Morrow Audio re-design announcement: No more Ag coated Cu; Increased numbers of runs.

Wow, so much angst out there over an improved design cable. Let me state that I have been using Morrow Audio cables from the beginning in my system. I have continually upgraded using their "trade-up" program. As a matter of fact I just purchased the new MA-6 XLR interconnects in the improved design. I also use SP-7’s on my speakers and the digital cable on my Aurender. I couldn’t be more pleased with Morrow cables. In the end, I think Mike offers an outstanding product with the opportunity for upgrades at a very reasonable price. Say what you want but I love my Morrow cables.

"Apparently, you don't have a good understanding of how their pricing works, either."

Are you out of your mind?  You rant and repeat yourself like a petulant child.

I own Morrow speaker cables and interconnects, and have for years.
I can read, add and subtract, and am able to form my own conclusion about how their pricing works.

Surely you are aware that I couldn't care less about your view of Morrow's offer.  Take it or leave it - and move on.

Obviously financial cognition isn't a strong suit. : )

david_ten your correct , not familular with Morrow pricing structure and apparently I was wrong in my post as pointed out.

  

@tecknik Not a problem, at all. I like what Morrow does. You should give their product line a try if it fits your needs. Their return privileges are a nice touch. My advice is to wait for one of their sales...the promotional offers are strong and are offered with some regularity. All the best!

falconquest+1. I guess Morrow is the ONLY manufacturer that has a return and upgrade program for less that half the price of a new cable!
Anyone? Other manufacturers doing this?? Hello?
The other cable manufacturers change their designs or add new products also, WITHOUT the trade up program. They just bank on us buying their new product at full price. That's why we all have cables from different eras and different manufacturers thrown in a box somewhere collecting dust. At least with Mike's cables you send in your old and get the latest, or next level up at a discounted price.

Point is, a guy can send in his old radio shack cables and get from 30 to 40% depending on the week it seems. Where as someone who is trading in Morrows cables gets 50  or 60%. Like I stated earlier for me that is still 460 dollars to just replace my 6 ft sp4….Needs to be something more for previous buyers...

I always compare the trade-up deal to used cables. Think about it, the used cables don't require break-in and they only sell cables that are in excellent condition. I always take care of mine so they look like new.

In what way is a 60% DISCOUNT penalizing anyone? I genuinely don't understand the argument, or for that matter the vitriol. Has it occurred to anyone to simply sell their cables here and send Mr Morrow some cables from radio shack and still get 40% off? SMH 

Two members here have shared information that is to your benefit, financially and in terms of product in hand.

You have a choice:

Open your mind, listen and perhaps understand.

OR wave your flag of blissful ignorance loud and proud and rush to be first in line to sacrifice yourself at the high altar of consumerism.

You said ’anyone’...my answer would be slightly different had you said ’to some.’

: )

I’m still waiting for the names of the other cable manufacturers that offer anything close to what Mike Morrow offers in terms of discounts for the upgrade or trial period for that matter.

That’s why I asked if "anyone" would care to answer the question I asked back on page one of this thread.

And still the silence is still overwhelming.
Example:Harley Davidson upgraded their sound system on 2019 bikes to a whole new design. If I bought a new 2018 before the release of the 2019’s, based on your argument, Harley should let me upgrade my sound system for next to nothing, and let me return to them my old system, right? I don’t think they will let that happen.
If I want that upgrade, I will have to trade in my 2018 bike and BUY a 2019 bike, and probably at a substantial difference.
Or just buy the new system set up at full price, which I’m sure is substantional and sell the old stuff on eBay.

You really should frame this post. It's scintillating in showcasing your wisdom of the market and the players in it. I am in awe of your experience.

At some point in the future (despite it's lack of predictability), you will have an urge to delete your post. If you succumb, you only have to look above. 

😉

Top of the line AntiCables were also all silver and now are copper/silver coated cable....very minor tonal difference.

@stringreen  Good to know.

I have Morrow's Elite Ref, so I'm looking forward to getting their new 'tech' and 'design' in for comparison.

