For an open, uber detailed sound, which interconnect?

[Anonymous]

Clare Newsome:
I'll ask the test team to check out the SHB interconnects next time we're doing a cables round-up.

It may not have worked out for Gotham, but the ThatCable HDMI did incredibly well after being recommended here/bought on eBay to test!

Good stuff. I think the gent behind SHB will do well.

 

[Anonymous]

problem is currently the silver high breeds are one off runs (i.e. limited editions as far as I understand) ...

I have the more expensive coherence which I am using in my current system, and have a set of Synergy which I have not used yet and was a freebie from the seller ....

so the seller may produce even better cables in the future .... and those that have already purchased the current ones may be anle to sell them for loads more than what they paid for at a later stage

I will also receive my 10AWG speaker cable next week and have read on a forum that they are superb, so cannot wait to try them!

 

[stephennic]

Hi,

How does the chord chameleon silver plus compare soundwise to the silver breed interconnect? Which is better? I wonder how it compares also to the nordost BH interconnect?

Cheers,

Steve.

 

[Anonymous]

It's more a case of what's different rather than which is better. The SHB is brighter than the CSP, some have described it as having a very etched treble. It's also leaner in the bass but some find it gives it more definition. Which is better will depend on your system and your preferences but I used one of each.

 

[bretty]

About 80 hours under their belt, now. I've gotta just put my hands up and say that they are brilliant! No longer bright or thin, but a punchy and taught bass response. This, paired with the still great detail in the mid-top end means that these are blinding. I can't believe the fella's knocking them out for £16.

 

[idc]

bretty:....... I can't believe the fella's knocking them out for £16.

Check out the Silver High Breed website for some pricing... http://www.silverhighbreed.com/. A 0.5 m Metaphor IC is down from £56 to £16, saving £40. Where has it been on sale for £56? Is this the end of the excellent prices? I would not blame him if it was, supply and demand dictating prices.

 

[Dave_]

idc:
bretty:....... I can't believe the fella's knocking them out for £16.

Check out the Silver High Breed website for some pricing... http://www.silverhighbreed.com/. A 0.5 m Metaphor IC is down from £56 to £16, saving £40. Where has it been on sale for £56? Is this the end of the excellent prices? I would not blame him if it was, supply and demand dictating prices.
Maybe they're just getting shot of old stock,and replacing it with another line.

 

[stephennic]

igglebert:It's more a case of what's different rather than which is better. The SHB is brighter than the CSP, some have described it as having a very etched treble. It's also leaner in the bass but some find it gives it more definition. Which is better will depend on your system and your preferences but I used one of each.

Hi,

It sounds a bit like the Nordost Blue Heaven the SBC - have you compared all 3 NBH, CSP and SHB. What did u think?

Cheers,

Steve.

 

[Anonymous]

just bagged a used set of SHB Synergy speaker cables with banana plugs for £7.57 off ebay ... will use these on my 2nd system (Pioneer A400 amp, Pioneer PD-S703 cd player and speakers which I have yet to decide and buy) ... was given a free SHB snergy interconnect from the guy at Silver High Breed so thats my cables sorted for my 2nd system

will get my SHB 10 AWG speaker cables which I ordered from SHB for my main system later this week ... have my coherence interconnect on my main system and sounds superb (am currently using cheap speaker cable)

 

[sheehanjuk]

dim_span:
just bagged a used set of SHB Synergy speaker cables with banana plugs for £7.57 off ebay ... will use these on my 2nd system (Pioneer A400 amp, Pioneer PD-S703 cd player and speakers which I have yet to decide and buy) ... was given a free SHB snergy interconnect from the guy at Silver High Breed so thats my cables sorted for my 2nd system

will get my SHB 10 AWG speaker cables which I ordered from SHB for my main system later this week ... have my coherence interconnect on my main system and sounds superb (am currently using cheap speaker cable)

You brought them off me!!

