Acoustic Zen Matrix Reference II vs. Absolute Copper IC's

@stuartk sounds dark and the only change is the addition of Absolute Copper?

Give it a day or so to settle with signal going thru cables 24/7. Who knows when was the last time these cables were used. They may benefit from couple of days of play before judging. 

@stuartk 

I've been listening to the Hegel with the Silver Reference IC's. The sound can be a touch bright with some CDs and given that 1) the Hegel is much more resolving than the Wells and 2) I'd prefer more warmth if I can get it and still maintain the same resolution, I can't help but wonder whether trying the Matrix or Absolute Coppers wouldn't constitute "due diligence".  

I have a very similar situation. I have made a few changes of late, one of which was a set of AZ Absolute speaker cables. After letting those burn in I finally played around with the AZ Silver ref II XLR's from DAC to electronic crossover with the Transparent plus level XLR I used previously. Could not believe how much better the AZ Silver was. Not going to use any adjectives but I can't believe at one time I thought the Transparent was the last one I might ever need. Of course the Absolute speaker cables are able to communicate the differences upstream compared to what was in there before, (and yes the AZ are in a higher price bracket, but it still shocks me). Now after enjoying and getting used to this synergy for a few months I am looking at switching out the last set of XLR's from electronic crossover to amps, which are currently some Audio Sensibility statement XLR's. (2 as I horizontally bi-amp) I haven't done much comparisons with these ones but I might conclude they are good cables, but certainly not in the same league as Absolute's. Some tracks are equisite; dare I say near perfect, and I feel no changes need to be made at all. With my Nord Class D amps and Maggie 3.6's resolution is off the charts, which I like, but some are a little thin, lacking a little warmth, and make me feel like trying either 2 more absolute coppers in place of the Audio sensibilities, or swapping with the Silver Ref. and putting it between crossover and amp, but I don't think I want to exchange the AS with 2 more sets of AZ Silver's?? But who knows, maybe the AZ Silvers are more warm the copper AS Statements? 

Anyway just chiming in and thanking you for starting this thread, but curious: I don't believe you stated what speaker cables you are using? 

@dalims4 

Just read through Van den Hul's website; didn't know they (and some others) were making cables of a carbon/metal. I have read some good things over the years, but I found this from their FAQ a little interesting:

6-2 Q: Is there a sonic difference between cables made of pure copper and cables made of pure silver ? A: As long as the type and extent of purity as well as the production method are the same, there is no sonic difference. But... silver costs much more than regular copper.

@mclinnguy 

@dalims4

Laughing at your posts….and Mr. van den Hul’s conclusion on copper vs. silver.

He must be high on them brownies there….