lifeliness, midrange, low range, volume, dynamics, 3D spaciality, rythm, musicality

highs are not overemphasized in musical picture, but certainly are harsher then some silky sounding wires

a good wire, one of the few interconects I decided to keep. it gives color and sense of fullness to your music, and it opens up low frequency range in every sense (3D, volume, punch, dynamics). it is very clear and focused in whole spectre (especially in low and midrange). compared to wires in similar price range there is hard to find other manufacturers' wire that has similar caracteristics at compareable level.

certainly worth trying. it is interesting that weh buying, I compared it with more expensive AQ product, viper, in my own system. viper had a bit more detail, but this detail was more thrown to your face, thus losing musical integrity. coral had no such problem, the music was presented in a whole so I decided for a coral

as a weaker point (there are no perfect wire in this price range), the highs are not so rafined as it can be found in for instance VdH wires

sound can be compared to Kimber PBJ but with more energy, 3D and fullness, also with less harshness in highs

I certainly recommend AQ products. they understand this field, approach to the problematics scientifically, and most important, their approach can be heard. I warmly recommend coral if you want to add energy in your sistem - this wire does what very few in its price range can do

Similar Products Used:

AQ Viper, Kimber PBJ

Clarity, imaging, realistic, smooth, subtle and lifelike.

can't perform when used with crap equipment, Or it lets you hear the crap in crap equipment

I've compared the coral's to Kimber (hero), Transparent, chord, nordost and MusicLink and it killed them all. Very, precise, natural and clean. AudioQuest makes very serious cables and they start with the coral. The triple balance and PSC (Perfect Surface Copper) offer superior signal transfer. I've noticed that alot of people are making comments on these with the use of equipment such as denon, Marantz, Yamaha and harmon/Kardon but really! how can you make a precise opinion using low caliber gear. Someone mentioned that it killed the imaging on his Paradigm Studio 100's. That is a bunch of B.S. I also use Paradigm reference and the coral has nothing to do with the imaging loss, It just allows you to hear how your equipment really sounds. For the money they are a great bargain and anyone who know's true high-end not the denon,marantz harmon/kardon crap will tell you that audioquest make great cables no matter the cost or competition. try using these cables with Krell, Halcro, Mark Levinson or blue cicle you'll see. Oh yeah my equipment not the names I just mentioned do to lack of that much money consists of Rotel RSP 1066 pre Rotel RCD 1070 C.D ADCOM GFA 2535 Bi-AMP Audioquest Type 6 speaker cable(Great for bi-wire or Bi-amping Audioquest coral intr cnt x3 Paradigm Reference Studio 100's Panamax powerbar Blue Circle Power conditioner x2

Similar Products Used:

Kimber, Musiclink, Transparent, Chord, Nordost etc. (Monster cable sucks its for marantz and denon.)

Very high quality. Attractive looking (snake-like outer sheath). Fairly flexible. Value.

None that I've noticed.

These are very well built cables. Sound is very good to excellent. I immediately noticed an improvement, even before they were "broken-in". The most noticable aspects were bass response and midrange. They became much tighter and cleaner. I agree that the highs might not be as "airy" as others I've auditioned. My system is a bit bright anyhow, so the warmth of these cables are a welcome addition. I really like the single-ended rca jacks. They fit very tight and are high quality. Audioquest products are also guaranteed for life, so you have nothing to lose, just as long as you like the sound!

Similar Products Used:

Monster, AR, DH Labs, Kimber

Excellent build quality. Smooth, yet detailed sound - easy to listen to/non- fatiguing. Slightly warm sound - will help clean up that bit of brightness on some solid state systems. Made in the USA.

Not the ultimate in "Air" or treble extension - but does just about everything else in the audio spectrum very well.

The Audioquest Coral is a well-balanced interconnect that will bring smooth, easy listening to any upper-end audio system. It presents music with smoothness, good detail, and a touch of warmth that I find lacking in many brands of interconnects. These interconnects do take some time to break in - and I have to seriously question weather those who have made negative posts about the Corals truly did take the time burn them in properly. I currently have several pairs of Coral interconnects in my system - which includes all McIntosh electronics and Thiel 3.5 speakers - and I am enjoying many hours of smooth, enjoyable music almost every day.

