Recent content by paradiziac

Wow, back from the dead! I eventually settled on a rare vintage DAC I loved the sound of (with the "legendary" TDA1541 S1 chip), and paired it with a 16/44 only USB converter and posh cabling. The end of my computer upsampling experiments! It sounds great, but then so does my iPod touch with...

I've got a Creek 4330 hooked to my Sonatas in a 3rd system, sounds great for what it cost ;)

+1

Reading with interest having compared TQ graphite v Siltech 550L RCA interconnects... The TQ graphite was as Alex described, huge dynamic sound with tons of detail—lots of "air around the instruments". I was blown away initially but got tired of it. For me the Siltech had beautiful highs and...

Almost everyone strives for accuracy, but which system is more accurate is subjective.

That's because all amps sound the same when connected to Harbeth speakers ;)

FWIW, I've found power cords to have the biggest effect on digital sources (in my case USB converter and to a lesser extent, DAC and PC). IME it's important to isolate the digital kit from the amp. So far, power cords on my amp have either made little difference or sounded worse than a standard...

That was my point really, no system is "transparent". Different systems will come close in different ways, but which one is closest to "transparency" comes down to individual taste. Enjoy THE MUSIC on whatever system you've got is what I say, no matter if it's £100 or £10000. There's no need...

Question: Imagine your favourite active speaker brand brings out a new version that sounds better than its predecessor, would that speaker be more transparent?

One man's transparent is another man's coloured...

No, not heard Cardas. From the others mentioned I like Atlas. For the guys who like the 330's, try the 550 or 770. I tried the 220 and the 550 is a big step up! What was most interesting to me from my cable experiments was that first, you don't need such a high end system to hear the benefits...

Seems to mirror my experience. I've compared TQ graphite v Siltech 550L interconnects in my system. The TQ graphite sounded initially impressive but were ultimately boring. It is as if the "whole" of the music was being separated into its parts. The Siltechs won hands down in terms of...

So, IDC, which USB cables in the context of which systems did you hear in order to reach your definitive conclusion?

I tried a £50 Wireworld USB cable on an MF v-dac and the difference over a printer USB cable was negligible. I returned the cable. A few system upgrades later, I repeated the experiment with Siltech and Oyaide cables and heard a clear improvement over generic leads. I happily own the Oyaide...