Dont laugh


I have a respectable system and have been using several different balanced IC's in the $500+ range, but I was getting a small bit of noise, so I borrowed a 10 foot Stagg mic cable from the local guitar store, just to see if the the issue was in the cable or in my equipment. With the mic cable the noise went completely away. But I could not believe the improvement in sound. The highs more natural and the low and mid bass more weighty and articulate. So I ordered Stagg's one meter mic cable XMC1XX which they list as their audiophile grade with Neutrik connectors at a cost of $30 a piece. I put them in and crossed my fingers. What I heard was wonderful. I listened at high volume for three hours last night with no fatigue, yet all the detail and sparkle was there. Best I can tell from the diagram on the package the IC uses OFCopper, surrounded by air tubes, wrapped in a copper shielding. Give them a try against your best and see what you think. By coincidence this week Jim Smith of Get Better Sound mentioned using mic cable that he liked better than a $10,000 IC that he had.
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Showing 4 responses by gammajo

Yes, looks like the cable which produced noise is in need of better shielding at minimum and perhaps this was over-saturating the mids and lows. But I also have had other balanced IC's in the system that sounded no better than the Stagg at much higher prices. My plan now is to give the Stagg another few weeks, then pull them out and see if anything is undesirable about them compared to other cables that I have. So in effect they will be my new reference with which to compare pricier cables before purchase. This should keep me grounded about wire.
Just to be clear, in the past I have heard minor but significant (when you are going for the best sound) differences in good Balanced cables. So I am not of the cable make no difference school. Though usually I can hear greater difference between speaker cables and single ended IC.
My Stagg cables have been in my system for a month a just got better over that time. Grannyring I know you have good ears from the AH and other threads - trust them. But it was indeed for me to believe compared to more expensive cables that the mic cables at least hold their own and may be better