I bought a few pairs of Acoustic Research Pro Series HT130, Pro Series II PR130 and HT130C, and Master Series MS230 interconnects. All 3 ft in length. $10 to $25 on E-Bay (AuctionStorm at the time). They are great for the money in an otherwise bright, lean, or neutral sounding system (Bryston SP1 preamp, Bryston 9BST amp, and Infinity Prelude MTS speakers). They warm things up and have good bass, strong lower midrange, smooth midrange, low noise... more analog sounding. Highly recommended for connecting sources (CD, tuner) to preamps in budget, mid-priced systems, and the right high-end system (that has fast transients, tight response, high bandwidth). Well made cables.
The biggest difference between the three AR ICs is in the upper midrange and treble. HT130 is warmest with loss of microdynamics and airiness (most filtering) good for a bright sounding system. PR130 is slightly warm with flatter highs (treble) and tighter bass. MS230 is warm, sweet, and smooth with sparkling percussion. They are all better sounding than Monster Interlink 400 and 300 ($40 and $30).
Kimber Hero ($150) is better overall, but is raspy/noisy on vocals (upper midrange). Van den Hul D-102 III is best in my system and has outstanding midrange, except for loss of attack on notes (noticable on piano) and an added sense of reverb. The AR ICs maintain the attack. MS230 reminded me of the sound of Siltech G ? series ICs and Van den Hul D-102 III. At $250 to $400 per pair, Siltech are not the best value in my system. In that regard, the MS230 ($60 list) and Van den Hul D-102 III ($120 list) are bargains.
6 ft lengths are available as HT131, PR131, and MS231. 12 ft lengths are available as HT132, PR132, and MS232.
Try them. At these prices, you have little to lose.
I have not tried AR ICs between preamp and amp... there low level signals and noise are more prevalent... prefer to run balanced XLR cables (Van den Hul D-102 III) there. ARs are not available in XLR balanced configuration, although one could change the connectors since there are three conductors (two wires and a shield).
The biggest difference between the three AR ICs is in the upper midrange and treble. HT130 is warmest with loss of microdynamics and airiness (most filtering) good for a bright sounding system. PR130 is slightly warm with flatter highs (treble) and tighter bass. MS230 is warm, sweet, and smooth with sparkling percussion. They are all better sounding than Monster Interlink 400 and 300 ($40 and $30).
Kimber Hero ($150) is better overall, but is raspy/noisy on vocals (upper midrange). Van den Hul D-102 III is best in my system and has outstanding midrange, except for loss of attack on notes (noticable on piano) and an added sense of reverb. The AR ICs maintain the attack. MS230 reminded me of the sound of Siltech G ? series ICs and Van den Hul D-102 III. At $250 to $400 per pair, Siltech are not the best value in my system. In that regard, the MS230 ($60 list) and Van den Hul D-102 III ($120 list) are bargains.
6 ft lengths are available as HT131, PR131, and MS231. 12 ft lengths are available as HT132, PR132, and MS232.
Try them. At these prices, you have little to lose.
I have not tried AR ICs between preamp and amp... there low level signals and noise are more prevalent... prefer to run balanced XLR cables (Van den Hul D-102 III) there. ARs are not available in XLR balanced configuration, although one could change the connectors since there are three conductors (two wires and a shield).