Every trace of harshness I thought would never go away vanished from my system with the insertion of the Silver Audio Appassionatas

Absolutely none that I can hear - as I said, they define a new level of performance in my book at a reasonable cost

These are the best interconnects I''ve heard and are an outstanding value. I will echo what others have written here - the resolution is spectacular and the music is smooth and full-bodied to a degree I haven''t heard before. From the first few moments it was clear these interconnects were something very special and define a new league of performance in my opinion. System: Wadia 861 Audio Note M2 Line Audio Research VT-100 MK II ProAc Response Fives Nordost SPM speaker cable

Similar Products Used:

Nordost SPM Nordost Quattro Fils

transparancy harmonic balance better soundstaging

initally a bit lean and strident warms up after a fer 100hrs

The apassionatas are the best of both worlds
Extreme transparancy with a harmonic correctness equivilant to vastly more pricy interconnects.
They work great with Lamm tube hybrid equipment.
Warning a lousy digital front end will show up!
The krell kps30i really shows its mechanical nature
FM and other sources sound like I"ve never heard the before!
If you have grainless neutral electronics and want to hear all the nuances and feel the intent of the musicians then Max's apassionatas are woth a try
They will reveal great recordings as well as show up all recording deficits They speak the truth
They remind me of the experience i ahd listening to a friends 100k system wired with NBS
They are really a breakthrough for the money
Mitchell

Similar Products Used:

lat international

I auditioned this cable extensively for 2 months. This is the most beautiful cable I have seen to date. Musically it is silky, tranparent and very accurate. I used the Apassionata between my Monarchy DAC and Blue Circle pre-amp and pre-amp and Blue Circle amps. I used it in parallel with the Silver Audio Silver Breeze digital cable and Silver Audio 32 and 48 Speaker cables bi-wired to a pair of Merlin VSM-SE loudspeakers. In this instance it was a case of too much of a good thing. With all silver for cables the sound was accurate and detailed, but too much so for my tastes. I found that my foot had quit tapping on many of my favorite recorings. For me personally there is a fine line between accuracy/detail and musicability. Don't get me wrong, this is a great cable, but careful matching with your existing system is necessary. I kept the Silver Audio digital and speaker cable and continue my search for the perfect interconnects. Anyone looking to upgrade their interconnects or speaker cables definitely needs to check out Silver Audio.

Clean, open, three-dimensional, transparent sound. No grain, grunge, or brightness. Beautifully made. Excellent cusomer support.

A bit pricey.

I feel that the Silver Audio Appassionata interconnects are really something special, both sonically and aesthetically. To start with a brief physical description, they are constructed from 8 strands of 5-nines annealed silver in an open cross-weave pattern, with air and high-grade transparent Teflon serving as the dielectric, and are covered with a clear mesh sleeve. They are simply gorgeous, with a shimmery, glittery silver look. I ordered mine terminated with XLO Signature XLR connectors (a reasonable $75 option), which have a pure Teflon body and direct gold plated 6-nines copper pins. Both the cables and the connectors have that unmistakable look of meticulously constructed precision instruments. In fact, the Appassionatas are so "trick-looking" that a normal person (i.e., a non-audiophile), seeing them for the first time, actually might not laugh out loud after hearing how much they cost - unlike, say, the typical reaction of a normal person to something like a Mpingo Disk or a Shakti Stone. (No offense intended.)

Well, "audio jewelry" is all well and good, but the important thing is that the Appassionatas sound as gorgeous as they look. When I placed my order for two sets (to go between my CDP and preamp and between my preamp and amp, replacing two sets of balanced Harmonic Technology Pro-Silway interconnects [Mk I & Mk II used in combination]), I was still a bit wary of the "silver is bright" myth and worried that they might make my system sound a bit bright, disembodied, or etched, especially when used in combination with silver speaker cables. However, right out of the box (or actually, right out of the pretty purple bag), the Appassionatas won me over with their smooth and neutral spectral balance. In fact, to me, their most outstanding characteristic is their open, clean, and detailed midrange. Sure, the air and sparkle of silver are there, just as I had hoped, but the Appassionatas do not sound at all bright or thin. Rather, they just sound "fast", clean, and transparent from top to bottom. The bass response is also quite impressive - extended and dynamic, and also (paradoxically, I suppose) fast, with no bloat, muddiness, or overhang. Getting away from frequency-related considerations, imaging is first-rate, with individual voices and instruments clearly and firmly localized in space. The soundstage is both wide and deep, comparable to that of the Pro-Silways, which I though were quite exceptional in that regard. To summarize, I would describe the Appassionatas as being neutral, clean, open, thee-dimensional, and transparent, with that special vibrant, uncongested sound that silver seems to bring to a system. In musical terms, cymbals have a more realistic "tingly" texture, with a razor-sharp initial transient, followed by a shimmery "floating in the air" sound, and then a smooth, prolonged, and natural-sounding fade-out. Vocal and instrumental lines are very clearly delineated, making it easy to follow individual voices and instruments in complex musical passages. Bass lines are quick, tuneful, and dynamic, and drums have good impact and weight. The "spaces between the notes" are also very nicely portrayed, with no hash, grunge, hiss, or other nasties intruding themselves into the music.

