Which MIT speaker cable?

My dealer lent me the Transparent MusicWave BiWire 10' Spade-to-spade, on the box it's marked MWBW 10 S>S and RV10D. This is only one of two Transparent speaker cables he has, the other one has bananas. He told me he's discounting the least few to get rid of them and he's going to start stocking bulk Van Den Hul and terminating them himself. He said selling Transparent and other like speaker cables is a pain cuz he never seems to have exactly what the customer wants (mix of length and terminations) and evidently the customer seldom ever wants to wait for him to order them up. This pair of MusciWave BiWire, which I'm in the process of breaking in, listed by the dealer for $570 and he's willing to sell them to me for $325 cash. Seems like a reasonable deal, and I get to try before I buy. In the meantime, I've taken the advice of some folks here on Audiogon and I'm going to get some MIT 330+ II IC's for my source components. Finally, once the dust settles I'll change my preamp to amp interconnect, but finding a reasonably priced 25' long balanced cable is going to take patience. Wires, the final tweak frontier....

Jeff, What level of Transparent did they lend you? Try and get enough to hear the whole system with them.

My local dealer lent me the Transparent speaker cables for evaluation, so I'm trying them out now. Over the course of the several few days, once they're broken in, I should have a handle on whether the Transparent is a good match for the ML's. The next step is the IC between preamp and amp, fidning the right 25' IC with balanced connectors is gonna be a challenge. I'd certainly consider the 330+ II if I can find the right length/termination at a realistic price. As for the balance of the IC's in my system, my guess is my CDP and turntable IC's (YBA and Transparent respectively) are probably okay for now, and the Audioquest from tuner to preamp is fine since I really don't listen to FM that often and the source itself isn't anywhere near as revealing as the CDP & TT. At the price of audiophile wire, it's no wonder there are so many manufacturer's in the market, the margins have got to be sky high!

Hi Jeff, someone at MIT told me they voice their cables to ML speakers. Don't know if this is true. If it is, it may explain why some people (e.g., Leafs above) don't like the sound of MIT cables, while some people with MLs or other revealing speakers (e.g., Gjrad above) find them to be ideal. In any case, here's my experience: MIT interconnects worked quite well for my system with ML ReQuests. After trying various ICs, I found MIT 330+ II's (DAC->preamp and preamp->amp) had the most full and natural sound and helped tame the top end aggressiveness in the MLs. In comparison, I found the MIT T2 ICs were not as detailed, quiet, or polite. Some more pricey ICs that received good reviews didn't quite work with the MLs. For instance, Tara Decades sounded unnaturally thin even though they had better imaging and a slightly wider soundstage than the 330+ IIs. I did find some of the more expensive Transparent ICs worked well for ReQuests, but I can't say they were significantly better than the cheaper MIT 330s. Another IC (or SC) you may want to try is the Harmonic Tech. Truth-Link; it is also fairly polite up top. I haven't tried MIT speaker cables (the last SCs I used with the ReQuests were Cardas Golden Cross). But since MIT ICs seem to work well for ML speakers, their SCs may be worth trying in your system. However, I agree with Megasam and Joekras that it might be more prudent to try switching ICs first -- they're cheaper than the speaker cables and you may find that just changing ICs does the trick. I'll also add that I recently bought some speakers (Khorus) that are even more detailed than the MLs, though not as aggressive, and found the MITs don't work as well for them. So, as others cautioned above, it's largely a matter of trial and error. Happy hunting. Don

I personally think that MIT are the best cables out there. I have owned the 750 biwire but you are better off with 750 plus single wire and jumpers. It is a higher grade cable and offers more performance then the lower model biwire. The best part is that its cheaper. One good thing about AudioAdvisor is they have a great 30 day no questions asked return policy.

I personally think that MIT are the best cables out there. I have owned the 750 biwire but you are better off with 750 plus single wire and jumpers. It is a higher grade cable and offers more performance then the lower model biwire. The best part is that its cheaper.

Thanks gents, appreciate you taking the time to respond. My local dealer has a ten foot pair of Transparent MusicWave Bi-Wire, new, he'll let go for $300. Sounds like a reasonable deal, and since my system leans a little towards the bright side, do any of you feel this would be a good match? Jeff

I agree. I see used 330II interconnect on Audiogon for about $100. Cable has big full midrange sound. Great for vocals.

I agree with "Megasam" like everthing else you will need to try the MIT cables to see if it works in your system. It does help control the top end yet it still leaves the detail. With Thiel speakers, MIT speaker cables are a must and match very well, with other speakers it may not be the best match. Audio Advisor sell them at 50% off and if they don't work out you can return them within 30 days. Be sure to break them in before you finally decide. I only used their speaker cable not their I/C.

Jeff, you may want to try MIT speakers cables, but I would
first try MIT 330+ ICs which Audio Advisor has for $150. These will do what you are looking for, and would be cheaper and more effective even than MIT speaker cables.
If you like the effect you can then try MIT speaker cables
or the excellent Analysis Plus Oval 9s. You have the 30 day
trail period with AA.

As to MIT being worst performance cable, I would not say that but it does have a unique sound and effect on sound of system, some may not like. If you are looking for maximum
laser sharp treble detail as in silver cables, MIT does not
fit the bill as the treble is less pronounced than most cables. In some systems MIT sounds great, I would say try it out and see what you think.

Jeff go to Codell Audio and try Coincident.The MIT is by far the worst price preformance and colered cable in the market place.Codell may try to push Cardas on you but hold out for the Coincident.