Transparent MM2

Audioblazer,

i had not seen that 'Silent Source' review before, thanks for the info. i read it last night. i know Mike Malinowski, he is a class act and very credible to me. he has the darTZeel and the Tenor....both stuff i know.

as Mike mentions, system synergy can be very signifiicant, also, Mike has not done the upgrade on his Opus.

anyway, we will see how the MM2 sounds after break-in.

i've sent my Transparent Audio Opus MM 12' speaker cables and Opus MM 1.5m RCA interconnects to Transparent for upgrade to MM2. i should have them back late next week.

Khrys,

i don't blame you for feeling like you are holding the bag. i purchased the set of Opus speaker cables i am upgrading 3 years ago.....i have been a very good customer of this dealer for 14 years (in the 6 figure range....although i don't do the business with them i once did) and i did get a very good deal. so i'm kinda ok with the upgrade timing.....7 years since MM1 was introduced.

i assume you have spoken to your Transparent dealer about possibly giving you a large break on the price of the upgrade in consideration of your recent 'investment' and then 'surprise' upgrade. i think you will have some traction with them depending on how much of a discount/trade-in etc. on the XLMM1 cables you purchased.

most dealers who might carry Transparent are considerate of customer relationships. good luck with that.

regarding the 'Silent Source'; it will be interesting to see what Mike Malinowski does in the long run. i'm not doubting his sincereity; only the likely 'staying' power of the 'Silent Source' in his system. sometimes we like something new only to discover it's just different and we miss what we had.

anyway, it's only some damn wire we are talking about.

Khrys,

i have done frequent comparisons with other cables over the years; i have 3 sets of Valhalla interconnects in my system for a 'control' on the Opus interconnects to judge what the MM2 does to alter that equation. i don't have a similar 'control for the Opus speaker cable upgrade; and will have to 'wing it' there. i am under no delusions as to what is possible in terms of audio memory.

in all my cable comparisons over the years.....i've yet to encounter it's equal.

my long term agenda here is actually to compare the Opus MM2 upgrade to Nordost Odin. i have heard the Odin twice at shows compared to the Valhalla and i was very very impressed. if there is a cable that can un-seat the Opus in my system i suspect it is the Odin. the only way i can actually do that comparison is to do the upgrade. i know it's not the most sensible dollars i can spend but i'm committed to having the best cables.

i can say that i sold my second set of Opus MM speaker cables last year for more than i paid for them 7 years prior. so i'm not afraid of investing in Transparent's best.

regarding your veiwpoint on the Kimbers verses your previous Transparent; i respect how you feel. who knows how the Opus MM2 would compare? my experience in the past with Kimber cables was that they did not perform in the realm of the Opus.....but that was a few years back and i cannot remember the model (it was top of the Kimber line at the time). i have heard many very good relatively sanely priced cables that do perform well. so far i've preferred the Valhalla to any others let alone the Opus.

YMMV....

Biwiring may soon be Constitutionally prohibited in some states.

yes, for a couple of years i did bi-wire with Opus......and maybe i'm responsible for this new state Constitutional Amendment.

the evidance

my second set of (12') Opus speaker cable i did purchase only 3 years ago; my dealer did give me a (relatively) good buy on but were i to sell it i don't expect to break even but who knows. i did buy my Opus 1.5m RCA interconnects used and likely could sell them at break even.

the Valhalla i have sold i got at least 90% of my original investment on.

i'm not a flavor of the month guy; and these cables have served me well in terms of overall value. i accept that there will ultimately be a net cost. Transparent and Nordost don't change their cables every couple of years; their customers typically get their investments protected as well as any expensive cables on the market.

the MM family of Transparent cables began in 2000; MM2 started this year (2008). i'd say Transparent has been reasonable in it's frequency of upgrades......so suggesting MM3 is around the corner is not really fair.

i'm not saying their cables have sensible list prices or that one can make a real-world case for owning Transparent.....but thats true for lots of esoteric products of many types. you buy it because you like it enough and you can afford it.

opinions on performance are of course a separate issue.