Speaker cable

[Superhullie]

Hello,
Recently acquired a pair B&W 705 Signature speakers (in fabulous datuk finish) and the Rotel RA-1592MKII integrated amplifier.
Now i am looking for speakercables ( bi-wire or full-range with jumper) that would bring the most out of them.
I am thinking about : Audioquest Rocket 88 or Telluriumq Silver iii or ??

Thanks for any advice you can give me


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[abacus]

Make sure you perform a blind test before going for Hi-Fi cables as they are nothing but a con, and are purely there to extract as much money a possible for you.
Go for professional cables (As used in professional Film and Music Studios) as they are reasonably priced and of high quality. (Go for 4mm sq with the equipment you have listed, unless they are very long runs)

Bill

 

[Integralista]

Hello,
Recently acquired a pair B&W 705 Signature speakers (in fabulous datuk finish) and the Rotel RA-1592MKII integrated amplifier.
Now i am looking for speakercables ( bi-wire or full-range with jumper) that would bring the most out of them.
I am thinking about : Audioquest Rocket 88 or Telluriumq Silver iii or ??

Thanks for any advice you can give me


-

Hi, you got nice combination of proper very good Rotel amp and B&W bookshelfs. From my experience, B&W in 700 series is lively with a lot of details in treble and upper mids. This is even augmented by Rotel amp. Rotel has this character mainly in cheaper models. Means here you need a bit care not to bring another "lively, very present" cable to the party. It can be too much and sound may start to be tiring. I recommend to avoid some silver cables and cables with silver content which have this effect. (Nordost). This can help in combination like McIntosh with Sonus Faber but not here. Audioquest Rocket 88 is classic long made champion which is very universal and popular. The right choice. With Tellurium Silver I am not so sure. It needs trial at home on your system. I strongly recommend to do it like this. Other cables which work from my experience are Cardas and QED in this class. I am using Cardas Neutral Reference for some 23 years and switching slowly to Cardas Clear family. But QED are awsome for very good price. BR.

 

[Jasonovich]

As per the above, single crystal ofc cables without the silver plating works best for speakers that are slightly on the bright side.

I use Furutech single crystal cables for my interconnects with good results. I'd imagine the speaker cables will deliver equally good results.

I just found this on AliExpress:
FURUTECH FS-α36 Alpha OCC HiFi Speaker Cable Original Banana plug Power amplifier speaker cable Audio amplifier cable

FURUTECH FS-α36 Alpha OCC HiFi-Lautsprecherkabel Original Bananenstecker Leistungsverstärker-Lautsprecherkabel Audioverstärkerkabel - AliExpress 44

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

a.aliexpress.com

 

[Integralista]

As per the above, single crystal ofc cables without the silver plating works best for speakers that are slightly on the bright side.

I use Furutech single crystal cables for my interconnects with good results. I'd imagine the speaker cables will deliver equally good results.

I just found this on AliExpress:
FURUTECH FS-α36 Alpha OCC HiFi Speaker Cable Original Banana plug Power amplifier speaker cable Audio amplifier cable

FURUTECH FS-α36 Alpha OCC HiFi-Lautsprecherkabel Original Bananenstecker Leistungsverstärker-Lautsprecherkabel Audioverstärkerkabel - AliExpress 44

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

a.aliexpress.com

Hi, Furutech is legend, but here in AliExpress, no chance this is original. I do not trust such source.

 

[Jasonovich]

Hi, Furutech is legend, but here in AliExpress, no chance this is original. I do not trust such source.

I suspect you're right.
I have imitation Nordost Valhalla 2 from AliExpress, and these are so ****** good!
😄

 

[Gray]

Hi, Furutech is legend, but here in AliExpress, no chance this is original. I do not trust such source.

But, be honest, would you bet money on there being any noticeable sound difference?
...if you couldn't SEE which one you were listening to.

 

[abacus]

The OP is a newbie to the forum and therefore may take other users opinions as fact, whereas in reality there is no verifiable evidence that support the claims that specialist Hi-Fi cables make a difference, so best to add in my opinion when posting these claims.
Most important always try before you buy using the double blind test. (Listen to whole songs not just snippets when comparing)

Bill

 

[Revolutions]

Does silver cable really make bright speakers sound harsh?

Feels like a 0.01% vs 0.001% amp distortion argument: no-one is ever going to hear the difference.

 

[gasolin]

Qed xt25 no neeed to spend 1000 euros,pounds on speaker cable

Or https://www.bluejeanscable.com/store/speaker/index.htm

 

[jamesrfisher]

Personally don't need to spend lots. Van Damme 4.00mm Blue are very good. Can get in various lengths, terminated how you like and jumper cables if necessary. I've bought from Mark Grant without any issues.

​

 

[Superhullie]

Hi,

Thanks everyone for your responses and advice.
Well, there are so many choices, opinions, and price differences on the market. I think I will indeed schedule a few listening sessions.
I think the match with the B&W 705 Signature is important, especially.
Kind regards, dutchie🙂

 

[gasolin]

Personally don't need to spend lots. Van Damme 4.00mm Blue are very good. Can get in various lengths, terminated how you like and jumper cables if necessary. I've bought from Mark Grant without any issues.

​

Van damm hifi is better

Van Damme “Blue” and Hi-Fi Grade 6.0mm Speaker Cables | Hifi Pig

Picture the scene . . . . . . . . You hear a knock at the front door early one morning and you open it to find a person you have not seen for years. Thankfully, you like this person, so you invite them in without any hesitation and spend hours reminiscing about the

www.hifipig.com

 

[GSV Ethics Gradient]

Whilst holding the slightly conflicting views of having a rigidly scientific worldview but also placing some trust in my ears, that seems like exactly the sort of piece that is bound to elicit demands of proof. When you describe something as lacking grace, not only is there an onus on proof, but also on saying what you actually mean by such terms...

