BUYING GUIDE & REVIEWS
INTERCONNECTS, 'SPEAKER CABLES & POWER CORDS |
| PRICES SHOWN ARE THOSE AT THE TIME OF REVIEW |
| INTERCONNECTS |
| Interconnect Cables |
£ |
Year |
Verdict |
| Chord Co Anthem |
£275 p.m. |
Jul 00 |
Strong recommendation for dull systems. For clarity with sparkle, the Anthem is a good choice |
| Chord Co Calypso |
£30 p.m. |
Apr 02 |
Fair detail and depth. Certain lack of focus with choral music but a giant leap up from basic 'patch cables'. Affordable and effective upgrade. |
| Chord Co Chorus |
£200 p.m. |
Feb 01 |
Well suited to valves and smooth sounding equipment. Will calm down over-bright or harsh systems. Highly recommended |
| Chord Co Silver Siren |
£74 p.m
pair |
May 01 |
Lively and well balanced with excellent detail and staging. Highly recommended. |
| Ixos Gamma Encore |
£70 p.m. |
Jul 01 |
Full and forward sound with sweet treble and very good deep bass. |
| Ixos 1001 Gamma Master |
£69 p.m. |
Jul 02 |
A good cable thats works well with most hi-fi but may need livening up by brighter sounding components. |
Joh Dory Hi-Fi
Silver foil |
£200 p.m. |
Feb 02 |
Deliver a true high-end neutral, open and balanced sound. Very competent, they offer much. |
| Linn Silver Interconnects |
£185 per
1.2m pair |
Jun 01
Jul 02 |
Superb sound quality and a great all rounder. Overall, brilliant with smooth sources but not the most neutral at the price. |
| Monster Cable M1000i |
£299 p.m. |
Feb 01 |
Good dynamics and rock-solid super tuneful bass. You get a strong and sophisticated sound for your money. |
| Neotech NA-12165 |
£425 p.m. |
Feb 02 |
Rich and powerful sounding, with good bass and smooth treble. Well constructed cables but hefty price. Similar sounds can be gleaned for less. |
| Nordost Quattro Fil |
£1375 p.m. |
Oct 01 |
Full and fast with oodles of detail and presence. Will deliver a musical yet exact sound. |
| Nordost Red Dawn |
£300 p.m |
Jul 00 |
Musicality that manifests itself in vocals and instrumental phrasing. Pricey, but excellent. |
| Origin Live Advanced |
£45 p.m.
pair |
May 01 |
System friendly with good tonal balance, neutral but not cold. Imaging good and well worth a listen. |
Origin Live Laminar
Flow Reference |
£149 p.m. |
Feb 02 |
Fuss free sound that suit's most set-ups. Picks up oodles of detail and creates space in recordings. A good buy at the price. |
Origin Live Laminar
Flow Ultra |
£85 p.m. |
Jul 01 |
Fine lyrical quality, sounds fluid and musical as well as analytical. A high-end sound with a sensible price tag. |
| Precious Metals Silver Signal 100 |
£120 |
Feb 01 |
Good detail and presence, fine imaging, with sweet treble and excellent bass response. A super-fast and exciting performer. |
| SonicLink Control |
£135 p.m. |
Feb 01 |
Well balanced with detail and cleanness of sound. Will spark up a dullish system. |
| SonicLink First Base |
£25 p.m. |
Jul 01 |
Fast and open sound for the money. A great little upgrade for the 'first time' cable buyer or second system upgrade. |
| SonicLink Red Earth |
£300 p.m. |
Jul 00 |
Ideally used with valve equipment, may sound too bright with solid state sounding gear. |
| SonicLink SG Whisper |
£45 p.m
pair |
May 01 |
Overall performance was good especially for the price of these cables. Good value for money and a worthy audition. |
| True Colours Industries Cobra |
£199 p.m
pair |
May 01 |
Full sounding cable works well with thin sounding or sterile equipment, where it will fatten up the sound. Good for the money. |
| van den Hul The Bay |
£38 per
0.8m |
Apr 02 |
Rounded, balanced and full sound with high frequency detail. Well built cable that will fit in with most budget or midpriced systems. |
| van den Hul The First Ultimate |
£219 per .6m pair |
Jul 00 |
Not called 'Ultimate' for nothing. Expensive it may be but the performance is absolutely knock-out |
| van den Hul Integration Hybrid |
£199 per
0.8m |
Feb 01 |
Neutral with firm rhythmic grip and fluidity. Big, cohesive sound with detailed bass and smooth treble. Highly recommended. |
| van den Hul Storm Gold Hybrid |
£30 p.m. |
Oct 01 |
Plenty of detail and excitement. Soundstage is nice and deep and treble is never harsh or rough. A great upgrade for the budget restricted. |
| LOUDSPEAKER CABLES |
| 'Speaker Cables |
£ |
Year |
Verdict |
Ecosse Reference Cable
ES2.3 |
£13.49 p.m. |
May 02 |
Good detail and soundstage, deep bass and treble sweet and smooth. An all round yet advanced sounding cable. |
| Ecosse Reference Cable MS2.15 |
£27 p.m. |
Jul 01 |
This is a fluid yet neutral and detailed cable that should suit most systems and last for the rest of your audiophile life. Highly recommended. |
| Kimber Cable 4PR |
£94 per
3m pair |
Apr 01 |
Cohesive and lyrical, the sound is'nt mechanical or dry, but open and extemely well balanced. Bass is good and taut. An excellent all round buy. |
| LAT International Bi-Wire |
£25 p.m. |
Jul 01 |
Smooth and musical, will open up enclosed or claustrophobic systems with its sweet treble and spacious imaging. Good stuff indeed. |
| Nordost SPM |
£2795 per 3m pair |
Dec 00 |
Frighteningly realistic dynamics, jaw dropping detail, bone crunching bass. A sonic experience to savour. |
| SonicLink AST-150 |
£48 per
3m pair |
Apr 01 |
Fine value for money. Gives much detail, it will suit smoother or dullish systems where it will quicken the sound. |
Supra Cables
Quattro 4X4T |
£7.99 p.m. |
May 02 |
Deep bass with good detail and a smooth sounding treble. Highly recommended for audition and a great upgrade from ultra budget wire. |
| van den Hul Royal Jade Hybrid |
£11 p.m |
Dec 00 |
Musical and exciting, will give a real lift to sluggish components, excellent value for money |
| Power Cords |
£ |
Year |
Verdict |
| Ecosse Reference Big Red Powercord |
£99 |
Aug 02 |
A good upgrade, but not the cheapest option. Well focussed and clear sounding. |
| Kemp Electronics KE lo-Power Cbale |
£36 p.m |
Aug 02 |
Good value for money, the Kemp cables are clean sounding and lucid. |
| Kimber LoPowercord |
£75 |
Aug 02 |
The first and still one of the best. Competition is now strong but the Wattgate IEC makes a big difference. |
