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with RCA connections for connecting CD player to preamp for a system
to help with smoothness, richness, and lack of glare? (In process
of experimenting with several pieces of equipment in a bright room).
Follow Ups:
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van den hul ic's may do what you are looking for...d300 mkii (new)
d 102 9new)
the first (buy used)
the second (buy used)all are hybrid design
i believe that a used vdh the first ultimate is what you might want
van den hul hybrid integrationtop cable for small money, in my system it sounded slightly better than the second. don't go for any expensive VdHs before you try integration.
Really appreciate all the good advice...Yes, Cable company is a great service. I almost forgot about them....tried some digital cables a long time ago when I had separate transport/DAC and was the best lessen I ever had in that more expensive certainly doesn't mean better. (Made me think of a review of the Apollo CD player in which the reviewer said the little cable that came with the Apollo actually sounded better then 6, yes SIX different cables that he tried!). Also, 2 of you mentioned to Wireworld cables. I've never tried them and now I want to.
Several years ago I borrowed 9 sets of interconnects (3 sets at a time) for audition from The Cable Company. All were between $80 and $150 per 1 meter pair. I tried Wireworld, Cardas, Audioquest, Tara Labs, Nordost, Kimber, etc. Wireworld was best in my system, Cardas was a distant second.
Didn't see Atlantis on the Wireworld website, so guess it has
been updated and changed names. I'm sure I can find out through
fatwyre or Wireworld for that matter. From what I see so far
Wireworld offers a lot for the money.
I just checked Wireworld's website and it appears that they no longer make the Atlantis, which is curious because I thought it was their most popular product. The Atlantis was priced right between the Oasis and the Equinox. As Wireworld has continued to improve their product line, I suspect that most of the attributes of the Atlantis have been incorporated into the Oasis. Most of my interconnects are Atlantis (series 2 and 3). I also have a set of Cardas Microtwin from my tuner to preamp. I use Wireworld Oasis for my speaker cable (the Atlantis was out of my price range since I needed a 20 foot pair). The speaker cables are great, too. They replaced Nordost Flatline. It almost seemed like I added a subwoofer when I replaced the Nordost with the Wireworld Oasis. I've also used AudioQuest Indigo and Tara Labs Quantum II speaker cables, both of which are good but not nearly as good as the Wireworld.
www.fatwyre.com
I found the Audioquest Diamondbacks ($175) intoxicating in the highs but they leaned up the bass.
I ended up with BlueJeans LC-1 ($29) which were quite similar except for more bass and more benign highs.
I had some etch in the sound which was a function of the BlueJeans 1505F believe it or not. Either of the above cables cured that.
Bill
To address your wants/needs (smoothness, richness, lack of glare) with a $200 budget, I would suggest a pair of Cardas 300B Microtwin interconnects and a new for 2007 model Furutech FP-15A-N1(Cu) copper AC outlet installed at the wall.The Cardas 300B Microtwin offers a somewhat euphonic tonal bloom, a very relaxed top end, a big bottom end, and a rather pronounced midrange presence without sounding too forward, IME.
If like it's FP-15A(Cu) predecessor, the new Furutech FP-15A(Cu)-N1 copper AC outlet's presentation would be very relaxed, open, organic, liquid. If you are not familiar with the notion of Audio Grade AC outlets, you would likely be quite surprised just how much they can affect the gestalt of an audio system.
Cardas 300B Microtwin interconnects (1 meter) - $150 with free shipping:
http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo.asp?number=CR300B&variation=1PRCRC
Cardas Product Link:
http://www.cardas.com/content.php?area=products&content_id=1&pagestring=Interconnect&product_id=13
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Furutech FP-15A(Cu)-N1 copper AC outlet - $44.99:
http://vhaudio.com/acreceptacles.html
Furutech Product Link:
http://www.furutech.com/produ_2.asp?ProdNo=256
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If this combo does not fully solve your concern, the next step would be particular power cord selections and/or a power line conditioner, IME.
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AQ Coral, etc...something from around the 'rocks and stones' naming convention time period...Van Den Hul The First...smooth while still retaining some detail.
Kimber PBJ
Siltech SQ-18
If you can't address room acoustics, I would recommend those...
Relaxed, honest, accurate. With the extra money you might save on these nicely priced ICs you can invest in some materials to help tame the brightness of the rooooom...
"I always play jazz records backwards, they sound better that way"
-Thomas Edison
Silence,As a follow-up to my suggestions below, note that most IC manufacturers will give you a 30-day money-back trial. So you can try any or all of the ICs mentioned risk-free to see what sounds best in your system.
Keep an eye on Audiogon for used cables too; buying used, you can afford much more cable than you can new. For example, you could pick up 2m Nordost Blue Heavens, 1m Kimber Silver Streaks, and more for $200 or less.
Try googling these as well. You can't go wrong with any of them, but since you cannot audition them, read others' experiences carefully.Wireworld makes some well-regarded ICs.
DECWare Silver Reference are also very nice.
Signal Cable's analog ICs, esp. silver resolution
Paul Speltz's Anti-ICs
Slinkylinks RS1
My Audio Cables (MAC)
Bogdan cables used to be "da sh!t" a few years ago, but now you don't hear much of them.Anyway, those are some places to start.
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Or are you looking just for ready-made?
and Mapleshade's ribbon IC's sound good too for the $.
Have 2 sets, Encore and Encore Ka. Both excellent. Made of Beryllium Copper wire and very low metal mass terminations. Does for me what you say you are seeking. You can get these for half what you're ready to spend.Only caveat is that they are not shielded (OK for what you seek) and they are stiff and not sturdy at the terminations. That means you don't want to be plugging and unplugging and moving them carelessly, OK?
Write to Joe Mazzaglia at auricleaudiodesign@hotmail.com. He sometimes sells them on Audiogon, but don't see them now. They're custom built, but not expensive.
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