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DIY silver interconnects |
maverick11359
Rank: Sony King
Joined: Dec 13, 2005
Posts: 1517
From: Coffs Harbour-AUSTRALIA
 |  Posted: 2007-05-10 01:55
Gaday All,
I finally got around to building Chris VenHaus VH Audio's Silver interconnects so i thought I'd post some pictures of them .
sorry but i've got to dash i'll post again latter.
Cheers maverick
[ This message was edited by: maverick11359 on 2007-05-10 02:50 ]
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maverick11359
Rank: Sony King
Joined: Dec 13, 2005
Posts: 1517
From: Coffs Harbour-AUSTRALIA
| Posted: 2007-05-10 02:58
Inside cable is ready for plugs to be soldered on .Top picture shows the entire cable wrapped with teflon tape from plug to plug.Finished with expandable 1/4" Nylex covering with 1'' black heat shrink at the ends.
cheers maverick.
[ This message was edited by: maverick11359 on 2007-05-10 03:00 ]
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Toli
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Rank: Sony Master
Joined: Oct 20, 2003
Posts: 8509
From: Winthrop Harbor, IL USA
 | Posted: 2007-05-10 07:14
maverick11359,
The cables look great. Have you tried them in your system yet?
Toli
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maverick11359
Rank: Sony King
Joined: Dec 13, 2005
Posts: 1517
From: Coffs Harbour-AUSTRALIA
| Posted: 2007-05-10 08:04
Gaday Toli,
Yes there running in as we speak .First impression to my surprise they sound fantastic ,I say this because I have a rule never to up the volume untill there run in. In the past I have never found any of my previous interconnects sound even remotely O.K untill at least 50 Hrs burn in/run in time ,even some have needed 100Hrs.
It Possibly has something to do with the design of the cable being two very fine silver 99.9999 single cables covered in cotton spiraling around the outside of the teflon tube core.Unlike all my previous interconnects with the dielectric(insulation) covering on the outside ,with conductors in the centre.I say this because from what I understand a large amount of Burn in is the Dielectric stablizing itself with it's own capacitance which also flavours the end reproduction of sound apart from the conductors burning in as well.
Cheers maverick
[ This message was edited by: maverick11359 on 2007-05-10 08:10 ]
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Maxxwire
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Joined: Aug 29, 2002
Posts: 25739
From: Portland, Oregon - USA
 | Posted: 2007-05-10 15:28
Maverick- As you know Teflon has the lowest coeficient of friction of any substance on earth unfortunately it also has a long break in period.
My Fine Silver conductor/Teflon Dielectric Digital interconnect took about 150 hours to really come into its own although it does use 5 conductors.
VH Audio is also one of my favorite sources of high quality DIY Audio supplies. I hope that you have phenominal success with Chris' Silver Analog interconnects!
~Maxx~
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A Satisfied Sony Fan Since 1974!
The OCCC Furu-Charged Sony DB 930
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maverick11359
Rank: Sony King
Joined: Dec 13, 2005
Posts: 1517
From: Coffs Harbour-AUSTRALIA
| Posted: 2007-05-10 16:44
Gaday Maxx,
Thanks Maxx for the heads up on Teflon's properties I keep learning everyday.
I've also been told Silver conductors can take 400Hrs burn in ,so thats why i was so surprised up front with these interconnects.Lets hope they don't go backwards in performance .
When I reflect I still remember back when people thought interconnects were all the same with no difference in sonic signature just like speaker cables .
If these interconnects work out(and they do sound promising) i'll be spending more time and money building another six for my analog multichannel out as well.
cheers maverick
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Maxxwire
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Joined: Aug 29, 2002
Posts: 25739
From: Portland, Oregon - USA
| Posted: 2007-05-11 01:15
Maverick- While some people contend that it takes 400 hours to break in Fine Silver conductor Analog interconnects others contend that with a signal voltage that low they will never fully break in.
My practical experience with breaking in Fine Silver wire has been that in the beginning sonic improvements came quite often but their frequency slowed ove time and after 150 hours the break in process had become so slow that it was no longer sufficiently detectable over a period of time still short enough to be clearly noticable as an improvement.
The way I look at it the length of the break in period is not all that important because the longer it takes for the
interconnect to break in the longer the improvements associated with the break in process can be enjoyed.
In my experience the place where Fine Silver Analog interconnects are most widely used and recommended is Steve Hoffman's Website! Now that you have your DIY Fine Silver Analog interconnects I'm thinking that great ears hear alike!
~Maxx~
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A Satisfied Sony Fan Since 1974!
