[S Clark]

I've had Steve's latest Kloud 9 cable for several days of listening. 
The quick summary is that they are top quality.

They were reviewed in two systems.  In system one they were used to connect a Virtue CD player to a Dodd battery preamp.  The  amp is a highly detailed modified Folsom TDA 7297 amp powered by 24V batteries.  The speakers are GR-Research X-Statik with upgraded crossovers, and open baffle twin servo subs. In system 2 they are connected to a Hagerman Trumpet phonostage, to a Dodd preamp to a Moscode 401HR amp.  The turntable is a Vyger Baltic with a Pioneer P3 arm. The cartridge is a Dynavector 20x2L with a MicroLine stylus.   The speakers are the GR-Research LS9 line source with upgraded crossovers.
I usually start IC evaluations on the Virtue CD player because it has two outputs- perfect for immediate A/B comparison... just switch from Aux1 to Aux2 on the Dodd preamp.  The ability to listen to a  passage, run it back, and switch to a different cable in less than 10 seconds lets you compare fine nuances clearly. 

System 1-- The first IC  to compare to was the Audio Sensibility OCC Silver cables.  The source material was Evening Conversations by David Fung and Yarlung Records, Hourglass by James Taylor, and Angels Running by Patty Larkin- classical piano solo, male vocals, and female vocalist and guitarist.
These were very similar.  The Kloud 9 was better in bass resolution. , sustains were more noticeable in upper range of percussion (bongos). But some details were clearer on the silver cables... slips on guitar frets. The Kloud 9 had a wider soundstage and very natural female vocals. The initial attack of notes was a bit better on the Audio Sensitivities.  Hard to pick a "winner".

Next up was a comparison to Wywire Silver (series, not material) interconnects.  The Wywires were more detailed, crisper on attack, and had better instrument and vocal seperation.  Backup vocals were clearly distinct and separate from the primary vocalist compared to the Kloud 9.  But also in my notes was a nagging comment that the Kloud vocals sounded more "real".  This became more important when I began the second part of my evaluation. 

System 2---This is a big system in a big room with big power.  For the second part of my evaluation each cable was left in for the length of an album.  Right off the bat all things changed.  The Kloud 9 was more natural and musical than the other IC's. Yes the Wywires had more detail, but it didn't sound better.  In fact, my notes for the Kloud 9 say "Clear, crisp, and vibrant"   The source vinyl was Jennifer Warnes "The Hunter", followed by Rodrigo's Concierto for 4 guitars and Orchestra on Mercury vinyl.
So in summary, in my best system with my best source the Kloud 9 cables were an overall musical winner.  Do they do all things better? No. (nothing does all things better)  I like detail, and Wywires are detail kings.  But on my best vinyl rig, I have to say the Kloud 9s stood out in a way that was natural, clean, and so enticing to listen to.  Nothing I've had in before has bested the Wywires Silver, but in one system with vinyl, I think the Kloud 9 might be more enjoyable.   
By the way, if you decide to change the name, consider "Goldilocks" cables, not too bright, not too this or that, but musically just right. 

 

[nlitworld]

Hey Scott,
I'd like to add my Kloud9 review to your existing thread if that's OK. If you'd like it somewhere else, PM me and I'll move it.

So for as long as I can remember, I have enjoyed tinkering. The idea of "set it and forget it" only sounds appealing for rotisserie chicken kitchen gadgets, but not with bikes, not with cars, and certainly not with stereos. I like finding new improvements, testing new things and learning the answers of "riddle me this" type questions. I found long ago that modding equipment and improvements in cables can lead to great sound with modest investments. From there, I've taken any opportunity to test gear, cables, tweaks, software, you name it. With that same enthusiasm, enter the Kloud9 cables.

First off, the build quality of these are very, very nice. Ultra lightweight, reasonably flexible for placement behind components and top quality KLE connectors. In the notes for these cables, it did recommend giving some time after plugging in components and surprisingly I did find that to be somewhat true at first. Once I pulled out of the packaging, it took a good hour or two to settle in. After that, changing cables around to A/B/C options was really a cinch.

Let me provide some background context on my system and my listening preferences. I've been playing around with a few different audio programs as well, but most of my listening is still on Foobar with a few system tweaks for better sound. Other programs I also played with for this demo were Hysolid (cumbersome but very good) and XXHighEnd (best sound but glitchy AF). My components are all tube based, all modified or DIY built,  and paired with GR Research NX-Studio speakers and a pair of SVS subs. Check my system profile if you want specifics, but I won't bore you with them here. All in all, my system really leans to open studio natural sound and live performance repoduction. That's not to say I like syrupy midrange like your old man's stereo from LBJ presidency, but I am addicted to that three dimensionality of tubes, NOS r2r DAC, and vinyl. That really makes sense how my audio journey has progressed as my listening room is 10x12 and speakers are a few feet out into the room in a pretty nearfield arrangement. So with that, I lined up some albums and single tracks and sat down to listen.