In closing this review, I would also like to mention that the people at Silver Audio, particularly Max Kreifeldt, have been extremely helpful and friendly. My feeling is that they are genuinely enthusiastic about their products, but refuse to employ any kind of "hard-sell" tactics. In fact, when I first placed an order for two sets of Silver Audio Silver Symphony 32 speaker cables for biwiring a while ago, Max immediately questioned whether biwiring would provide any sonic benefits. Finally, Silver Audio has very nice homepage at www.silveraudio.com. If you are interested in trying out silver wires in your system, I would strongly recommend that you drop by.

Good listening - Dave

PS. Associated equipment: Accuphase DP-65V CDP, Accuphase C-265 preamp, Accuphase P-550 amp, Eminent Technology LFT-VIIIA speakers, Silver Audio Silver Symphony 32 speaker cables (biwired).

Similar Products Used:

Kimber PBJ and KCAG, Harmonic Techology Pro-Silway Mk 1 & Mk 2.

Live, vivid, faithful to the source top to bottom.

Signficant break in required.

Absolutely the best interconnect cable I have used. At about half the cost of the excellent Nordost Quatrofils, these are more open on the top, and tighter and more extended in the bass. Lots of shimmer. No harshness. Simply brings me closer to the illusion of a live microphone feed, yet not overly bright, harsh, analytical. Very smooth and silky, in fact. This is a lot to spend for an interconnect, but the value ratio is nonetheless high. Try them out!

Similar Products Used:

Nordost Quattrofil; Tara Decade; Analysis Plus Silver Oval; HT, Synergistic Looking Glass/Kaleidoscope.

Clarity, Detail, Sound stage and depth, ability to purvey space, time and passion.

None

After having these cables in my system for some time now I can say that these interconnects only got better with time. They never "settled in" like other cables and lost the speed in the treble. These cables breathe the music. None of the subttle nuances of the recording environment or layering of music is lost. Big heavy bass lines and subttle cymbals have thier own space and are not masked by the other. The sound has gotten deeper wider and far more involving without being too busy to interfere with the listening experience. Adrian Beleuws Salad Days CD (which was recorded in his home) sounded very convincing. A good reference for acoustic music. I would recommend these cables to anyone wanting to upgrade to a reference cable.

Similar Products Used:

See previous review

Sound: Resolution, Transperancy, Imaging, Detail, Neutral with out Harshness

None yet

I read the reviews on this page which helped me to decide to audition a set of these interconnects. I bought the .5 meter pair to connect my cd source to pre amp. My initial observation was the clarity. Other cables wear clear if not a bit forward out of the box, but settled as they broke in. The Audioquest settled so much they lower a curtain in front of the music. The Straightwires are accurate, neutral and some times just a bit harsh when the volume is pushed hard. The Appassionattas were clear right out of the bag and stayed that way even after over 50 hours of play. The resolution is unbelievable. Sounstage is big , wide and deep. Subtle nuances are revealed with delicacy. Layering is more discernable and the highs are open, airy and extended , crystal clear but never harsh. Bass is extended and focused. And the midrange is smooth as silk.

My sytem:
Rotel 965-BX
Audible Illusions Modulus 3A
Quicksilver 8417's
ProAc Studio 1's
Straightwire Maestro interconnects
Straightwire Rhapsody Speaker Cables

Similar Products Used:

Audioquest
Straightwire Maestro II

See previous review

Here's a more in depth review. (The cable is used between pre and power amp as Max suggested and after some fiddling I would tend to agree. I will replace the CD to pre with Appassionata as soon as I get the chance).

This cable is improving as I listen to it more. My main reference pieces of music are exhibiting subtle changes as time passes.

