Interesting,  I've not tried the Abbas speaker cables.  I'm a big fan of his SPDIF digital cable and his RCA cables though.  Fantastic performance.

 

I'll be alternating between the Litz 201 and Spiral 8's in my main system.  A fair chance one of these will displace Bills Boutique Speaker Cables in the downstairs system.  I know I always preferred the Litz 201 in this system but I wanted to try something different down here.

 

Interesting....  I just switched Bills Boutique Speaker Cables for some Viborg VS903 flat spiral ribbon cables I've had sitting here unused for 12 months or so.... I can't hear the difference. Probably due to the coloured nature of my B&W DM-16 speakers.  Going to leave it in a while and see if my short view on this changes. My previous Oatlon W2-1000F speakers were far more revealing of changes. 

 

EDIT: No, Bills Boutique Speaker Cables are smoother and richer sounding.  Goes well in my second system. 

Edited August 23, 20214 yr by MattyW

On 23/08/2021 at 6:34 PM, Artnet said:

I didn't want to complicate things further but

Mine prefers the Litz201

I bought a pair of Abbas's speaker cables before I ordered my DAC as was hoping to head into MONO block territory.  Maybe later this year? They are a little short at the moment to use without moving things around, but plugged them back in to try.  I would put them a close second to the 201.  Like all of Abbas's things I have,  they show incredible balance in presentation!  Maybe they are not burnt in well enough yet but I find the bottom end not as tightly presented as in either the Aurealis litz 201 or the Spiral8.

The Spiral 8 is easy to listen to and look forward to hearing what you make of them in your system.👍

 

Well, the Litz 201 is remaining in my main system. I've 2m Spiral 8 on the way for my second system which should be rather nice. It will displace Bills Boutique Speaker Cables.

 

I spoke to Geoff today and he has finished my experimental 1m 75ohm Duelund oil impregrated pure silver in air dialectic, double shielded clock cable. This will be interesting too. It might or might not be a success but will be very interesting nonetheless. 

25 minutes ago, MattyW said:

I've 2m Spiral 8 on the way

It will be interesting to see what you think of these,  am still enjoying mine.  Have been running in one of Geoffs Digital Furutech FX Alpha silver RCA cables (very happy) into DAC and Dueland 50 to pre, R3i AgCuL to amp with the spiral8.  mmm bit of fun, cant run it with the 201litz like that the Abbas goes back in just a different sound.

 

39 minutes ago, MattyW said:

75ohm Duelund oil impregrated pure silver in air dialectic

Matty, experimental, sounds very interesting.

1 hour ago, Artnet said:

Matty, experimental, sounds very interesting.

Aye, I was keen to try it and Geoff is interested to experiment with the Duelund silver wire too so it saves our curiosity.  It will either get a good result or not. Neither of us know how it will turn out. I've a good feeling about it though 

Edited September 6, 20214 yr by MattyW

Only one way of finding out. If its within budget, or just need to know then why not.😊

Look forward to hearing about it.

@Artnet you weren't wrong. Absolutely no burn in and the's Spiral 8 cables sound fantastic in my second system. More dynamic detailed, better depth and it's even got my B&W DM-16's to do a little left/right imaging which is fantastic (they don't really image like modern speakers). They kind of remind me of a good tube amp in their sound though I'm not sure if that's the sonic attributes of the cable, or whether it's just letting my VTL Reference DAC + Pass Amp Camp Amp to do their thing. Either way I'm delighted with this.

 

I also recieved my custom clock cable using 24AWG Duelund oil impregnated cotton covered pure silver wire, in a foamed teflon sleeve, with conductive carbon shielding over the top, and copper mesh shielding over that. The silver plated BNC connectors give a fantastic tight fit to the Mutec and my Afterdark clock and right off the bat match the sonics of my previous Western Electric clock cable which is a fantastic result considering its had no burn in, and my OCXO clock has been disturbed. The clock will take another 30 days to get back to it's previous level of stability. Basically a double win 

Excellent outcome.

