Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables

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leif8660

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Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« on: 11 Feb 2016, 08:35 pm »
Hello friends,

Please understand that this is a brief description of "some" of the science behind the MasterBuilt Audio Cables.  I am forced to leave quite a bit of information out.  I'm sorry, some things must remain a mystery or I should say confidential.  I hope you will enjoy.

 

Technical Information Sheet

Von Schweikert Audio is pleased to announce the introduction of a new line of laboratory-grade audio cables, developed by a division of a leading aerospace company.  Based on several decades of research in metallurgy, electrical field effects, and the chemistry of dielectric materials, our MasterBuilt (MB) engineering partners used transfer-function measurements that are accurate to a ten-thousandth of a unit in addition to using comparison-based listening tests against other top-quality brands of cables.  Our verification by A/B/X blind testing indicates that this design does indeed have less distortion and coloration than any other competing cable, at any price!  Von Schweikert Audio is proud to be the Distributor for this important new line.
 
As speaker systems require internal wiring and need to be connected to amplifiers with wire that does not alter the musical signal, VSA has conducted research in this field and has maintained an open communication line with many researchers in the cable industry. Thus began our association with Master-Built.

BACK GROUND
A leading aerospace company that manufactures wiring systems was conducting research into low-reactance cable engineering for use in the design of the wiring harnesses for the Apollo lunar missions and other NASA projects, such as the International Space Station and other mission-critical applications.

One of the main objectives was to shield the cables against electrical interference, since high levels of radiation and electrical pulses can damage the delicate electronic systems in space craft and satellites.  Electrical disturbances can also corrupt the signals from ground control and cause a loss of stability of the on-board computers.  For this reason, Master-Built has developed new technology called Quantum Noise Reduction, which is a significant development for audio cables as well as aerospace transmission cables.

After the 1873 discovery of magnetic wave transmissions by Maxwell, it was known that cables behave as antennae and will pick up stray RFI and EMI radiation, i.e., “interference,” and should be eliminated.  In audio, this unwanted stray electrical energy becomes amplified and overlays the music with “grunge” and distortion. Instead of the “black” back ground, you hear a “white noise” back ground, especially when using digital playback equipment.  It is this noise pollution that is eliminated by the Quantum Noise Reduction technology inherent in every Master-Built Audio Cable.  We believe you will find this development to be as significant as your most important component.  Although Master-Built has been working on cable development for Aerospace use for many decades, the new audio cable division was developed by an audiophile, who is also their Wiring Division’s chief scientist.  We believe his methods to be the perfect blend of music and science. 

CAUSE AND EFFECT
Although many people do not believe that simple “wire” can alter the sound of stereo components, it is very easy to demonstrate that different types and configurations of wire have amazingly different “reactive” measurements*, including inductance, resistance, capacitance – one must only buy a very accurate measurement system to discover that there is more than a 20x difference in capacitance between solid core and stranded wire types depending on the design of their winding geometries! The popular method of “weaving” or braiding several wires together actually generates capacitance, which in turn, rolls off the deepest bass frequencies. Another popular winding technique uses the side-by-side parallel geometry, which creates “inductance,” reducing high frequencies. Last, but not least, resistance absorbs some of the signal, weakening the dynamic range and compressing the sound stage if the resistance becomes too high compared to the energy of the signal.

*Please note that inductors, resistors, and capacitors are the building blocks of filters used to “cross over” speaker units, so it wasn’t surprising to us when we measured and heard large differences in the different cables we tested.  You should not want to change the sound of your system by using audio cables that alter the electrical transfer characteristics of the musical recording!  This is “distortion” and is something you do not want in your system if you can avoid it.

We were amazed by the immense number of combinations of wire types, insulation, winding geometries, and other aspects that comprise the science of signal transfer functions.  Our study into the field of psychoacoustics led us to use the famed ABX scientific method of “blind” listening tests, which is invaluable when comparing cables.