Mrdecibel.........Im sorry but your argument is based on lunacy. I take it then that everytime your smartphone gets upgraded by Apple or Samsung that you feel duped by the company for which you obviously choose through some leap of faith, that this would be a sound purchase. Is Apple or Audio Research not suppose to sell you what they have available now? The stuff in development is not ready for the retail shelf yet so you bought at the wrong time. This is like saying your mad at Ford because they came out with a totally redesigned car for 2018 and you bought the 2017 model :-( Do your research before you buy! Did you ever ask Mike Morrow a year ago "hey mike are you guys coming out with a new line or making major changes anytime soon?" ...Ill bet not! Dont blame Audio Research or Morrow for your lack of investigation.  And that goes for the rest of you in this thread that are so "surprised" that Morrow made a change.

Matt M

Matt M...you hit the nail on the head.

Get over yourselves......16 months ago I paid $360. for my MA5s with Eichmans ( about 40 % off ). I trade them in and buy the new ones, at 60 % off ( $240 ). I have now invested $600., which is full retail. Not interested ! Move on. I am a big boy and will do as I please. Talking about lunacy, comparing this to a car purchase or a motorcycle purchase is complete lunacy. Thank you, Enjoy ! MrD.

I've ordered my sp6 upgraded version and next will be ma6 and ph6 when their available.

Actually hospitals are starting to use high end power cords and line conditioners in some applications in the operating room, Shunyata is actually opening a new branch of manufacturing just for this very reason. Some of Shunyatas new adds now feature testimonials from doctors who use their products. Look it up. 

Are surgery patients listening to Diana Krall or Beethoven while under anesthesia? Do they have to pay extra for that? Do they get paid to listen?

@geoffkait  Funny.................Enjoy ! MrD.

Thanks for all the post. Looks like we caused a real stir! First off, from a poster on the 1st page, we have always used individually insulated wires. The new design is simply some improvements on that, like more wires, progressive smaller gauges as you move up the line, insulation changes, and, yes, solid copper instead of silver coated copper.

Myself and the team really put our heads to the best we could offer those who have Morrow Audio cables, with the opportunity to try the new design.
After all, we are not a small company anymore and have overhead and payroll, etc. We had to charge something! Even though I cringed at it, we settled on 60% off during the month of September, with a no risk 60 day return.

As others have mentioned, we are the ONLY company that offers this with updated products, besides the additional 60 day return to try them out. We also are even offering Easy Pay! I struggle with the complaints on this forum. What better can I do?

Keep in mind that the old design is excellent! The "new" design does not lessen that fact. Those who have the old design have found great enjoyment. Remember, it is an option to upgrade, not a necessity. Those who want to take advantage of this "option" can do so at a great savings.

Mike Morrow www.morrowaudio.com

My introduction to Morrow began by getting free tweaks advice by email . I decided to try them against my current Interconnects. I emailed and asked for advise regarding MA4 with upgraded termination Vs MA5 with Mike’s standard connector . Mike promptly replied “ Get the MA5’s “. I didn’t immediately pull the trigger , even though they were “ New on Sale at 50% off” . Mike contacted me and asked if I was having trouble affording the cables at half off and offered to help with the price . I thanked him and purchased 2 pair of 1 meter MA5’s at the 50% discount . I added that if he wanted to comp me for some burn in time , I’d appreciate it very much . A couple weeks later , I was leaving on vacation and asked him to delay shipping as the house was vacant for a week . Mike promptly replied “ I’ll  leave them on the burn in device longer . My cables arrived with 13 days of burn in time ( free of charge ). So I received cables at half price with extensive burn in and backed by a Full Refund Policy ! It took an additional 150 hours of breakin , but I really enjoy them . My opinion is while Mike is “ A Businessman “, he is honest , caring and considerate . He’s one of those “ Buinessmen “ that cares more about promoting this wonderful hobby , than about putting a dollar in his pocket . I feel like I made a friend  AND bought a great product at a modest price . So with a wide range of products and a money back guarantee, Shame on all the Poo Butts that talk smack . To the people that have actually compared them , I hear you and will probably try the Cardas products  ( I have the Clear USB ) into my Yiggy and it sounds great . Respectfully, Mike Bolger .

Has anyone actually listened to the newly designed cables!

