Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
To me, Cardas Golden Cross IC has become an extension or part of my CD player (Rega Jupiter). What it does for CD playback is to bring about about a richness and dimensionally of tone that I only knew from high quality LP playback. I would hesitate to categorize this cable as warm or bright. It just sounds right and I go to a lot of live concerts and play a couple instruments myself. After using the Quadlink for over 15 years (with great results) and experimenting with other cables in it's price range, the Golden Cross is quite a revelation. I do not enjoy the hyper detailed bleached out sound over the long haul and many of the competitors sound this way to me. The Cardas sound in emotional, and in my opinion what real music sounds like.

Strengths:
Full sound and as detailed as required for musicality. Bass freaks: you will like this one.

Weaknesses:
Cost, but what the heck

Similar Products Used:
Most recent is Analysis Plus, which I also like, but not as much

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
This is about the IC.

I wonder if home trial of Cardas cables is a waste of time. Why? Because the changes of the break-in or burn-in or whatever you call it, in the sound are so racidal and take such a long time. At least 1000 hours.

I bought my 1m pair used, they were air mailed and handled and twisted and so on, and it took the above number of hours to relax. You would think they had been broken-in already, being used for several years, but no! These cables have to be left alone for (a couple of) thousand hours and played, before they are what they are.

What are they? Everything people have written below.

Weaknesses:
Long break-in
Very big connectors (rca)

Similar Products Used:
van den Hul The First

Price Paid:  $400.00 from Elmura Audio Visual

Summary:
NB: Australian Currency.

An interesting cable. It seems to enhance the bass depth and detail, midrange seems fairly neutral, top end a little tame. For some, the lack of hardness up top is a great thing. For me, while I appreciated the lack of harshness, I missed the sparkle, air and excitement of the top end.

I use a warm, energetic sounding Exposure CD player, warm sounding Perreaux SM6P Reference preamp, and Mass Technology active speakers. I also use a Whise subwoofer - precision bass! Once the Cardas Golden Cross interconnect was burnt in (3 days continuous), I found the combination a little bland. Clear - Definitely. Warm - absolutely. Detailed - yes. Clean, yep. Lack of harshness and glare > Bonus. It just lacks a little enjoyment for my taste. But, I will be keeping it for reference.

Strengths:
Bass. Mids. Zero glare or harshness. Clean.

Weaknesses:
Lacks top end excitement.

Similar Products Used:
Elite Ultra DNA. Elite DNA. Neotech. QED. Elite Hextreme. Elite Hextacy.

Price Paid:  $400.00 from audiogon

Summary:
After buying into the Cardas Golden Cross 'hype' I did indeed buy a 1.5m length of it (RCA) to connect my Linn Ikemi CD player to the Mac C100 preamp.

Just for fun one night, my audiophile girlfriend and I placed some Analysis Plus Crystal Oval interconnects there instead and compared some of our favorite and familiar tunes.

The Golden Cross left everything too muted and dull! For instance, a Celtic violin piece came across so realistically without the Golden Cross you could hear the raspy rosin sounding bow across strings effect the musician was trying for. It was almost totally absent with the Golden Cross.

We also substituted TMC interconnects and could not tell the difference between it and the Analysis Plus....but both of these totally beat the Golden Cross very soundly!

Thank God everyone out there believes this is great wire so I could resell it and recoup the money!

If you don't like the sound of your components, change them! Don't buy overly muted/colored wires to compensate.

Strengths:
Uhhhm....everyone thinks you're an audiophile.

Weaknesses:
Totally masks the sound.

Similar Products Used:
TMC yellow and white
Analysis Plus Crystal Oval
Nordost Quatro Fil and Valhalla (about as far from Golden Cross as it gets!)

Price Paid:  $0.00 from AUDIOGON

Summary:
After rewiring my system with Cardas Golden Reference interconnect I decided to try one of their Golden Cross power cords. For many years I had been using Aural Symphonics Missing Link on my BAT VK D5 cd player and Line 3 SE preamp which plug into a PS Audio Power Plant. My BAT VK500 power amp uses PS Audio Lab Cable.
I tried it on every piece of equipment including the Mirage subwoofer. In all cases, except cd player, it softened the sound to a point where the attack of instruments was not to my liking. I should note here that my system is not at all bright (tubes in cd and pre). It did, however, bring a pleasant improvement to my BAT VK D5. Backgrounds were blacker and I have a cleaner windows into which I can hear the differences between instruments. Voice is more "real" and involving. There was even an increase in micro and macro dynamics. I can only guess that too much of the "Cardas sound", which I like in interconnects, in higher power requirements is not a good thing. It does appear to offer benefits in lower power digital requirements where perhaps digital grunge is somehow filtered.
Do audition this cable if you are in the market for quality aftermarket power cables. Your system may benefit from the smoother sound.

Strengths:
Great on digital

Weaknesses:
Stiff outer jacket and too smooth for power hungry pieces.

Similar Products Used:
Missing Link, Lab Cable