CABLE DESIGN TARGET
Since MB realized that audiophiles that own other brands of speakers will want to optimize the sound of their systems, the MasterBuilt cables were not specifically designed for VSA speakers – they are, in fact, a “universal” and neutral design which will sound great with any speaker brand.

As the measurement process exposed weaknesses in contemporary audio cables, our engineers conducted hundreds of experiments to derive the correct method of constructing the audio cables using their existing knowledge base from aerospace applications. 

MasterBuilt’s end goal was to ensure the highest level of sonic purity. Our listening panel of “golden-eared” audiophiles was our secret weapon, since we did not want to have a solitary opinion of what constitutes “good sound;” there had to be a general consensus among a large group of listeners that own different brands of electronics and speakers.  Naturally, the cables were initially designed by scientific methods.

On top of the list of desired engineering goals was to design a cable that added no distortion in the form of reactance. After all, the system can’t sound any better than the weakest link in the chain.

The huge sound stage created by Reference-quality speaker systems required the MB cable design to transmit the holography of the musical signal correctly to eliminate any compression of the height, width, and depth of the recorded sound stage.  This design target requires that the cables will not generate any type of magnetic field distortion when the signal is flowing through the cables.  This target proved to be one of the most difficult tasks to achieve, since very little research had been conducted in this area previous to MB’s research.  A thorough study of psychoacoustics had to be undertaken to properly evaluate the sonic differences created by magnetic field interaction – this study was an outgrowth of Von Schweikert Audio’s discovery of the bi-wire crossover design in 1976 at Cal Tech labs, which we passed along to the engineers at MasterBuilt.

Naturally, there are other causes of distortion besides the reactances noted above in wire and cable products, which MB has thoroughly addressed as well:
 
a)   Impurities in the metal conductor which; along with crystalline barriers, result in rough and grainy high frequencies.  This is caused by collision of the electrons carrying the musical signal with the impurities and crystalline barriers inherent in any extruded metal.  MB’s solution is to use the purest, Laboratory-grade cast copper, with 99.9999% of the impurities removed.
Please note that our listening panel rejected all other metals in the blind ABX tests, including silver, silver plated copper, aluminum, gold, and platinum conductors.  Although initially dazzled by the brighter, forward-sounding silver formulations, the brighter sound became quite fatiguing over an extended period of time, often as little as ten minutes!  In addition, the metals other than copper seemed to reduce bass power as they simultaneously increased the treble range, making them a poor choice.  Note that MB’s top cable, called ULTRA, is a composite of several different types of materials including copper and precious alloys.

b)   Dielectric absorption of the high frequency component of the music signal by the insulation material creates a non-linear response. Since most elements have “free radical” electrons in their atomic makeup, the musical signal will be affected when the electrons collide with the dielectric’s “free radical” electrons.  This distortion creates a “fog” over the music that masks realism.  MB’s solution is to use hyper-expensive dielectric materials that do not alter the electrical signal.  Our proprietary formulation consists of vacuum-formed Teflon, which is as close to perfection as possible in reducing dielectric distortion.  Our Teflon coating is applied with a Patent Pending method that does not result in free radical Teflon electrons placed in the signal path.

c)   Arcing (signal path distortion caused by “stranded wire bundling”) occurs when the signal electrons attempt to jump from strand to strand.  The resulting distortion sounds like the crackling when you connect jumper cables from one car battery to another and creates a “bright” and “hard” sound quality. MB’s solution was to eliminate the “stranded wire bundling distortion” by using the Litz method of coating each individual wire strand with insulation, which isolates each strand from touching.  This method, although expensive, totally eliminates this form of distortion, resulting in a smooth, harmonically-rich sound quality.