I traded my old version MA1s (2 pairs) for the new version...cost with discounts was about 50 bucks, a laughably small expense driven by curiosity only as I liked the old version's sound. After about 100 hours on the new cables they sound great...still breaking in I suppose, but that's actually somewhat mysterious as humidity, tube swapping, ear wax changes, violent mood swings, alcohol usage or not, pot smoking quantification (!), or not, and whatever else might be having an effect on the mini data I can glean from varying states of perception while listening to my Real Good sounding gear pile indicates that I have maybe 80 more hours for the definitive tone to arrive. I find that breaking in cables can take a while, and I like to listen to recordings as much as possible during that time so hey, I'll do the work!

I’ve purchased several MA cables over the last few years. The MA 1.1, MA3 and 5, the latter 2 ordered with the Eichmann bullets. I bought 2 pairs of the MA5 with the bullets, and they were not cheap. Now I hear that Morrow has scrapped the silver over copper design altogether, and claims the new all copper stuff is superior, and already has customer testimonials saying the same. What?

I’ve probably spent $1500 all in at Morrow because they said their cables were so good. With my current system I found my Morrow cables didn’t have the best synergy, and started buying Audioquest, the Sydney and Mackenzie.

I won’t be spending any more at Morrow.  

My original M1 Morrow cables sounded amazingly good, which means they know what they're doing regardless of the fact that 2 runs of silver clad copper is somewhat minimalist. I traded 2 cables in the "60%" off deal (out of curiosity, and the faith in my being able to remember to send my old cables back) and now that they're mostly broken-in they are VERY good sounding cables, this relative to my decades of using AQ, MIT, and other stuff.

My M1 cables( traded in a year later) we’re not very impressive in my system.  Simply not keepers, and it was apparent that Morrow had them in the line up as a gateway drug, a cheap entrance into his products.

perhaps they do better with tube components.

I work for an aerospace company where we vigorously test wire performance. Audiophile wires are straight up BS. And most audiophile so they say are deaf. Unless you are a machine who can measure Hz difference then all of you are idiots. It’s true that audiophiles has bitten by snake oil😂😂. Save your money and buy a Walmart wire and convince yourself it sounds better. And you’ll have a better retirement account where you can actually enjoy listening to live music. Do you think the well known manufacturers uses stupid audiophile wires when they make their amps and receivers? Don’t think so....

We’ve seen how aerospace companies do with designing and vigorously testing passengers jets, no? 😛

silver is highly conductive,

it does not interfere with copper's behavior when under any given load,

Silver's oxide is conductive,

silver's oxide does not change the impedance spec in the gross or the minutia of the cable's possible loading scenarios,

it protects the copper from aging and oxidizing (breaking down, etc) in complex varied environments.

These things make it last a long time and work well under very widespread conditions.

Thus the mil spec of silver/copper wire. It says nothing about sound qualities, as you might imagine. Neither here nor there.

mcguy79

I work for an aerospace company where we vigorously test wire performance. Audiophile wires are straight up BS.

That's interesting. What "audiophile wires" has this company evaluated, and to what tests were they subjected?

And most audiophile so they say are deaf ...  all of you are idiots.

When you say "they," to whom do you refer?

Save your money and buy a Walmart wire ...

I'll buy my wire where I prefer, thanks. I'm not a big fan of Walmart, and I don't think the store even carries XLR cables.

I may have in a past working life lead a team running one of the largest Aerospace wire shops on the planet- Triple overbraid, nuke EMP type stuff. I would say ignore the peanut gallery :-) I know plenty of stellar Aerospace engineers who believe wires make a significant sonic difference.

Fancy Wires from aerospace engineers? You mean like these?

https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/masterbuilt-audio-reference-cables/

This thread is also IMO fantastic advertising for Morrow :-) certainly on my radar, now....

I owned the Morrow M1 cable and it was so good I upgrade to the M3 interconnect...

But I want to say that upgrading an audio system with a change of cables is in my mind the last upgrade to consider, way after the implementation of the audio system in controlled mechanical environment(vibrations-resonance), in an acoustically treated room, and in a cleaned electrical house grid...After that the changes of cable will have meaning and audible effects...Without these tweaking of these 3 embeddings, you will be with the cohort of deaf people, or with those people with a dead audio ( a non-treated one), that does not hears any differences between cables...Easy to understand why... :)

Ill stick to Purist all copper they sound wonderful.Purist is a great co as well.