The Spiral8 that Geoff sent me had about 20 hours on them but straight off were doing there thing. Noticeable development for me buring in upto the 80 hour mark.  They are enjoyable, great dynamics and soundstage. Got to be careful getting too excited as they arent as detailed as the litz 201silver. But they have a place!! And are fun with the dueland50.

I dont have external clock yet so my only experience of western electric is with a spdif between CDT and DAC. Amazing detail and bass but i can't balance out the top end in my system with the interconnects i have.  Will keep trying.

Let us know when the clock settles what further thoughts on the Duelund silver are, 😊

 

 

 

Yeah, loving what the Spiral 8 is doing.  Excellent dynamics yes. This is a big improvement over what I was running in the second system. Very enjoyable.

 

The custom Duelund silver clock cable will probably take less time to burn in than the total time for my Afterdark Emperor Double Crown OCXO clock to get back to its best.  Whenever disturbed or turned off its always about 30 days to get back to its best performance.  I've found clock cables tend to need a week burn in generally.  Likely because they're being used 24 hours a day due to the clock and Mutec never being turned off. 

Here's a little video of my system this morning taken using a Samsung Galaxy A70 phone + Rode NT1A microphone: https://drive.google.com/file/d/10z1GCnYh8FgOHNsCnWpoaNnxrRGIoXos/view?usp=sharing

 

Yes, the Duelund silver clock cable is the best I've used by a long shot. My system has continued to evolve. I'll have to record again once my new amp arrives and I've my replacement Audiolund XTreme I2S cable. 

Edited April 29, 20223 yr by MattyW

Well, here's the most recent video of my system as of today (01/07/2022). Only 2x tracks played as I just can't be bothered doing lengthy demos any longer. Takes time to do, then time to upload. Would rather just chill and enjoy 

 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1e8kzKC9h-iRZqXsdfnior3pXpMPHmDkJ/view?usp=sharing

On 22/04/2022 at 11:37 AM, MattyW said:

Yes, the Duelund silver clock cable is the best I've used

Don't know,  don't want to know what it does as a clock cable for fear of going too digital (the time will come🕳️) but even as a SPDIF whatever Geoff does to it it is an awesome cable.

Amp is looking good Matty!!

3 hours ago, MattyW said:

Would rather just chill and enjoy

Enjoy its Friday

18 hours ago, Artnet said:

Don't know,  don't want to know what it does as a clock cable for fear of going too digital (the time will come🕳️) but even as a SPDIF whatever Geoff does to it it is an awesome cable.

Amp is looking good Matty!!

Enjoy its Friday

Clocks just seem to add the naturalness and transparency that comes so naturally to vinyl. Basically the sound becomes less “digital” sounding and more real…. More vinyl like

Edited July 2, 20223 yr by MattyW

It was nice to have you by this week @muon*. The systems pretty different from where it started when you first heard it back when I had a Yaqin MC10T and B&W DM16 speakers  

55 minutes ago, MattyW said:

It was nice to have you by this week @muon*. The systems pretty different from where it started when you first heard it back when I had a Yaqin MC10T and B&W DM16 speakers  

Yup, has evolved a fair bit since then 😆

 

Was cool to get together as It's been a while, and your system is sounding very nice indeed,

Which Abbas DAC are you using now - the 3.2SE? And how does it compare to your old 2.2SE? Abbas isn’t taking orders for the 3.2 so I’m considering his 2.4SE instead and am curious about the differences. 
Any thoughts are much appreciated. Cheers

5 minutes ago, dogbite said:

Which Abbas DAC are you using now - the 3.2SE? And how does it compare to your old 2.2SE? Abbas isn’t taking orders for the 3.2 so I’m considering his 2.4SE instead and am curious about the differences. 
Any thoughts are much appreciated. Cheers

I’m no longer running an Abbas DAC though rather an Accurate Audio D1000.

Right, thanks! Couldn’t find a list of your current setup. How does the Accurate Audio D1000 compare to your Abbas? For context I’m used to the sound of the TDA1541 in a heavily modified Magnavox CDP from Mark Brasfield (MSB). Quite “analog” with fairly precise staging. Not super keen to do the tube rolling Abbas suggests but his 2/3 series are highly regarded here. 

