BRIGHTNESS KILLING CABLES ?

[admin_exported]

Hi, I really need to curb the high frequency treble on my system. I would describe it as glare or piercing sounding but it is only really a problem in the treble.

The system is monitor audio gs10, cyrus pre vs2/8 power, marantz cd6002, atlas equador mk11 IC`s and chord carnival silver screen speaker cables.

I am looking for bi-wire speaker cables that reduce glare and brightness more than the single chord carnival if possible and maybe new IC`s if there are any out there better that the atlas ones for reducing brightness and glare...

Any advice would be welcome....

 

[Cypher]

I think changing cables won't make a difference.

 

[CnoEvil]

Try Van Damme UP LC-OFC - worth a try at reasonable cost.

IMO Atlas are not bright but will pass on a problem. The Chords are on the bright side.

Regards

Cno

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Gaz

I know exactly what you are feeling/hearing and it has been a problem that has plagued my set up....As I went from real cheap cables to the Chords I noticed an improvement but mainly in the base. The improvement on the treble was very marginal.

You are on the Chords now so I don't think that cables will help you much. Nor bi wiring.

The largest improvement came for me when changing my speakers from 9.1's to the DL 2's.

My 640's have long been posted here as being bright and I must agree. The synergy with the Dali's has helped considerably and brought much more enjoyment from them.

Probably auditioning various speakers will be your best bet.

 

[Anonymous]

cables have no bearing on sound, i think the speakers are the problem, why not consider some with a soft dome tweeter? dynaudio, pmc, spendor etc...

 

[Clare Newsome]

Hi, I really need to curb the high frequency treble on my system. I would describe it as glare or piercing sounding but it is only really a problem in the treble.

The system is monitor audio gs10, cyrus pre vs2/8 power, marantz cd6002, atlas equador mk11 IC`s and chord carnival silver screen speaker cables.

I am looking for bi-wire speaker cables that reduce glare and brightness more than the single chord carnival if possible and maybe new IC`s if there are any out there better that the atlas ones for reducing brightness and glare...

Any advice would be welcome....

Is there anything you can do to your room to tame the treble slightly? (eg do you have wooden floors/large windows etc that you could add a rug/thicker curtains to?)

 

[Mr Morph]

For what it's worth, my suspicion falls more towards your IC's. And contrary to what many people say about cables I do think there is a difference, especially between solid cores and multi strands, although my guess is, you'll only hear the difference with certain equipment?

So having said all that, and trying desperately to avoid another 'cable debate thread'... If you can try out some Mark Grant G1000HD cables on a 'trial or return' basis, that might be worth checking out.

 

[aliEnRIK]

I agree with the above comment that atlas cables are fine. Chord probably do make it a tad brighter (Van Damme UP LC-OFC copper speaker cables are far better to my mind). The problems more with your equipment than anything else.

You might also consider NOT biwiring. Biwiring tends to 'phase shift' frequencies so treble will become sharper

I have my MA 8is single wired and much prefer it to when it was biwired and even biamped

 

[Kevin Stephens]

I found an immediate improvement on the treble on my GS10s (MF A3.5 amp) when I upgraded my Interconnect to Chord Chorus 2; Joni Mitchell now sounds far sweater and less shrill. I use Chord Odyssey 2 speaker cables.

Worth trying the Chorus 2 on home demo

 

[Anonymous]

I went to Atlas Equator (LS bi-wire) a year ago exactly to curb the brightness in my system. Had very little effect. What solved it for me was upgrading my source (arcam cd72 to cd192). The brightness remained, but the harshness was gone.

 

[Big Chris]

I don't know if they still do them, but I used to use VDH's 'The Bay' I/Cs. Much smoothness (too much for me).

 

[the record spot]

All I would suggest here is not to use a cable as a tone control and to address the problem at the component level.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi, i have gr60's and found wireworld oasis the best for taking off treblebrightness,( and helping with bass.)-i tried quite a few differant types. copper seems much more forgiving than silver.

I am bit of a newbie but disagree with those that say speaker cable doesnt make much of a differance--i think it makes a big diff, espec copper vs silver cable.

found chord odyssy or epic the worst for brightness.

good luck and happy listening

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all who made a reply, I think I might give the Van damme and wireworld cables a go.

I dont want to sell the speakers since the bass and mids make my old Dali Lektor 2`s look like a joke.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Gaz

I missed the fact you had speakers in the £900 league...no wonder you are enjoying the performance hike....The brightness thing continues to interest me...let us know if you score with solving the problem if you can.

 

[the record spot]

Thanks for all who made a reply, I think I might give the Van damme and wireworld cables a go.

I dont want to sell the speakers since the bass and mids make my old Dali Lektor 2`s look like a joke.

Fair dos, then upgrading the amplifier would be the way forward for me. Cables aren't a solution - tried many interconnects going up to £200 and if I'd spent £200 on it as opposed to what I had, I'd be extremely disappointed. The exception to this would be the aforesaid copper against silver with the latter typically brighter and this appears to be a characteristic of the material.

The most distinct and worthwhile changes over the long term were the components. For digital, the amps made the biggest difference, for analogue, the source. All IMO of course.

 

[SonofSun]

Hi, I really need to curb the high frequency treble on my system. I would describe it as glare or piercing sounding but it is only really a problem in the treble.

The system is monitor audio gs10, cyrus pre vs2/8 power, marantz cd6002, atlas equador mk11 IC`s and chord carnival silver screen speaker cables.

I am looking for bi-wire speaker cables that reduce glare and brightness more than the single chord carnival if possible and maybe new IC`s if there are any out there better that the atlas ones for reducing brightness and glare...

Any advice would be welcome....

