Interesting that the soldering was poor on the Transparent. They always have claimed that their handbuilt cables has the highest workmanship.
The use of RLC between signal and ground is not surprising. We've known this. What would be nice to know is what the values of R,L, & C were and how the circuit was arranged. |
Regarding the Transparent cables, the soldering inside the network box was poor. The soldering at the terminations were generally excellent. I cut them open a few years ago but I think I still have them around. The values on the capacitor were rubbed off. The inductor seemed to be handwound and thus had no values on it.
Troy |
the owner of trnasparent use to be in with Mit and he took the Idea from them which he helped engineer. Thats why they are very close in looks and workmanship. They are both good cables but the network acts as a sort of crossover and if you have a crossover in your speakers than why would you need one in your cables? |
keep away from my equipment! (but nice post) |
Before you cut open something else that is expensive and good, give it to me please. :) |
That's quite a hobby you got there. |
let me know when you cut open the transparent opus mm :-) |
Maybe you should just drop them off the side of a building-Letterman style. |
anybody else seen "american psycho"? cables are kids' stuff. i use a chain saw on amps. so far, have interesting bits and pieces of burmesters, mlb's and halcro's. haven't learned anything, but it sure was fun.
-kelly |
Mike, DO NOT LET TROY borrow your cables!!! Kelly, make sure and wear your earplugs and safety glasses. |
I thought people would be interested in knowing what was in the boxes- I had come across several posts in the past in which people had asked about the contents of the networks. I have a BS in Electrical engineering and was always very interested in EM theory and signal conduction, and this is why I have studied various interconnects.
Regarding the Opus, I'm sure you could open it up and then put it back together. If you mess it up, see if it could be fixed under warranty. The Opus network most likely cosists of the same RLC network, just different values and higher tolerance parts.
Troy |
It would have been nice to see what the circuit actually was as well as the RLC values. Then we could make calculations on the signal attenuation, the effect on RF shielding, and transmission line effects.
Interesting that the terminations are high quality, but the circuit was not. |
according to the literature supplied with the opus the network technology is "a refinement of transparent's computer model for network design". it requires "tolerances of 1/100 of an ohm and 1 picofarad".
from this literature it appears that the real performance gains of the opus are made in the damping and suspension of the networks.
btw, no one is touching these networks. it really doesn't matter to me how they do what they do. but i understand that inquiring minds want to know. i just want to listen. |
the tolerances of 1/100 ohm and 1 picofarad seem to be more marketing than practical. that degree of tolerance is difficult if not impossible to manufacture and equally difficult to verify with modern test equipment. |
Which Transparent cables did you open up? One might expect lower level workmanship in an entry level cable, such as a Transparent MusicLink 200. If that level of workmanship was in a upper end cable, such as an Ultra XL, it would be an entirely different matter. |
Hi Troy,
What model of the MIT and Transparent cable did you take apart?
Thanks! |
what did you find in the nbs i understand they are belden wire. if they werent so expensive I would cut one open rudbern |
Any one ever cut open an Oscar Wiener? I am affraid to ask what's in them ;-) Seriously though, please let us know if you ever gut open Synergystics Research's Designer Ref. speaker cable. Refering a recent about the SR des. ref. cable, I was wondering how long it would take you to cut the thick cables. |
Troy, what did you find in the NBS cable? What model did you open up? You are just the person I have been looking for. |
Over the last 10 years, I have opened the Transparent Super, Ultra, and the Musiclink. interconnects, and the reference digital cable (no network on this).
For MIT I opened the Terminator 3, MI 330 Series 2, and T3i digital cables(this one only had one element- a resistor or an inductor- I can't remember).
I don't remember which model NBS I opened. It consisted of 2 covered bundles of copper wire, one for neg and one for positive. Each bundle had 2 isolated covered wires, twisted around each other. Each bundle was twisted as well. A foil shield with a drain wire. I have also heard that NBS uses Belden wire, but this does not preclude them from getting excellent results. It is said that you are paying for the ingenuity of Walter Fields and his proprietary geometry, not the cost of the cables- at least on the higher priced models. I am pretty sure, that they don't use Belden for their higher priced cables.
