AudioCircle
Audio/Video Gear and Systems => Critic's Circle (Equipment Reviews) => Cable Reviews => Topic started by: highfilter on 21 Feb 2011, 02:05 am
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So I've had a complete WyWires setup since January 5th and I thought I'd give my review as they are bloody amazing.
WyWires setup consists of:
1 WyWires Juice Power Cord - Currently on my dB Audio Labs Tranquility SE DAC
1 pair of WyWires speaker cables (Xhadow spades on speaker end, Xhadow bananas on the amp end) - DAC Cherry Jr. amp to the Salk SoundScape 10s
1 pair of WyWires Xhadow RCA cables - From the Tranquility SE DAC to Wyred4Sound STP-SE pre-amp
1 pair of WyWires Xhadow XLR cables - From DAC Cherry Jr. amp to Wyred4Sound STP-SE pre-amp
This is going from Nagys Audio RCAs, XLRs and speaker cables, as well as Pangea power cords. My original setup with the Nagys Audio cables was a little bright sounding and slightly metallic, especially directly compared to the WyWires. I kept hearing great things about the WyWires and then when WyWires had their holiday sale, I knew it was a great time to pull the trigger and try these babies out. I'm glad I did! These things really get it "right" and are truly game changers for a system.
These cables totally get out of the way and just let you hear what was meant to be heard. Everything is very organic, smooth and lacks any sign of a "digital" sound, and I am running solid-state across the board. Very good sense of realistic rendering of instruments, amazing natural soundstage and there's tons of separation and detail. I've never heard this type of natural rendering before and these cables at least bumped up the performance of my system by 25% (if I had to put a number on it) and removed any sense of digital or sibilance in my system. HIGHLY recommend you try these cables if you have the money to take your system to the next level. :D
So a quick overview of improvements from my previous setup to the new WyWires setup:
- Total removal of any trace of a "digital" sound or cold / metallic sounding highs or midrange. Vocals sound amazing and life-like and guitars (I'll looking at you Dire Straits - Money For Nothing) put a huge smile on my face. There's a warmth and organic quality to the highs and midrange, you can almost taste it. But it's not overly warm or cut-off, there's tons of extension and air, but it just sounds "right" and nothing is compromised.
- Natural soundstage and instrument placement. The Juice power cord is bloodly good at this and opens up each component you have it on. I only have one Juice power cord right now, but I plan to get some more when my audio funds build up. I tried the Juice on all my components and heard improvements on each one. I ended up leaving the power cord on the DAC because that was the best increase I could figure. I'll replace all my power cords on my next order, and I'll probably have another jaw-dropping moment when that happens. The power cords really tie everything together and are a fantastic value at their price point.
- Build quality and flexibility. Not only do these things look very nice, they are all really flexible. Compared to the Pangea 14SE and Pangea 9 cords, there's no comparison. The Juice power cords easily beat the Pangea cords at every single aspect and are VERY flexible. They almost float and there's no push or pull on the component so there's a perfect fit. Love that! No more huge snake power cords and better sound to boot. The interconnects and speaker cables are also light weight and are very well constructed. :D
- Bass in general is more defined, varied and has better weight and definition. The midrange and mid-bass was a huge improvement over my previous cables and the sense of weight is fantastic. Kick-drums and low-bass electronic music sounds amazing and there's no sense of bloat or slow bass.
Overall just a real eye-opener as I wasn't sure how much of an improvement high-end cables could make. Very glad I tried these cables and I can't wait to continue to replace the rest of my stuff with the WyWires cables as time goes on. Alex really knows his stuff and offers great recommendations and customer support. His first-class help and support was much appreciated and is refreshing in the cable industry. I originally had the older versions of his interconnect cables (the old hot sauce) which he told me were slightly more laid back (slightly warmer and more weight) than his new version of the interconnects (the new hot sauce - the new one has a bit better HF extension and detail). He recommended the old hot sauce versions because I mentioned I have a slight metallic sound I found and didn't want any trace of sibilance. I tried the old hot sauce cables and loved them. Thought they were amazing, but I wanted to try the new hot sauce as I wondered about the more detail and higher HF extension. So he shipped me some cables so I could compare them directly and then send back the cables I didn't want. I fell in love with the new hot sauce cables as they had the same sonic signature as the old ones, but as he said, had more HF extension, air and detail. Still very natural and organic sounding, but they felt like they had no boundaries and the extension on orchestral music was amazing. So I ended up keeping the new version of his interconnects and couldn't be happier.
