Wilson Alexandria Speaker Cable recommendation

[Mike Lavigne]

Mark,

i agree we can sometimes overkill some of these issues such as the proper speaker cable termination.

how important is it really?

well; it turns out that speaker cables are quite a significant variable in system performance. and over the years i've gone pretty gonzo on speaker cables. at one point when i had the Von Schweikert VR9SE speaker that could be bi-wired, i had 2 sets of Transparent Opus speaker cables......yes, over $60k retail in speaker cables.

a couple of years ago i discovered that my transient performance would improve if i put Wave Kinetics A10-U8 decoupling footers underneath the network pods on the Opus MM2 speaker cables.

and i've found that the Cardas speaker cable terminals sound best, and require spades.

speaker cables will 'sing' along with the music if you let them. the speaker cabinet will have some small amount of reasonance, the floor will have it's own level of noise, as well as your amplifier. how much these things add to the noise floor of your system and blur music focus depends on a few variables.

so anything that allows for a mechanical advantage in the whole speaker cable attachment area will typically yield performance dividends as a system gets more and more resolved.

my new Evolution Acoustics are very heavy and thick. i'm not sure they sound so good because of all the copper, or because they are so hunky and heavy. whatever is the reason; the noise floor, dynamics, and overall level of resolution is now at an all time high. it's almost as if the thicker and more mass in the cables, the better they perform.

with speaker cables i think everything matters alot.

 

[LL21]

a couple of years ago i discovered that my transient performance would improve if i put Wave Kinetics A10-U8 decoupling footers underneath the network pods on the Opus MM2 speaker cables.

Would you recommend the Wave Kinetics pods to be used for speakers under my X1/Grand Slamms? I've got a wood floor over concrete, but Auralex Gramma subwoofer isolation platform did make a big difference. Not sure what would happen if we stuck Wave Kinetics under a 650lb speaker.

 

[Bruce B]

Would you recommend the Wave Kinetics pods to be used for speakers under my X1/Grand Slamms? I've got a wood floor over concrete, but Auralex Gramma subwoofer isolation platform did make a big difference. Not sure what would happen if we stuck Wave Kinetics under a 650lb speaker.

Well the Wave Kinteics are under my 525 lb. MM3's with no problem. I too am on hardwood over concrete, though there are about 4" between it and the concrete. It certainly made a big difference with mine.

 

[LL21]

Well the Wave Kinteics are under my 525 lb. MM3's with no problem. I too am on hardwood over concrete, though there are about 4" between it and the concrete. It certainly made a big difference with mine.

Good to know! What kind of difference if you have a few minutes to provide some insight. Thanks!

 

[Bruce B]

Good to know! What kind of difference if you have a few minutes to provide some insight. Thanks!

It felt like the bass had more authority and definition. Before, the bass was there, but felt more relaxed and homogenized

 

[LL21]

Thanks, Bruce!

 

[MrAcoustat]

I prefer silver cables. I use Siltech 770i and Nordost Valhalla (Vinyl rig) as my main interconnects. Current speaker cable is Siltech LS-110 Mk2 (G5).

I am considering Nordost Valhalla (I know only silver plated copper) and Odin (used). I am also considering the Siltech Royal Signature Line "Prince" which is about $9k for 2 meter's. Looking for reference cable recs. I am not sold on network box style cables like MIT, Transparent.

A buddy of mine with a very good system was using ALL Nirvana in is system, then changed to ALL Stealth and now as just changed again for the last time he say's to ALL Purist Audio Design, here is a photo of his system. 43k worth of cables, it's nice to be able to afford that.

 

[rockitman]

After much deliberation between Siltech and Nordost, I opted for a 4 meter pair (shotgun/spades) Valhalla. Apparently 4 meter's is recommended whether you need that length or not... at 4 meters, optimum resonance/damping is achieved according to Nordost ?