This cable has added a whole new sense of space. Echoes from room surroundings are now clearly audible, resonances sound more real (especially from strings, woodwind and acoustic material) and the sound is clean without harshness or clinicality. Bass heavy tracks have had the boom cleaned up, focused rather than tightened. It has also introduced the subtleties of the performer, breathing and finger movements on the fretboard are now audible for example. You can sense the position of the instruments in terms of depth rather than just left to right.

All in all, it is much more involving and it is still getting better. A wondrous piece of cable. I felt the need to vote again since I couldn't vote 6 stars last time!

Equipment used:

Musical Fidelity F22 Pre-amp
Musical Fidelity FX Power amp
Meridian 200/203 source
Acoustic Energy AE1 speakers
REL Q-100e subwoofer
Kimber Powerkords on all equipment

Sounds: clean, vibrant, real.
Cost (considering it's silver).
Presentation (silky purple bag and white gloves for handling)
Service.

None, except maybe availability in the UK, but that's understandable.

This cable sounds the best I have heard. The cable is still warming up a little, but detail is all there, space, positioning of information and a sense of being there. No harshness at all (harshness must be a myth). This is a wonderful product, immaculately presented and the assistance from Max (yes you call the number and you get through to the company boss!) was great. I collected from a friend whilst over in the US and Max helped enormously here. Very friendly indeed. Would definitely purchase again when I find the money for the next pair!

Overall, couldn't recommend any higher, any doubts about ordering over the internet/mail order were unfounded.

5 stars!

Similar Products Used:

Kimber KCAG, select...

In late 1997 I had tried a few very expensive interconnect cables: the NBS Master, Transparent Audio Ultra and Audioquest Diamond. These were used from my line stage and amp. The AQ Diamond robbed the music of all its ambience, bloom and harmonic richness but at least the sound was not fatiguing and bright. The TA Ultra was very musical but clearly had a rolled-off top and a diminished resolution compared to the AQ or even the Straightwire Virtuoso. The NBS Master was another story altogether. Here was an incredible product that I had never heard of. This convinced me from that day on how important cables can be. The only problem here was the price. I just couldn't handle paying $2200 for a 1m XLR cable.
I then discovered the Silver Audio SilverBullet 6.0 cable which is an incredibly balanced product and at the time only $200. This has a neutral sound across the band with no fatigue in the mids or highs. But the resolution is clearly not that of the NBS Master caliber. But for $200 or several hundred $$ more, I was unable to find a cable even remotely close to the SilverBullet 6.0 quality.

After a year, I tried the Cardas Golden Cross. This cable has an incredible warmth and fullness in the mids that can be very seductive. But there is a little bit of information missing from the top. However, what this cable does musically (the ambience and bloom) in the context of my ARC electronics was truly amazing. So the Cardas Golden Cross ended up in the link between my amp (ARC VT130) and line stage (ARC LS5 II)and the SilverBullet 6.0 from the phono stage (ARC PH2) to the line stage.

Then a month or two ago I heard of a new Silver Audio product: the Appassionata interconenct cable. Max at Silver Audio loaned this cable along with others (see my review of the SilverBreeze tonearm cable) for a 1-month trial period. I did a shootout between the Appassionata and the Cardas Golden Cross (CGC) between the amp and preamp. Some of the midrange warmth of the CGC was gone but the Appassionata brought on a significant extension and clarity in the highest of the highs that clearly brought some life to cymbols and brushes. Resolution with the Appassionata was clearly it's strength. But in this link of the chain, I much preferred the less neutral Cardas Golden Cross for its magical midrange.

I then tried the Appassionata between the phono and line stages and compared with another CGC. Here the Appassionata brought a wealth of new detail from a link in the system that I had not heard many differences before. For whatever reason, the CGC's magical midrange was not as big a deal here but the Appassionata's resolution was a huge improvement to the musicality of the system. Insertion of the Silver Bullet 6.0 here showed how the two Silver Audio products are similar in their balanced tonality, but the Appassionata brought on that next level of resolution that you would expect only from a $2000+ cable.

After a week with the Appassionata in the system, I realized this was an ideal match and balance with the CGC cable. I didn't want too much of a warm sound in the mids but I also didn't want too much of an analytical sound either. It appears that these two cables make quite a good balancing act within my ARC electronics. The Appassionata is clearly the more accurate and neutral cable of the bunch. And at $700, this cable is potentially the best value in a high resolution system. It would be interesting to put it up against the NBS cables or other multi thousand $ cables, but I suspect the Appassionata would hold its own ground quite well.