My mistake, signatures weren’t showing up on my iPhone browser. Reading more of your comments re Accurate Audio Ultimate D1000 has been helpful. May I ask which store on Ali you bought yours from and was the transaction smooth? 

I do enjoy TDA1541 done right. The Abbas was lovely though the D1000 I still believe to be a better choice for me as I just leave it on 24/7. It just sounds real to me. The main limitation of my system is how loud I'm allowed to play. It sounds great at low volume though even better turned up a bit. It's not that the character of the sound changes, simply improved imaging with a little more volume..... I like it best at -33db on my pre though if my wife is home it has to be at -40db.

27 minutes ago, MattyW said:

I do enjoy TDA1541 done right. The Abbas was lovely though the D1000 I still believe to be a better choice for me as I just leave it on 24/7. It just sounds real to me. The main limitation of my system is how loud I'm allowed to play. It sounds great at low volume though even better turned up a bit. It's not that the character of the sound changes, simply improved imaging with a little more volume..... I like it best at -33db on my pre though if my wife is home it has to be at -40db.

TDA1541 done right, now there is some controversy !  

28 minutes ago, MattyW said:

simply improved imaging with a little more volume..... I like it best at -33db

 

Different set up but to get the woofers working its a must for me.  I hear what you are saying re the D1000.  Leaving it on is an advantage.

 

Looking forward to a TDA1541 done right 🙂.  Most likely Next year with what going on in Ukraine,  but an Abbas 3.2 in the mix that will heat the room up.

30 minutes ago, Artnet said:

 

Different set up but to get the woofers working its a must for me.  I hear what you are saying re the D1000.  Leaving it on is an advantage.

 

Looking forward to a TDA1541 done right 🙂.  Most likely Next year with what going on in Ukraine,  but an Abbas 3.2 in the mix that will heat the room up.

 

Yeah, I rather hope Russia is pushed back to.... Well, Russia soon. Incredible invasions are still a thing in this day and age.

 

I look forward to hearing about your Abbas when the time comes. Gorgeous sound in what they do. D1000 does things in a different way and I do miss how the Abbas did certain things yet prefer the D1000 with others. I remain a little faschinated by the review of the 2022 Audio-GD R7HE Mk2 though probably not enough to splash out and try one. I suspect the Absolute Audio Labs pre I have coming will give me that change in presentation that I sometimes crave..... I suspect I'll keep my current passive pre so I can switch to it when I feel like a change.

 

I think I've an issue where no longer how much I like something, I like trying new things and experimenting. Just ordered 2 pair of Chinese Diatone P610 copies so I can try them out in my car. I've enjoyed messing with them for computer and bedroom systems and they're incredibly lifelike in terms of voices. Very coloured though this is a good thing seeing as car head units tend to sound kind of crappy 

Edited November 17, 20223 yr by MattyW

5 minutes ago, MattyW said:

I look forward to hearing about your Abbas when the time comes. Gorgeous sound in what they do. D1000 does things in a different way and I do miss how the Abbas did certain things yet prefer the D1000 with others. I remain a little faschinated by the review of the 2022 Audio-GD R7HE Mk2 though probably not enough to splash out and try one. I suspect the Absolute Audio Labs pre I have coming will give me that change in presentation that I sometimes crave..... I suspect I'll keep my current passive pre so I can switch to it when I feel like a change.

 

Synergy has to be a constant journey, doesn't it?.  Certainly with different music unless you get very serious about room treatment etc and even then 2 DAC's are better than 1.(my opinion)🙂

21 minutes ago, Artnet said:

 

Synergy has to be a constant journey, doesn't it?.  Certainly with different music unless you get very serious about room treatment etc and even then 2 DAC's are better than 1.(my opinion)🙂

 

Speaker design plays a big part too..... I find for low volume listening either open back/baffle with large drivers (pushing plenty of air) or back loaded horns with a single fullrange are ideal. On the other hand I suspect for those that like to play loud then more traditional speaker designs would be better for many.