I have also opened various Harmonic Tech cables- these are really constructed very well, however the spade to conductor weld which is crimped and then welded is poor due to the large diameter wires.
Troy |
Any one ever cut open an Oscar Wiener? I am affraid to ask what's in them ;-) Seriously though, please let us know if you ever gut open Synergystics Research's Designer Ref. speaker cable. Refering a recent about the SR des. ref. cable, I was wondering how long it would take you to cut the thick cables. |
Troy: I think its great that you opened them and especially great that you posted that info for us!! thanks .... Frankly I don't like the muffled sound of Transparent cables and would rather get all of the music to my speakers. I think that "quiet background in between notes" people rave about is due to the "network" rolling off the highs (thereby reducing the hiss). I'm more interested in how natural the music sounds during the notes! (I prefer NBS cables.) |
Troy, I always wanted to know the contents in the boxes. Well, you've answered most of our questions. Well done! |
Troy. thanks for the quick response about the NBS cable construction. It corresponds to what I imagined from inspecting the ends of the speaker cables--where the "2 covered bundles of copper wire" exit the colored external mesh-sheath and enter into a rubber shrink wrap until the spades. Yes, "each bundle" of my speaker cable has "2 isolated covered wires" twisted around one another, like you say--that can be concluded without taking the cable apart. Do you remember the material used for the cover of each bundle? Was it silver, as implied by some NBS copy? And can you describe in more detail what you mean by a "foil shield with a drain wire"? Were there any irregularities in the "proprietary geometry" (did the weaving of the two copper wires have any knots in it)? As a would-be cable surgeon, I thank you for the results of your costly examinations. |
I took apart the high end BBQ model. What appeared to be its main design element related to performance was the carbonized layer where the 'skin effect' occurs. |
Troy, you cut into 1k interconnects?? ( Transparent ultra )
Super= 400 or so. You must be insane!! |
Richard: Were they done Memphis style or were they dripping with sauce? |
Dekay - I'm impressed, you know your ribs. |
In response to the question of ever cutting open a weiner, well yes I have. Years back in my medical residency, a curious colleague and I made a histologic section of a hot dog and examined it under the microscope. It was 4 years before I could even look at a dog, let alone eat one again. Certainly put a damper on my previous addictive ritual at Indians games of beer and dogs with ballpark mustard. I'm back at it, however, but I can't think about it too much whilst in the process. That's where the beer comes in..... |
Mes, I was the one who asked about cutting open a hot dog. Unfortunately, I shouldn't have asked. From your findings, my next question has to be is the $0.99 dogs better than the $5.99 gourmet dogs or is it VODOO? |
3C- I've not A/B'd the various subtypes of this fine cuisine at a microscopic level, however I'd guess more $$ = less filler. My personal backyard grill favorite is Hebrew National, a mighty fine tasting weiner. Significantly more palatable than either MIT or Transparent. Now thats voodoo. |
Ralph's Markets (in CA) has their own private label hard skinned dogs which are killer. I consumed three of them last night and now need to lay low on the sodium for a couple of days, but it was worth it. |
Who would of have though hot dogs have fillers. You figure it contained stuff that is of abundant which are left overs that no one wants. Nevertheless, nothing can satisfy the munchies like a hot dog. Dekay and Mes, thanks for the tip and you're both making me hungry. Since it's about lunch time in California, I think I'll make a quick dash to the local Weinerschnitzel and order a couple of some good old American soul food known as hot dogs with extra mustard. Happy eating. Btw, I just wish they stop making healthy dogs (like all turkey or all tofu dogs). That stuff just erks me because it defeats to whole definition of what a hot dog should be. I want to bad stuff that takes away the last bad years of my life. |
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Split the case right down the middle with my skill saw. The strange thing- all I found inside was a bunch of wires and what appear to be circut boards. The craftmanship looked good, however. Now, I've got to figure out how to get this thing working again.
Dave |
