Audioquest DBS vs Synergistic Research Tesla?

You simply cannot buy cables on other people's recommendations...especially in a biamped system. You must hear the way your choice interacts with everything in your room. Duntech's are great speakers and will reveal great differences in cables. You must listen for yourself.

I agree with you that the Duntech reveal great differences and I must try myself. I have owned AQ Midnight, Cello Strings, MIT CVT 770 an Yter, and I'm not fully satisfied with with the results. Next week I will try a pair of PAD Proteus....

Here in Spain the AQ and. specially, the SR are very very rare to find. I read a lot of good opinions about this cables and I think that could be a good option for my system.

Maybe there is not a clear winner between the speaker cables of this two brands. But could someone tell me the main similarities and differences between them? (SR Precision Reference vs AQ Volcano, Kilimanjaro or K2)

Yesterday, I spend a couple of hours, with two audiophile friends, doing a comparative between my Yter speaker cables and a pair of PAD Proteus Rev. B (biwire, but with only one pair of spades connected to the highs binding posts and the other left unconnected; we cannot check the fluid level inside the cables).

Our results were: definition in the voices with the Proteus were superb, and also the definition in the middle and middle bass was superior.
The Yter was however more dynamic and open, specially on tops, and produce a more lush and pleasant sound. The piano notes in the Yter were more open and rich, with more transparency. The soundstage was also a litle big with the Yter, and the room was more filled with sound with it.
Conclusion: for me no one of both cables was a clear winner.

The SR cables are more refined, more detailed, and more musically accurate. Here's what you should do. Buy the SR's and listen with them for several months. Then if you are not completely drawn in to your music and have not forgotten about the technical end of your system, start compairing AQ, or any other brand to the SR and you will come to believe exactly what I said - the SR's are the most musical. Enjoy

I once heard the following analogy.

"If Synergistic's Active Sheilding is the turbo charger to a cables performance, then Audioquest's DBS System is the hood scoop".

I'd say that pretty much sums up the difference. Active Sheilding is the more powerfull technology. It's contribution is significant with better balance for a more natural and dynamic presentation. They are also more holographic.

If you can do a side by side compairson you'll hear what I mean.

I've owned cables with both technologies. If you take the battery out of the DBS thing, the difference is subtle. (at least in the panther I owned with the 36v or 72v dbs, cant remember which). If you unplug the syn's active shielding, the there is a dramatic difference in soundstage and imaging. One final difference in how these 2 things work, audioquest says you'll never need to replace the DBS battery, the synergistic research active shielding requires an AC plug, they are very different approaches and not comparable imo.

Wow, a lot of answers from my last message! The last cable that I try in my system was the Audionote Kondo KSL Spz. This was really good in all the terms: dynamic, soundstage, blackground, top to bottom extension, fast and articulated bass,... IMHO the only drawback of this cable is that was a little too thin in the upper bass and bass middle range, specially for classic music. May be this cable give his best in high efficiency systems, no as mine.

After that, I thought that I need a mixed copper/silver SC. I've found a Stealth Hybrid MLT at good price and I bought it. Now I'm waiting his arrival.
After that I thought that I need a mixed copper/silver SC. I've found a Stealth Hybrid MLT at good price and I bought it. Now I'm waiting his arrival.

Shellie, 'If you can do a side by side comparison you'll hear what I mean' That means that you prefer clearly the SR?

Jimmywho, as you owned both technologies your opinion is very interesting. Apart from the fact that the SR have more inconvenient in his installation, what technology do you prefer?

As I want also to upgrade my interconnects in the front end, do you have also the opinion that the SR IC are also better than the AQ?

I prefer synergistic research hands down, I've never tried the sky or whatever the top audioquest speaker cable is, or the top Tesla SR cables, but in terms of whether DBS or Active shielding is better, Synergistic wins easily. I owned generation 1 Alpha Quad X2 active speaker cables, and then I owned Panther DBS 2m XLRs that went from my dac into active speakers.

Carlesdg,
When is a hood scoop ever better than a turbo charger? (This is not a trick question). SR's Active Shielding is the turbo charger while AQ's DBS is the hood scoop; be it interconnect or speaker cable, SR's Active Sheilding is the more powerfull technology and the better cable. Listen to both at home and you be the judge.

In a pre-amp to power amps set up would an AQ dbs interconnect work well with a SR tesla lE x4 set of speaker cables? would a cardas neutral reference or golden IC work well w/the SR active speaker cables?