[rjacko]

I have the B&W 802's with the BR20 and the sound is sublime.Running with the Michi M8 mono blocks which are pretty substantial.There is plenty of weight there in my setup and streaming through MM,and hi res files from disc. Sound from either is well weighted, even at low volumes.

[amdan]

Thank you so much for your post. It reminded me that I have a pair of Mogami cables. I was using Furutech cables between my preamp and power amp. I have now replaced them with the Mogami cables (2543) and they sound far better.

I will be looking into Mogami for interconnects. I currently use the base model Audioquest between my external DAC and preamp. I may try out the Mogami Platinum. I was also considering the Mogami 2543 for this position however it appears that the Platinum is their flagship cable. I should probably try them both!

[Blueshound]

amdan, you should absolutely try the Mogami Platinum Signature between your pre and power amp, as well as from the DAC analog out to preamp in (is this a balanced connection?). Just keep in mind these are sold as singles. And terminated with XLRs, so only usable as such. Unless you choose to re-terminate yourself.

From memory, I played audio through the Platinum Signatures for somewhere around 60 hours, at which point they were largely "settled in". You will hear the potential after the first hour, though.

Brian

[amdan]

Hi Brian. I have ordered the Mogami Gold. I looked at the Mogami website and they describe the Gold as a warmer cable. I might also get the Platinum to try out someday. Did you compare the Platinum to the Gold?
BTW, all my equipment have XLR outputs however the BR-20 only has two inputs whilst I have 3 external components. One of them will have to miss out.

[Blueshound]

Hi amdan. Mogami uses two different cable numbers under the marketing designation of Gold, one of them being 2549. I'd guess this is what you're going to receive, if it's XLR terminations. If that is the case, yes I have tried it back in the dawn of my experience with Mogami. I have at least one pair in a drawer. It's smooth and relatively tonally neutral sounding. (I've also used and liked Gold as a musical instrument cable, not the same thing.)

I was then introduced to 3173, which in comparisons to 2549 was obviously more detailed, particularly in the sense of dynamics and spatial details. Certainly it didn't seem brighter to me. At this time I had a friend, a lifetime audiophile, who also sat through comparisons. He was so excited with the differences he heard with the 3173 that he immediately ordered a long pair.

When trying to understand Mogami's catalogue, it's important to remember that Mogami is largely a company that serves the pro markets, e.g. studio, stage, musical instrument etc. They don't really cater to audiophiles. 3173 is primarily sold as bulk cable under the full name Mogami Neglex W3173 110-ohm AES/EBU Digital Audio Cable. A small number of online merchants e.g. ProaudioLA, Studio Ekonomic etc. somehow discovered that this AES/EBU spec'd. cable made a very good sounding analog interconnect.

Someone very close to Mogami in Japan, when discussing 3173, mentioned to me that what is marketed as Platinum Studio and for AES/EBU, is the same general construction as 3173 with 18 AWG conductors, but with higher purity copper again, and with Mogami-designed XLRs. It is not available in bulk, as Mogami has an internal certification process which they can only do for finished cables.

3173 and Platinum Studio are also superior for long balanced runs, with their larger conductor gauge and shielding. 3173 is widely used for long mic runs on stage.

I've ordered a 35 ft. pair of Platinum Studio to replace my long 3173 runs, haven't received those yet.

So that was my journey - enjoy yours.

Brian

[amdan]

Hi Brian. The cable I ordered is the 2534 which is the cable I am using between pre and power. I may also try the Platinum however it is significantly more expensive.

[zoom25]

Oooh missed a few posts here. I got another month with Qobuz through Apple and have been running some more stuff. Will touch up on the LPS, router/switches, cable length, Qobuz, Tidal, Roon, Audirvana now as well (w/Tidal and Roon). I also have some of the cables being mentioned here including Mogami 2549 and 3173 (for both analog and digital). I also have quad in the form of Canare L-4E6S. I have many cables better than 2549 flat out. 3173 is among the top cables for analog but in an exciting, attention catching way, as is the Vovox Sonorus unshielded I have. Other cables I have include Grimm TPR Gen 1 and Gen 2, Gotham GAC-2 AES, Mogami 2964, Ghost beta, Ghost analog, Ghost+ w/ tellurium copper connectors. (Some of the Ghost I received for testing, so not sure on their public purchase status at the moment) I have a few AES cables that I've used and some of them I've had built at different lengths. Both cable type and length itself can factor into the sound. I have as short as 6 inch (11 inch from connector to connector) all the way up to 18 feet long for AES digital cables between 2964, TPR, GAC-2 AES, 3173. I also spent some time going through USB cables as well as of late (probably around 20 of them).

Between all the software and hardware combinations I have, there are multiple combinations to be made and it can be WILD just how much the sound can swing between them all. If you describe a type of sound you want, I can probably put something together with the right combo of playback software, streaming service, analog cable, digital cable type, digital cable length etc.

