Cut the Cord !!!

Well, looks like this April Fools joke was on Me this year...hope one day it's not on you...see below!

If you read through my post HERE, then you'll see that evaluating My S1 NrT's these past 2 months has been Really Great. Nuff said, huh....well, here's the true rainbow toward the end of the story!

I'm setting up to order\receive the Sierra 2's to compare, evaluate and ultimately choose which 2-channel stereo music monitors (S1's or S2's) I'll use and keep for the next, say 38 years or so (it can happen)! As it had been a long time since I got involved into the audio scene, I carefully took my time making singular changes to equipment, speakers and room set ups, with extensive evaluation listening sessions to insure I was making steady progress forward with sound reproduction improvements. All that said, I was well please in the steady sound improvement arena (my music room), but wait, there's More.

Two weeks ago, I decided to add good quality banana plugs to the speaker wires terminating at each cabinet. I cut back to fresh copper, installed said plugs, then was amazed at the sound change improvements??! It took a while to affirm what I thought I was hearing, but yes, the high end and midrange had opened up some, affording a bigger soundstage, deeper depth and a little more openness to any recording I was listening to. It was like a veil (of which I hadn't noticed before) thinning out and letting the music flow more freely into the room. I continued enjoying my old and new recordings, attempting to figure out if or what really created the changes I was hearing. This past Sunday (April 3rd) I took the process to its final culmination. Having received some nice black speaker boots, I decided to redo the speaker terminations. Since that went well, I decided why not...even thought no one sees the speaker wire attachment to the power amp, I'll add the boots and install banana plugs on those too.

What happened next was the "Single" Biggest Improvement in sound reproduction I could have made...WOW, WOW, WOW!!! At this point, the Sierra 1 NrT's have Disappeared and nothing is in the room except the glorious LIVE artist and their talents of musical prowess...it literally is like the S1 NrT's have transformed into what I'm expecting the Sierra 2's to be like...Way COOL!!! With the Many great recordings I have, soundstage now extends 5ft to10ft beyond my 9ft room boundaries and depth now extends 10ft to 30 ft beyond the set up listening wall. Focus has become so sharp and pinpoint that this is the first and only time in my 40 years of audio reproduction exposure, Anywhere, that I am truly and fully transported into the performance venue, recording studio, or live session environment. I've NEVER been able to get that without my eyes closed (with even the best audiophile setups and associated disc)...Now, I keep them open and can easily and intimately imagine and See the musicians in space, detailed in life, privately performing just for me! I know what your thinking, you too want what ever "I'm smoking or drinking", but even thought you don't know me, know that I've had a simple and understandable Epiphany that I might be able to save you from the agony of going through! It is so simple and minuscule, I'm almost embarrassed to state it, but here it goes!

As per my long winded threads, the fact is, I set up my Monster Cable Pro High Resolution 12GA speaker wire "bare ends"...35 years ago!!!! Ahhh, I sense the brain cogs working now...However, This joke was on me as after all these decades, apparent corrosion and oxidation had Set In the exposed speaker wires at each termination point. Since I don't have long runs (under 8ft each), I passively used the speaker wires just as they were without a thought that I should easily and simply cut back to FRESH BARE Wire!!! No, the banana plugs were not the difference, but cutting back to beautiful virgin copper 12 gauge wire Sure Was, thus the title, "Cut The Cord" !!! :o

Of course, all of this is only related to My perception, My experiences, My ears, My room, My equipment, My music...However, If the Sierra 2's can step up what I currently have to another league or two (is that possible), then I'll be singing Ascend praises for the rest of my days!!! If you've read through to this final paragraph, guess you already know I'm THERE!

Ted

Glad you made that important change. This is why there are some audiophiles out there that re-terminate their cables every year. I've also heard of just taking off the ends, spraying some deoxit, wiping them down, and putting the terminals back on.

I buy cables from Blue Jeans Cable and they use an ultrasonic welder that makes a termination that is so good, there isn't any way for oxidation to mess them up, so if you want a cable that will last for a long, long time at very low cost, check them out.