d)   Poor quality connectors (spade lugs or banana plugs) can cause distortion by mis-terminating the electrical transmission path, while excess resistance caused by low quality solder and connector plugs made from inexpensive metal alloys can add a “veil” to the signal.  MB’s solution is to use the finest quality and high conductivity connectors for best signal transfer.  Spade lugs or banana plugs are available for MB speaker wires, and RCA or XLR plugs are available in the MB line of interconnects.  In addition, we are using the most pure TRT solder available.

e)   Hysteresis (magnetic field interaction) is caused when the positive and negative conductors are placed in close proximity.  As you may remember from high school physics, recordings of music consist of alternating currents that alternate from positive to negative as the musical notes go through their 360-degree cycles.  As the electron signal flows through the wire, they generate a magnetic field if the positive and negative conductors are in close proximity.  As this field builds and collapses with every musical note, the next note is attempting to flow through the cable from amplifier to speaker.  The expansion and contraction of the magnetic field is called “hysteresis” and is a type of distortion that will modulate the signal unless a method of cancellation exists in the design.  The engineers at Master-Built have chosen to use a rare and expensive method of winding the conductors in a spiral path that alternate between the positive and negative conductors; this spiral path is termed a Helix and uses the Litz method of separating the conductors to eliminate the sonically degrading effects caused by hysteresis.

f)   “Frequency modulation” of the delicate treble signal and its harmonic structure is caused when the same cable is used to carry both bass and treble information from the amplifier to the speaker.  Hysteresis effects caused by the magnetic field interaction noted above also generate a type of “frequency modulation” of the upper harmonics of the signal when powerful bass notes are flowing through the conductor.  Since the delicate treble signals and their harmonics are up to 900% lower in voltage than bass signals when comparing a 32Hz tympani note with a 2kHz flute note, the only method to eliminate this interactive distortion is to separate the bass from the treble conductors. 

This method is called “bi-wiring” and consists of running separate bass and treble cables to the speaker system, which must be designed to accommodate this wiring method. Since many brands of speaker systems are bi-wirable, MB has designed their MasterBuilt Speaker Cables to drive high resolution speakers to their highest level of performance with the MB bi-wire cable design.  Although there are twin cables running to each speaker, they are joined together at the amplifier end to make connection to the amplifier easy to accomplish.  The user may order either spade or banana plugs on either end, with no difference in price.  Although expensive to implement due to the use of four cables instead of the normal two cables, the sonic advantages are well worth the extra cost.  You will hear superior treble reproduction with a lush presentation of musical sweetness, total elimination of “harsh” treble, tighter bass, and a far larger sound stage, with highly realistic 3-D image recreation that will give you goose bumps at every listening session.
   

HOW BI-WIRNG WORKS AT THE AMPLIFIER END
One of the most frequently asked question concerns why the signal benefits from bi-wiring, since the amplifier appears to be outputting both bass and treble into the speaker cables.  This is a good question, which you will not find answered elsewhere.  Let us make a simple analogy before getting into the physics of the situation.  If you were to pour water on a sloping hill, would the water run uphill as well as downhill?  (This is not a trick question).  Since Gravity forces all of the water to run downhill, it is easy to realize why none of it runs uphill.  In this analogy, we will equate Gravity with Impedance.  Inside the speaker system are crossover circuits which do not work on frequency, they work on impedance (which in turn is set to whatever crossover frequency the designer requires). Since a midrange/tweeter circuit exhibits “high impedance” (think of it as high resistance) to bass frequencies due to the nature of how inductors and capacitors operate electrically, the bass frequencies cannot travel from the amplifier up to the midrange/tweeter crossover and drivers. Conversely, the treble frequencies cannot travel up the cable connected to the woofer crossover and bass drivers, since there is a high impedance “seen” at the amplifier for those frequencies.  To paraphrase this little-known phenomenon, the bass and treble signals are essentially “crossed over” directly at the amplifier binding posts, completely separating the bass and midrange/treble frequencies BEFORE they travel up the speaker cable.  The “crossover point” is dictated by the speaker system’s crossover filters, of course.  Since the bass power cannot modulate the treble signal when using bi-wiring, the sonic effects are dramatic: you will immediately hear more clarity in the midrange/treble and a larger, more transparent sound stage. The audible differences are dramatic!

DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION
As MB is engineering-driven and not accountant-driven, they chose to design the finest quality cables with a price-no-object consideration.  There are plenty of affordable, decent sounding cables on the market, but MB sought to revolutionize the field.  MasterBuilt realizes that their cable designs are not for everyone and were designed for the most discriminating audiophiles who own the best quality components in the world.

It is common knowledge that most cable brands have their materials made overseas to reduce costs, but MasterBuilt owns their own factory with a foundry and state-of-the art laboratory here in the US.  There are very few companies that operate on the level of MasterBuilt when you consider the vast cost of making everything in house.  However; if you can afford the cost, you will be rewarded with the most compelling sound you will ever experience in your life.  Von Schweikert Audio has used the MasterBuilt Line of cables to win Best of Show for the past 3 years.

MasterBuilt manufactures four different levels of products; the Purple, Reference, Signature, and ULTRA lines.  See our Product Brochures on these lines to find out which particular model would work the best in your system.  We are also happy to consult with you on the phone.

All four levels offer power cords, interconnects, speaker cables, digital and phono cables.  All cables are made to order and can be specially built in any length with any type of connector.  One last thing; the best sound to be heard is by the utilization of the same cable brand throughout the entire system.  Once you have installed a full loom of MasterBuilt cables and then substitute a different brand in just one single area, you will hear a collapse of the sound stage and the onset of coloration.  This is due to the utter neutrality and transparency of the MB cables. 

For more information, please do not hesitate to contact us via phone or email.  Call to find a dealer in your area.  We also have International Distributors if you live outside the U.S.



MasterBuilt Audio Cables
Distributed by Von Schweikert Audio
1040 Northgate St., Building A, Riverside, CA 92507
Ph. (951) 682-0706        Fx. (951) 682-6701
E-mail:  info@vonschweikert.com     Web:  www.vonschweikert.com and www.endeavoraudio.com
« Last Edit: 11 Feb 2016, 11:00 pm by leif8660 »

htradtk

Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #1 on: 13 Feb 2016, 12:26 am »
Lief,

Very interesting read! I know when I added the Signature Masterbuilt bi-wire cables to my VR-5 Anniversary MKII's my soundstage really opened up to reveal so much instrumentation I could not believe my ears! Just one thing, awhile back, Albert said there was a web site in development for the Masterbuilt line, has there been any progress with this?

Henry

leif8660

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Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #2 on: 13 Feb 2016, 12:53 am »
Hello Henry,

MasterBuilt is still working on the website.  It should be up within the next month or two.  Many new products have been added so I know they have lots of photography being done.  Hopefully soon:)

gammajo

Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #3 on: 13 Feb 2016, 03:55 am »
Lief - Thank you for the informative post. Do have questions - if all other metals such as silver and gold were shown to be inferior to the purest copper, why are other metals introduced in the Ultra, if I read the article correctly?  Is it accurate to say that under electron microscope even the purest copper wire looks a bit like Swiss cheese in terms of gaps and voids, whereas Ultra wire present a much smoother path for the electrons to navigate?
More personal question - did my new Ultra speaker cables make it onto the cooker today? Thanks
Joe

gammajo

Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #4 on: 13 Feb 2016, 05:00 am »
Lief - One more question. Another company is touting graphene as having 8 million times more conductive density than copper. Do you know if their designs were part of the ABX testing against Ultra?

leif8660

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Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #5 on: 13 Feb 2016, 04:22 pm »
Lief - One more question. Another company is touting graphene as having 8 million times more conductive density than copper. Do you know if their designs were part of the ABX testing against Ultra?
It's just not there yet and will be a long time before it is if it ever gets there.