Alex is on to something. I'm a happy customer! :D
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Of course I agree totally. I'm not only a beta tester I'm a client. :thumb:
Just superb synergy between all these cables. Without going into detail, my preferences are for the HS Interconnects and the Juice 1. In my system these are the ones that give an emotional experience. That "can't sit still feeling" and playing one recording after another. I have different reactions to the V2 interconnects and Juice 2. Positive, but the first editions just shwang. How's that?
That is why Alex will do the pre-evaulation on your system before purchase.
It amazes me I can hear all the differences in the flavors of these cables.
I am thoroughly convinced cables make the difference. I think these will make a difference no matter what the system configuration you have.
You mean to tell me Nagys cables are NOT "the best in the world"? :shake:
Sorry, could not resist.
D
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You mean to tell me Nagys cables are NOT "the best in the world"? :shake:
Sorry, could not resist.
D
:green: :green: :green: I'm on the tour and looking forward to try things
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You mean to tell me Nagys cables are NOT "the best in the world"? :shake:
Sorry, could not resist.
Hehe, they were good cables for the price (I only compared them to stock Home Depot cables, however), but they were nothing like the WyWires. The Nagys had speed and good dynamics, but they missed that organic touch, midrange weight, had more "digital" in vocals and overall seemed to reproduce music compared to the WyWires actually getting close to pure music.
Completely different price points, but both WyWires and Nagys had great customer service.
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I agree they are completely different price points. One is made from stock wire. Since I make my own cables, I'll have to dig out the link to the manufacturer (I stuck it somewhere) as I have made so many things, it was not hard to figure out what he (Nagy) was using. I did contact the company but did not follow-up (I wanted to make sure they would sell a small quantity). I like making different things. If I don't use it, I always pass it on to someone to whom it is an upgrade. I have a WyWires balanced cable between my amp and preamp and preferred it by a little bit over my own and I've compared mine to stuff much more expensive that WyWires. So I am really looking forward to get a bunch and try each one individually and gauge the difference. I was actually not expecting the WyWires to be better than what I was using.
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great review Highfilter. However, when it comes to guitars, I wish you would have used another example beside Dire Straits Brothers In Arms. The reason is the guitars on that never sound bad, it is hard to mess those up. I guess what I am trying to say because the recording is so good and the guitars already sound awesome, I didn't get a sense oh how the cables help out in that region. Sorry to nit pick.
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great review Highfilter. However, when it comes to guitars, I wish you would have used another example beside Dire Straits Brothers In Arms. The reason is the guitars on that never sound bad, it is hard to mess those up. I guess what I am trying to say because the recording is so good and the guitars already sound awesome, I didn't get a sense oh how the cables help out in that region. Sorry to nit pick.
Heh, well I only mentioned it because it sounds even better. It might have sounded good before, but now it sounds :o.
Keep in mind, these cables don't make bad recorded stuff sound amazing, so if a guitar was poorly recorded or a disc was poorly engineered, you'll hear it in all its original glory. However, I find every single track I listen to does sound better, because there's none of the cable's own characteristics found in the music, or if there is, the characteristics of the cables are just damn wonderful.
Other guitar examples I could mention that came alive with the WyWires:
- Eagles - Take It Easy
- The Shins - New Slang
- KMFDM - A Drug Against War (Especially the mid-bass and drums, wow)
- Tool - H.
The improvements come from being able to hear more of the nuances and characteristics of the actual guitar and instruments. Like the string, sometimes a "woody" texture, that renders very well and you can tell you're hearing more information and superior low-level detail. You don't just hear that one sound of an instrument, you get to hear all the subtle details and you can pick-apart small differences that in my case, was never at the fore-front when I was listening to some tracks.
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SRV-----"Riviera Paradise"
D
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Heh, well I only mentioned it because it sounds even better. It might have sounded good before, but now it sounds :o.