First up I placed the Kloud9 between my dac & pre, leaving everything else consistent and started playing some familiar tracks. I have a pretty broad range of musical tastes but always have a soft spot for metal/punk/grunge. What can I say, I grew up in the 90s. So first up was one of my all time favorites, Alice In Chains - MTV Unplugged album. I'd bet my bottom dollar this is one of the best recorded live albums ever made. It's ability to capture the entire performance, crowd interaction, and venue acoustics is just unbelievable. It does have a sad spot as you can really hear the physical toll Layne Staley's body has gone through from his years of drug abuse. Small details like hearing the lisp and slightly slurred speech in his vocals were very noticable with the Kloud9. Another fun little gem is hearing the heckling from the front row (Metallica were front row) so being pick up on those little details and have them be palpable held solidly in space is always a good start. The cables seemed very well balanced without favoring highs, lows, or anything in between.

Next album was Art Blakey &The Jazz Messengers - Mosaic andfor this one I included the extra set of rca cables between my pre & amp for a full loom of silver Empirical Audio rca cables. This album is just flat out fun uptempo jazz and his level of control on the drumset is phenomenal. Articulate, well structured playing but always coming across as fun and imaginative. The ability to pick out each drum and cymbal strike as it's own entity is always a fun experience. Hearing his control on the kick drum was another fun feature that is more prominent. The ability for these to dig into the low level detail and make it shine through really did spotlight things I normally have shadowed a bit farther back in the soundstage. While this is not a bad thing at all, just shows off a different presentation than I currently have and it's a real fun change. It really does make you feel that you're in the studio with them and able to watch the creative process unfold.

Next up was an album by a long favorite artist Thrice - To Be Here Is To Be Nowhere. Not my all out favorite album of theirs, but the recording and production is one of their better ones. There are a few spots near the end of the album where the vocals have intentional reverb to add that space around the singer and it sounds absolutely cavernous.

During the next album I tried swapping the Kloud9 with the older model to see if there is a difference in presentation, and sure enough there actually was. My preamp is pretty neutral with the tubes in there, but the amp is a little smoother with the power tubes that are in there. Surprisingly when I swapped cable positions, there was a small decrease in spaciousness and just a touch less smoothness of presentation. Best I can track is that there was a solid improvement between the older cables and the newer where the older cables set the tone running them earlier in the chain. Granted you'd never really be able to tell if doing anything outside a direct a/b with no down time, but it did go back the other way as soon as I adjusted the Kloud9 first in the signal chain. I was floored at these cables can pick up that level of subtle nuance.

After those experiments, I thought I'd test out in my vinyl setup. Surprisingly, this side of my system is the more articulate and neutral presentation compared to my digital side. Running the Kloud9 from my phono to pre and the other rca from pre to amp did prove to be a bit too much of a good thing for my setup. I'm 100% positive that a good rolling of tubes or signal path capacitors to a smoother, more lush set would be absolutely phenomenal. It wasn't a glare or any of the typical silver hardness by any means, it just came across a little too much that could prohibit real long listening sessions. Think of it like watching a football game where your TV was set to the Retail Demo mode rather than the Home mode. It's great to watch sports in super crisp vivid images, but when you want to get into a movie it is just a little much. Again, that's with my setup where I'm sitting literally 5' away from my speakers in a small but well treated room. Anyone else where they're in a nice sized room or using a soft dome tweeter speaker would be absolutely in heaven. So yeah, not a knock on the cables at all, just an observation to how they fit in my quirky setup. Now, I did test things out where I went back to a different copper cable between pre and amp still using the Kloud9 from phono stage into preamp, and that little bit of extra clarity and spotlight presentation was really good fun. That made the perfect Goldilocks combofor the vinyl side to be really, really nice. I did also try this cable as a legit phono cable between turntable and phono stage. Surprisingly enough it sounded awesome. The super low capacitance design really carries that low level signal nicely. While I wouldn't recommend as it's not a shielded cable, I was impressed how well it did work.

Through all my listening, I really felt this cable really lends itself to the phrase, "do no harm". Everywhere I placed it in the signal chain, it handled itself with poise to enlighten you of the situation without forcing it down your throat. I really do enjoy when cable makers are able to achieve this because it seems few and far between that a cable (let alone a silver cable) doesn't come across as aggressive or etched sounding while still providing detail, dynamics and correct tone. There always seems to be a balancing act, and Steve did well to nail it on these.