Hope you like them, I prefer the Chord Carnival Silverscreen which I think easily outperforms, saying that I prefer my SHB interconnect to my Chord Chameleon Silver Plus so lesson is play and see what fits... errrr.. like life.. women.. err.. moving on :O)

 

[Anonymous]

Hey! Cool! .... saved me some money and am well pleased, as I was going to buy them from SHB direct! ....

the length (1,5m) is perfect for my 2nd system and the banana plugs will suit perfect (my other pair on order for my main system will have silver spades on 1 end and unterminated on the other as the Pioneer SA-9800 amp has the old funny type connectors)

 

[Anonymous]

stephennic:
igglebert:It's more a case of what's different rather than which is better. The SHB is brighter than the CSP, some have described it as having a very etched treble. It's also leaner in the bass but some find it gives it more definition. Which is better will depend on your system and your preferences but I used one of each.

Hi,

It sounds a bit like the Nordost Blue Heaven the SBC - have you compared all 3 NBH, CSP and SHB. What did u think?

Cheers,

Steve.

Yeah, I thought the SHB Coherence LE was like (my memory of the) N Blue Heaven. I tried the NBH against the CSP a couple of years ago when my kit was bright at the best of times. The CSP won without trying. I'd like to try it again out of interest but the SHB strikes me as being rather similar in disposition.

Sometimes I think that the only way to get the sound I like is to buy the Nordost Baldur. I tried it against the NBH and CSP and it seemed to give the best of both; sweet treble without being brash, deep bass without being lean nor bloated. I think this applies to the SHB too, I'd have to spend a load on the Baldur to get the best of all worlds.

 

[stephennic]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply on your view on the interconnects (NBH, CSP,SB).

Cheers,

Steve.

 

[stephennic]

Hi,

I think you are right the NBH can be bright on bright system, my speakers are fairly warm sounding and the top end is smooth so i think it opens up the sound somewhat - probably a good match.

Cheers,

Steve.

 

[Anonymous]

igglebert:For the record I'm on the slightly more expensive and older Coherence LE. Whether there's any difference to the current ones I have no idea. These SHB remind me of the Nordost Blue Heaven on the way that they seem to have a lean but full and deep bass. The Chord CSP is simply different rather than worse and I love both. You have to wonder, seeing as a cable can't add anything to the sound, do all of our systems have bloomy bass? We all seem to like the tightness and very slight lean bass of the SHB so how can this be explained away? Maybe the boomier bass of cables like the CSP is explained by signal distortion.

As you can see I have the BH rev 2 interconnect and I recently bought some Solar Wind speaker cable. That's exactly how I would describe the bass ; lean but very deep, times well. I can't describe how much better the speaker cables are to my old QED SAXT. Several leagues above.

How can a cable make such a difference? Perhaps most budget cables really aren't up to it. Most systems could do with better cables probably. I know, it's depressing.

 

[Anonymous]

could it be that the noise suppressor valves which are fitted on the SHB cables make the big difference? .... not sure if any other interconnects or speaker cables come standard with these fitted?

 

[Anonymous]

Captain Destructo:
How can a cable make such a difference? Perhaps most budget cables really aren't up to it. Most systems could do with better cables probably. I know, it's depressing.

I know, it really is depressing. Good speaker cables do seem to keep things together more.

 

[RCduck7]

igglebert:Captain Destructo:

How can a cable make such a difference? Perhaps most budget cables really aren't up to it. Most systems could do with better cables probably. I know, it's depressing.

I know, it really is depressing. Good speaker cables do seem to keep things together more.

tut tut tut... Thats not true, cables can sound different, and expensive quality cables may look the business but that's about it.

I would recommend Anti Cables... http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue18/anticables.htm

It's a massive solid copper wire so it might not be for everyone as it is not practical to manage the cable.

In my opinion cables should be as neutral as possible, they should only pass the signal as good as possible and not mess with it.

I had Chord Odyssey before and when i tried the Anti Cable i almost instantly made the click in my head, nothing was added, nothing was taken away from the sound.

The Anti Cable does sound "right", musical, emotional and no partiular sound was forced to me.

 

[Anonymous]

RCduck7:igglebert:Captain Destructo:

How can a cable make such a difference? Perhaps most budget cables really aren't up to it. Most systems could do with better cables probably. I know, it's depressing.