Keep in mind, these cables don't make bad recorded stuff sound amazing, so if a guitar was poorly recorded or a disc was poorly engineered, you'll hear it in all its original glory. However, I find every single track I listen to does sound better, because there's none of the cable's own characteristics found in the music, or if there is, the characteristics of the cables are just damn wonderful.
Other guitar examples I could mention that came alive with the WyWires:
- Eagles - Take It Easy
- The Shins - New Slang
- KMFDM - A Drug Against War (Especially the mid-bass and drums, wow)
- Tool - H.
The improvements come from being able to hear more of the nuances and characteristics of the actual guitar and instruments. Like the string, sometimes a "woody" texture, that renders very well and you can tell you're hearing more information and superior low-level detail. You don't just hear that one sound of an instrument, you get to hear all the subtle details and you can pick-apart small differences that in my case, was never at the fore-front when I was listening to some tracks.
Thanks Highfilter for clarifying. Very good!!!!!
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Hehe, they were good cables for the price (I only compared them to stock Home Depot cables, however), but they were nothing like the WyWires. The Nagys had speed and good dynamics, but they missed that organic touch, midrange weight, had more "digital" in vocals and overall seemed to reproduce music compared to the WyWires actually getting close to pure music.
Completely different price points, but both WyWires and Nagys had great customer service.
I agree with assessment of the naggy and, at least in my system, they were a no-go. I too had the opportunity to compare my own rig completely Naggy'd and completely Wywire'd. To say I prefer Wywire is an understatement.
Where do you find you like that Juice power cord the best? My favorite spots were DAC, preamp and phono preamp. I know others reported the most effective spot being on their amps and even power conditioners.
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I agree with assessment of the naggy and, at least in my system, they were a no-go. I too had the opportunity to compare my own rig completely Naggy'd and completely Wywire'd. To say I prefer Wywire is an understatement.
Where do you find you like that Juice power cord the best? My favorite spots were DAC, preamp and phono preamp. I know others reported the most effective spot being on their amps and even power conditioners.
Hehe, yes, the WyWires are indeed in a different league from the Nagy's. Actually, from anything I've heard in terms of cables.
The Juice power cord is great, I wish I had 3 more! I got the ATL version and I love the connectors. Probably the best fit of any cords I have tried so far. I currently have the Juice on my Tranquility SE DAC because I think that is one of the better choices at this point - because I don't have 3 more to put on my power conditioner, amp and pre-amp. :D
But yeah, the Juice gives me great weight in the midrange and smoother highs when on the DAC. When I tried the Juice on my power conditioner, it naturally expanded the soundstage in width and depth, gave me some solid weight in the midrange (but not as much as just on the DAC) and added some sweetness to the high freq. The Juice on my pre-amp gave similar results as it on the UberBuss, but maybe to a lesser extent. But the soundstage is huge and wonderful when the Juice is on the pre-amp, one of the many stand-outs. As well as adding some isolation and air between the instruments. The Juice on my amp was a solid improvement, but maybe lesser than the power conditioner, pre-amp and DAC, but I'll have to try again as I only swapped it around for a few hours or so. In the amp it seemed to snap everything together, possibly a lower noise floor? Everything just seemed to increase a tad (midrange, smooth highs, great bass), but I think there was overall just more "focus" to the music. Couldn't really put my finger on it at the time, but there was definitely something snapping that put a smile on my face.
I really do plan on getting 3 more Juice cords for my power conditioner, pre-amp and amp, but I'll have to wait for my wallet to recover for a bit. I can't imagine the results if everything had a Juice attached to it, my prediction would probably be something like: :drool: :angel: :drool:
The Juice is like the secret weapon of the WyWires line, it's one of the cheapest items, but gives so much back. I haven't tried the Juice II, but that also is on my list of things to drool over.
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Alex knows cables that's for sure not only does he know cables he knows people too, I've been a fan, fanboy, wide eyed listener, and mostly just stunned ever since the first Hot Sauce Alex sent me at about 18 hours into listening to it, the cymbals and most everything sounded more realistic then anything I had heard before and since. Alex is one of those rare guys out there that actually does what others only dream about doing. :thumb:
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Haha, the cymbals are damn impressive I must say! Alex is a great guy to deal with, no doubt. I like how he constantly is trying to improve his product and values customer feedback 100%. It's impressive that he does all these tours, listens to what people are saying, puts his skill to work and puts the value back into an improved product for his customers. A rare sight in this industry, and very welcome. :thumb:
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:green: :green: :green: I'm on the tour and looking forward to try things
Yours are on the way Phil, USPS web site says delivery today.
