Thanks to a good deal, I’m considering replacing my speaker cables — TQ Ultra Black II — with either the TQ Black Diamond or the Ultra Silver II.
I’m aiming for a slightly brighter sound, and I assume the Ultra Silver II would be the right choice in that regard. However, I don’t want to sacrifice body and dynamics. The Black Diamond is positioned higher on the TQ hierarchy, though. Unfortunately I cannot test the cables before purchasing.
Has anyone compared either of these options?
My current system is: NDX2 / XPS DR / 252 DR / 300 DR / Kudos Titan 606.
How are you? Have a great day. Breaking in stuff. Getting to the music. Do you have any JVC SACD? They are long out of print but if you can find them they are very good. BTW nacs5 way too still for my install. Lots of bends around bookcases.
Thank you for your reply!
I had NACA5 many years ago when I had CD5i and Nait XS. I liked it but I moved towards something more refined. Nowadays with my current system I would give the NACA5 a try once again, even if I’m afraid it could be too raw and the bending can be a problem due to the cable path.
Thank you again Skeptikal
I upgraded from Chord Co Epic Reference to Tellurium Q Silver Diamond on a 300DR/Kudos T505 system and the difference was short of profound. It is a “leaner” sound but that stems from the cables being so neutral and detailed, offering a noticeable drop in noise floor.
If you believe that a cable should simply reveal more of the system that it’s plugged in to and not act as a tone control then you will love these.
Go for the Silver Diamond. Your system certainly justifies it.
Thanks a lot for sharing your experience and suggestions.
I can imagine the improvement you’ve described with the Silver Diamond — it certainly sounds like a remarkable cable. That said, at the moment, the cost is a bit beyond what I’m willing to commit to, even though I agree that the system would justify such an upgrade.
Taking your comments into consideration, I might look towards the Ultra Silver II as a more balanced option for now, it seems like a good compromise in terms of neutrality and detail, without going all the way to the Silver Diamond. Also Black Diamond is in my wish list since it is higher in the TQ hierarchy.
I bought mine second-hand at a deep discount versus buying new. If you have the patience I would wait until an opportunity presents itself to do the same. No point buying something a few rungs below what you really want as you’ll only end up selling it for something better later anyway.
Kudos KS-1 has to be worth a try, was really very good with the 505’s……. .
And, of course, at the other end of the price spectrum, there’s always Naim’s Super Lumina, especially if you seek a pre-owned set…… you wouldn’t be disappointed, albeit works significantly better in a full loom context.
YPYM, and of course, YMMV, home audition’s the trick.
Superlumina - waited for it ‘break in’ for about a year and finally sold it off. Was torture. Has more depth than the naca5 but engagement dropped to 0.
It’s funny - was talking to someone else last week who had the superluminal speaker cable too - and he sold it off after 6 months.
naca 5 is good, so are the witch hat phantoms in my opinion. The TQ black ii are good too. anything but the superluminal.
other people swear by it - (but their systems are probably boring).
FWIW - I’m running ND555x2 PSUs, 552/500 into Kudos Titans 606s, with Nordost power strip and a Valhalla2 powercable. And the Naca5 are perfect! The Naca5 continues to be revealing of every change I make in the system - or even of changes in power supplies to switches made three rooms over…
I guess shielding might be an issue - but I don’t know what I would get instead…
just saw you have the same speakers I do …
yeah - naca5, or the kudos speaker cables - both are great choices. as is the tq black II you already have. These are just flavors…
are you looking for a brighter sound or more detail? I see you do have lots of different kinds of cables etc. Do try replacing them all with standard naim cables - it’ll take a little while to readjust - but use that as a palate cleanser before deciding what to do next.
I have the silver diamond and love them. The change was looking at the garden through the window compared to going out into the garden. There was suddenly nothing between me and the music. That said, they will highlight any system weakness and my 804D3 do the same so everything has to be good enough. I run ND555/332/350 and they really show off just how good Naim are.
Silver Diamond Is beyond my current availability, however black diamond or Ultra Silver II may be reached with some effort. The problem is that I cannot test both cables before. I should purchase the cables and send back one of two.
I had an Ultra Silver before and too bright is not how I would describe it. It just translate crystal clear of how your system perform to your choice of speaker.
. At least vs. Chord Epic XL - IMHO anyway.