Strictly for fans of Audio Note UK (all things Audio Note UK) PART TWO

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Steve Hoffman, Apr 29, 2022.

  1. Footsurg

    Footsurg Forum Resident

    Location:
    Albuquerque

    I understand exactly what you are saying. Had silver speaker wire and silver wired speakers, went back to Lexus for awhile and then back to silver again. I really missed the LF energy that I always lost when leaving Lexus. There was always a "warmth" factor that Lexus seemed to deliver a bit more than Spe or Spx. I have never dabbled in Sogon speaker wire or Sogon wired speakers. Ultimately for my taste and what works in my listening room I have chosen to go all Sogon interconnects including digital cable. Vinyl front end is IO Gold, silver litz tonearm cable and Sogon wired tonearm and S8 step up with Sogon to the preamp, making the entire analog chain silver. I even have Sogon jumpers going from Conquests silver sigs to the outboard crossovers. I wired the Conquests with Sogon signal cable going from the board to the outputs. So all Sogon all the way to the inputs of the cossovers of my AN-E HE LX Signatures. Then from there it is obviously single runs of Lexus going to the positive and negative poles of the drivers. The internals of the outboard crossovers are wired with Lexus too. I have found that this combination gives me some of the resolution and tonal balance of going silver all the way to the drivers, but gives me much more warmth and LF presence than silver all the way.

    I am sure if I had AN-E Sogons that I would likely never go back to Lexus. I am pretty sure the E Sogons cost a bit more than my entire system as it is now, combined. But I can say I like what I have now. I also have not tried a signature version using all Spx wire. That might be a revelation too. I have tried the Spe sigs in my current system and I can say I like the Lexus sigs more. Obviously this experience is based on my room and personal tastes. Results will vary.
     
  2. Salectric

    Salectric Senior Member

    Location:
    Maryland
    That is actually a pretty good capsule summary of the differences between AN copper and silver cables. Like @Footsurg I like a mix of the two——I use Sogon silver interconnects between source and linestage, copper Isis interconnect for the long 4m run from linestage to amps, and silver SPx speaker cables.
     
  3. Gerd

    Gerd Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Germany
    Giorgio Valoti and audio archon like this.
  4. jonwoody

    jonwoody Tragically Unhip

    Location:
    Washington DC
    Having just last weekend listened to @Salectric 's system I will say going from Spx to Isis speaker cables was quite interesting. The Isis is certainly a bit less detailed but made up for that with slightly better dynamics and a more fleshed out mid-bass. Spx was definitely the better cable but Isis was fun to listen to and I could see it being a better fit in some systems and particularly with the Meishu Tonemeister which has to me a slightly brighter more modern sound to it.
     
  5. Chris.p.l

    Chris.p.l Forum Resident

    Location:
    Switzerland
    I have the feeling that something happens in the synergy when the cables are an extension of the internal wiring of the speakers.
     
    jonwoody likes this.
  6. jonwoody

    jonwoody Tragically Unhip

    Location:
    Washington DC
    I've only used Lexus single wire speaker cables with my J/lx's and have always been happy with that result. :)
     
    Tourswede, Itsjaw, Joe Spivey and 3 others like this.
  7. howiebrou

    howiebrou Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cloud Nine
    I quite enjoy a dense fleshed out sound and use a mixture of ISIS power cords, ISIS interconnects from pre to power amps (15m), Sogon and Sooto interconnects from phono and dac to pre, sogon speaker cables for my AN/E SEC Sig. All the AN cables seem to gel quite well together imo.
     
    Don Parkhurst, SetANE, Itsjaw and 5 others like this.
  8. Gjo

    Gjo Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    15m ISIS interconnects. Impressive!

    Single ended or balanced?
     
  9. finn

    finn Forum Resident

    Sometimes by circumstance, you get to hear things you come to later acknowledge as “bugger” moments. Like when someone offers you a LOAN set of SEC x-over that’s wired with LX-96 Sogon instead of the SPe wired version you actually own. Both x-overs are identical components used, just different wiring. No other changes, same piece of music and yet the scale and weight of the recording has changed, more effortless and fleshed out and that’s when you utter the singular word “Bugger”.
    There is just about 5 mtrs of cable used in those x-overs in total and when the SPe wired versions were reinstalled, that one word utterance reared it’s ugly head again.
    Now remember, these were Alnico drivers and they do things differently to the standard and HE versions and within reason, I prefer to keep wiring consistent all the way through. Yesterday I had an old client drop off an original Black Pallas that I traded for the new Black Pallas just before we went to Japan and I mentioned that I had also got in some of the analogue versions to try and his eyes lit up like Christmas trees.
    You have been warned......
     
  10. howiebrou

    howiebrou Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cloud Nine
    Balanced. Alas my gear is quite far away from my monoblocks so it needs to snake under the floor to get there. My old cables were 11m and when you try something new it's always a few inches too short so I made sure I had plenty of spare this time.
     
  11. finn

    finn Forum Resident

    It’s not uncommon to run longer interconnects in AN systems, I remember having to explain to Cath why I need a 7 mtr pr of Sogon interconnects. She still remains sceptical.
     
  12. Giorgio Valoti

    Giorgio Valoti Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Berlin
    Interesting. Are you using them combined with their grounding box?
     
  13. Gjo

    Gjo Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    I’m running 9 meter balanced in a similar set-up: through the wall and sill plate, under the floor, back up the same way. They’re not Audio Note though, and one end was terminated after the wire was fished through the walls.
     
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  14. Salectric

    Salectric Senior Member

    Location:
    Maryland
    For those who need long interconnects and don't want to spring for Sogon, I highly recommend Connex "The Natural One" which is available in bulk form from PartsConnexion in Canada.