I spent the next several days trying out all sorts of other music from large classical arrangements to solo vocalists, hip-hop, metal and back to boomer classic rock. These cables were very consistent across all ranges of music choices and did not seem to prefer one genre of another; which is another great attribute to high end cables. I mean, if you only want to listen to solo female vocals and Americana folk music exclusively, then ok but that's just not my jam. Comparing to some of the other big name cables I've heard, it really solidified my belief that small scale manufacturers on AC really do make the best products and are always a real treat to work with. Steve, these cables were some of the best I've been able to listen to and I really had a blast putting them through their paces. My quirky setup aside, the Kloud9 are awesome, full stop. You have a great design on your hands and you seemed to improve nicely on your old design as well. That level of constant improvement is seriously commendable. You really deserve some high fives and thumbs up for your new offering.

-Lloyd

[aljordan]

Hello,

I am a day away from the end of my two week period with the Empirical Audio Kloud 9 interconnect demo tour. Steve mentioned I should leave my review in this thread, so here it comes.

The system context in which I listened to the Kloud 9 interconnects is a mix of commercial and DIY gear as follows:
DIY Roon music server with HQPlayer Embedded applying room correction filters -> DIY network streamer that feeds the DACs via USB or BNC SPDIF -> either a Schiit Yggdrasil Less is More DAC or a DIY Twisted Pear Audio Buffalo III SE DAC -> DIY Zen Mod Iron Pumpkin preamp -> DIY Pass Aleph 2 mono-block amps -> Avalon Eidolon speakers. I also listen to vinyl, but did not try the Kloud 9 in the vinyl chain.

Both DACs have two single ended outputs and a balanced output, so I ran the multiple outputs on a given DAC to separate preamp channels so I could compare the interconnects by switching channels via remote control. I primarily listened to well recorded jazz and classical, recorded in northern European countries after the year 2000, but also listened to some lighter rock stuff like Guster, Natalie Merchant, Beth Orton, Steven Wilson so I could hear vocals, and some Lisa Bella Donna on the Moog so I could hear some depth and rumble.

I will note that I have little patience in using cables to try to EQ my system, but I do find that some cables sound good and some sound not so good. To get ready for the new interconnects, I had cleaned up my existing favorites with Deoxit. The favorites used in the comparison are a pure silver interconnect and a copper interconnect, but later I also compared the Kloud 9 to some balanced interconnects of various makes, as they are what I usually run between DAC, preamp and amps.

I plugged the Kloud 9 cables in as soon as they arrived. While they sounded pretty good, I thought both pairs of my existing interconnects sounded better. The Kloud 9 were a little thin in the treble in direct comparison, a little sharp in the upper midrange, and a touch synthetic sounding on some acoustic instruments, but otherwise seemed to have an nice open sound with very good bass. I let them stay undisturbed in the system (not moving them at all) and listened again on each day forward. They sounded slightly better each day for a few days.

After about 3 or 4 days, I couldn't really hear much difference between my existing pairs and the Kloud 9, but after a day or two more, I was preferring the Kloud 9 over my existing interconnects. I don't know why, but the Kloud 9 sounded different after settling in the system for about a week. The thinness in the treble disappeared somewhere around day three or four, and I could no longer detect the synthetic quality to acoustic strings that I had heard earlier in the audition.

Listening to the Kloud 9, there is a slightly extended sense of space between the instruments compared to my existing favorites. The Kloud 9 still have a rich sound with good body like my other cables, but the Kloud 9 sound cleaner (not stripped, just that you can hear a little more into the music in comparison). The music breaths a little more freely than my existing silver interconnects, and my copper favorite sounds a little bit edgy or gritty in comparison (and the copper pair are smoother than most interconnects I've listened to, which is why they have lasted in my system for so long).

My preamp is a balanced design, and I generally listen to balanced cables between the DAC, preamp and amps. I decided to compare the single ended Kloud 9 to my balanced cables. I don't know if there is some cancelling of second harmonic when I am running balanced from the DAC that is not being cancelled when I am running single ended cables, but I actually like the sound of the single ended Kloud 9 interconnects better than the balanced connection, at least when using the Yggy Less is More DAC. The balanced connection is a little "drier" sounding; a little less developed in body. I'll try the same comparison from my DIY Twisted Pear Buffalo III DAC before I send the interconnects on to their next stop, but at this point I haven't made the comparison.

