StereoTimes -- Acoustic Zen Gargantua Power ... - Jason Diffusion

StereoTimes -- Acoustic Zen Gargantua Power Cord and24/12/07 19:04AssociatedEquipment:Digital Front EndSony DVP7000(modified)/transportThe Acoustic Zen Gargantua Power Cord andHologram Speaker CablesMartin Appel17 April 2002Sunfire TheaterGrand ProcessorII/DACAmplificationInnerSound ESLamplifierLoudspeakersTMS ADIABAT 8.5speakers (modified)discontinuedCablingAcoustic Zen CablesSilver Referenceinterconnects (XLR)Krakatoa power cordsMC2= ZEN, digitalcableAccessoriesBlack DiamondRacing ConesVibrapodsMonster HTS 2000power stripSpecificationsGargantuaSix ft. length - $1488.00HologramSingle $948.00, Biwire $998.00- 8 ft. pairAddress:Acoustic Zen800 Los Vallecitos Blvd. Suite PSan Marcos, CA 92069Tel: 760.471.4899Fax: 760.510.9188Web: www.acousticzen.comSpring arrived early this year when a package from the workshop ofRobert Lee, chief designer at Acoustic Zen, containing a new set ofspeaker cables and power cord arrived. Many of my colleagues (seeMike Silverton's and Jim Merrod's glowing reviews) and audio budshave already discovered Robert's amazing products and getting anopportunity to review some of his latest endeavors brought a gleamto my eye.I had been already enjoying the fruits of his labors as I haveemployed three Krakatoa power cords, a pair of balanced SilverReference interconnects, the MC2=Zen digital interconnect and a pairof Satori speaker cables. I was extremely happy with the sound Ihad achieved and wondered what was I doing messing with it. Wellcuriosity got the best of me. Having knowledge of Robert Lee'sprevious accomplishments, along with that never ending quest forthe "Holy Grail" of sonic ecstasy just out of reach, forced me (yeah,you really had to twist my arm) to begin examining these newadditions.As a reviewer, it was necessary to decide which product I wouldintroduce first into the system in order to isolate the performancecharacteristics of each individually. I flipped a coin and theGargantua power cord came up first.http://www.stereotimes.com/cables041702.shtmlPage 1 sur 5

StereoTimes -- Acoustic Zen Gargantua Power Cord andGargantua power cord came up first.24/12/07 19:04GargantuaAfter trying it on my Sony DVP7000 transport and my Sunfireprocessor, I ended up using it plugged into my InnerSound ESLamplifier. I felt that this provided me the best result even thougheach change held sonic benefits. When I spoke with Robert aboutthe Gargantua, he said that using one in your system would make amajor change. Replacing all the power cords with the Gargantuacould be incredible. He is clearly consumed with sonic perfection andwants you to share his vision. For this review I only had oneavailable.After two full days of burn in, theGargantua was ready for evaluation. Ireplaced the already acclaimedKrakatoa with the Gargantua (don'tyou just love these names) on myInnersound ESL amplifier and satback. Well to make a long story short,it seems Mr. Lee has once againcreated something quite extraordinary.Just when you thought it couldn't getmuch better -- it did. The soundstagedeepened, becoming more quiet andspacious and creating a sense ofintimacy with voices that was trulyilluminating. Inner detail was betterresolved and separation of instruments also improved. All of thishappened with a slight improvement of dynamics as well as arelaxation in the presentation that was more natural. It seemed toadd a certain sense of ease to the music without smoothing orobscuring detail. In fact quite the opposite happened. There wasmore "there" there.Breaking down performance by using frequency response doesn't tellnearly the whole story but it is sometimes quite instructive as anadditional tool for the reviewer to use in communicating performanceparameters to the reader. It was immediately apparent that thelower frequencies seemed to have greater impact and definition.There was more low-end information coming from my system thenI've ever heard before. String basses and cellos had more texture,more feel, more palpability. Tubas and trombones also benefited.This was giving the music more of that solid foundation one feelswhen one is attending a live performance of a full symphonyorchestra.The sensitive midrange did not suffer at all from this bassimprovement. As we have learned, too much low-end informationcan sometimes muddy up the midrange waters. Great care wastaken in this design to allow the midrange to come through not onlygloriously unscathed, but even more musical than ever. What I meanby musical is not soft and syrupy but with the texture, detail andtimbre that live voices and instruments present us with. As I statedearlier, the music flowed with an ease and delicacy that bordered onmagical. Is this too much?We've all experienced those hi-fi nasties, crashing cymbals thatchase you out of the room or trumpets like nails on blackboards. Cuthttp://www.stereotimes.com/cables041702.shtmlPage 2 sur 5

