I have been using Kinber 4TC speaker cable in my audio system and separate home theater system now for over a year. I have found the Kinber to be one of the best sounding audiophile speaker cables available at a "reasonable" price. After purchasing a 6 foot pair of MGD Solid Core Speaker Cable, I have to say that in no stretch of my imagination could I believe that any "high end" cable costing $1.99 per foot would even outperform any of the so-so mid priced audio cables available today. I was dead wrong in this assumption. After over a year of hearing about these cables from Michael Green Designs staff (and being afraid to ask the cost of the cable after hearing about its performance capabilities), I finally gave in and inquired about the cost. I was told "$1.99" per foot"! I figured I had nothing to lose in a $24 investment and prepared myself for perhaps comparable or (more than likely) less than comparable performance to the Kimbers 4TC.
Well, I received the cables and if looks are deceiving, the MGD speaker cables sure fit such a description. The cables consist of two separate legs (one green leg and one black leg)of thin individually jacketed twisted solid core copper cable with bare wire ends!! I was told to connect them by the bare wires. after hearing this statement, I knew I was being led down the wrong path by some people with cauliflower ears because this method of connection is totally contrary to everything I've read or heard from "experts" and reviewers. What about oxidation, I asked myself? Well, MGD thought about that because the bare wire ends do come "tinned", but I was still skeptical. I have tried Tara Reference RSC rectangular solid core speaker cables, top-of-the-line Monster Cable speaker cables, one level below top-of-the-line Straightwire Rhapsody II and I have listened to top-of-the-line Audioquest speaker cables. None, to my ear, sound "better" than the "inexpensive" Kimber 4TC in terms of neutrality, soundstaging or bass quality. To put things in perspective, the Kimbers (terminated with high quality spades) cost $140 for an 8 foot run which breaks down to $17.50 per foot (ads list this cable for $7 per foot)and the Tara (terminated) cables cost $250 for a six foot run which breaks down to $41.67 per foot and the Straightwire cables cost $260 for an 8 foot run which breaks down to $43.33 per foot.

After receiving these rather unesoteric looking, plain (but nicely colored) solid core bare ended cables from MGD, I hooked them up as instructed and took a listen. I was shocked that out of the box, the MGD cables had a sense of neutrality at least equal to the Kimbers. The soundstaging also equaled the Kimbers, but the bass sounded a little lean, based on what I was used to from the Kimbers and other cables. After careful listening, I realized that the MGD cables went just as deep as the Kimbers, but what I attributed to as "leaness" was actually a lack of bass reasonance in the MGD speaker cable and much tighter, more accurate bass. Every other speaker cable I have ever tried had either a midrange resonance, a bass resonance or (in most cases) both. After letting the cable "break-in" on my system over night (MGD broke in the cable, prior to shipment, for a couple of weeks at their facility in Ohio), I took another listen and what I heard was shockingly enlightening. There was more air reproduced, a higher quality and more detail presented, better focusing within the soundstage, better soundstage spread and imaging of instruments, more realistic bass and an overall coherency that I have never heard in a speaker cable. There may be better speaker cable out there, but its definitely outside of my budget and I haven't heard it, if there is. Dollar for dollar, this MGD cable has to be the absolute best buy in speaker cable available today based on price and sound quality.

At this price and while the spool lasts, I'm redoing my entire home theater system also which is currently all Kimber. Dont' misunderstand; the kimber is really an outstanding speaker cable, but the MGD solid core speaker cable is an extraordinarily outstanding speaker cable. If you have speakers and components which can reveal subtle inner and background detail within musical selections, the MGD speaker cable will definitely let you hear them without adding any euphonic colorations or resonances of its own.

Brian Tracy Barry
audiotruth@hotmail.com

Don't be fool by this MGD wire , It is what is it. Just your plane chicken wire with PVC jacket. I thing the conductor has a little bit of copper in it,very little if you can tell. I just had it hook up to my Mission 732i for about a week know,40 to 50 hours still sound like your ornairy 18 Awg lamp cord,I think for now will go to my old KIMBER 4TC . And to think Brian review below me, compair theis MGD wires to KIMBER AUDIOQEST TARA LAP and other cables. That's a joke!

My friend has a pr of the MGD tower speaker,great sounding speaker. And had giving me his MGD spk wire, that got for free with his MGD spk,After hearing the the review that BRIAN gave, it sounded intresting, so I had to try out for my self.They are very small solid core of somthing I don't know? look like steel wire with a tiny bit of copper in the center of the wire core.But anyway the conducter I think is about 20AWG or 18AWG. So what can I say! I Try it out, "NOTHING" I Mean nothing to brag about. I heard better,alot better for $200 ft. What was this Brian guy thinking when he says he was going to re wire his whole home thearter spk system with MGD spk wire,and he said that he was using KIMBER 4TC . He is making the MGD wire sound more than what it is! Don't wast your time on thies MGD cables. MGD Great speaker and other a acoustic product. But not there speaker cables "Sorry.

The MGD solid core cable is an excellent speaker cable. There are various versions of this speaker cable and it's crucial to obtain the proper cable configuration for your particular speaker/system. And, it also requires that the rest of your system be up to par to accept such a neutral cable. For $1.99 per foot, it definitely outperforms the low end kimbers like the 4TC and the Tara RSC which has a recessed midrange. It takes 6 months for this cable to form a synergy with your system, so you must give it time to reach its optimum performance. I have done this and have never been happier with a speaker cable in my audiophile career. People should keep an open mind and not be blinded by preconceived notions nor compromised systems that have been put together with compromised tuning technologies and then feel they are qualified to evaluate cables, speaker and interconnect. Only a truly neutral system can show what this cable is capable of in terms of performance. Happy listening and keep an open mind and realize how much you are being ripped off by manufacturers who charge megabucks for cables which perform only marginally. It takes a lot of guts to put out a cable for $1.99 per foot and my hat is off to MGD for such a fine performing cable.