In summary, and for others who may try the Kloud 9, I would advise letting them settle a few days after shipping before rushing to a conclusion about their sound. I am not the type of person who would buy a thousand plus dollar set of interconnects, but I've listened to plenty of extremely expensive cables in the system for extended periods thanks to a nice community of sharing among my audiophile friends. I've never felt that my favorites gave up anything compared to the expensive cables, but I am finding that I do like the Kloud 9 cables a bit better than my long-term favorites. In fact, at one point yesterday I was listening and thinking, "hmmm, the Kloud 9 are not sounding as good today". Well, it turned out I had the preamp on the wrong input and was actually listening to one of my own interconnects instead.

I think the Kloud 9 sound very good. I will be a little sad to forward them on to the next recipient.

Alan

[Nick B]

Sorry about being a bit late with my review. I have had the pleasure of auditioning the Kloud 9 silver interconnect along with it's silver cousin that was apparently a prior version with less pure silver. To give you some background, I have a very good sounding system and the components are listed to put my review in better perspective for you. I have really focused on noise reduction as I think very low noise and resolution are important factors in evaluating new components and cables.

Orchard Starkrimson Ultra amp
Hattor Big preamp
JMR Voce Grande speakers
Holo Cyan2 dac
Holo Red streamer
Hapa Aero digital coax
WyWires Silver cables
TWL Digital American II p cord
Audio Envy p cords
Roon, Tidal, Qobuz
PI Audio UberBUSS

My music tastes include lots of vocals, instrumental, orchestral including ballroom dance music as ballroom dance was something I enjoyed doing for a number of years. I prefer music reproduction that focuses on accuracy and purity of sound, air, a great holographic presentation and tonality. I also prefer a bit of warmth. Bass reproduction isn't very important to me. I have 2 Rythmik L12 subs that I have yet to put back in the system because of a warranty issue on one (that was handled promptly by Rythmik) and a back injury I suffered while trying to lift one. My back is doing well nowadays.

The Kloud 9 is a good performer compared to my Wywires Silver ... which is actually made of copper. The Kloud 9 is very well made and light and flexible. I found the resolution to be very similar, but the holographic presentation was better, which I was quite happy about. The soundstage depth was a bit better with the Kloud 9, again something that I appreciate. There was air and focus showing where instruments and performers were located within the soundstage. The Kloud 9 was neutral and not quite as warm as the Wywires Silver. So is the Kloud 9 thin sounding in comparison or is the Wywires Silver simply a tad warm because it's made of copper. I don't know and it's really irrelevant as things are system dependent and you should try cables in your system anyway.

 I wanted to discuss my review methodology, which is simply listening to music. I use Roon, which knows my tastes and plays my favorites along with adding new tunes that it thinks I might like. A lot of the music I listen to is European and decades old. So I have to live with sometimes poor recordings and digital transfers. It's all good as I love the music so much and it's then a special treat to listen to very well recorded music.

I did add the second silver interconnect that Steve included and it slightly improved what benefits I heard with the Kloud 9. I will, though, stick to the highest quality silver as I've had unpleasant experiences years ago with the less pure silver.

I definitely enjoyed the Kloud 9 and the prior version and I think it's definitely worth an audition.

Nick

[crowells]

System #1, Office system: Aurum Cantus Volla Mk IIs speakers (large ribbon tweeter 2-way), B&K MOSFET amp, Schiit Saga+ preamp, Ayre QB-9 DAC. The “Kloud 9” has smoked the Wireworld Equinox, 6 nines copper cable which sounds dark in comparison. The Kloud 9 has greater presence, depth of soundstage, resolution, etc. Very agile, without a hint of hardness. Very nice balance!

System #2, Speakers- restored Acoustat 3s (upgraded HF filter caps (Mundorf Evo oil, Jantzen Supreme and Duelund copper foil/oil bypass – no electrolytics) driven by an Audio Research Ref 75. Network: SoTM 10G Ethernet switches in series (connected with copper, no SFPs) / linear PS and an Ethernet isolator between the last switch and PC. Front-end is a SoTM USB regenerator with linear PS to a Schiit Yggy DAC (Unison card) / Freya+ preamp with RCA tubes.

*For the comparison with the Kloud 9 RCA cable, I used a Cardas Clear RCA from the DAC.

The Kloud 9 cable was right up there with the Cardas Clear RCA in terms of frequency extremes, smoothness and resolution. The tonal balances were a little different. The Kloud 9 being a touch lighter, airier. I really liked it on acoustic jazz and small ensemble classical. Where I thought the Cardas had the advantage is in complex music, one cut clearly illustrated the difference, ironically “Cloud Nine” by Mongo Santamaria. The Litz network in the Cardas seemed to deal with all the instruments better with less confusion. In this system, I also preferred tonal balance of the Cardas Clear RCA which gave more of a recessed mid “holographic” effect.

