THE BEST FOR LESS...
I've been procrastinating about writing this review for sometime only because I've been so busy with a new business venture I recently got involved in. If I thought you were interested in the restaurant business I'd share my new venture with you, but I think it's a safe bet to pass on that and get right into what I simply can't wait any longer to tell you about. The extraordinarily superb MAGNAN "Signature" audio cables.

Some of you may already know that I operate a small audio manufacturing business (more like a hobby) from my home that I started about six years ago that specializes in high-end component stands, under the trade name "The Audio Table", and component feet, under the trade name "Killer Kones". Both products are high-performance items targeted at the upper-end of the audio market. My fascination with audio cables began around the same time I started making these audio products and is what I spend most of my audio-research (no affiliation to ARC) time on today.

Over the years, it seems like I've had just about every audio cable in my stereo system and I knew I needed to select a cable to pit against the Magnans that was of true reference quality. They (whoever "they" are) say not to let the cost of a product sway the way you feel about it but here I felt I should go for the gusto. So I managed to get my hands on Transparent Audio's (hereinafter referred to as T/A) top-of-the-line interconnect and speaker cables, the Reference XLs. The Reference XL speaker cables I used (Serial No. 21376XL) retail for a mere $9,800.00 (8' pair) and the XL interconnects (Serial No. 2144XL-XLR) were "only" $8,200.00 (1.5 meter pair). The Magnan Signature interconnect I used (Serial No. 167-XLR) retails for $1,950.00 (4' pair) and the Signature speaker cables were $1,000.00 (8' pair). A simple calculation shows the Reference XLs to be approximately 6 times more expensive than the Signatures. I'd say that's pretty one-sided in the finance department. Lets see how they compared in the performance department.

Since this is a fairly intense review, let me take a minute to describe my system. My amplifiers are the PASS "Aleph" 1.2 monoblocks; the speakers are the Eggleston Works "Andra"; the CD player is the new CALIFORNIA AUDIO LABS CL-15; and, where appropriate, all equipment is properly coned, dampened and/or mass-loaded. I have a dedicated listening room that is well treated for acoustics and there is ample power-line filtering/conditioning throughout. Also, I should point out that the CD player is designed to power an amplifier, which is how I ran it for this evaluation. Output: 6 volts.

Upon receiving the very handsome looking T/A Reference XL cables, I immediately replaced the Magnans with them and let the system run continuously for 100+ hours before commencing with the showdown. I must say, though, having to wait-out the break-in period certainly had its moments. After all, I was in possession of some of the world's most exotic, and expensive(!), audio cables and believe me when I tell you that I wanted to listen to these babies right out of the box in the worst way. But being the perfectionist that I am, I refrained from doing so until sufficient break-in occurred. Anyway, I couldn't wait till "D-day" and, needless to say, each hour that passed seemed like a month. Painfully though, I managed.

For the showdown you're about to read about, I chose the following CDs to use for evaluation:

(1) Frederick Fennell "Pomp & Pipes", RR-58CD, Track No. 1
(2) Doc & Merle Watson "pickin' the blues", CAPFG 026, Track No. 4
(3) Mighty Sam McClain "Give It Up To Love", JVCXR-0012-2, Track No. 7
(4) Gardiner/Levin Beethoven Piano Concerto No.5, Archiv 447 771-2, Track No. 2
(5) Eric Clapton "Unplugged", Reprise 945024-2, Track No. 13
(6) Diana Krall "All For You", Impulse IMPD-182, Track No. 5 & 10

I began my evaluation of these fine audio cables by listening to "Pomp & Pipes". Within a few bars of the music, however, I picked up something that wasn't quite right. Hmmm... Ah yes, the cymbals. Through the XLs, the cymbals sounded more like bursts of "white noise" than the sound of shimmering brass, as was demonstrated by the Magnans. Then it struck me. What I was hearing was an electronic "side-note", if you will, that I've come to associate with T/A cables from past experience. Specifically, an electronic "haze" cast over the music that creates a slight, but noticeable "edge". In finishing up with this fine CD, I kept focussing on those neat-looking little black boxes attached to the XLs, wondering if their innards may have something to do with the slight annoyance I was hearing.

When the T/A cables first came on the scene, I felt they were awfully good in terms of articulation but fell short when it came to portraying the music naturally. Therefore, not having listened to any of T/A's cables for quite sometime, I was hoping for some major improvements in this area. But after listening to "Pomp & Pipes", the improvement I had anticipated was minimal at best. However, this was only the first CD and I wasn't about to cave in so quickly.