I know, it really is depressing. Good speaker cables do seem to keep things together more.

tut tut tut... Thats not true, cables can sound different, and expensive quality cables may look the business but that's about it.

I would recommend Anti Cables... http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue18/anticables.htm

It's a massive solid copper wire so it might not be for everyone as it is not practical to manage the cable.

In my opinion cables should be as neutral as possible, they should only pass the signal as good as possible and not mess with it.

I had Chord Odyssey before and when i tried the Anti Cable i almost instantly made the click in my head, nothing was added, nothing was taken away from the sound.

The Anti Cable does sound "right", musical, emotional and no partiular sound was forced to me.

I don't believe neutrality really exists. Every component, every part stamps it's own signature onto the signal. The right accessories don't add anything, that's impossible, rather they can accentuate to partially correct for deficiency/imbalance further up (or down) the chain.

Without the right accessories, my player and amplifier sound lifeless and flat, but with these cables the sound is moderately dynamic, fast and detailed (believe it or not, I never thought the arcams were capable of it) . Does that mean something is added that wasn't there to begin with? No. This aspect is brought out in partial exclusion to something else (fullness, warmth etc).

Okay there is a limit to what cables can do in this regard, particularly if the source is fundamentally lacking in detail, but I don't think a lot of systems reach the point where the source has nothing more to give.

 

[stephennic]

Captain Destructo:RCduck7:igglebert:Captain Destructo:

How can a cable make such a difference? Perhaps most budget cables really aren't up to it. Most systems could do with better cables probably. I know, it's depressing.

I know, it really is depressing. Good speaker cables do seem to keep things together more.

tut tut tut... Thats not true, cables can sound different, and expensive quality cables may look the business but that's about it.

I would recommend Anti Cables... http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue18/anticables.htm

It's a massive solid copper wire so it might not be for everyone as it is not practical to manage the cable.

In my opinion cables should be as neutral as possible, they should only pass the signal as good as possible and not mess with it.

I had Chord Odyssey before and when i tried the Anti Cable i almost instantly made the click in my head, nothing was added, nothing was taken away from the sound.

The Anti Cable does sound "right", musical, emotional and no partiular sound was forced to me.

I don't believe neutrality really exists. Every component, every part stamps it's own signature onto the signal. The right accessories don't add anything, that's impossible, rather they can accentuate to partially correct for deficiency/imbalance further up (or down) the chain.

Without the right accessories, my player and amplifier sound lifeless and flat, but with these cables the sound is moderately dynamic, fast and detailed (believe it or not, I never thought the arcams were capable of it) . Does that mean something is added that wasn't there to begin with? No. This aspect is brought out in partial exclusion to something else (fullness, warmth etc).

Okay there is a limit to what cables can do in this regard, particularly if the source is fundamentally lacking in detail, but I don't think a lot of systems reach the point where the source has nothing more to give.

Hi,

I noticed you have NBH interconnects have you compared them to anything else - if so what interconnects. They certaintly are a fast sounding cable.

Cheers,

Steve.

 

[RCduck7]

Captain Destructo:RCduck7:igglebert:Captain Destructo:

How can a cable make such a difference? Perhaps most budget cables really aren't up to it. Most systems could do with better cables probably. I know, it's depressing.

I know, it really is depressing. Good speaker cables do seem to keep things together more.

tut tut tut... Thats not true, cables can sound different, and expensive quality cables may look the business but that's about it.

I would recommend Anti Cables... http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue18/anticables.htm

It's a massive solid copper wire so it might not be for everyone as it is not practical to manage the cable.

In my opinion cables should be as neutral as possible, they should only pass the signal as good as possible and not mess with it.

I had Chord Odyssey before and when i tried the Anti Cable i almost instantly made the click in my head, nothing was added, nothing was taken away from the sound.

The Anti Cable does sound "right", musical, emotional and no partiular sound was forced to me.

I don't believe neutrality really exists. Every component, every part stamps it's own signature onto the signal. The right accessories don't add anything, that's impossible, rather they can accentuate to partially correct for deficiency/imbalance further up (or down) the chain.

