I tried the Kharma Enigma, Tara Labs The One, Zu Ash, Straightwire Gold, and Kubala-Sosna Emotion Digital Cables.
In my system the best one was the Kubala, then in descending order was, Kharma, Tara Labs, Zu Ash, then Straightwire. The last two cables I just had lying around from a previous setup.
I compared a Kharma Enigma Coax Digital to a Kubala AES/EBU so some of my findings may be due to the differences in design. I didn't spend too much time evaluating the Tara Labs Cable, since it was quickly deemed 3rd best in my setup.
The Kharma had a more forward midrange when compared to the Kubala, and the bass was not as robust as the Kubala. The treble on the kharma was a little zippier than the Kubala. The Kharma's bass was a little leaner, when compared to the Kubala, however the bass was always tight. . The Kharma's low level resolution was slightly better than the Kubala, which surprised me since I felt the Kharma Cable was not as quiet as the Kubala. This finding probably had more to due with the slightly more forward midrange of the Kahrma.
The Kubala was better balanced from top to bottom. The bass, midrange, or treble never stood out. The bass was full and tight, The midrange was luscious, and the treble was silky smooth. The Kubala also had a more laid back soundstage, behind the speakers. I also felt that the soundstage was slightly deeper and wider on the Kubala. I preferred the fuller bass of the Kubala, yet it was never bloated. The sound of the Kubala was also very musical and coherent. The Kubala had a quieter and blacker background, but some of this was probably due to the AES/EBU input.
For those of you out there who don't want to spend this much money on a digital cable, I found the Zu Ash, very much to my liking, and the most similar to the Kubala, with just a slighlty less quiet background, and a slightly smaller soundstage.
I think at this level it's all about system matching.
In my system the best one was the Kubala, then in descending order was, Kharma, Tara Labs, Zu Ash, then Straightwire. The last two cables I just had lying around from a previous setup.
I compared a Kharma Enigma Coax Digital to a Kubala AES/EBU so some of my findings may be due to the differences in design. I didn't spend too much time evaluating the Tara Labs Cable, since it was quickly deemed 3rd best in my setup.
The Kharma had a more forward midrange when compared to the Kubala, and the bass was not as robust as the Kubala. The treble on the kharma was a little zippier than the Kubala. The Kharma's bass was a little leaner, when compared to the Kubala, however the bass was always tight. . The Kharma's low level resolution was slightly better than the Kubala, which surprised me since I felt the Kharma Cable was not as quiet as the Kubala. This finding probably had more to due with the slightly more forward midrange of the Kahrma.
The Kubala was better balanced from top to bottom. The bass, midrange, or treble never stood out. The bass was full and tight, The midrange was luscious, and the treble was silky smooth. The Kubala also had a more laid back soundstage, behind the speakers. I also felt that the soundstage was slightly deeper and wider on the Kubala. I preferred the fuller bass of the Kubala, yet it was never bloated. The sound of the Kubala was also very musical and coherent. The Kubala had a quieter and blacker background, but some of this was probably due to the AES/EBU input.
For those of you out there who don't want to spend this much money on a digital cable, I found the Zu Ash, very much to my liking, and the most similar to the Kubala, with just a slighlty less quiet background, and a slightly smaller soundstage.
I think at this level it's all about system matching.