Cardas Golden Cross no longer offered by Cardas ?

Hi Opus 88

How do the KCI Silkworm (not +) compare to Cardas Golden Ref or Golden Cross?

I don't mind sacrificing speed and extension for warmth and body and would like greater bloom.

Mikey, I've owned only the KCI Silkworm Plus and have never heard the original non-Plus version. I should also say when I purchased the Plus, I had John fit them with Eichmann Copper Bullet RCAs, which I have never regretted. Before doing this however I researched and found a few articles that compared the copper to the silver Eichmanns and both to the Xhadow plugs. What influenced me most to go with the Eichmann copper was Jeff Day's 6 Moons review from March, 2007 entitled "3 RCA Connectors at the OK Corral". Once I heard the Silkworm + with them I knew I had made the best choice for my ears. They imparted the kind of warm, analog quality I desired, also besting the Cardas Golden Reference I had previously owned by providing a more realistically balanced sound. And they offered fine detail without sacrificing musicality and convincing imaging/soundstaging. Otherwise, I did a comparison in my system between Cardas' Golden Reference and Golden Cross ics, finding the Cross somewhat too warm overall for my taste. I hope I've provided some information you might benefit from.

Hi Mikey8811
I guess you should take what I have to say with a grain of salt because I have a pair of the KCI Silkworm (not +) up for sale, right now.
However, "warmth and body and. . . greater bloom" are the hallmark of any 24k solid gold cable.
The Silkworms, also, have deep, powerful bass and an extended, delicate treble, though. That's what makes them so special.
The Cardas Golden Cross was designed to be very warm and did have a bit of a loose bass and treble roll-off. It was designed that way to work with certain systems that needed it. This, to a much lesser degree, was true of the Golden Reference, as well. Though all of the cables mentioned are veery musical.

If musical means no highs and a emphasis midrange, Cardas golden certainly do the trick!
I never find any cardas neutral enough to fit a high end system. On a bad speaker with agressive highs and no medium, it's probably a good choice.
anyway it's too bad to buy a bad cable to compensate a bad system...

Cardas Golden Cross can be fantastic sounding , especially if you like listening mostly to Rock music. I guess everyone has different ears. I have had great success with the Cardas Golden Cross in my system.