The OCCC Furu-Charged Sony DB 930
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maverick11359
Rank: Sony King
Joined: Dec 13, 2005
Posts: 1517
From: Coffs Harbour-AUSTRALIA
| Posted: 2007-05-11 02:51
Maxx:- I've been toying with the idea of replacing the internal leads on the rear of my RCA sockets inside the Denon 3910 ,with the same cotton insulated 99.9999 silver 28 gauge cable .Do you think there would be much gained with that upgrade also.I have about 5' left on the roll(not enough for another interconnect ,but plenty to play with).
cheers maverick.
[ This message was edited by: maverick11359 on 2007-05-11 02:52 ]
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Maxxwire
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From: Portland, Oregon - USA
| Posted: 2007-05-11 14:06
Maverick- When I had the RCA i/o's on my Preamp Modded my Tech stressed both the importance of the connecton wire and the quality of the RCAs themselves.
Here is a picture of the orginal signal input RCAs on the left and the Teflon insulated ModWright Custom RCAs on the right with Fine Silver Wire in Teflon Dielectric used to connect them.
Since the new RCA's and the Fine Silver wiring were done together I can't seperate out the benefits of using just the Fine Silver Wiring, but I can tell you that the integrated Mod made a very significant improvement in the quality of both the Analog Input and Output of the Preamp which resulted in a totally unique type of improvement in terms of natural smoothness, integrity and Musicality the likes of which no other Mod has ever achieved in my Audio System.
In my opinion, yes rewiring the RCA outputs of the Denon 3910 with the Fine Silver Wire would be a worthwhile improvement, but taking it one step further and installing some top quality RCA's with that same Fine Silver Wire would have you up late nights for weeks listening to your Music collection in a whole new way!
BTW- I was curious as to whether or not this is the the type of 28 AWG VH Audio OCC Silver Wire that you used for your DIY Fine Silver Analog interconnects?
~Maxx~
A Satisfied Sony Fan Since 1974!
-CLICK ON PIC FOR PiP-
Masterful Setup is the Key to Amazing Audio Performance
[ This message was edited by: Maxxwire on 2007-10-21 02:06 ]
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maverick11359
Rank: Sony King
Joined: Dec 13, 2005
Posts: 1517
From: Coffs Harbour-AUSTRALIA
| Posted: 2007-05-11 18:24
Gaday maxx,
no I chose the silver cable below that one on Chris's site .its a little cheaper at $59.99 dollars 99.9999 (6N) purity and 28gauge ,25'roll http://www.vhaudio.com/images/cottonsilver2.jpg
Do you think the 99.99999 (7N) 28 gauge with teflon might be a better option for upgrading the Denon and my next pair of interconnects .What Chris says seems to be true about silver's purity up to this date being the norm of 99.9995 max on other sites for interconnects ,e.g http://guerrillaaudio.com/product_4_Silver_Interconnect_Cables_cat_1.html?gclid=CMCO6LqPh4wCFQmZbgod4Xz-zA
Cheers Maverick
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Maxxwire
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From: Portland, Oregon - USA
| Posted: 2007-05-12 00:17
I've been using Fine Silver conductor with Teflon dielectric interconnects for 6 years and each maker has their own proprietary mix of methodology and materials that they have spent years developing and perfecting the succeeding iterations of the wires they make.
While the use of 5N Fine Silver wire has been the norm there are a few rare exceptions. If you want to get an idea of the possible advantages of using 7N Zero Crystal Fine Silver wire with Teflon Dielectric you might check out the end user opinions of the Acoustic Zen Silver Reference || Interconnects which have been using 7N Zero Crystal Fine Silver Wire for a number of years. Although at $950/meter there may not be a whole lot of people who bought it.
Of the people I know who twist Fine Silver wire either for a living or for their own personal use I have never known them to attribute the success of their Fine Silver interconnects to the number of 9's in the conductor material nor cite the purity of the conductor as the main contributing factor in what made the interconnect sound great, but rather they consistently describe in excruciating detail all of the much more crucial lessons years of experience have taught them about all the proprietary tricks of the trade that go into assembling a Fine Silver conductor interconnect that that sounds truly great.
I have seen my friend Bill's interconnects listed in some of the most well equipped Audio Systems at the Audio Asylum. It made me glad to know that all his years of hard work perfecting his wire twisting skills in his basement at home had met with suitabble recognition by being the wire of choice in some of the very top flight Audio Systems at AA.
I still have some of Bill's early Fine Silver interconnects that I use on my Tube Headphone Amp where detailing is critical. When see his current production wires they make the interconnects I have had of his for 6 years look primitive by comparison.
Mav, I would expect that over time your skills at twisting wire will improve to the point that your Fine Silver interconnects will sonically embarass the Fine Silver inteconnects that sell for $1,000/meter.