Similar Products Used:

XLO ER-5s, MIT 2s & 3s, Transparent Music Link

Smooth, warm

Completely destroyed the imaging and 3D soundstage of my speakers

Well, these cables were my first step into the world of audio, unfortunately, I did not have much of a system at the time and I was so excited to get anything, I did not audition these cables before purchasing them. While they might help tame brightness and smooth over the sound, I have found that these cables totally destroyed the imaging of my speakers (Paradigm Studio 100''s). This was not subtle at all, but rather a complete collapse of any imaging outside of the speakers. I also have DH Labs cable (good stuff but too bright for most solid state) and MIT (Now this is an amazing cable!). It may work well in other systems, but I think the cable is a total waste of $130.00. I kick myself for ever buying it. It looks good, but that is about it!

Similar Products Used:

MIT, DH Labs, Monster

Clarity, smoothness

see below

Let me preface this with the usual...'in my system' disclaimer. I have only recently (4 months) begun the interesting quest of changing out my IC's and Speaker cables. I've come to find some very amazing differences. I have to give credit to Audioquest's website for starting me on this mission, as well as, the guys at Hillcrest HIFI. I've learned a lot about cable theories and it's amazing how different cables reveal your system's sound. Anyway, on to the review. The Corals I used were 1M in length and were very attractive. I was anticipating their arrival into my system with high expectations given the great performances of the lower price/value cables I had tried in the AQ lineup. I must admit that the AQ cables need a great deal of warmup...approaching 100 hours at least. After the Diamondbacks I was hoping for more of the good things, unfortunately, I found a different sound. The DB's had a great horizontal soundstage and sweet sounding definition, but lacked warmth and involvement in the music. The Corals horizon was similar, however, the sound was easily identified as coming straight from the speaker. Also, the soundstage was compressed vertically. It made me want to slide down in the couch to put the tweeter level as high above my ear line as possible. Not a good position to sit in for a long time. They did make the music more enjoyable to listen to, however, on a few of my old 'dance mix' CD's the music sounded downright sterile. It made me cringe. They also gave the appearance of having a very slight veil over the music making all the notes sound to be at the same volume which is good, but giving it an overall slightly muted signature. In some systems this cable might provide a good balance, but in mine it wasn't what I expected or needed at all. I have found that these are extremely overpriced compared to other cables in the same 'sound arena' and even compared to former AQ lines. Despite this they look beautiful and have great connectors. If looks are a big factor then these are for you. The Corals may even help balance a system that is missing in the areas they excell in. Again, in MY system they didn't work well and the Diamondbacks had a better soundstage, albeit at the expense of involvement for $40 less. The Corals are low on value to me, but even with challenges literally BLOW AWAY the Monsters, RS, and other 'basic' cables I've auditioned. On last note...I was dissatisfied with the performance of the AQ CV-4 speaker cables which may not have made for a good match with the Corals. I love the speakers, the source, and the receiver.

System:
Nakamichi AV-2 (receiver)
Nakamichi MB-10s (CD changer)
AQ CV-4 speaker cables (6ft pair)
NHT 1.1 speakers
Sanus Systems stands (sand-filled & spiked)

Similar Products Used:

AQ Diamondback, Ted's Excellent Cable, Monster, Radio Shack Gold, HomegrownAudio Super Silver(the best for me so far), AQ Copperhead

I've owned these cables for over a year and have decided to do a follow-up review.

I am still very pleased with the overall character of these cables. The sound is very well balanced in terms of frequency presentation. Timbres are very good. There is nice substance to the instruments and vocals, giving everything a nice sense of palpability. Soundstaging is also good (but not spectacular). Ditto with imaging and transparency.
As far as detail goes, well, the Corals certainly aren't the last word but they aren't slouches either. They may indeed sound a tad "veiled" or subdued in certain systems (as others have noted), compared to some cables. But high-frequency detail and "air" don't mean much if the rest of the musical information is skewed or out of proportion.

Overall, these cables have a very musical, neutral, and well-balanced character. The aren't always exciting but they also don't thrust treble detail in your face or make the music sound like it's being reproduced in a tin can. I would recommend them to people who favor a well-rounded, full-bodied, and robust sound over a light, delicately detailed, wow-I-can-hear-the-man-in-the-ninth-row-of-the-audience-picking-his-nose! sound.