Earlier in this thread I was somewhat disenchanted with what Morrow had done to their cable formula.  Since then I found that something was wrong with my aforementioned Audioquest Sydney IC's, and switched back to an all Morrow cable loom(except for power cables) and let it burn in for a while, as Morrows take a while to adjust.

Anyway, I had to admit that the sound was really really transparent with airy highs and depth.  Mind you, I'd upgraded at the pre since my previous post.  The Morrow ic's are 2 MA5 and 1 MA3, all old silver design.

I decided to upgrade the MA3, and just received the MA4 IC.  It needs some serious burn in first, so I'll update the thread in about a month.  I plan to cut the MA3 in half, and resolder to get double the conductors.

Just curious, how does Morrow Cables feel about wire directionality and cryogenics? By the way, the US Navy uses silver coated Teflon copper wire for most of its sensitive communications equipment. Are they missing something? 

Morrow encourages using the correct direction, indicated by arrows or their label.  On cryogenics, I’m not sure they’ve announced a position, but I don’t think they treat their cables with this.

The Navy does that for good reason.  Many high end speaker brands use special wiring of one kind or another, in their speakers.  I believe Tannoy does Cryo and silver.  I find with the silver Morrow ic’s, if you move them around they sound off for a day or two.

Anyway, my new MA4 is breaking in and is around the 75 hour mark.  I’m afraid I’ve employed them with a receiver, so the sound isn’t exactly superlative for music.  

Okay, so I've got close to 200 hours on the MA4's and have put them in the 2 channel rig on my Nad C565BEE cd player.  I immediately noticed a superior presentation over the cables they replaced, the old generation MA3, and both have the same Eichmann silver bullet style rca plugs.  

I'm impressed as I was wondering how much difference the new design would make.  With available discount the new cable didn't cost much more than the old MA3, but has 3 x the solid core conductors.  I think you get more for your money now than you used to conductor wise.

mcguy79
"I work for an aerospace company where we vigorously test wire performance. Audiophile wires are straight up BS. And most audiophile so they say are deaf. Unless you are a machine who can measure Hz difference then all of you are idiots. It’s true that audiophiles has bitten by snake oil😂😂. Save your money and buy a Walmart wire and convince yourself it sounds better. And you’ll have a better retirement account where you can actually enjoy listening to live music. Do you think the well known manufacturers uses stupid audiophile wires when they make their amps and receivers? Don’t think so.... "

Funny...you don’t communicate like you’ve even got an AA degree. Maybe you’re the janitor at an aerospace company?
Seriously though, what makes people that spout these types of credentials think they are smarter than everybody else when it comes to audio? Do they think no one else is college educated or that no one else may have impressive credentials? I was in the IT field for 30+ years but I realize there are 16 yr olds out there that know more than I ever did and could probably hack into the CIA if they wanted to. You need to get over yourself and realize that half of being smart is knowing what you’re dumb at. 
On another note, after originally being put off by Morrow's practice of setting high prices yet offering perpetual discounts, and implying that more copper in the wires is inherently better and worth twice the price for the next model up, I pulled the trigger on the SP5 speaker cables which are arriving today. They will be compared to my current Kimber 4TC. Can't wait to try them.

I’ve never tried their speaker cables, these days I have Audioquest Rocket 44’s that I got for about 65% off. Please report back, Kimber makes a pretty nice cable.

Morrow's practice of sale pricing can be a bit off putting, I assume it's a type of market strategy to increase sales.  Schiit has the opposite approach, here's our price and if you don't like it, too bad.  I think most of the major cable manufacturers are pretty much the same.  

I have some SP5 bi-wires arriving in a day or two to compare to older version SP3's, will post my findings after they settle in.

My main concern regarding "60% off" is that the cables will be too short.

Or the top end will be rolled off to just below the midrange

60%?! I got only 40% off but I ordered them 40% too long to compensate. I was not born yesterday, sir!!

Okay, I better explain.  That was just a lame attempt at humor.  The discount applies to the price not the length, for anyone born yesterday, or in Rio Linda.