pbubny

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
1.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $80.00 from Better Cables

Summary:
Relatively short (50 hours or less) burn-in leads to a wide open soundstage with tons of detail, well-proportioned tonal balance and huge dynamics. All this means is that the cable is doing its job--transmitting digital data. The same can't be said about some other digital coaxials in its price range.

Strengths:
does its job very well (see review summary); robust construction

Weaknesses:
none, but even though the company says the cable is non-directional, it does produce more "air" around the instruments runnning in one direction than in the other. (I wonder if the folks who weren't as enthusiastic aboout this cable tried doing that)

Similar Products Used:
Cardas High Speed digital/video cable, AudioQuest Quartz (single IC used as digital cable)

Price Paid:  $89.00 from Factory Direct

Summary:
Digital Coax Cable...Wow! Holy mackeral!!! I am a devoted Outlaw cable man, having written a very good review for their PSC Digital Coax Cable recently, but I had a chance to try the Silver Serpent Digital Coax w/ Bullet Plug RCA's, and I must say, these cable prove there are differences between cables, types of cables, etc.......This cable is remarkable, and I have feeling alot of it has to do with the EICHMANN BULLET PLUG. Both the Outlaw PSC and the Better Cable Silver Serpent use silver in their cables...Outlaws is 100% silver, while Better Cables is a silver coated copper cable.....but the Bullet Plugs...they truly deserve a whole category for themselves. Seriously!!! They are so different, and so logically superior.....why didn't someone think of them sooner!!! An Australian invention, and I think this new plug has alot to do with what I am hearing. I was told they are best for audio applications, not for video (sure would like to know what the differences are). When comparing with my analog cables, Cardas 300B Microtwin (I am an analog "believer") I must admit that the differences are there, subtle, but noticable. It has a warmth I never thought you could get from digital....hence my analog preference. But I am finding myself listening, and preferring, the digital connection now, something I never thought possible!! I seriously think the EICHMANN BULLET PLUG is one of the BEST NEW IDEAS in cable design in a long time. I think this is the reason I love these cables, and would never want to go back to regular RCA plugs on any of my audio cables again. I am sold on the Bullet Plug, and think it makes the difference. Better Cables and Bullet Plugs...remember these names when shopping for an audio cable!

Strengths:
THE BULLET PLUG!!!!!! Also, a very well built, handsome cable, priced right, from a very good cable company. But it is the combination of a great cable and a great connector that has me sold!

Weaknesses:
None, worth every penny.......

Similar Products Used:
Outlaw PSC

Price Paid:  $0.00 from BetterCables

Summary:
PLEASE understand that you are transmitting not only a DATA stream but a CLOCK signal. This clock is embedded in the data and is used to reconstruct the ANALOG signal that is what you listen to. You DON'T listen to bits. You AREN'T getting any bit errors. You are introducing time-based ERROR into the reconstruction of the signal. This is called jitter. It's nothing new. In digital systems, as long as the jitter doesn't "clip" the digital signal from being received, all is well. However, when this signal is source-sychronous and the receiver uses its to reconstruct the analog waveform, the timing of this clock can become very important. The public has been convinced that "digital is better". The term CD-quality now refers to everything analog signal that has been digitized regardless of quality (bitrate). Have you heard XM radio? It's horrible - it makes me cringe. It's advertised as CD quality. Anyway, back to digital interconnects.. No, your average Joe isn't going to hear the difference. If it makes you happy to use spaghetti to connect your system, then so be it. However, please do some research and get your facts straight. Talk to a professional. I've spoken with engineers at Dolby Labs, and engineers that designed DVDs/DVD players/DVD writers, as well as read many publications on the topic (and am also an engineer by trade). There is an excellent article by Bob Katz, a very highly respected recording engineer. I will send a link to you if you'd like. But, you are probably convinced that you are right and you'll never give what I'm saying a chance. That's why you'll never hear the difference. Why you'd even post a "review" here must be trollish in nature. $60 is rather expensive for spaghetti, no? Brad Marcus sent me this cable for a professional review. That is what I conducted. It's funny to see how many people don't even read it before they comment on it, or even completely dismiss it as hype. Yep, Monster Cable is to high end cables as Bose is to high end speakers. "Better sound through marketing". I'll give you that!

Price Paid:  $79.00

Summary:
hallo, I bought this cable from better cable,and I use this cable between my satellite receiver (which has a SPDIF output) and midiman CO2 converter. Before this cable I was using a digital cable. But now I hear much better music with silver serpent digital coax cable. The sound from Violoncello is now first class. Hawe a nice music. cetinkaya oncul ankara/turkey (from bettercable)

Strengths:
I hear basses much better,but not only basses.

Similar Products Used:
Yes I used from Ecosse reference high defination 75 Ohm cable.

Price Paid:  $2.00 from Radio Shack

Summary:
Knowing that a digital stream is a digital stream, and that the analog medium it travels over contributes nothing to the sound (as long as it doesn't introduce errors), I happily use the cheapest RCA cables I can find - forget even 75 ohm connections, as I'm only going two feet or so. S/PDIF is a digital format with error checking built in - as long as the digital stream gets through, it will get through clear and pristine. If it doesn't get through, it will cause errors, which will then usually be corrected automatically. If they can't be corrected, there will be OBVIOUS pops and clicks as loss of frame or block error rate problems occur. If so, replace the cable. But if it gets through, it gets through. Additionally, the cable doesn't know or care which bit is which when it passes the digital stream - it doesn't know which are the highs or lows, and since the data is being passed as a constant rate bitstream, there's not more data being passed when there is high frequency content as opposed to low. Thus, it's impossible that a cable could 'reduce treble' or 'make the bass weak' as some other reviews suggest. Repeat after me: if the digital stream is passed, it is passed cleanly with no effect on the analog data that has been encoded. It can't affect it, no matter what you'd like to imagine. I'm not a home-stereo-type audiophile. I'm a professional, with more than a decade in the industry, working on high-end audio production, repair and maintenance. I've built six professional studios, and have refurbished SSL, Neve, and Trident consoles (upwards of a half-million dollars each). If you want good audio, save money on your cables, especially the digital ones - that's just a joke. Spend it instead on better speakers, better DACs, better amplifiers, and better source material - look at the engineering, not the hype.

Strengths:
Price, quality, and ease

Weaknesses:
None

Similar Products Used:
Zip cord (really!) and Chinese-made RCA connectors (9 out of 10 guaranteed to work)