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MIT Term 2 speaker cables...Am I nuts???

Recently replaced 12g Original Monster cable with MIT Term 2's to connect Jolida tube amp to Spendor S-100 speakers. Now, I know my system has a warm, round sound without the deepest of bottom ends, but when I hooked up the MIT's (used=broken in)the first thing I did was felt inside my ears to see if there was cotton in them. The sound lacked the punch, dynamics, and the bass of the $3/ft Monster copper. Highs were a noticable improvement, and instruments image better with MIT's, but I am now using the M.C. to drive the woofers as, I swear, they sound better than the MIT's. Am I nuts, or have I simply compounded too many components with a warm sound (Arcam CD player as well = laid-back British sound)?? Is this a common characteristic of MIT's? Would I be better off with a good solid state amp?
hmbrewd
megasam's avatar
megasam
798 posts
 
Gjrad descibes the MIT sound very well, they sound "warmer" because the treble region has less emphasis than other cables, somewhat recessed instead of forward sounding, but still detailed. This would be very different sounding than say Kimber 8TC. They may not be the best match for tube systems, but for nuetral SS systems produces very natural sound. I would also spend a little more for MIT 750 over T2 speaker cables from Audio Advisor.
pops
2,272 posts
 
I just went back to Kimber 8TC from MIT 750 Series 3 on my Thiel 3.6's and the sound is great. I have a warm system though, CJ pre and Classe CA200 amp with MIT shotgun ic's. The MIT's were biwire and it was too messy to run as a single to the Thiels. I wish I had heard the 750's to compare. I might have to get another pair in a single run - pain in the ass!
john_l
782 posts
 
I experienced the EXACT same thing. I borrowed a friends $2000 mit 750 reference cables to hook up my new vandersteen 5's and my arc vt100m2. (He just got the $6000 ones!) Anyway, I didn't think they sounded that great. I was really disappointed. Anyway, a couple days later he calls and says he sold the cable. So I pull the mit cable out, and put in a $30 set of esoteric audio copper cables. Screwed up, multi-adapted terminators on them. Major major improvement in sound! It sounded like somebody just removed a towel from the speakers.

I'm thinking this is an amp matching problem, so I go to my other system which as a set of aleph 2's and audio physic virgo's. I remove the $1000 nordost red dawn cable, and put in the MIT. Same thing. Even more dramatic. The whole thing just lost all its life and sparkle. Those cables were flat out terrible in either system.

Do these cables stink ? Not at all. I had heard this same pair in his ultra-hirez all Spectral system and I thought they sounded incredible. They are just very picky about what system you put them in.
tubegroover
2,320 posts
 
John I suspect they are at least as much speaker as amp dependent. I am using mine with an ARC D-115 Mk2 (iec connector and JPS power cord, a major improvement over stock) which I guess is a bit less transparent and revealing than your VT-100mk2. The 770 Reference 2 tube cables are a revelation with the Merlin VSM-SE speakers. Certainly more relaxed but no loss of sparkle or inner harmonic detail and a greater increase in air and dynamic contrasts and no sloppy bass here. I just put in my analysis plus last night to see if I was going crazy and although transparent and detailed, the sound was more 2 dimensional and once again made me realize why I didn't stop looking after I bought them, they are too bright on top on too many recordings.
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