upgrade fee, in consideration of the rest of my system, was highly appropriate. In fact, given the improvement the Gen 6 update made, there is no other upgrade for that kind of money that would have made that kind of impact. Since then I've updated 2 other interconnects to Gen 6 and my speaker cable goes back in Jan for it's update. I am guessing the speaker cable maybe even more of an improvement.

Question, anything you can share on your power cords, conditioners or digital cables? Any updates down the road?

Hi, John -

Thank you for sharing your experiences about your Transparent linked system. You have a pleasant surprise awaiting you when you get your G5 MOSC updated to G6. It will be the largest step forward of those you have made thus far. I look forward to hearing about it from you early next year.

Transparent power cords and power conditioners are typically mid-cycle introductions so that's a few years down the road. We do our best to provide an upgrade path with trade in credit or an update option with new product introductions.

 

[dandylinpsst]

Hi Karen,
Can my Reference MM2 Balanced Interconnect(BRMM) be updated to G6?
Thanks!

 

[Karen Sumner]

Hi Karen,
Can my Reference MM2 Balanced Interconnect(BRMM) be updated to G6?
Thanks!

Hi, Dandylinpsst -

Your cable can not be updated, but your cable does have trade-in value toward G6 XL and or OPUS. We discontinued BRMM, SRMM, and MMSC with Generation 5. We substantially upgraded XL with G5 so that it in fact outperforms REFERENCE MM (MM and MM2 Series). G6 XL is yet another step forward. Are you the original owner of these cables, and did you purchase them from a Transparent Dealer? If so, it means your cables have an active warranty, and you will get full trade-in value. If you do not have an active warranty, you can recertify them for a reasonable fee, and you will then be eligible to get full trade-in value. Feel free to send me a direct message to give me serial number and length and your desired upgrade product (XL or OPUS), and I will let you know what's involved in proceeding. It would also be helpful if you could tell me what the 2 components are on either end of your cables, and what you have in the rest of your system for components (including cables).

 

[Karen Sumner]

You are most welcome to ask questions about Transparent Generation 6, upgrades, updates, or specific Transparent recommendations for your system.

 

[pk_LA]

Hello Karen

Thank you for your very thorough replies.

I have a mix of Gen 5 Reference and XL cables - speaker cables are Xl and interconnects are reference. You mentioned caution with mixing and matching cables previously. How do you feel about mixing and matching 'levels' of cables within your family? Furthermore, how about mixing Gen 5 and Gen 6?

 

[Karen Sumner]

Hello Karen

Thank you for your very thorough replies.

I have a mix of Gen 5 Reference and XL cables - speaker cables are Xl and interconnects are reference. You mentioned caution with mixing and matching cables previously. How do you feel about mixing and matching 'levels' of cables within your family? Furthermore, how about mixing Gen 5 and Gen 6?

Hi, pk -

These are excellent questions, and I am very happy to see you post them on this forum. I think your questions and the answers might be helpful to other members too.

Transparent has always designed our products using a musical reference standard. I won't go into the details of how we measure for these qualities and make them reliably repeatable here. I think you can get an idea of what this is all about on www.transparentcable.com.

Because we design to a musical standard the overall tonal character of our products regardless of performance level or generation are all quite compatible. In other words, as one takes advantage of later generations and moves up in performance level, the essential musical character carries through. Performance improvements occur from generation to generation and performance level to performance level because we expand and control the behavior of the cables over a wider frequency range (deeper, more defined low end and a lower noise floor to reveal more low level high frequency information), and we more closely align the cables' behavior with the output impedance characteristics of the source components.

It looks like you've been getting good advice all along. You are very well connected, but of course you can always improve that. Have you talked with your dealer about a plan? Please check with your dealer who knows a lot more about your system than I do, but based upon the information you've provided, I think a nice step up in performance for you would be to trade in your G5 REFERENCE Interconnects for G6 XL interconnects.

You also have a number of options for a speaker cable upgrade at some point. Upgrade your XL Speaker Cable to OPUS for the greatest trade-in return, but you also can consider upgrading G5 XL to G6 XL which is substantially improved to come a lot closer to OPUS.

I hope this helps. You are already in great shape in terms of building your system, and you have some excellent choices going forward.

 

[pk_LA]

Hi, pk -

These are excellent questions, and I am very happy to see you post them on this forum. I think your questions and the answers might be helpful to other members too.

Transparent has always designed our products using a musical reference standard. I won't go into the details of how we measure for these qualities and make them reliably repeatable here. I think you can get an idea of what this is all about on www.transparentcable.com.

Because we design to a musical standard the overall tonal character of our products regardless of performance level or generation are all quite compatible. In other words, as one takes advantage of later generations and moves up in performance level, the essential musical character carries through. Performance improvements occur from generation to generation and performance level to performance level because we expand and control the behavior of the cables over a wider frequency range (deeper, more defined low end and a lower noise floor to reveal more low level high frequency information), and we more closely align the cables' behavior with the output impedance characteristics of the source components.

It looks like you've been getting good advice all along. You are very well connected, but of course you can always improve that. Have you talked with your dealer about a plan? Please check with your dealer who knows a lot more about your system than I do, but based upon the information you've provided, I think a nice step up in performance for you would be to trade in your G5 REFERENCE Interconnects for G6 XL interconnects.

You also have a number of options for a speaker cable upgrade at some point. Upgrade your XL Speaker Cable to OPUS for the greatest trade-in return, but you also can consider upgrading G5 XL to G6 XL which is substantially improved to come a lot closer to OPUS.

I hope this helps. You are already in great shape in terms of building your system, and you have some excellent choices going forward.

Hi Karen,

Thank you for the reply.

My basic plan is as follows.

Try the G6 Opus vs my current G5 XL with the Alexx V first. Then I'll try the G6 interconnects. Finally, I want to try the G6 Opus powercords (sans any conditioner since my understanding is that your conditioner works great as long as it's coupled with all Transparent cabling). The powercord will be interesting as the Boulder people feel that the stock cord works very well with the 3060 and 3010 but I am curious to try for myself. I have heard that the Transparent powercord on the Boulder makes it a bit more 'musical'

 

[Karen Sumner]

Hi Karen,

Thank you for the reply.

My basic plan is as follows.

Try the G6 Opus vs my current G5 XL with the Alexx V first. Then I'll try the G6 interconnects. Finally, I want to try the G6 Opus powercords (sans any conditioner since my understanding is that your conditioner works great as long as it's coupled with all Transparent cabling). The powercord will be interesting as the Boulder people feel that the stock cord works very well with the 3060 and 3010 but I am curious to try for myself. I have heard that the Transparent powercord on the Boulder makes it a bit more 'musical'

Hi Karen,

Thank you for the reply.

My basic plan is as follows.

Try the G6 Opus vs my current G5 XL with the Alexx V first. Then I'll try the G6 interconnects. Finally, I want to try the G6 Opus powercords (sans any conditioner since my understanding is that your conditioner works great as long as it's coupled with all Transparent cabling). The powercord will be interesting as the Boulder people feel that the stock cord works very well with the 3060 and 3010 but I am curious to try for myself. I have heard that the Transparent powercord on the Boulder makes it a bit more 'musical'

That sounds like a great plan. You will not regret going the OPUS route sooner rather than later! Could you send me a PM with your name and the name of your dealer so we can work with you and your dealer to help you get the most out of your plan?