Speaker Wire can it make a difference?

[admin_exported]

I appreciate every one who has replied to my post 'My Kandy 2 Amp is to bright', but I tell you it really sucks having a 'Bright' system, especially when I studied up long and hard about which amp to get. I just have one more question to ask, and then I will suffer in silence.

Can it really be as simple as the speaker cable??

What would you recommend for my system stuff below?

 

[JoelSim]

The sewage man:
I appreciate every one who has replied to my post 'My Kandy 2 Amp is to bright', but I tell you it really sucks having a 'Bright' system, especially when I studied up long and hard about which amp to get. ÿ I just have one more question to ask, and then I will suffer in silence.

Can it really be as simple as the speaker cable??

What would you recommend for my system stuff below?

IMHO a speaker cable can make a difference, but not seemingly to the extent that you are talking about. Sounds more like a system/environment mismatch to me. Gerrard and Lampard scenario unfortunately.

ÿ

 

[respe]

cable can make some differences, but not huge. For a minimum cost you could try something like the Van Damme blue studio grade cable. Its not very expensive, and too me seems to let everything through in a even handed way. The 4mm square section stuff is probably the choice for longer runs, but 2.5mm sq is OK for shorter runs.

 

[crusaderlord]

yes definately

an old system i had was an Arcam A70 amplifier with Epos M5 speakers and QED Silver Anniversary XT Cable. It was too bright for me with female vocals uncomfortable to listen to at usual volumes

i changed the speaker cable to Chord Silverscreen and everything was so much better and very listenable

eventually i upgraded everything but i still enjoyed the old system with the Chord cables

 

[bretty]

respe:cable can make some differences, but not huge. For a minimum cost you could try something like the Van Damme blue studio grade cable. Its not very expensive, and too me seems to let everything through in a even handed way. The 4mm square section stuff is probably the choice for longer runs, but 2.5mm sq is OK for shorter runs.

I concur. I have this cable and it tamed the brightness of my system by a large margin. It took about 100 hours to completely settle down, but improvements were noticeable straight from installation. It was £4.60 per metre, but I think the price has recently risen to just over 5 quid.

I have the 6mm Blue studio grade blue, by the way. I don't know if the same sonic benefits apply to the thinner cables in the range.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi 'sewage man'!

Just looked up your cables and your other post.

You seem to have a number of elements in your chain which are voiced or lean towards 'bright'. Your interconnect AND your speaker wires both contain silver which is known to accentuate the treble frequencies. The speakers do not need to have this frequency region highlighted and so at least 3 parts of your chain are focussing on this.

If you think of speaker cables and interconnects as a way of tuning the sound of your source/amp/speakers so their sonic foibles are kept under control then you can achieve satisfaction. Cabling is a cheaper initial point to investigate and experiment with - find a sympathetic dealer with a returns option.

You could try Van Den Hul's range some of which contain no metal conductors (warmer more organic sound) other than the terminations. I think your main components - including the DAC - are good performers.

P.S. I own the same DAC and I have tried many cables including Van Den Hul, Kimber, Nordost, QED, Chord as well as some cheaper makes.

 

[pwiles1968]

The Van Dam Cable is also available in a Black Tour Grade BiWire option 4x4mm conductors, I have only just ordered some so I can BiAmp my system, it has not arrived yet so I can not vouch for the acoustic benefits , it is supposed to be similar to the Blue but is more flexible for stage use, unfortunately they do not do a BiWire in the Blue other wise I would have had that, it can be had for around £4 a meter so unless you need a huge amount it is almost cheap enough to buy just to try.

 

[kev g]

I upgraded from a Kimber cable to Chord Rumour 4 & it certainly improved the sound - clearer, more open, better bass - better in every respect.

Perhaps a Chord cable will do the trick.

 

[Anonymous]

I've recently upgraded my Chord Rumour 4 to Townshend Isolda. In comparison the Rumour sounds very thin, to be honest I've never liked anything from Chord in my system.

With electronics that tend to be on the brighter side I would drop any silver cable and go for a good quality copper. I would even try standard twin + earth electrical cable to see if it takes you in the right direction.

 

[aliEnRIK]

Speaker cables definitely make a difference. But id hazard a guess the problem isnt your amp but your speakers.

 

[Anonymous]

Rik's right, different cables aren't going to help in this situation. Can you listen to the Mezzos using your old amp? That might help confirming what is the source of the problem.

 

[jaxwired]

I'm not sure if you can fix the problem you are having with a cable switch. Especially since your speaker wire is not known for being ultra bright. But I wanted to say that, yes, yes, yes, cable does make a difference! Try buying some cheap speaker wire from walmart. Not as a permanent solution, but as a test to see if cable makes a diff. That cheap stuff should sound about as lifeless as you can get. If that does not help, then no point in wasting money on switching to a good brand of cable.

