Shunyata Venom Phono cable

marty

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Apr 20, 2010
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My phono rig has been relatively constant for a several years: Goldmund Studio, Benz Ruby 2 cartridge, ASR Basis Exclusive phonostage, Nordost Valhalla from cartridge to ASR, Cardas Clear from ASR to VTL 7.5 III preamp.

I recently had the opportunity to try a few phono cables to see if one of them might knock the venerable Valhalla from its perch. I'm pleased to report that I found one that did so convincingly, but the best news, is that it is damn affordable ($300 retail). It is the Shunyata Venom series phono cable.

I recently shared my thoughts on its performance with its designer, Caelin Gabriel , that I'll now post here:

"The phono cable that you sent me a few weeks ago is in fact, excellent. Dead quiet as you predicted. The most impressive feature is the top end. You may recall from our visit to your home last spring that I was truly impressed by the top end of your system using the Ayon amp and those weird oval speakers with a ribbon tweeter whose name I can't recall. Now I understand why. As usual, system performance is a summation of all the parts, but I can now appreciate what the phono cable brought to the table. I think its a big reason why I thought that your top end (above 5K) was truly of reference caliber (and don't forget, that trip included visits to hear Mike Lavigne's system, Bruce Brown's system, and Ki Choi's system- all of near or reference caliber in many ways. I would go so far as to say I do not own a phono cable with a top end that is the equal of yours. This is perhaps most demonstrated by the clear rendering of the air in the hall of a good orchestral recording as well as timbre and harmonics of instruments with a lot of treble content. Regarding the former, I've referred to it previously as the "corona of energy" in the hall, which often sounds indistinct or even muddy (hence, psychoacoustically incorrect) rather than clearly perceived if the top end is not absolutely clean. That said. I don't want to take anything away from the cable's midrange performance, which is also superb. Absolutely natural. Male and female vocals are a delight. Massed strings, the acid test for upper midrange/lower treble, were also excellent. I'm going to hold off commenting on the deep bass for a bit as I need to do some more listening. The traditional bass (40-80hz) and upper bass (90-120 Hz) is certainly very good (it took 24 hours to "come in"), but I would say a good MIT may surpass it in extension and definition below 30 Hz. But honestly, I'm nit-picking here. And don't forget, my sense is that I can probably assess things with dual JL Gotham subs that one may not even hear with other gear. The Gothams are truly a "laboratory reference" in that regard. All said, the cable is now my reference from my turntable to the phono stage. I know that sounds like high praise, but I can't apologize for being truly impressed."

I would add that the cable was better balanced than the Valhalla (not as thin), which really enhanced the overall listening experience, especially with orchestral music. Its just a darn good, beautifully made, excellent sounding cable. All told, I have zero desire to try anything else at this point. I've been on the phono cable discovery mission for a few months and it's time to get off the merry-go-round. Of course, its always about system compatibility and YMMV. But for now, I have a fair number of new LPs lying around that are calling my name....

If nothing else, it is certainly a tremendous value at the price, even if the poisonous snake name thing leaves me a bit nonplussed.
Marty
 

Lee

Well-Known Member
Feb 3, 2011
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I did not even know they had a phono cable out. Cool.
 

dan31

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Jul 22, 2010
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Do we have any other Venom phono cable users? I need a dedicated RCA to RCA phono cable. Before I go head long into trying to demo various brands I thought I would see if this cable is still a great bargain.

Is Marty still using this as his phono cable or has he moved on to a higher priced wire?
 

marty

Well-Known Member
Apr 20, 2010
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Do we have any other Venom phono cable users? I need a dedicated RCA to RCA phono cable. Before I go head long into trying to demo various brands I thought I would see if this cable is still a great bargain.

Is Marty still using this as his phono cable or has he moved on to a higher priced wire?

I am still using the Venom phono to this day. However, I did order a Cardas Beyond Clear recently to try and will keep you posted. For Christ's sake man, its a friggin' $200 cable and its a darn good, musical, non-filtered, nothing fancy, quiet as hell cable. What do you have to loose? I've spent more on a dinner at a nice restaurant than that.

OK, honestly, the reason I bought the Cardas Beyond Clear is because the best damn phono source I ever heard was Steve's rig (a few weeks ago) with a ZYX cartridge and the insanely great Lamm reference phono stage. I finally got motivated to see if I can close the gap by playing around with a few affordable changes. I've had a Benz LPS sitting in a drawer for over a year because I couldn't bring myself to replace my Benz Ruby2 due to the irrational fear that it sounds so good, I am concerned the LPS may not sound better. (Note I did say 'irrational" fear). But I will finally get off my butt and mount the LPS. At the same time, I thought I might also change some cabling. I currently use the Venom from TT to ASR phono preamp and a Cardas Clear from ASR to my VTL 7.5 III preamp. I have zero desire to spend 30K for the Lamm Reference phono stage (best I ever heard) which would also surely necessitate hiring a divorce lawyer) and no desire to spend an arm and a leg on MB cables (for which I have some sonic reservations as well as the fact that they too would lead to divorce court). So I'm taking the poor man's approach and will try a few more "modest" changes to see if I can get closer to the knock-me-out-drop-dead sound of Steve's phono source.
 
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twitch

Well-Known Member
Jun 17, 2010
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Glad to 'hear' that a reasonably priced cable excels !
 

Lee

Well-Known Member
Feb 3, 2011
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I'm really enjoying the sound from the Furutech AG-12 cable. Less than $400 street.
 

dan31

Well-Known Member
Jul 22, 2010
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Thanks for the update Marty. I may take a shot at the venom phono as it appears to be a great value. I'm letting my power cables settle before trying phono cables.
 

Lee

Well-Known Member
Feb 3, 2011
3,210
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Alpharetta, Georgia
I may try this as well since I am evaluating the Venom interconnects and I'm impressed so far.
 

Johnny Vinyl

Member Sponsor & WBF Founding Member
May 16, 2010
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I had the urge to get some better phono cables late last year and if I had known Shunyata made one I probably would have taken a serious look at them. Instead, I went with the Morrow Audio PH5 (similarly priced) and I couldn't be more delighted. I have no way of knowing how the Venom and PH5 compare, but I'm picking up a lot of what you described. The PH5 is going from my Oracle directly into the Marantz PM-KI-Pearl. I'm really tempted to move up (and may well do so), but there are some great new LP releases/reissues out there, plus some preorders, which I would prefer to get my hands on. I've always been a music first and the other stuff later kind of guy.

Anyhoo, I'm really pleased to hear of your delight with the Shunyata Venom phono cable. Enjoy! :)
 

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