 

[Steve williams]

A much deliberation between Siltech and Nordost, I opted for a 4 meter pair (shotgun/spades) Valhalla. Apparently 4 meter's is recommended whether you need that length or not... at 4 meters, optimum resonance/damping is achieved according to Nordost ?

That's absolutely true or at least that is what II was told when I bought my 4 meter pair.

Christian, this is getting spooky. We will have an east and west version of our systems because they are getting more and more alike. Now if I could just convert you to the dark side of tubes

 

[rockitman]

That's absolutely true or at least that is what II was told when I bought my 4 meter pair.

Christian, this is getting spooky. We will have an east and west version of our systems because they are getting more and more alike. Now if I could just convert you to the dark side of tubes

Thanks for confirming that. Tubes ? Maybe some day. Class A SS is treating me very well at the moment...

 

[rockitman]

So the 4m Nordost Valhalla speaker cables arrived today. I was expecting a nominal improvement over my Siltech LS-110 G5 speaker cables. Boy was I in for a surprise. I never realized I was listening to my speaker's with blankets on, literally. The Valhalla's opened up the musical presentation like never before (at least for me). The depth of the soundstage, the ambience of the recording hall/studio, the independence of all musical elements to do their own thing without any apparrent restriction to the other musical element's performance. The treble much more extended, yet balanced. The apparent resolution is not fatiguing. You truly feel like your hearing the music as intended. The Bass....so clear, extended and articulated. No bloat anywhere in the bass frequency range. I have only heard one selection so far and that's all it's taken for me to render this preliminary opinion. I will share more thoughts as I get more listening time under my belt. I am very happy I stayed the course with Nordost....

1st record heard:
45 rpm Anaologue Productions

 

[microstrip]

Congratulations Christian. I really know what you are speaking about!

 

[rockitman]

Thanks Micro. They are truly a revelation. I can not believe how much speaker cables matter. Nordost just lets the music flow, unrestricted. Cymbals have such beautiful splash and decay.

 

[Rocco I.]

Hi Christian,

sincere congrats.

Nordost cables, especially their Top (Valhalla and Odin), are outstanding.

 

[ack]

Thanks Micro. They are truly a revelation. I can not believe how much speaker cables matter. Nordost just lets the music flow, unrestricted. Cymbals have such beautiful splash and decay.

I wonder... did your Siltech cables come sealed in some box or something, indicating place of origin? I ask because for years, and up until 3 years ago, distribution was done by a local Boston low-to-mid-fi dealer, whose staff were actually assembling Siltech cables from spools (and I am not sure what is done now with the new distributor). But once I saw him "cut" mine (power cords back then), I was, frankly, appalled by the workmanship, parts and the cable itself. Having said that, I still have one to my VPI's motor. But when I replaced most of those Siltech cords with Shunyata the difference was significant; and it's not because Shunyata is so superior, but probably because Siltech so inferior. Thoughts?

 

[rockitman]

Hi Ack,

They are authentic Siltech. I bought them from and authorized deale with box and serial numbers. The spade connections are impeccable as you would expect with Siltech. The Nordost simply sound better in my system...a very significant improvement. The Siltech are smooth but lack the bass definition, treble extension and air of the Nordost.

 

[Bill Hart]

Christian- Aren't the Valhalla notorious for long burn-in time? It will be interesting to get your reactions after some time has passed, because I thought alot of the criticism levelled at Nordost (and probably unfairly) was listening to their cables before they had fully burned in....

 

[rockitman]

Hi whart,

Could be. These were one of Nordost's show sets so it was assumed they were pretty much broken in by their burn-in machine and actual playback time. They may have more to go.

 

[MrAcoustat]

Thanks Micro. They are truly a revelation. I can not believe how much speaker cables matter. Nordost just lets the music flow, unrestricted. Cymbals have such beautiful splash and decay.

Someone i know was using Transparent Reference speaker cables on his Alexandria's and was very satisfied.

 

[rockitman]

Thanks..I ruled out network box cables. There isn't another cable I would rather have than Valhalla this side of Odin.