Without the right accessories, my player and amplifier sound lifeless and flat, but with these cables the sound is moderately dynamic, fast and detailed (believe it or not, I never thought the arcams were capable of it) . Does that mean something is added that wasn't there to begin with? No. This aspect is brought out in partial exclusion to something else (fullness, warmth etc).

Okay there is a limit to what cables can do in this regard, particularly if the source is fundamentally lacking in detail, but I don't think a lot of systems reach the point where the source has nothing more to give.

Ok, maybe that's one way to look at it. Some people like the sound a certain way and try to correct a somewhat mismatch of components with certain cables that have certain characteristics to counter that. Matching components is night and day in audible difference that cables can do. I don't think it is good to try and correct problems with cables. Cables shouldn't mess that much with the signal transfer in my opinion, i like the sound as natural as possible.

Maybe i shouldn't confuse natural with neutral but that's what the anti cable promised and i got. And as said before, such a hard wire cannot be a commercial succes as it is very difficult for most to manage the cable, it's defenitly not practical.

I don't want anyone to convince and buy anti cable but as a tip, try some hard coaxial wire as speaker cable of good quality without the traditional isolation (isolation has negative effects), put it in flexible plastic tube if nessecery so the + and - won't touch each other and keep the cable suspended in the air, not touching the floor or components. If your components allready match with standard speaker cables that weren't designed to sound a certain way you may be pleasently surprised what hard wire can do that is designed for sound transfer.

 

[Anonymous]

stephennic:Captain Destructo:RCduck7:igglebert:Captain Destructo:

How can a cable make such a difference? Perhaps most budget cables really aren't up to it. Most systems could do with better cables probably. I know, it's depressing.

I know, it really is depressing. Good speaker cables do seem to keep things together more.

tut tut tut... Thats not true, cables can sound different, and expensive quality cables may look the business but that's about it.

I would recommend Anti Cables... http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue18/anticables.htm

It's a massive solid copper wire so it might not be for everyone as it is not practical to manage the cable.

In my opinion cables should be as neutral as possible, they should only pass the signal as good as possible and not mess with it.

I had Chord Odyssey before and when i tried the Anti Cable i almost instantly made the click in my head, nothing was added, nothing was taken away from the sound.

The Anti Cable does sound "right", musical, emotional and no partiular sound was forced to me.

I don't believe neutrality really exists. Every component, every part stamps it's own signature onto the signal. The right accessories don't add anything, that's impossible, rather they can accentuate to partially correct for deficiency/imbalance further up (or down) the chain.

Without the right accessories, my player and amplifier sound lifeless and flat, but with these cables the sound is moderately dynamic, fast and detailed (believe it or not, I never thought the arcams were capable of it) . Does that mean something is added that wasn't there to begin with? No. This aspect is brought out in partial exclusion to something else (fullness, warmth etc).

Okay there is a limit to what cables can do in this regard, particularly if the source is fundamentally lacking in detail, but I don't think a lot of systems reach the point where the source has nothing more to give.

Hi,

I noticed you have NBH interconnects have you compared them to anything else - if so what interconnects. They certaintly are a fast sounding cable.

Cheers,

Steve.

I just bought them after reading the reviews etc. and I haven't heard other popular brands. Prior to that I had Straightwire Encore 2 interconnects, which don't compare. It's very hard to audition cables, they have to be removed from the packets, and the ones used in store are usually bargain basement (not sure why if they're trying to impress customers with SQ).

Are they really that fast or are other brands slow? Perhaps bright in some systems, but nowhere near so in mine.

 

[bretty]

Quick update: The guy has a new range now, the Metaphor 2, and all lengths are in stock. He knows his cables are getting popular, cos he's put his prices up. Get in there quick while they're still a bargain!

 

[Anonymous]

Apparently still not as good as the Coherence LE though.

 

[Anonymous]

has anyone tried the SHB speaker cable? .... have received my set but have to get adapters as the binding posts on my amp are the old japanese type with a small hole ...

I have the 10AWG and they are very thick .... hopefully, I will be able to connect next week