~Maxx~
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A Satisfied Sony Fan Since 1974!
The OCCC Furu-Charged Sony DB 930
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Maxxwire
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From: Portland, Oregon - USA
| Posted: 2007-05-12 14:26
Maverick- I have another friend named Gordon who owns a small business thru which he sells the Resonance Tuning and Audio equipment wiring that he designs and makes.
While the lead filled Sorbothane Decoupling Feet he makes are a unique and very effective design he also discovered a method of terminating the RCA's on Analog interconnects that makes a magnitudinal improvement in their sound quality.
I brought home 2 pairs Gordon's DIY Analog interconnects which were identical in every way with the exception of how he had terminated the RCA's on them.
Gordon explained to me that on the Modified version he had simply taken a small drill bit and drilled out the center post of each RCA and run the + wire all the way to the end then soldered it in place with silver solder and then sanded and polished it flush.
When I A/B tested both wires in my Audio System the sound quality of the Analog interconnects with the Modified RCA's was in a whole different league above the identical version of the exact same wire without the Modified RCA terminations.
To this day I am still amazed that such a small difference in construction made such a huge difference in sound quality with these 2 pairs of Analog interconnects.
~Maxx~
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A Satisfied Sony Fan Since 1974!
The OCCC Furu-Charged Sony DB 930
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maverick11359
Rank: Sony King
Joined: Dec 13, 2005
Posts: 1517
From: Coffs Harbour-AUSTRALIA
| Posted: 2007-05-12 21:11
Maxx wrote:-
Gordon explained to me that on the Modified version he had simply taken a small drill bit and drilled out the center post of each RCA and run the + wire all the way to the end then soldered it in place with silver solder and then sanded and polished it flush.
Gaday Maxx,
When i read your last post it tweeked my memory that's because the bullet plugs by Eichmann I just installed on my Chris VenHaus interconnects have the ends drilled out check diagram picture below the same way you've described .
I just listened to a couple of tracks up in volume (my normal listening level)to check how the interconnects are running in at the 60 Hr mark.
"Yes" they have inproved but only slightly ,I can now hear slightly lower freq reinforced bass which was the only thing I thought they lacked Three days ago when first installed apart from a slight lack of openess on the sound stage.Can't wait for the 150hr mark for the next comparison. Maxx your correct in you statment early about slow run in of siver interconnects after 150Hrs they will be A/B against my normal setup and left to normal play time only.
cheers maverick
[ This message was edited by: maverick11359 on 2007-05-14 23:40 ]
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Maxxwire
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Joined: Aug 29, 2002
Posts: 25739
From: Portland, Oregon - USA
| Posted: 2007-05-13 14:36
Maverick- The most aggravating thing for me was going thru the long break in process for one Fine Silver wire and then a few weeks later getting another Fine Silver wire and having to go through the whole long and drawn out break in process all over again!
It was all worth it though because I have found that in my Audio System in the right applications Fine Silver conductor wire in Teflon Dielectric just can't be beat when it comes to the delivery of perfectly focused micro-detailing and sonic purity just to name a couple of the many attributes that have made Fine Silver wiring an integral and indespensable part of the System's overall Transparency.
~Maxx~
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A Satisfied Sony Fan Since 1974!
The OCCC Furu-Charged Sony DB 930
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maverick11359
Rank: Sony King
Joined: Dec 13, 2005
Posts: 1517
From: Coffs Harbour-AUSTRALIA
| Posted: 2007-05-15 19:01
Gaday all,
Just a quick update at 100 hrs.
In comparison to my OLD TaraLabs prism 1100i interconnects 8N copper which run in parallel by multichannel out ( these interconnects arn't avaliable anymore and are approx half way up Tara's food chain ).A/B test showed the new silver interconnects are approx 1 db down in volume to the Tara's whether this changes as the cable further runs in is questionable ,probably not build being a 28 gauge cable running approx 1300mm long twisted around 950mm teflon tube compared to tara's copper approx 18 gauge 1000mm in length.This makes it hard to A/B test because you keep having to drop the copper interconnect 1 db when swopping over quickly for a fair comparison.
A quick comparisaon shows the bass responce is identical very clean and reinforced in the bottom freq.'s .The middle mids and highs have less reverb/echo effect of the notes on the silver interconnects ,they still extend and don't roll off but can leave the sound stage feeling a little flat but accurate.Also imaging of instruments and vocal with the silver's is very centred between the front speakers where the copper interconnetcs images across the front and down the sides of the room leaving vocal in the centre only.I also did a quick check against my "Stuarts" Glass Toslink(18 months old from ebay In the States ) interconnect and found the silver just about identical to it possibly apart from imaging.
I'll make another report after 150Hrs
cheers maverick
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