StereoTimes -- Acoustic Zen Gargantua Power Cord and24/12/07 19:04the treble. Roll off the top. Do something! How we attain real worldtreble response often defines our approach to high-end choices inequipment and how we avoid that dreaded listener. We strive toachieve full spectrum sound reproduction and this must includeaccurate treble. The Gargantua goes a long way in achieving thisgoal. Cymbals were fully extended, keeping their sheen, shimmerand texture without being harsh or grating. Get the picture?Now $1,500.00 for a power cord may sound just a tad extravagant,but the way it performed in my system made me shake my headand laugh with joy. How can I tell my wife I just have to have thisproduct? I better get ready to duck!HologramNow that the post listening glow had worn off (not really), the timehad come to remove the Satori speaker cables and install theHologram cables for burn in and evaluation. First let me say that theHolograms come typically for bi-wired installation but, at no extracost, Acoustic Zen will send them to you in single wire termination.That is how I requested them since my speakers can only be singlewired.First, let me say that I feel that the Satori loudspeaker cables, at$598.00 for an 8-foot pair, are truly one of the best bargains in allof high-end audio. One doesn't come across speaker cables thisgood everyday. Suffice it to say that they have been my referencefor quite sometime and have taken the place of many other finecables it's been my pleasure to examine. When I go into some highendstores who are selling $11,000.00 speaker cables, my mindcannot comprehend what is going on out there. We are in the worldof "The Emperor's New Clothes." Every industry has its snake oilsales people and one of the greatest in all history, P. T. Barnum,said that there's a sucker born every minute. Well I'm here to saythat Robert Lee is the antithesis of these personalities.Now that I've gotten that off my chest, let's proceed with theHolograms. I burned them in for about a week of non-stop playing ofboth music and the XLO burn in CD before any critical listening. Ifeel that this amount of burn in is both sufficient and necessary formost cables to show their true character. There may be somefurther improvement in time, but the basic qualities will have beenestablished.If the Satori were to be given an 'A', the Holograms should receivean 'A+'. They take every characteristic that I like about the Satoriand improve upon them. Detail, transparency, spatial cues andfrequency extension all improve. A general impression of greaterclarity and (that word again) naturalness is perceived. It's like inphotography when a photographer uses two different films from thesame manufacturer to shoot a picture. One film has smaller, finergrain than the other. Both photos show accurate color and contrastwith clarity and definition but the finer grain film can stand up tocloser scrutiny. The closer one looks, the more one sees into thefiner grain film. Details become a little clearer and image resolutionincreases. The image gets us a little closer to the natural object orevent we are photographing.This is exactly what happens with the Hologram speaker cables. TheSatori gives you an excellent sonic picture of the musical event buthttp://www.stereotimes.com/cables041702.shtmlPage 3 sur 5

StereoTimes -- Acoustic Zen Gargantua Power Cord and24/12/07 19:04the Hologram, with the 'finer grain', makes that picture even clearer.The difference in cost is $400.00 so for the audiophile on a budget,the Satori, is more than well worth the price. If one can afford thatextra $400.00, don't hesitate to treat yourself. You'll be gettingsomething that will truly elevate your system and not cost you$11,000.00! Keep listening.Don't forget to bookmark us! (CTRL-SHFT-D)http://www.stereotimes.com/cables041702.shtmlPage 4 sur 5

StereoTimes -- Acoustic Zen Gargantua Power Cord and24/12/07 19:04Acoustic Zen Gargantua Power Cord and Hologram Speaker Cableshttp://www.stereotimes.com/cables041702.shtmlPage 5 sur 5