On Doc & Merle's "pickin' the blues" (by the way, this is an awesome CD), the guitar-work through the Magnans sounded more open and airy and, well, real, with no hint of artificiality. They just sounded right! Here is where I honestly thought the XLs would've bested the Magnans, given their superb articulating ability. But they didn't. The more I 'picked the blues' back and forth between the Magnans and the XLs, the more I came to appreciate just how well the Magnans portrayed the music. It wasn't that the XLs were bad, mind you. Believe me, they weren't. But when compared to the Magnans, that electronic "haze", or "glare", the XLs exhibited was definitely a handicap.

What I suspect could be going on here has to do with either "skin effect" or "time coherence" or both. T/A, from what I can gather, addresses the majority of these issues inside those black boxes I mentioned earlier. The Magnans, on the other hand, appear to address those same issues by employing, among other things, a well thought-out non-metallic conductor for their interconnecting cable and a specially-designed 5"-wide copper ribbon for their speaker cable. Moreover, the Magnan interconnecting cable has a resistance of around 30,000 ohms, which apparently is a strong contributing factor in the cable's ability to achieve such astounding levels of resolution and transparency.

In listening to Mighty Sam's fabulous CD (the XRCD format is spectacular), I got a greater sense of being "there" with the Magnans than I did with the XLs. Furthermore, Kevin Barry's hard-playing guitar licks toward the second half of Mighty Sam's performance had a slight irritating "grit" to them when heard through the XLs. With the Magnans, though, the guitar was still rather hard, but in the way its supposed to be. Just the way I expected it to be. When this kind of guitar music sounds right, it may not put you to sleep right away, but it certainly won't bite your ears off either.

Soundstage and image factors were on a par here, but when it came to things like palpability, naturalness, and overall musicality, the Magnans clearly excelled over the XLs. As good as the XLs were, they kept reminding me that I was listening to a HI-FI system, albeit an extremely good one, whereas the Magnans, on the other hand, allowed me to forget about the HI-FI system and simply enjoy the music. And that, my dear friends, I believe to be the real crux of my whole listening and evaluating experience. In other words, when it came down to the total unadulterated enjoyment of the music (le nuts & bolts), it was the Magnans that successfully delivered the goods, and did so in spades.

On large scale orchestral music, like Beethoven's Piano Concerto No.5, the music took on a slightly veiled and somewhat congealed presentation with the XLs, that it didn't with the Magnans. For example, Robert Levin's masterful playing on fortepiano did not sound nearly as open and natural through the XLs as it did through the Magnans. The piano notes lacked the degree of sustain and clarity through the XLs, whereby the Magnans kept them faithful to the music. At the end of the six-minute and forty-four second movement, there was no doubt in my mind, the Magnans were simply in another league. It was at this point in my evaluation were I felt the XLs were clearly outclassed in every way, shape, and form. Bottom line... the level of musicality the Magnans were capable of, the XLs were not.

I completed my listening session with Eric Clapton's CD and Diana Krall's CD (by the way, if you haven't heard of Diana Krall, get this CD before you do another thing ...this is truly desert-island stuff if ever there was any!), which only confirmed what I had already concluded. I'll skip a discussion on Clapton's CD and move to Diana Krall's. For me, any component that can convey the total naturalness of the female voice has won me over. Here, had it not been for the XL's sonic trademark, if you will, they may have reeled me in big time, to the point where the Magnans may have met their match. But hearing Ms. Krall's voice through the Magnans was simply to die for, hands down! With the Magnans, all of the textural nuances of her voice came across so life-life that I wanted to jump-up out of my seat and throw my arms around her. To paraphrase Eric Clapton, I could "feel" her body.

So there it was, after a gazillion hours of A/B/A'ing back and forth and back and forth, and having listened to just about every type of sound most music produces, I knew damn good 'n well that the Magnans had nothing more to fear from this contest. They came out on top, pure and simple. However, and based upon my many many years as an ardent audiophile, I'd like to stress the fact that when products are being discussed and/or compared that are clearly ranked in the top 5% or so of audio, as with the XLs and the Magnans, the slightest difference one product may have over another, within that range, is usually perceived as being huge, whereas in the bigger scheme of things it is not. That's just the way it is and is probably due, in part anyway, to over-zealous audio-magazine reviewers who tend to entertain their readers, rather than keeping things in proper perspective. However (and I do mean however), the former I find most enjoyable to read, and is what sells magazines, whereas the latter may have me fast asleep way before the eleven o'clock news, and would probably be a publication's one-way ticket to the bankruptcy court. So like I said, that's just the way it is in high-end audio and is probably no different from most other hobbies, either. Anyway, I didn't make the "5%" rule ...I just play by it.