The Kloud 9 is a great cable overall, extremely smooth, musical and engaging. As usual, system dependent.

[BobRex]

In the past few months I've been lucky enough to listen to two different interconnects.  First the HAPA Aeros and now the Kloud 9s.  The system has stayed the same, so to save typing I'm going to paste my description from the Aero review:

This review was done using only analog.  My turntable is a TTWeights Gem rim drive with a modified Jelco 750 12" arm.  The mods were done by TTWeights and basically provide fully adjustable VTA and mass loading of the bearing housing.  The cartridge, a VDH Colibri XGP is connected to Hashimoto H3 SUTs (Choir Audio) via an Audio Sensibilities phono cable.  The SUTs are typically wired to a Herron phono stage with a Grover cable (test point 1).  From the Herron, a second Grover cable (test point 2) leads to a Vinnie Rossi LIO DHT (Shuguang Treasure 300Bs).  The integrated amp drives the mid tweeter sections of VMPS RM30s (external crossovers, TRY caps, silver wire, Powered Bass all mounted in Dayton speaker cabs) through WyWires speaker cables.  The bass section is driven by the low level outs of the LIO via a 3m Grover interconnect into Dayton 500w plate amps (test point 3).  The room is 22 x 17 with a cathedral ceiling (approx 14 ft at the peak).  One front corner has a fireplace and the other front corner is filled with a largish record/ cd rack.  System and speakers sit on the wide wall with speakers 8ft apart and 5ft from the front wall.  The system and additional record storage sit between the speakers.  A listening sofa sits about 8 inches away from the back wall, with pillows acting as absorbers at ear level.  The room is fairly clean with a peak node around 100Hz that's eq'd out via the plate amp's parametric.  With this size room. deploying the speakers on the wide walls mitigates the need for wall absorption - the reflection path is long enough that the signal is sufficiently delayed to fall outside of the critical window.

Albums used:
Prokofieff Lt. Kije - Fritz Reiner and Chicago Symphony - RCA, the Classic Records pressing
Stravinsky Firebird and Debussy Prelude to the afternoon of a Fawn - Leinsdorf, Sheffield Records D2D
Oregon - In Performance
Paul Winter Consort - Road
Joni Mitchell - Shadows and Light
Grateful Dead - Terrapin Station - AP pressing
Pat Metheny - Travels
Assorted others.......

The Kloud 9s are somewhat thick at a little over 1/2 inch in diameter, but surprisingly flexible for the girth.  Initial testing was done using the cable between the Herron and the Lio input.  Later I installed the 2nd, older generation cable in the input of the Herron.  What I heard was a reduction in grain and a liquidity that the Grovers lacked.  The cables are quiet, passing more details.

In Performance, Side 3:  Recorded in Carnegie Hall, the side opens with George Schutz walking to a mic and introducing the band.  The reverb is cavernous.  This reverb permeates through the opening drum solo, Walcott's tablas illuminate the space.  When the band comes in on the second cut (Arion) everybody has a defined space with plenty of surrounding air.  Towner's classical guitar sounds as "real" as I've ever heard.

Icarus:  Again, detail is improved.  I heard more defined upper percussion - bells - than I've heard before, and I've been listening to this album since the mid-70's.

Lt. Kije:  There is a reason why certain Living Stereo recordings are so lauded.  This recording sounded alive.  Instruments were placed in their own cushions of air, with distinct location differences between the flute and piccolo  Same with the different woodwinds.  This made it easier to follow musical lines.  I did hear one possible flaw - the bass sounded more ummm energetic than I'm used to.  Now I could have adjusted that out with the plate amps, but I wanted to see if it was a singular instance.

Terrapin Station:  Turns out that the bass concern wasn't a singular instance. The bass on this album also became a little strong and loose.  Otherwise, the cable's clarity was perfect, easily separating the drum lines from Kreutzman and Hart.  I was also able to hear Jerry harmonizing with Donna better than with the Grovers.

I don't want to fuss to much over the bass issue.  As I noted, I could have adjusted it out either with the plate amps or playing with the PR putty.  If I owned the cables I would do just that, but for testing....

All things considered, these are great cables.  I know Steve is trying to sell his cable business, but he has said that he'd make some up on request.  If you are looking to upgrade your current loom, add these to your short list. Look at it this way, if the cable was sold through a retail chain, they'd more than likely sell for upwards towards (if not over) 2 grand.  At the current prices, they are a steal.