This cable game is making my head spin

I was experiencing very noticeable noise from my SL-1200 turntable. Mostly an echo type reverberation when walking near the table etc. Tapping on the stand or plinth was like playing a drum. Ordered the Sorbothane turntable Isolation feet from Mnpctech for it and I just screwed them in. An immediately noticeable silence. Ordered turntable upgrade here, Turntable Phonograph Vinyl Record Player lsolation Feet – Mnpctech Going to listen to a few records to make sure it hasn't killed the sound completely, but as far as decoupling goes they're awesome.

"Cardas are warm, accentuate the bass relative to the details and can hide some noice / hash from some overly detailed electronics."

No, not all Cardas are warm. Depends on which cable model/version you are referring to. Having owned, tested, factory demo’d many-many pairs over the past 25+yrs with Cardas, each cable offers a different result. The newer Clear, Clear Beyond, are in a completely different league on their own for transparency, less bloom so to speak. Some of the newer mid-level cables from Parsec to Cygnus or Clear Reflections can still be warmish. Yes, some of the older vintage golden series are warmer than most. The newer Clear lines, not so much. Different designs.

It’s worth demoing with TheCableCo before drawing all-encompassing conclusions. While I’ve strayed mostly from Cardas except for my bi-wire speaker cables I still use sometimes, I still appreciate what they do and all of the variations. Its amazing George still comes up with all the different versions.

@decooney

The newer Cardas Clear Beyond, Clear Reflections are not as warm as the old reference, golden matrix, etc… but they are on the warm side, slightly emphasizing the bass and attenuating the details.

I am not trying to be argumentative, but this is how they sound in the spectrum of cable companies products.. I have had several pair of Clear, Clear Beyond, and Clear Reflection interconnects as well as power cords and compared them directly with Wire World, DH Labs, Transparent, Nordost, Harmonics (several versions), for nearly a year, Nirvana, Straight Wire, and a couple more. I have compared them on several systems. They are, and have been for decades notably on the warm side. This is not a criticism, it is just how they sound. In many systems, this is what you need.

@ghdprentice that makes sense given the other cables you are comparing to. You hear what you hear and that’s what matters. I wonder if you’d feel my other Analysis Plus Crystal OCC RCA interconnects are warm sounding too. Different from all of my prior Cardas for sure.  

I’d be curious to know which is warmer to your ears, Cardas Clear RCA interconnect vs. Wireworld Eclipse 8 (the version with OCC-7N Copper and those Silver clad contacts) - if by chance you compared or took notes on the Eclipse 8s?

@decooney

I’ll have to look around and see what WireWorld I still have around. I have gone through a purge of the ridiculous pile of expensive cables I was not using.

Long ago I used to take notes… came up with a detailed rating system. Spent hundreds and hundreds of hours evaluating cabling (speaker cables, interconnects, and power cords) in different configurations of components. I learned a lot. I don’t bother any more.

There were a couple things I was surprised at the consistency of across time, one of which has been at the consistent warmth of Cardas. Every time, in every system (this works well in many, many systems) they are warm in comparison to all but notably warm cables. My dealer carries Cardas, and loves them… so he keeps dropping them by for me to try. I recognize everyone has different systems, preferences, and perceptions… so there are lots appropriate observations as there is no real empirical ruler… but this generality of mine has been reinforced repeatedly over decades… so I feel somewhat obligated to say so. Just trying to be helpful to the general community.

I will say that until you get into very highly designed cables the greatest predictor as to the sound character is Copper (a hierarchy of the actual CU quality / character within this category), silver coated copper, hybrid copper/silver wire, all silver… tends to be warm —> cool / detailed. Which it sounds like you are alluding to.