Master Built-What are Owners Hearing That They Didn't Hear With Other Cables
- Thread starter Steve Williams
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If in the US, PM Leif S
If in the Benelux PM ceedee (Cor Dekker), I believe he also does the UK
If in Germany contact Ibex Audio (not sure they are here at WBF)
If in the Philippines contact me. I can also refer you to the Singapore and Malaysian distributors
Elsewhere refer to the VSA dealer page
Yes the Ultras are expensive but they are not the most expensive.
If in the Benelux PM ceedee (Cor Dekker), I believe he also does the UK
If in Germany contact Ibex Audio (not sure they are here at WBF)
If in the Philippines contact me. I can also refer you to the Singapore and Malaysian distributors
Elsewhere refer to the VSA dealer page
Yes the Ultras are expensive but they are not the most expensive.
Wow, that's really, really expensive:
http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/nordost-launches-odin-2-at-high-end-2015/
Only for the rich folk I suppose.
No offense, but High End seems to go off the rails these days. I'd rather spend that kind of money on a SOTA, or almost SOTA, DAC. I bet that would make much more of a difference in most systems.
According to that TAS review of the Odin 2, price is $30K for the first meter of speaker cable. $8K for each additional meter. Yes, that is really, really expensive.
Wow, that's really, really expensive.
It wouldn't. Ok if you think price tags do.
I would spend that on deposit to help buy a bigger room, or speakers, followed by a Turntable.
I don't have any detailed information - not much more than what is posted on their website. What I infer from conversations with Albert and Leif is that they do pay a lot of attention to this aspect of cable design (esp. the PCs) and they seem to have some proprietary technology/materials they've developed targeted specifically to EMI/RFI isolation.
Cheers,
A top DAC would make a greater difference. Resolution starts at the source.
A turntable is not an option for me, as you might know by now, even though I love the vinyl in others' systems. And while speakers are important, the quality of the source cannot be overstated. I'd rather have a dCS Rossini DAC with my current Reference 3A De Capo monitors costing $ 3 K, for example, than the top line Reference 3A monitors, the Reflector, with my current DAC.
A bigger room can be very helpful and may be indispensable for more convincing large-scale presentation, but it opens its own can of worms. The ideal would be two systems in two rooms, one for large-scale presentation, the other for smaller scale, like chamber music.
Resolution and realism are different things, with some overlap. For me, as you know, digital tops out at big 7 price of 10k, shouldn't have upgraded to GG. Now Lampi will increase stakes with the 5k Atlantic dac. Not now, but in a few iterations, it should beat most things.
Steve,
first off, I'm not dismissing your findings. I said repeatedly that I believe what you are saying. I'm suggesting that it's up to the reader to investigate closer your reference and then look at other data points and the big picture implications of your perceptions. and I would say that for any high praise for any gear. what is what compared to? what do we know about that item? and what other data points do we have?
if you were to compare an amp to your Lamm ML3, or a turntable to your TechDAS, or a cartridge to your ZYX.....most people paying attention would get that you are using a recognized reference to judge. but anointing the Master Built compared to what you are using can mean lots of things......one possibility is that Master Built ends up being the best of anything. but much more work needs to be done to figure that out. your information does not carry the weight it might have if you had TA Magnum Opus (or Opus Gen5), or Odin II (or std Odin) or some such reference.
since you brought up my praise of the Trinity we can compare.
to put it mildly; I disliked the Playback Designs PCM performance so completely I pretty much avoided it for years. in any case the Playbacks was not a reference for redbook or PCM for me. for a few years I had heard better PCM at shows. in my posting about the Trinity I said as much. my reference was dsd through the Playbacks, but more so my vinyl and tape. and that was what I compared the Trinity dac to. I still use my vinyl and tape to reference any digital in my system and even when asked about the Lampizator that is how I describe it. the Trinity did do things more similar to the vinyl and tape and bettered the dsd through the Playbacks Design in some ways. I mentioned that the Trinity pushed me to realize how we should always try to find the native format source for any recording as that was best.
at that time there was lots of other over-the-top feedback on the 1000+ post WBF thread on the Trinity dac as well as quite a bit buzz on it from other websites. I was one of many who praised, and continue to praise, the Trinity. when I did speak about it I mentioned I had not heard the top of line MSB Dac's which may have been competitive or better.
was the Trinity a credible product? was it worth the praise I gave it? what is the difference between my approach and yours?
I'm sure there were plenty of readers of my posts who did not accept what I said at face value for whatever reason. I try my best to offer context and allow others to form their opinions.
I do think that comparing a source product to comparing a cable product is fundamentally different. and feedback on esoteric cables starts out with a higher degree of skepticism for various reasons. it's like grounding products or plugs and outlets.
my intention was not to disparage your remarks about the Master Builds, but to dampen the reaction to your comments that seemed to ignore the context. sorry if I hit a nerve.
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Thanks Mike
It was my intent and nothing more to bring to light what I consider a terrific cable. I understand completely Mike your point and I have admitted to that. Having said that for me it would be a shame if some of you guys here are searching for new cable and don't get to audition it. Also I am not alone Mike in my praise of this cable and my thoughts seemed to echo others who have it. I do feel beat up though as I have no vested interest in this cable.
It was my intent and nothing more to bring to light what I consider a terrific cable. I understand completely Mike your point and I have admitted to that. Having said that for me it would be a shame if some of you guys here are searching for new cable and don't get to audition it. Also I am not alone Mike in my praise of this cable and my thoughts seemed to echo others who have it. I do feel beat up though as I have no vested interest in this cable.
Good morning Dan
I started this thread just for you
did you wake upon the wrong side of the bed again today Dan or are your Grape Nuts tasting soggy
LOL.
Gee, please excuse me for not questioning your take on how these cables perform in your system.
PS- since upgrading to the Audience Au 24 SX cables, I'm no longer searching for new cables.
Your cables are certainly in a far more reasonable price range. The price of the top Masterbuilt cables is outrageous.
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