I’ve been a Naim cable guy for a good 10 years, just got cables on my mind now…
Looking at the forums, the WitchHat and Tellurium Black II cables seem to interesting ones to look at.
I’ve actually got the Tellurium Black II in short length in one of my systems, and going to it from Naca5, I experienced a little reduction in ‘noise’/tension - so we’ll worth it. This was with a SN3.
I’ve also got a fairly large length of the kudos speaker cables.
I have the SL speaker cables - and the break in period of well over a year was spectacularly painful! The end result was not worth pain.
For speaker cables, I’ve got the Naca5, the Tellurium Q (short lengths), some SL speaker cable, kudos cable, and
for the interconnects the lavender and HiLine …
So Q - any speaker cables and interconnects that folks recommend to listen to? And how these speaker cables and interconnects compare to HiLine and SuperLumina.
Like I said, I’m looking at Tellurium and WitchHat …
(And before my friends reply - no / not doing Chord Music level cables).
I was using Tellurium Q Black II for both interconnects and speaker cables until a few months ago, when I reverted to the Naim standard interconnects and bought some Phantoms. I saved a bit of money and am enjoying the music that bit more. It just sounds right to me, very engaging and most enjoyable to listen to.
@anon4489532 - in one of my systems, I’ve got a short length of the TQ - and would not want to go back to the Naca5 there. The speakers are Harbeth - so timing is already off - and these speakers are really only good for vocals…
Would the phantoms also be a step better than the Naca5, with timing maintained but a little less ‘Edge’?
It’s possible but I really don’t know. The Phantoms certainly have all the Naim characteristics of holding the music together and the general consensus seems to be they better the A5 in the areas that matter, but I’ve not tried them against the A5 so cannot comment from personal experience. They certainly look discreet and are very well made.
Kudos certainly match up nicely with the Kudos606s. They’re not as good as the SL, but given the price difference it isn’t surprising.
They do bring out the Kudo-ness of the speakers better than the SL, but the SL adds way more depth - I’ve gone back to the SL in the 500 system + Kudos 606s.
So - maybe with a Nap250 based system, and a set of Kudos speakers, the Kudos cables would be a good upgrade over the Naca5, and the SL would not make sense - since at that price, I would expect it to have all the benefits of the Kudos cable and add more - the SL doesn’t quite do that.
I would not use the kudos cable on a non - kudos speaker, but probably should try that before commenting.
I have the Harbeth P3ESR, the Totem Signature ones and the 606s.
@anon4489532 - so you like the Phantoms better than the TQ Blacks? What were the major improvements?
What do you use for interconnects?
I’ve got lavender and naca5 - and looking to upgrade. This with the NDX2/XPSDR - 282/250/HicapDR. Not looking to spend a SL level money. Speakers are Totem Signature Ones but can see myself getting Totem Forest Signatures at some point…
The chord shawlines seem like a downgrade over the lavender.
Lightly twisted 56 strand was Naim’s recommended cable before NACA4 and then NACA5. It’s a perfectly good cable, and was actually used by Naim as internal hook up cable for the speakers. I can’t see much evidence of “snake oil” with that, although I guess it may be the cryogenic treatment that is the cause of your scepticism here?
I bought the Phantoms because they are less black than the TQ and not covered in shiny writing. I simply took the TQ out and put the WH in, and let them run in. They just seem to work and seem to make the music that bit more engaging. Both are good cables at similar price points.
As for interconnects I’m using Naim standard lavender, with a phono to Din version for the Rega. I found things seemed a bit more lively with the Naim interconnects than with the TQ.
I’d say it’s more lively overall; the TQ full loom maybe made things a little too smooth. I’m being careful to say maybe here, as I’ve not done any careful back to back comparisons. I will admit that the initial Witch Hat love-in did put me off; it’s rather like the current Kudos love-in I guess.
In the case of the Phantoms they were still getting good solid positive reviews a while down the line, so I thought I’d give them a go. I dismissed the Kudos cable - too white, A5 - too stiff and a right pain to deal with the excess, Chord - change their ranges every week, so the Phantoms it was. I like the fact that Witch Hat simply say that their cables are made using good quality copper wire and solid construction, whereas both Chord and Tellurium are prone to twaddle spouting on an industrial scale.
I used to have Chord Epic on the SHL5+. I now use Chord Signature XL.
Although all speaker cables sound different, the sound quality of the Epic is closer to the NACA5. The Signature XL sounds quite different from the Epic and NACA5. The sound of the Signature XL is more accurate and overall leaner especially in the bass.
I like the NACA5 a lot in my system. They do take about a century to run in & settle down. They are not the last word on detail and transparency but the engaging and musical presentation makes that easy to forget. There is something very ‘catchy’ and right about the sound of the NACA5 that I really love.
That said, it’s no news they are also a real pain to handle. After a change of speakers I’m struggling for weeks now to get the excess of these fishing rods routed in a visually acceptable way. Crawling around with a hair dryer, swearing, no victory. I also noticed that I seem to be past the point my family members take interest or even notice of this sort of thing…
Against this background, the consistently good reports on the WH Phantoms got the better of me and I ordered a set. Very curious how they compare.