 

[Anonymous]

jaxwired:I'm not sure if you can fix the problem you are having with a cable switch.ÿ Especially since your speaker wire is not known for being ultra bright.ÿ But I wanted to say that, yes, yes, yes, cable does make a difference!ÿ Try buying some cheap speaker wire from walmart.ÿ Not as a permanent solution, but as a test to see if cable makes a diff.ÿ That cheap stuff should sound about as lifeless as you can get.ÿ If that does not help, then no point in wasting money on switching to a good brand of cable.

But not on the scale required to correct this problem, methinks. Also, the shorter the run, the more equal the cables are. I guessed somewhat lighthearted at 0.001 percent difference, but my point is that cables cannot tame a bright system, or add bass to the level that is sometimes claimed.

I'm actually curious why people seem to spend quite happily on cables, conditioners, power leads, filters etc when saving the money and buying new gear would give a far greater improvement

ÿ

 

[Anonymous]

If the system sounds bright I have to suspect the speakers. Wire is important but once you buy the thickest stranded copper possible you've done all you can in that department.

 

[Anonymous]

It is becoming more and more obvious it is the speakers that need changing. Either that or i get a graphic equalizer. What speakers for 1000 or under would you reccommend that definitely won't make my amp bright! (I like large floorstanders) What a nightmare this has been. Thanks for all your comments.

 

[aliEnRIK]

I dont understand people that use 'graphics equalizers'. Yes you can 'tune' the sound (if its needed), but at the expense of musical detail due to adding more 'prcoessing' into the mix (In short, your killing what the amp was designed for). Definitely a change in speakers is needed. A 'GA' would do what you require, but music would sound 'cr*p' compared to what a change of speakers to something more suitable would be.

 

[Anonymous]

I have a pair of B&W 683s they certainly are not too bright! Although they are rather large but they do look really nice with the covers off and they can be bought for under £900! Although i can't tell you how well they match you're system as i have never tried it with the setup you have.

 

[Anonymous]

Ok. A change of speakers. I do agree with your comments about the graphic equalizer. Does anyone want some Mezzo's???????

 

[Anonymous]

Before you start switching cables and/or speakers and spending hundreds of pounds in the process, I would suggest you google "room acoustics", or seach these forumm for discussions on this important topic. "Neutral" speakers could sound "forward" and "bright" speakers could sound "harsh" and fatiguing" in a sparsely furnished room with bare wooden floors and full of hard and straight surfaces; and "warm" speakers could sound too bassy in a heavily furnished room with thick carpets, lots of cushions, big sofas, thick curtains. (Speaker positioning could also make a drastic difference to the bass but not so much to the treble).

I would hazard a guess that your listening room is the former kind and you may find that slightly changing the layout of your room to remove reflecting surfaces which direct the treble to the listening position (high/mid frequencies are is more "directional" than bass frequencies), and/or adding soft furnishings like a big rug, some cushions, table cloth(!) and plants (all for less than £100) could make the difference that you desire, or improve it to the extent that you achieve your goal by also changing to copper speaker wires.

I speak from experience as the above was exactly what I did to my Cyrus/Spendor system (see my signature) in one afternoon without changing source, amp or speakers and the result was exactly what I had wanted.

Have fun!

 

[Anonymous]

PS... If I am right about the type of your listening room, I would try putting existing soft furnishings or even quilts etc into that room to see if it makes a difference even before you spend money on rugs/cushions etc!

 

[Anonymous]

PPS.... sorry.... but if I am wrong and it is really down to the speakers/your sensitivity to high frequenies, then I would avoid speakers with metal tweeters as they tend to be brighter than those with fabric tweeters. Good luck!

 

[Anonymous]

Try some Spendor S5e's, some great deals about at the moment ex-demo etc and they are more laid back, too laid back for some but I think they would solve your problem.

Also are you bi-wiring? If you are then get rid of it and make some jumpers from copper wire. Bi-wiring can over emphasise the treble in some cases, certainly in mine. Also the standard brass jumpers supplied with most speakers can make treble sound rough.

 

[Anonymous]

Yes I do have wooden floors, but no bi wiring. I will try putting a rug down. I will let you know how I get on.

 

[Anonymous]

I would play as much music as possible over the next weeks in order for your amp to settle. It took my CA amp 2-3 weeks of serious listening (think 4-8 hours per day, 5 days a week) for it to stop sounding " bright" to me. I thought all the bass had gone when I first set it up in my system. You will also get used to the sound (especially true if you come from something that used to sound very different to what you're hearing now). I did demo the K2 combo (amp + CDP) with the B&W 685's, didn't like the synergy: too much warmth to my ears.

 

[matengawhat]

what sits between you and your listening position - you said wooden floor do you have a coffee table in the space?

also try moving speakers fractionally further from wall and make sure no toe in!