Claire is suggesting the right approach, firstly you should look at room accoustics including the positioning of your speakers if possible.

If you don't like the sound after that, cables won't solve the problem, you will need to change your kit.

 

[Anonymous]

I 2nd Clare's comments.

if i was emporer of the whole universe, i would put 'ROOM ACOUSTICS' at the start of every thread as the biggest effect on how your kit sounds.

but im not, so i wont.

plenty of old threads about room acoustics on this forum--worth the time reading them.

good luck and happy listening

 

[Anonymous]

i was in the same situation as u, i have now balanced the sound to my liking with cables. u might get advice from people visiting the forum but hoping for a chance that someone out there has an identical system and not sound bright and respond to this thread is not likely to happen, everything is system and personal taste dependent. However i have spent way too much money experimenting on cables, i've learnt a thing or two about certain brands and their house sound.

So here's a list of cables i think brought warmth to my system, unfortunately i don't live in the UK, there might be brands that you can't buy from where u live, for me i took some risks and bought some from the USA and hong kong a few times.

Siltech:they r really costly if u r into upgrading, i had their entry level(mxt new york for all my components) for awhile, really sweet treble, and mellows out everything, but the bass isn't very powerful, unless get their high-end stuff.

ATL: a german make, pretty full-bodied sound and smooth, good price too, though it makes the sound thicker, some people don;t like this presentation.

Cardas: known for their warm sound, some say their flagship stuff are very neutral but i haven't heard them, i have cardas golden cross interconnect in my system right now, it really has soften the sound.

analysis plus: audition it if u can, it's very clean, which didn't work out for me, i wanted to like it because all my rock and jazz sounded so good, it isn't bright or harsh, bit round sounding almost but a little too weighty, good for bass but too powerful for treble for me.

transparent: another expensive make(mine are entry level bulk cables terminated by this cable dealer near me), are also my current speaker cables, it has really sweet sound, no emphasis on any audio band, the most coherent sound i've heard on my system so far, the bass is truly defined, really warm midrange, and this completely tames my treble without sacrificing anything. I'm definitely keeping them.

Audience: they sound so organic, but i feel one could only achieve the full potential when using them with every component.

PS Audio: i find the tonality is on the warm and dark side, though everyone's raving about their power conditioner, and kind of forgetting that they make pretty good cables as well.

good luck

 

[CnoEvil]

i was in the same situation as u, i have now balanced the sound to my liking with cables. u might get advice from people visiting the forum but hoping for a chance that someone out there has an identical system and not sound bright and respond to this thread is not likely to happen, everything is system and personal taste dependent. However i have spent way too much money experimenting on cables, i've learnt a thing or two about certain brands and their house sound.

So here's a list of cables i think brought warmth to my system, unfortunately i don't live in the UK, there might be brands that you can't buy from where u live, for me i took some risks and bought some from the USA and hong kong a few times.

Siltech:they r really costly if u r into upgrading, i had their entry level(mxt new york for all my components) for awhile, really sweet treble, and mellows out everything, but the bass isn't very powerful, unless get their high-end stuff.

ATL: a german make, pretty full-bodied sound and smooth, good price too, though it makes the sound thicker, some people don;t like this presentation.

Cardas: known for their warm sound, some say their flagship stuff are very neutral but i haven't heard them, i have cardas golden cross interconnect in my system right now, it really has soften the sound.

analysis plus: audition it if u can, it's very clean, which didn't work out for me, i wanted to like it because all my rock and jazz sounded so good, it isn't bright or harsh, bit round sounding almost but a little too weighty, good for bass but too powerful for treble for me.

transparent: another expensive make(mine are entry level bulk cables terminated by this cable dealer near me), are also my current speaker cables, it has really sweet sound, no emphasis on any audio band, the most coherent sound i've heard on my system so far, the bass is truly defined, really warm midrange, and this completely tames my treble without sacrificing anything. I'm definitely keeping them.

Audience: they sound so organic, but i feel one could only achieve the full potential when using them with every component.

PS Audio: i find the tonality is on the warm and dark side, though everyone's raving about their power conditioner, and kind of forgetting that they make pretty good cables as well.

good luck

I agree with a lot of this - I even own Cardas Golden Cross cables. The only problem is when the cables are as expensive as the componants themselves....ie. The money would be better put to different speakers etc.

Van Damme and Van Den Hul are the warmest, cheaper cables I can think of, that shouldn't break the bank.....though it's good to see a list of musical cables that might not otherwise get mentioned.

Please don't see this as disagreement, as it's good to see a fellow "nutcase" who understands the merit in the more exotic brands of cable.....I'm well used to weathering the storm of derision.

Cno

 

[Adu]

Try DNM Stereo Solid Core cables : http://www.dnm.co.uk/cablesdetail.html#stereocable .These are smooth cables without harsh sound.

 

[Anonymous]

bbgggg

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry. Some mistakes!!!

Try some 1-2 Ohm resistors in the tweeter circuit. See also: www.lampizator.eu under "CABLES".

Regards.

 

[Anonymous]

Ok well I solved the problem 100%. I bi-amped the speakers with a rotel ra04 se on the tweeters and the cyrus 8 power on the bass. All brightness gone, massive boost in bass weight ( too much really ) and treble is smooth.

On the down side, the 8 power is heating up much faster and hotter that when it was used with its natural partner the pre vs2. Worried that the amp is getting damaged by bi-amping with a rotel. It used to take forever to heat up but when I tested it bi-amped it was hot in 20 mins or so.

 

[jiggyjoe]

You cant really bi-amp unless you have gain matched components. Usually means using amps from the same manufacturer.

what is happeniing is that your cyrus amp is more sensitive so giving more output relative to the rotel thus unbalancing the tweeter to mid bass driver output.