Equipment:

Panamax 1000+ line conditioner/surge protector
Wireworld Aurora and Stratus power cords
Cambridge Audio D500 CD player
Audioquest Coral (0.5m) interconnect
Bryston B-60 integrated amp
Audioquest Slate speaker cable (bi-wire)
Castle Eden loudspeakers

This is my first venture into trying cables. I must say that I am impressed. I like the way these cables bring out the details that I have been missing. There was an immediate difference in sound. When I first installed these cables the highs where bright, the midrange had this "buzz" and the bass was loose not very well defined. I let my stereo play non-stop for four days. After the first day the bass seem to be the first thing to start "cleaning up" it got tighter.
Day two the highs finally started to smooth out. Listening to Toni Braxton (The Heat) she likes bells in her music for the first time I was able to tell in some of her songs she uses a triangle. I can actually hear the difference. The midrange buzz took another couple of days, but the end results for me and my system have been nothing but positive. These cable have made a big improvement to listening to music in stereo mode. You must allow these cables and any others to "burn-in". You may get an immediate improvement or you may not, be patient. On the other side the cables maybe revealing what your system (CD/DVD player, preamp or amp) really sounds like. Don't shoot the messenger.

I have just ordered the audioquest vipers, can't wait to hear the improvement. Hopeful my system has the "resolution" and I will here a more then slight improvement in sound. According to some of the things that I have read. You should spent about 10% of what you paid for you amp and/or pre-amp's on cables.

I know that Sony is not the best, but Sony is not the worst either. And I am continuely surprised and pleased with the sounds my current set-up can produce. Music and Movies. Sony may not be "audiophile" quality, but damn. This system will be with me for along time. I believe I am still not getting the best I can out of my system. I believe my weakest link right now are my speakers. I am saving my pennies as we speak.

I plan on keeping the corals and run them to my second amp for my rear speakers. Currently my rear interconnect are running off of some generic radio shack cables. As well as the "audio out" for the SACD.

Current set-up:

Sony DVPS9000ES - DVD Player
Sony TAE9000ES - Preamp
Sony TAN9000ES - Amp
Sony STRD-705 - Intergrated Amp for the rear speakers
Sony 4SSTL - front main-Sony bookshelfs for rear and center
Sony SW101 - Subwoofer (I plan on changing my speaker to B&W CDM 9NT for mains, B&W CDM center and sunfire sub the move the sony tranmission line mains to the rear)
Pioneer Elite PRO-610HD - TV
Monster Cable HTS5000 - AC Line Conditioner
Kimber Digital X - Cable (1m)
Audioquest - Type 4 Speaker cable (20ft)
Audioquest - Coral interconnects (1m)
Better Cable - Ultra Component (2m)

I would suggest giving them a listening to. WWW.audioadvisor.com has a thirty day return policy you can order a pair let them "burn-in" for a week. Then you be the judge. I don't think you will be disappointed.

Similar Products Used:

Monster cables and Radio shack cable don't remember model numbers.

Good natural sound and great build quality. Made in USA.

None

Before I installed the cables a friend and I listened to several songs with the Monster cables. They sounded OK, but were a little harsh on the high end. We hooked up the AudioQuest cables and the harshness was gone, we also thought the sound stage was better in every area. I am very satisfied with the performance especially at the price.

Similar Products Used:

Monster cable interlink 400

Warmth, Smoothness, Does well with Solid State stuff

Sounds a bit rounded on top, darkish and somewhat muffled compared to Viper et al.

I started out comparing this cable against the AQ Viper but decided to go with the Coral anyway. Here's why:

At the time, I was hooking a Krell KSA 300s in to a set of MG-20s. The Coral simply worked better with the Krell/Maggie setup. For those who know, Krell can come off a little dry and hot on the top end sometimes and MG-20s have an extra sensitive tweeter that, in certain rooms, may need some downward adjustment. The Vipers coupled with the Krells, and the MGs were just too stark and clinical....with a lot of sissssing on vocals. The Corals, on the other hand, took away most of this albeit a slight cost in lower midrange clarity and openess.

Later a I bought a pair of BAT VK-120s and installed them in my system. The compliment of tubes was a good match for the hotness in the MG-20s so the extra rounding off and darkness I had previously attained with the Corals was now way more than the system required. In fact, I'm looking for a pair of Siltech's or AQ Diamonds to enhance the sound and get a little of the high end extension back into the system. So my bottom line is...good for solid state....not so good for tubes...

Similar Products Used:

AQ Emerald, Ruby, Diamondback, Monster Cable