"Expected Delivery Date: March 2, 2011"
"All sorting has been completed at the delivery unit for today's deliveries at 8:28 am on March 02, 2011"
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I started to look at WyWires (via CryoParts web site) starting with the PC. The 2' length price is the same as the 6' length...hmmm.
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I started to look at WyWires (via CryoParts web site) starting with the PC. The 2' length price is the same as the 6' length...hmmm.
Just trying to keep things simple and accessible for people new to WyWires. The PC is intended to be the introductory product to get people excited, hence the relatively low price at $239 for any length up to 6 feet. If you think there is a better strategy, Please let me know.
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Just trying to keep things simple and accessible for people new to WyWires. The PC is intended to be the introductory product to get people excited, hence the relatively low price at $239 for any length up to 6 feet. If you think there is a better strategy, Please let me know.
Perhaps price per ft, or price per 2' length?
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Perhaps price per ft, or price per 2' length?
Or start at a lower price for 3 feet and add $X per foot thereafter?
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The PC is intended to be the introductory product to get people excited, hence the relatively low price at $239 for any length up to 6 feet. If you think there is a better strategy, Please let me know.
Not a BETTER strategy, but a cable tour of just the digital cable would be a great idea IMO. Its tied with the original formula Hot Sauce interconnect as my favorite as your products and its cost is reasonable to those going the transport/dac route.
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Not a BETTER strategy, but a cable tour of just the digital cable would be a great idea IMO. Its tied with the original formula Hot Sauce interconnect as my favorite as your products and its cost is reasonable to those going the transport/dac route.
Great idea! I'll make an announcement in Industry Ads the next few days.
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Not a BETTER strategy, but a cable tour of just the digital cable would be a great idea IMO. Its tied with the original formula Hot Sauce interconnect as my favorite as your products and its cost is reasonable to those going the transport/dac route.
A Little late but a fantastic idea.... :thumb:
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A Little late but a fantastic idea.... :thumb:
Actually it's a little early since I only have a handful of comments and reactions as well as some suggestions for improvement. I would like to make sure the product is at least 90-95% there before releasing it on tour while the tour helps close the gap between 90% and 99.9%. The Juice II evolved as a result of the tours but I was pretty happy with the original.
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I received a package of WyWires from Alex as part of the western tour several days ago, and finally took most of the day to put them into two different systems for evaluation. The bits that I specifically spent time with were the interconnects and the Juice power cords.
System One
Integrated Amps- a pair of custom Dodd EL-84 based integrated monoblocks.
Speakers- GR-Research Neo 2X with upgrades w/o sub
Source- Virtue Piano CD transport with DIYParadise Monica II Dac battery powered. The Virtue is powered with a DIY cord.
Cables- Straley
IC- Electra Cables
PC- Iron lung Jellyfish
System 2
Amp- modded Moscode 300
Preamp- Dodd Battery Pre
Source- Cambridge 640C with Twisted Pear Buffalo Sabre Dac on a Dodd battery system
PC to the Cambridge is the Electra Cables B7
PC to the amp is stock, captive.
Music- Joshua Judges Ruth by Lyle Lovette
Brand New Day by Sting
In system 1, the first change was the power cord on the amps. Right off the bat on Joshua Judges Ruth, the resonance of the piano had the sound of the whole instrument, sound stage widened, echos weren't vague but room defining, back up vocals became individual voices, all vocals were better defined especially softly ending consonants and leading edges, soft passages in piano shimmered, soft vocals had a breathy quality not noticed before.
On Sting's Brand New Day drum sets were precisely placed, sound stage widened, and echoes defined space rather than muddying it.
Overall, the Juice power cord is a monsterously huge step up from the Jellyfish. Although there is a substantial price difference, I'll be placing my order soon. In my opinion, these are $ well spent.
Next I changed the Electra cable IC's from dac to integrated amp to the Wywires. Vocal clarity and overall detail had a slight increase, yet in a way that was more relaxed- you might say detail without edge. Soundstage widened slightly, and instruments moved further behind the vocalist. The leading attack of percussion softened when compared to the Electracables.