 

[RTHerringbone]

Whenever I've bought new speakers I've just rolled with whatever cable is thrown in with them. When I bought KEF LS50 Meta I was given some cables by Peter Tyson and they worked so they're the same ones I now use with my Neat's.

And they still work.

 

[davidf]

Two wildly differing loudspeakers with the same measured frequency response may look the same on paper, but won't sound the same to the ear. While measurements I'll tell you of some things, it won't tell you everything. Under the right circumstances, those that believe cables can make difference can hear a difference between two different cables. I say that as someone who flatly doesn't believe cables will make any difference whatsoever won't hear any difference, even if there is.

If it's in the signal path, can it not make a difference?

 

[Revolutions]

If it's in the signal path, can it not make a difference?

Human hearing is really not all that great.

 

[Juzzie Wuzzie]

Double-tap for Van Damme 4mm blue - does the job nicely. I've also got no-name pre-terminated speaker cable from Amazon and it works a treat to. Otherwise, QED 79 strand. All good stuff.

 

[nopiano]

Hi,

Thanks everyone for your responses and advice.
Well, there are so many choices, opinions, and price differences on the market. I think I will indeed schedule a few listening sessions.
I think the match with the B&W 705 Signature is important, especially.
Kind regards, dutchie🙂

Belated welcome from me!

To be honest, the notion that there’s a ‘match’ to your speakers isn't something I’m persuaded by these days. The impedance and other loads your speakers present to the amplifier are umpteen times larger than the minuscule effects from any standard soeaker cable.

The idea that silver is bright and copper smooth is also simply creative thinking. A bit like white speakers being cool and wooden ones warm!

If you’ve time, then as others suggest, borrow a set or two, or buy a popular brand used on eBay if you’re happy to resell. But unless you’ve no idea what’s connected - and I always switch stuff around myself - just bear in mind if we’ve spent a lot of £ on fancy looking kit we are likely to approve!

 

[nopiano]

Does silver cable really make bright speakers sound harsh?

Feels like a 0.01% vs 0.001% amp distortion argument: no-one is ever going to hear the difference.

Not in my experience. I think Nordost is deliberately bright, for example, but it’s all foo to me, not serious engineering.

I know the confusion Linn caused by calling their ‘made of copper’ interconnects Silver, just to distinguish it from the lesser Black version!

 

[gasolin]

Qed silver anniversary xt + silver micro does and micro lacks bass it's thin sounding as i remember

 

[good_enough]

Hi,

Thanks everyone for your responses and advice.
Well, there are so many choices, opinions, and price differences on the market. I think I will indeed schedule a few listening sessions.
I think the match with the B&W 705 Signature is important, especially.
Kind regards, dutchie🙂

Unfortunately you've raised a q query in a world where there are opinions varying from 'of course they make a difference' to 'any low impedance conductor will do'. You'll find religious flame wars all over the place on speaker cables. Better as you say to listen to see if you notice any difference.

I'm in the second camp and happy with my QED Silver XT Anniversary that I got reasonably cheaply - about six quid a metre from memory - on a Richers clearance. If you join the first camp you can be out for thousands of spondules.

FWIW though, you shouldn't be concerned about 'matching' anything - a cable should have no sound signature accentuating highs or lows. Its main impact is via impedance, which affects the 'damping factor' of the amp. In brief, a driver in the speaker is set in motion by the current deriving from the sound signal (electromotive force) which is how a loudspeaker produces sound. The driver has momentum, and at the end of the intended impulse from the amplifier, keeps moving. A magnet in a coil of absolutely zero resistance (a superconductor) would induce an infinite current in the coil, and stop immediately on the dot. In real world conditions, the lower the impedance of the entire circuit (the coil plus the speaker wires plus the internal impedance of the amplifier) the quicker the speaker will stop its 'overhang' movement and the crisper the sound, imaging, etc will be.

Ergo, you just want the lowest impedance cable you can get to allow the amplifier, not inertia, to control the speaker. In AC systems (audio signals) impedance is generated by inductance, resistance, or capacitance. You will find vendors of unicorn-hair speaker cables boasting of one or another of these, generally. Herein lies a slight caveat on 'sound signature': high inductance attenuates low frequencies, high capacitance attenuates high frequencies. The vast bulk of typical cables consisting of two multi-strand conductors arranged 'shotgun' in a plastic casing are not going to vary much in either TBH.

 

[gasolin]

If i had the money i would try this https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/...&visitId=eb6cc56f-2f5b-4e88-b3e6-9102ee485f0c

 

[good_enough]

If i had the money i would try this https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/...&visitId=eb6cc56f-2f5b-4e88-b3e6-9102ee485f0c

Chicken feed.

Nordost Odin 2 Speaker Cable - Factory Terminated Pair

Nordost's Odin 2 range is the 'Supreme Reference' for top-of-the-range audiophile equipment. Each component of the Odin 2 range is meticulously crafted to ensure the most performance out of your system. The Odin 2 Speaker cable is designed to ensure the purest audio signal transfer to your...

www.futureshop.co.uk

 

[Jasonovich]

Chicken feed.

Nordost Odin 2 Speaker Cable - Factory Terminated Pair

Nordost's Odin 2 range is the 'Supreme Reference' for top-of-the-range audiophile equipment. Each component of the Odin 2 range is meticulously crafted to ensure the most performance out of your system. The Odin 2 Speaker cable is designed to ensure the purest audio signal transfer to your...

www.futureshop.co.uk

These are very good at fraction of the costs, they make my Oberon's sing 🙂