    CONNEX The NATURAL ONE Interconnect Cable (partsconnexion.com)

    This is an excellent sounding cable at a very reasonable price. It's on sale right now at $17.47 per meter. Despite the low price it deserves the very best in connectors. I have used it with WBT 0102 Silver and 0102 Copper RCA plugs as well as ETI Copper Links. I have also used it with and without the shielding connected, and it sounds great either way but I prefer the unshielded except for low-level phono wiring where the shield is necessary to avoid hum.

    To give some context, for my SUT to phono preamp link I use 1/2m Connex Natural (shielded) with WBT 0102 Copper plugs. In my system this cable sounds better in this particular spot than Sogon, Vx, Isis, Lexus or any of the dozen other DIY cables I have in my box. I suspect one of the reasons it does so well in this spot is the low capacitance compared to the AN cables at my disposal.

    A more level playing field is my long run from linestage to power amps. I need 4m for this run so Vx and Sogon are out of my price range. However, I do have a 4m Isis and I like how it sounds used with my other AN silver cables including SPx speaker cable. I have two pairs of 4m Connex Natural cables that I can use in place of the Isis, one set with WBT 0102 Copper plugs and one set with ETI Copper Links. Each set is unshielded. There are pros and cons to each of my 3 cables but I can say quite positively that the Isis and Connex with Copper Link plugs sound very, very similar; you really need to do several swaps to tell the differences. The Isis is a hair more detailed and dynamic in the midrange, but the Connex/Links is more neutral overall and has a tighter, more detailed bass. But on a casual listen, this is hair-splitting. They are really very similar sounding. The Connex with WBT Copper plugs sounds quite different from the other two. It has better detail in the upper midrange and treble and even tighter, more detailed bass. In my old listening room, I liked the Connex with WBT plugs best. In my new house, I am using Isis the most because I like the midrange so much and I can work around the problem areas.

    My point in all this is that for someone who needs long interconnects, especially something like 7m or 11m, I think Connex "The Natural One" cables are a viable and affordable alternative to AN cables. The cables are not difficult to terminate if you have some experience with soldering, but for those not into DIY PartsConnexion will terminate the cable with whatever plugs you choose.

    At the risk of belaboring an already long post, I should add that for my 1m links from source to linestage, Sogon always comes out on top. I have tried Connex Natural One cables there with various RCA plugs and they sound good but Sogon sounds better.
     
    Encore, howiebrou, JanJ and 4 others like this.
  15. dunkyboy

    dunkyboy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY
    Yep, old WE-style tinned copper interconnects are very good. I have a 2m run between my DAC and Oto, and while Sogon sounds amazing, it’s too much of that “lightened” sound for my tastes. I’ve tried Belden 8402 and Duelund DCA16GA, and while not as good technically as Sogon, I preferred the overall tone and am willing to live with the technical shortcoming. Duelund is better, with a darker/warmer tone than the Belden, so that’s what I’m using.
     
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  16. howiebrou

    howiebrou Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cloud Nine
    I did consider 15m SOOTO but my mortgage wouldn't cover it...
     
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  17. howiebrou

    howiebrou Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cloud Nine
    Anyone know the MSRP of the Jinro?
     
  18. SetANE

    SetANE Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sydney NSW
    it must be in order of $29k USD
     
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  19. howiebrou

    howiebrou Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cloud Nine
    Thanks.
     
  20. finn

    finn Forum Resident

    Just over US$32 k without state taxes if applicable.
     
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  21. Larry I

    Larry I Senior Member

    Location:
    Washington, D.C.
    Actual Western Electric wire of the right type and vintage (1940’s and earlier) can be very good. I’ve heard long interconnects that sounded almost as good as Sogon. The problem is that most of the WE wire these days is not the really good stuff (there is a plentiful supply of wired pulled from switchboards and other gear). The wire my dealer uses is very hard to find and is handle carefully because wire from back then was laced with arsenic to make the wire unpalatable to rodents.

    This dealer got a bunch of wire from a new manufacturer for trial use. He thought the wire was very good—better than Sogon—but it was much more expensive so he decided not to carry the wire. When he was ready to ship it back he found the insurance for shipping would exceed $10,000, so instead he bought round trip airplane tickets and sent an employee.
     
  22. SetANE

    SetANE Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sydney NSW
    why does the old wire sound better? why do old tubes sound better? is it additives we don't know about or can't use these days? is there any consensus?

    i bought three western electric 2c51 (5670) tubes for a M6 RIAA. i got the oldest ones you can get (late 40s). they sound absolutely noise/grain free and are a joy. they are so much better than the stock tubes, there really isn't much of a comparison. hopefully someone is working on nicer new 2c51 tubes. the only new tube i ever heard which i loved like a good NOS tube was the AN 4242 (10/10 - to me sounds flawless and transparent).
     
    Don Parkhurst, jonwoody and dunkyboy like this.
  23. finn

    finn Forum Resident

    Valve manufacturing is a very environmentally unfriendly business and will never be able to return to the “golden days” of pumping toxic heavy metals straight into waterways and landfills. Buy now and buy quantity to last a lifetime.
     
    audio archon and jonwoody like this.
  24. Chris.p.l

    Chris.p.l Forum Resident

    Location:
    Switzerland
    Hello everyone,
    I may have found a good thing to reduce heavy bass in my room.
    These are large steel plates 1.5 cm thick.
    The AN-E tips are in direct contact with the plates.
    For now, it works!
    [​IMG]
     
  25. finn

    finn Forum Resident

    Where are your brass dome locking nuts?
     

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