Here, there were more things in common than things that separated the power cords. Overall, the Wywires were best, but not uniformly across the board. Also with substantial increase in cost, I'll stick to my Electracables.
In system 2, since most of it had captive power cords, or was battery powered, only the IC's were evaluated. After reading my notes, the same observations about wider and deeper sound stage, increased detail without becoming edgy, and the attack of percussion not quite as crisp was apparent on the big full range speakers. In addition, deep bass was slightly more detailed. The Wywires again proved to have more going for them, but not by a wide margin. Their most intriguing feature is that ability to increase detail, yet not appear to have a sharpness- sure makes for easy listening.
All in all, WyWires makes a high quality product that could add detail, sound stage, and musicality to your system. For me, I like the power cords. I've been looking for an excuse to cut the old PC off my Moscode, and this is it.
Alex, thanks for the opportunity to audition your cables. You make a fine product.
Scott
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I received a package of WyWires from Alex as part of the western tour several days ago, and finally took most of the day to put them into two different systems for evaluation. The bits that I specifically spent time with were the interconnects and the Juice power cords.
System One
Integrated Amps- a pair of custom Dodd EL-84 based integrated monoblocks.
Speakers- GR-Research Neo 2X with upgrades w/o sub
Source- Virtue Piano CD transport with DIYParadise Monica II Dac battery powered. The Virtue is powered with a DIY cord.
Cables- Straley
IC- Electra Cables
PC- Iron lung Jellyfish
System 2
Amp- modded Moscode 300
Preamp- Dodd Battery Pre
Source- Cambridge 640C with Twisted Pear Buffalo Sabre Dac on a Dodd battery system
PC to the Cambridge is the Electra Cables B7
PC to the amp is stock, captive.
Music- Joshua Judges Ruth by Lyle Lovette
Brand New Day by Sting
In system 1, the first change was the power cord on the amps. Right off the bat on Joshua Judges Ruth, the resonance of the piano had the sound of the whole instrument, sound stage widened, echos weren't vague but room defining, back up vocals became individual voices, all vocals were better defined especially softly ending consonants and leading edges, soft passages in piano shimmered, soft vocals had a breathy quality not noticed before.
On Sting's Brand New Day drum sets were precisely placed, sound stage widened, and echoes defined space rather than muddying it.
Overall, the Juice power cord is a monsterously huge step up from the Jellyfish. Although there is a substantial price difference, I'll be placing my order soon. In my opinion, these are $ well spent.
Next I changed the Electra cable IC's from dac to integrated amp to the Wywires. Vocal clarity and overall detail had a slight increase, yet in a way that was more relaxed- you might say detail without edge. Soundstage widened slightly, and instruments moved further behind the vocalist. The leading attack of percussion softened when compared to the Electracables.
Here, there were more things in common than things that separated the power cords. Overall, the Wywires were best, but not uniformly across the board. Also with substantial increase in cost, I'll stick to my Electracables.
In system 2, since most of it had captive power cords, or was battery powered, only the IC's were evaluated. After reading my notes, the same observations about wider and deeper sound stage, increased detail without becoming edgy, and the attack of percussion not quite as crisp was apparent on the big full range speakers. In addition, deep bass was slightly more detailed. The Wywires again proved to have more going for them, but not by a wide margin. Their most intriguing feature is that ability to increase detail, yet not appear to have a sharpness- sure makes for easy listening.
All in all, WyWires makes a high quality product that could add detail, sound stage, and musicality to your system. For me, I like the power cords. I've been looking for an excuse to cut the old PC off my Moscode, and this is it.
Alex, thanks for the opportunity to audition your cables. You make a fine product.
Scott
Thanks Scott for trying the cables and providing your honest impressions. As has been said many times many ways, all cables are VERY system dependent and also dependent upon what aspect of audio performance provides each listener with the cue that what is being heard sounds live and natural. This is different for everybody and every system.
Looks like the Juice II is a winner.
Alex
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Alex,
I'd go further than that. Your interconnects are definitely winners as well. I am still confounded how they managed to increase detail, yet take off a bit of brightness- in my system of course. Usually I've found those to be mutually exclusive.
Again, these aren't just another interconnect and another power cord.
Scott