Ultra High-Resolution "Acoustic Zen" Cables - Jason Diffusion

years, I have regarded the Quatro-fils as part of my working equipment in the fieldand back in the studio. To the Nordost and Magnan cables, I'll add one more, lessrecognized (in truth under-recognized): van den Hul's "Thunderline," along with theircarbon-filament "Second," cables are truly magnificent (if, also, eccentric) cablesthat have no easy comparison.Alongside these top-end manufacturers of sonic nirvana, Acoustic Zen Technologies,Ltd. has now pitched its tent. When Robert Lee called to inform me of his ongoingresearch, and his new cable designs, I was interested because his record over manyyears is impeccable. I was not prepared for the simplicity and elegance of musicalreproduction that his new work has wrought. I can honestly say that, in the monthsthat I have listened to his pure "zero crystal" silver and (silver- copper) matrixcables, my relation to recording and mastering equipment has taken on a newdimension.I hear more of what I've recorded.I trust Acoustic Zen's cables. They have all the sonic fundamentals right: accuratetonality, spectral extension, dynamic range, coherence within (among) sonicregisters, textural delicacy, ambient openness, and that hard to define quality thatI'll call musical pace. The proof for me is in the recording of music. I now regardAcoustic Zen's cables as an unimpeachable standard for my own recording work. Ifthese wires were priced at the top, among the most expensive interconnects, Iwould not be at all surprised. They are not. How often, in the world of audiophileecstasy, do we find bargains? Seldom. Here you have one. Acoustic Zen cables arepriced lower than most high-end interconnects. Of the small group that I deemextraordinary, they are by far the least expensive. Acoustic Zen cables are the realdeal at a modest, no nonsense price.ConclusionNothing will dissuade me from my longstanding ambivalence about cables. They are,for me, necessary evils. I cannot live without them … in large numbers. Thus theneed for a negotiated settlement with some. These cables make such negotiationseasier.The bottom line is this. While Acoustic Zen's pure silver cable has an almost magicalability to reproduce the smallest (most evanescent) sonic details I've ever heard,I'm not certain which of these two remarkable interconnects I prefer. Each isrelaxed and deeply revealing. They are both musically seductive.Don't forget to bookmark us! (CTRL-D)