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Audioquest Firebird Zero

I've tried several speaker cables over the past year; Shunyata Alpha and Sigma, Wireworld Silver Eclipse series 7, Audioquest Oak and Redwood, Audience Au24 SX, and I own Clarus Crimson speaker cables. I prefer the Clarus over all of the aforementioned speaker cables. I've had the Audioquest Firebird Zero speaker cables on loan for three days. My initial thoughts were everything is a little clearer through them compared to my Clarus Crimson. Not a night and day difference, but definitely clearer. The Clarus are slightly more 3-dimensional to my ears. My wife on the other hand just keeps saying the AQ sounds sharper, clearer, there are less impurities in the music. I'm not sure what she means by impurities, but she keeps repeating it. Maybe she means a darker background? My plan was to have a home audition of the Thunderbird Zero speaker cables, but they had banana plugs on the amplifier end and I can't use them. I took the Firebirds with the logic that if I can't hear a difference between them and my current cables I didn't need to have a home audition of the Thunderbirds. $14K for an eight foot pair of speaker cables is freaking crazy and sad! It would be easy for me to dismiss it  because there isn't a night and day difference, but once you hear the difference it's very hard to ignore. Financially I just can't justify spending $14K on speaker cables and hope to hear the AQ Thunderbirds sometime next week. Once again I'm reminded that absolutely everything makes a difference. For those that can easily afford $14K, $20K or more speaker cables I understand, because cables can be equivalent to a component change. Does it ever end?
ricred1
divertiti
222 posts
 
@ctsooner Congrats on the new cable. How do the William Tells compare to the Robin Hoods? What are the biggest differences and similarities?
ctsooner
2,480 posts
 
I'm talking about only the copper versions.  The Hood/silver are better (smoother, dynamics, detail etc) than my copper Tell's.  The Tell vs Hood offer the same things over the Hood's.  You have to really look at the price difference and your equipment costs to really see if the Tell is worth the move up. 

I have had both in my system and the Tell's were THAT much better in everything.  Many lines of cables will give you a bit better (lower noise floor/detail, dynamics yada yada) as you move up.  I feel that with the new AQ line, they have given you a much larger gap between cables as you move up.  They just get out of the way of the music more and more as you go to the next line in both power cords and speaker cables.  

I don't fully understand all the Garth has done with these two lines, but they talk on the site about all of it.  I can honestly say that going with a legit two cable, bi wire where there is a special cable just for the bass was a GAME CHANGER in MY system.  It was worth more to my ears than getting a better integrated amp.  It was not incremental.  even my non audio friends and wife heard a tremendous difference.  They didn't care, but they heard it and I never told my wife that I changed cables.  She did the same thing with the Hurricanes when I got them and never said a word.  She just asked what I changed since the speakers and boxes looked the same to her.  
jafant
18,785 posts
 
ctsooner

Thank You for the continued update on your cables/system.

Happy Listening!
jafant
18,785 posts
 
bo1972

I am looking forward in reading that report/review.

Happy Listening!
ctsooner
2,480 posts
 
I was doing a lot of work behind my system a few months ago and having MS, I can't do the heavy lifting etc, so I had a friend hook up my Laufer Technique Server/DAC with my new AQ Hurricane cord.  I was in shock at how great the change was. I already shared that on so many threads.  I've had the top cords from most companies in the system over the last year or so adn the Hurricane was best and it's not that close in most cases.

I was blown away by the sound of my system.  Just happy.  Well, I had to make another change in Dec and noticed that the interconnects were the Niagara balanced I used to own.  I am about to put them on the market and wasn't able to find them, but forgot about it.  

Wouldn't you know, he never hooked up the AQ WEL's balanced that I use.  I installed the WEL's, but the fuses on my Ayre AX5/20 blew so I had to wait to get them back.  I have been burning in the system for about a month now.  I haven't had a chance to listen much for many reasons, but today I'm listening.  

HOLY CRAP Batman!!!  If anyone else's Vandersteen Quatro's sound this good, I have to hear them.  As many of you know, I have heard a lot of top end gear and continue to do so.  There is a lot of hyped gear that isn't all that.  There are a lot of pieces that are great values and there are very very few pieces that are worth the price that list over 50k.  This is my own opinion based on my own ears.

That said, this system is sick good and I'm getting the CAD grounding unit that will lower the noise floor even more.  I know what it does to any price system and to me, it's a MUST.  Johnny Rutan at Audio Connection in NJ let me hear it on a few pieces and it is a game changer for about 1900.00.  I just called him to order mine. It's a must if you can afford one.  He's the only dealer I know of, but I'm sure there are others.

In any case, with the WEL everything is better.  Lower noise floor, smoother, but my dynamic.  Micro and macro dynamics are just off the charts.  The sound stage has snapped into place like most 30k plus speakers.  I know the Hurricane's cost a bit and the new William Tell speaker cables aren't cheap.  I only have the Niagara 1000, so I know I can do better there too, but not sure I will though.  

Had to share how awesome the new AQ stuff is.  Garth is a freaking genius. 
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