Cable Asylum: REVIEW: Hyperion Cables S-Max Cable by sancarlosscott

Model:	S-Max
Category:	Cable
Suggested Retail Price:	$200/meter
Description:	Silver coated copper ribbon interconnect
Manufacturer URL:	Not Available
Manufacturer URL:	Not Available

Review by sancarlosscott ( A ) on June 15, 2005 at 16:57:53
IP Address: 67.188.132.130

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for the S-Max

These Hyperions are remarkable cables. After 50 hours or so of break-in, they excel in speed, smoothness and clarity.
Another asylum inmate agrees. In a Cable Asylum post from about 3 years ago, he said this about the S-Maxes, then sold under the company name Modern Audio Design: "These interconnects are awesome! I compared them side by side with Nordost SPM Reference and yes the SPM's were better, but NOT by much! When you consider the MAD costs $300 compared to Nordosts $900... it's a no brainer!"
I don't have access to the SPMs, so I checked the Nordost site, and they do seem to be almost identical in design, though the SPMs do have an edge in cosmetics. They should for $700 more than the current S-Max price, $200/m. The S-Maxes look quite business-like and sturdy. I wouldn't use the ribbon as a handle, though.
I become aware of Modern Audio Design (Hyperion) a few years ago when I saw the XTCs on eBay. The idea of a ribbon was fairly novel then, and the price was very right. I liked what I heard but eventually the cable went into the drawer as I developed a preference for interconnects with solid core conductors. The XTCs use stranded conductors. Since the S-Max cables use multiple, thin, silver-coated solid copper conductors, I was motivated to try them. The 30-day money-back guarantee made the decision easy.
A recent speaker upgrade made any comparison with older cables I have fairly invalid, so I decided to re-evaluate them all against the S-Maxes. Those included the XTCs and four homemade silver and silver/copper cables. I started with the XTCs for a benchmark and moved on to the others. I saved the S-Maxes for last. The cables were always between the CD and the preamp. Well, they all sounded great on the new speaks, including the ones that seemed overly bright with the old speaker setup. I wondered if the S-Maxes would really outperform side-by-side.
They did. Okay, other cables matched the S-Maxes in some areas, but none had the combination of top-to-bottom smoothness, speed and image specificity of the S-Maxes. The sound stage was very wide, deep and more than with any other cable, tall. Detail was remarkable, showing off previously obscured microdynamics. And while the bass was not the most thunderous I've heard, it was the most detailed.
Though I haven't tried a lot of interconnects out there at this price level, I have had the well-regarded Homegrown Audio Silver Lace and Silver Sonic Revelations through here. All in all, the S-Maxes are the best interconnects I have ever heard. I doubt there is much of anything better for the money.

Product Weakness: While bass extension and detail is excellent, I have heard slightly more weight from other cables.
Product Strengths: Speed, clarity, smoothness.

Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier:	Monarchy SE100 Delux
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	Sonic Frontiers Line-2
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Marantz SA8260
Speakers:	Selah RC3R sealed
Cables/Interconnects:	DIY speaker cables, Canare interconnects preamp to amps
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	Mostly rock and pop
Room Size (LxWxH):	18 x 13 x 10
Room Comments/Treatments:	Nothing special, carpet, sofa, etc.
Time Period/Length of Audition:	2 months
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	Monster
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner

Product Weakness:	While bass extension and detail is excellent, I have heard slightly more weight from other cables.
Product Strengths:	Speed, clarity, smoothness.