Analysis Plus Speaker cables


While i know that we covered some "differences of opinion" in the last two threads on this subject, I just noticed that their latest product ( 14 gauge ) once again DOES NOT use their "highly researched" and "technologically advanced" hollow oval ( oval coaxial ) design. They have gone to the same geometry of the Silver oval cable ( one stacked on top of the other ). This is a "knock off" of the solid conductor Goertz cables, but more flexible due to stranding. I have to wonder about a company that bases all of their advertising campaign on one design, belittling all others along the way, and then SILENTLY tries to sneak the fact by you that they are not using that design anymore ?!?!?! Sounds rather unethical to me. Sean
sean
Thanks for pointing that out Fpeel. The initial literature that i had seen on these when the Oval 9 and 12's came out had pictured flat oval coaxial cables. This was BEFORE the Silver cables were even introduced. To further reinforce that, EVERY printed catalogue from Audio Advisor that i have seen shows the Oval 9 and Oval 12 as being of the flat coaxial design with the Silver's being stacked. When i first received my Oval 9's, i looked at them and swore that they were stacked. I really didn't pay much attention to this and thought that they might have changed the design to match the Silver models. Since you pointed this out, i did go to the AP website and the pictures there are completely opposite of what i have been stating. This means that Audio Advisor's pictures in the catalogue's and even AP's own literature have been wrong from the beginning. Thank you for making me aware of this and correcting me. This still does not change the situation, even if i was backwards : ) Why have they altered the design at ALL ??? I hope that they do respond to you as i am quite curious as to their explanation. Sean
Here's Analysis Plus' response: Thank you for bringing this discussion to our attention, and also for your very eloquent replies to Sean. You are certainly correct in your response, the copper Oval 9 and Oval 12 were the original designs, and have not been changed. When we added the Oval Theater 14 to our line, we used the same hollow oval geometry as our other copper products, but as you correctly state, requirements for the CL-3 rating required the use of insulation around both conductors. Sean is simply wrong in saying we don't employ hollow oval technology in the home theater cables. The Silver Oval was a later design than the Oval 9 or Oval 12, and uses a different conductor material. We had the opportunity to run further simulations and experiment with other geometries and concluded that due to some of silver's properties, a coaxial configuration would be a better choice for that conductor material. The coaxial geometry increases the cost of the cable itself, and also increases the labor involved in terminating the cable, so this geometry is only used in our flagship model, where the conductor material and cable price justify its use. To address another of Sean's misconceptions, the conductor gauge of both inner and outer conductors of the Silver Oval is in fact the same. Since it is a braided design, the way the cable is wound can be altered, so that the same number of strands are used in both conductors, resulting in equivalent gauge. Thank you again for your responses to Sean, and for trying our products. We wish you many enjoyable years of listening. Mark Markel and Steve Pennock Analysis-Plus, Inc. [email protected]
Looks like the info I presented was correct and the intuition that the coax design used in the Silver Oval is more costly was "on". I'm glad to know that the wire gage is also equal in the positive and negative directions.
Thanks for posting that Fpeel. I would rather be corrected than continue to be incorrect. I apologize for the misinformation that i posted about the various cables and their geometries. I tried to call AP today and ended up getting a recording. While i don't know if you have any of the Advisor catalogue's, but if you do, take a look at what they show in them in terms of a cut-away view and you'll see what i'm talking about. They've had the wrong info shown for several catalogue's in a row. In terms of their statement that the cables are equally sized in the silver cables, that would mean that the outer weave would have to have a much wider gap between strands than the inner conductor would. That is the only way that you can have the same amount of actual wire and cover more area. As i stated, i did try these cables with over 500 hours of running time on them and was not happy with them. Just further proof that everyone has different tastes. Sean >
Like you I'm just trying to be helpful, Sean. Considering all the great info I've gleaned from this site it's nice to be able to add a little something to the discourse. BTW, AP is now aware of AA's faux pas on the cable images.