The combinations and sound variations can be endless. From all the testing I have basically arrived at the following conclusion: you can either choose to tune for IMAGE, or tune for TONE. Ideally, you'd like to have something that works perfectly for both.

I think one of the most telling things is when you've been away from the system and audio playback for a decent period of time and you play stuff from a mental cold start. What does your gut say in the first 10 seconds? Over the course of playback session, you can always convince yourself one way or another...but that initial first impression can often times be truthful.

When making cable decisions, I actually don't rely on music heavily. I think a better form of assessment is video. I use live TV, movies, 4K Blu-Rays with high quality audio to determine what feels "right". Like lately I had been following the NBA playoffs and in particular I had Grimm TPR and 3173 running for analog. Both top performers in clarity and being fast, good extension...yet very different presentation and the mindset that you experience it with. For example, with 3173 from first moment, you'll feel like you're at a theatre. Everything feels sharp and being projected at you. Watching the NBA game, you can hear the crowd noises, sneaker squeaking noises very clearly and projected at you and grabbing your attention. Meanwhile, with TPR is also very clear and very sharp but rather than throw things at you, it makes your eyes and ear go deeper and inside the screen. You feel the crowd voices as more distant and in the background with the ambience presented differently. I even have different USB cables for each analog cable to double down on its natural tone and presentation.

I think both tone and image should be given attention as if either one is too off, your brain will poke at you with a stick that results in dissatisfaction and/or fatigue.

(Thanks for the info on the Platinum. Will poke Phil Tennison for more info.) I will address the previous OP's queries in a later post.

[amdan]

My system is music only - no chance of using video to assess cables. Have you tried the 3543? I'd be curious to know what others have found with this cable.

[zoom25]

No haven't tried 3543. Fully balanced here.

LPS - I have the Teradak X1/X2/U9...forgetting the exact name/number currently off of memory. It has both a DC output and a USB output. I bought mine for the 5V USB output specifically. I figured even if it didn't work out for the switches, I could repurpose it for another use down the road since 5V and USB are always abound. It wasn't too pricey back then to risk it. I got 3 different D-Link switches that can be powered with it, 2 gigabit and 1 fast ethernet (100mbps) to slow everything down to 100mbit: D-Link DGS-1005G, D-Link DES-1005D, and D-Link DGS-108. 2 are plastic including connectors, the other is metal with connectors, so could try different shielding schemes and floating etc.

I got a USB to DC barrel cable for the DGS-108. The other switches have micro USB. Again the thinking back at the time was it wasn't too pricey and I could repurpose extra switches down the road. That's what happened when I wired my house with gigabit and I found use for them all. I also tested it with a Cisco router (now repurposed as a wireless accent point).

They all sound different to some degree. The one that really stood out was the fast ethernet switch. In general the routers with their stock SMPS can be fast, fun sounding but somewhat noisy and not as dark. The switches at first can feel a bit slower and darker but they don't fatigue you. The DGS-108 was a good balance. The fast ethernet switch really took me for a spin as that was the darkest I had ever heard my system. It almost felt airless and not exciting, but could see very clearly. Maybe I'll fire it up again someday. This is moot if you have other devices nearby that require gigabit speeds, so you can't use the fast switch in that case.

With Roon you can't do this trick for too long, but with Manic Moose you can let a song buffer for bit and then pull the ethernet cable out and you can keep playing audio until the buffer runs out. Gives you 15-20 seconds. During this time the ethernet port's power consumption is at lowest and no possible noise can get in via ethernet cable (should there be any). That's essentially the reference mode sound. You can compare all switches, routers, LPS combinations to that. This doesn't work for speaker rigs but works well for headphone/nearfield setup where you can be nearby and pull/re-insert the cable within arm's reach to A/B. You can also test out cable length impact, if any, for yourself this way.

There were different schools of thought on this back in the day as to why different networking components might sound different: noise pick up/generation by the devices themselves, ethernet cables picking up stuff or radiating themselves, clocking differences (John Swenson and Alex), the data actually being different based on what features or lack of features different components had (IGMP snooping, multicast, green tech). Roon staff has also pointed this out.

My thoughts: shorter is usually better for ethernet cables. Less pick up/radiation and also the receiving equipment doesn't have to generate as much power for shorter runs. LPS on the switches calms things down and better for long term listening. Similarly, I have a Torus power transformer for the whole rig and another Teradak LPS for one of my DACs. They improve with long term listening fatigue IMO.

[Not sure how BR-20 is built, but with a lot of components they usually sound their best (quietest and open) with as little stuff connected to them (whether digital or analog inputs). It's super inconvenient to unplug cables not being used directly in the chain at that particular time, but it results in better sound. Power consumption of the unit goes down by having other stuff unplugged. Give it a try, or don't if you favour your sanity!]

[amdan]

That's interesting zoom25. However, I doubt I have the patience to try that out!