 While graphene is a very, very fast 'pipe' for carrying current, it is a very tiny one, i.e. the carriers can fly though the material, but there's not a lot of room for them as it is a single atomic layer that is literally thinner than one nanometer (3-4 angstroms to be precise). If one tries to make a bigger 'pipe' for carrying current by stacking or growing multiple layers of graphene, the amazing properties of the material degrade quickly with each additional added layer. In fact, at around 10+ layers graphene begins to perform much like its allotropic parent, graphite, that is composed of many layers of graphene.

  Graphene is still expensive to make and handle. While this will improve over time (graphene is just carbon, after all!) any application that requires a significant volume or mass of conductive material will have a hard time beating the cost+performance of copper.

To my knowledge, this material cannot compare to the Ultra.

leif8660

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    • Von Schweikert Audio
Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #6 on: 13 Feb 2016, 04:38 pm »
Lief - Thank you for the informative post. Do have questions - if all other metals such as silver and gold were shown to be inferior to the purest copper, why are other metals introduced in the Ultra, if I read the article correctly?  Is it accurate to say that under electron microscope even the purest copper wire looks a bit like Swiss cheese in terms of gaps and voids, whereas Ultra wire present a much smoother path for the electrons to navigate?
More personal question - did my new Ultra speaker cables make it onto the cooker today? Thanks
Joe



The Ultra has to be mixed with what MasterBuilt call Ultra Copper.  100% Ultra in a cable believe it or not is too pure.  Please remember these cables are designed to be neutral.  If you have a bright speaker, the cables will show that. If you have speakers where the designer rolls out the highs, the MB cables will show that.  M-B doesn't build their cables to act like filters like many other companies do. 

Example
The VR-55's are a very flat amplitude speaker and it is tonally accurate to live instruments.  Why would I want to add cables that will alter what the VR-55 does so well?  When we put some of these other cables on the VR-55 (these are the same cables you see on a couple of the biggest name brand speakers at all the audio shows) these cables throttled back the VR-55's.  They lost their punch and transparency.  It's like we put a blanket in front of the speakers.  These other cables could work well if you have bright speakers or electronics.  But I would rather start with a good speaker and have neutral cables instead of adding more filters into the chain.  But hey...that's just me:)

gammajo

Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #7 on: 13 Feb 2016, 04:55 pm »
Lief - Thank you for taking the time to answer all our obsessive questions :thumb:
I know at the end of the day it is about listening but having some understanding is helpful




leif8660

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Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #8 on: 13 Feb 2016, 05:09 pm »
Your very welcome my friend.  I wish I knew more but there are just things MB won't share with me lol.  I'm o.k. with that.

leif8660

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    • Von Schweikert Audio
Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #9 on: 14 Feb 2016, 05:46 pm »
It's just not there yet and will be a long time before it is if it ever gets there.

 While graphene is a very, very fast 'pipe' for carrying current, it is a very tiny one, i.e. the carriers can fly though the material, but there's not a lot of room for them as it is a single atomic layer that is literally thinner than one nanometer (3-4 angstroms to be precise). If one tries to make a bigger 'pipe' for carrying current by stacking or growing multiple layers of graphene, the amazing properties of the material degrade quickly with each additional added layer. In fact, at around 10+ layers graphene begins to perform much like its allotropic parent, graphite, that is composed of many layers of graphene.

  Graphene is still expensive to make and handle. While this will improve over time (graphene is just carbon, after all!) any application that requires a significant volume or mass of conductive material will have a hard time beating the cost+performance of copper.

To my knowledge, this material cannot compare to the Ultra.
I forgot to mention carbon based elements sound bad lol.

gammajo

Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #10 on: 14 Feb 2016, 06:54 pm »
We are carbon based life forms and my wife saying come hither sounds pretty good to me :wink:

leif8660

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    • Von Schweikert Audio
Re: Science behind MasterBuilt Audio Cables
« Reply #11 on: 15 Feb 2016, 01:38 am »
That's just good synergy :D