HiDiamond Digital IC


Seems to be a popular theme these days.

I received the aes/ebu version of the HD Digital Carbon cable today in the mail. I was enticed by the glowing remarks posted elsewhere and have been bored while awaiting a Varidig Sextet to show up. With a few hundred bucks burning a hole in my pocket I figured I'd take the plunge.

First let me dispell concerns posted elsewhere regarding dealing with the north American distributor, Robert of worldwide wholesales. From my first communication with him he's been responsive, pleasant, professional. My standards for these qualities is unusually exacting and my tolerance for any bs below nil. Our interaction resulted in an order, which he made easy, and the cables were shipped virtually instantaneously and arrived quickly.

On to the soundy bits....

Straight from my mailbox cold into my system went the cable. Fit and finish, fine, no issues.

Some comparisons to my Marigo Apparition 5.8, a cable that has bested all comers to date and served me well for years.....

Realism and presence. Edge to the HD. Small margin.
Air around instruments. Edge to HD. Medium margin.
Instrument placement. Edge to HD. Small margin.
Resolution. Edge to HD. Medium margin.
Soundstage depth. Edge to HD. Small margin.
Soundstage width. Even.
PRAT. Edge to HD. Small margin.
Frequency extension - highs. Even.
Frequency extension - lows. Even.
Bass control. Edge to HD. Very small margin.
Black background. Even.

Overall these cables are more similar than different. But there are noticeable improvements with the HD. This is cold, no break-in, both on the cables and on the aes/ebu connections on transport and dac.

Also, keep in mind the Marigo is an $1100 cable, the HD is half that.

The $100,000 question: which is more musical, which will I keep?

I'm going to reserve judgement and see how this breaks in a bit, get more listening time under its belt. Go back and forth some.

Initial impression though is extremely favorable. If they keep trending in the direction shown, I'll try the interconnects sooner than later.

(for the cynics: I am in now way related in business or otherwise to HD or Worldwide wholesales. I live in Florida and work as a technology executive.)
joncourage

Showing 2 responses by ie

@Jriggy

these are the first set of cables that i have used that present the soundstage as it was intended to be heard.

For example I have Live recordings of groups, ensembles and choirs at venues of the Elora Music Festival (I don't live far from the Elora Music Festival , here in Ontario, and have enjoyed often the live music in the summer). WITH HIDIAMOND I hear what i would hear at the venues...same height, width, depth...if a performer was playing piano and they were closely miked, that is how i would hear the pianist. If a three microphone setup is used for a choir in a church, i hear the performers, soloists, and giant acoustic space surrounding them

but that is audiophile talk for not really understanding the music...these cables do so much more than that. They are phase coherent !! You here everything the way it was meant to be heard. I said this in a previous post but pitch, timbre, harmony, melody, rhythm, are spot on and by that i don't mean PRaT, which most people have no real understanding of anyway. I don't dare use the term musical, because far too many recent reviewers have spoiled that term to mean euphonic and pleasing. No these cables go further than that, they convey themes, messages, performance. You rarely read about that in reviewers' write-ups.
@ Musicallyinclined re: agreeing with audiofeil...

my personal opinion is that a dealer has no place with his opinion in a discussion as he/she has a vested interest in the product they represent

furthermore, i did own 2 of the cables that audiofeil represents, the STEALTH varidig for over 3 years and the STEALTH sextet for 1 year and as excellent as they are...the Hidiomends digital cables do what they do and much more for less money. end of story