Intuitively, many folks might argue with me, and justifiably so, that the Magnans didn't exactly get up from the dinner table and strut off real cocky-like, leaving the XLs to wash the dishes, so to speak. But in the eyes of the high-enders, like yours truly, especially within that wild 'n zany 5% area of high-end audio where most of us "audio geeks" like to boogie, the XLs may have been bettered prepared for the occasion had they been sporting a pair of Playtex gloves.

As always, I welcome any questions or comments you may have.

Listened to this sub against the Velodyne HGS-10 and 12. The Sunfire is great for home theater use. It definitely can add a punch throughout the listening room. Unfortunately, it did not blend into the satellite speakers as well as the Velodynes for music. Lots of boom, boom, boom. Also, the volume control for the Sunfire acted like an on/off switch when setting the sub to the satellites. Basically, there was a very small threshold to find the right setting. If you passed it, either there was too much low bass or not enough low bass. I would recommend this sub for home theater but not for music.

Musical. It lets the music flow.

None that I can hear. O.K. they are REALLY big, but flexible and the jacket is easy to snag.

First off, my system is as follows:
Speakers: Martin Logan Aerius i
Amp: McCormack DNA .5
Trasport: Modified Pioneer DV333 dvd player
DAC: Assemblage DAC 2.7 Platinum, via Illuninations DV 75
Pre: Creek passive.
Vinyl; Rega Planar 3.
Interconnects: Acoustic Zen Matrix.

These are some of the most naturally musical cables I have ever heard. Effortless is a term that keeps comming to mind. I listen to a great deal of vocal recordings and these cable, along with the ML Aerius are simply stunning. In fact, My neighbor is a
singe/songwriter. I am VERY familiar with the way his voice sounds, even in my house. He brought over a CD he is working on it with rough cuts of songs I had heard him play live many times. I could not believe how closely the logans and the Magnans captured his voice. It sounding like him not a recording of him. In fact, he listened to it with me and was singing, live, harmony and I almost could not tell if the harmony was on the recording or live. WOW.

If the natural reproduction of voices and instruments are your thang, give these cables a listen. Highly recomended. They sound like music. After all isn't that what this hobby is all about. . . The music. Oh Yeah!

Similar Products Used:

Audioquest, Monster cable

After reading a couple of the first reviews out on the Signature Sub from Sunfire, I decided to give it a listen even though I am not impressed with the MkII verson. The Signature, has lost all of the problems that I have with the MkII. It's just big enough now so that it does not dance around no matter what frequency or volume is being played. The drivers are totally in sinc with each other making for a very stable system! The MkII needs spiked feet and a 25 pound weight on top to make it behave. The Signature has 6db more output and has 2htz lower extention. Thats 120db at 16htz flat!! Any concerns about this sub keeping up with any quality speaker on the market should be dropped; very large rooms included. The subjective low bass output is so close to the Velodyne F18 that it becomes a moot issue. This sub is about 1/6th the size of the Velodyne buy the way: you don't need two or three people to move it. The harmonic distortion is reduced to the point that it really does sound like a very large sub: in the MkII it is slightly noticable. The dynamic range is now basicly on par with the F18, fantastic! In fact I think the Signature sounds quicker and more musical up to 70htz than the F18. If you want better sound for music, look at the BagEnd or Mammoth subs. If you want the best home theater sub try the Linn at around $4000.00 . If your trying to do both music and home theater in a no holds bared system, you can't go wrong with the Sunfire Signature or Velodyne F18 - just choose the size you like.My system: Pioneer DV-09, EAD Ovation, ATI1505, Mirage OM-6 front channel crossed over at around 50htz to two Sunfire Signatures and Mirage OM-6 rear channel.

SUNFIRE MKII

these cables and interconnects are by far the most accurate and tonally correct.

none

Please reread the review below titled Solid Sound Technology. I* totally agree with this reviewer . I have just spent 20 days in 6 cities listening to the best in audio and these cables and power filters still are the best. Just read the review below written in 1997 for I would only repeat the info. If you really want to understand high audio then please go to the manufactures web page and read for yourself under the tweeks section.Mr. David Magnan hand builds the finest cables in the world and why would a big magezine ever tell you all the truth when advertising dollars are in play.It took Porsche

10 years to achieve a world class status and the wires are the same.

Similar Products Used:

nordast blue heavon, nordast spm