Compared with Asia, hifi-wise, we live here in Europe on an island of the blessed. In the fast paced world of Hong Kong, local audiophiles naturally expect a totally new technical development every two years. How long have you have your machine? Two years? Get rid of it - there is already something way better! It should be clear of us that this is not possible, but there, it is simply expected.

Back to totaldac: The French hifi scene has always been very creative. There are some very interesting components with new ideas, but unfortunately they do not often make their way across the border. A border doesn't actually exist anymore. Totaldac is a new French company founded by Vincent Brient. He is not an unknown player in France, especially through his connections to Mélaudia, an audiophile group in France. There, his various prototypes were presented and reviewed. Brient previously worked as an electronics engineer in the telecommunications industry. From those days he holds numerous patents. He has been working in the audio industry for a long time, but not with his newly founded company. With him you find the rare combination of an engineer and uncompromising audiophile. In any case, Vincent Brient has come up with quite a few things in his totaldac. This is not the nth variation with an ESS or Wolfson DAC chip, but an entirely new development. 

Readers of my articles know that I have a preference for multibit R2R converters, so I also use the BurrBrown 1704 in my DAC. However, this has not been produced for some time now. In the meantime, since several manufacturers possess its qualities, one can imagine that this will entirely disappear from the market sooner or later. Let's consider briefly what we expect from a DAC. To put it simply, it should turn digitalized music back into its analog format, so that in the end, music comes out, rather than just a collection of data. Now 99% of all available digital music is in CD Redbook format, mp3 and other things like that. Let's of course not concern ourselves with the latter. In HighRes format there are a few interesting titles, DSD (no, not DSDS!!) is something for the fans of the French Polynesian Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Eddy Etaeta. Hmm, or was that the football coach? Or both? It doesn't matter. What is more important than to construct one device, that can optimally play the formats of most of the music now available? Of course totaldac also plays HighRes formats up to a sampling rate of 192 kHz in the highest quality. 

In D/A conversion, 3 processes are crucial: the conversion process itself, the digital processing before the conversion process and the timing of all these processes. The central idea of Brient in the redesign of his    own DAC was, instead of using conventional converter chips - to build a discrete R2R converter. By the way, these chips are called "fleas" in France! The Plague! The use of discrete resistors is not completely new. Professional manufacturers such as Lavry or MSB also employ a similar system in their expensive models. The whole thing is now not only to head off the impending shortage of the BB 1704, but of course primarily to represent an improvement over this.

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The first test subject was a prototype constructed using simple resistors with a 1% tolerance. The tonal result was promising and very musical, however it was missing a bit of resolution. This was only the starting point for further improvements, which ultimately ended up with the use of the high quality Vishay 0.01% Bulk Metal Foil Resistors. Each unit requires the use of 96 resistors! Since these precision resistors are only available in the two-digit Euro range, one can estimate that the whole unit is therefore not exactly bargain priced. The control functions of the individual resistors for the conversion process are assumed by FPGAs. FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Arrays) are integrated circuits for digital technology, in which logical circuits can be programmed. These ICs are often used, especially when fast signal processing is crucial. Now I'm about to discuss the many possibilities that are available with the Brient components. 

An interesting side effect of this discretely built converter: The totaldac does not require a current/voltage converter, usual in any conventional DAC. This is usually implemented using op-amps, which in turn also has an effect on the sound. The discrete converter already provides 1.4 volts rms output voltage, so that the tube output stage obviously acts as a kind of buffer to separate the converter from the outputs. More detailed information was not available to us since Brient does not want to show all of his cards. 

For the test, I ordered a version of the DAC with an ECC82 in the output stage of the d1 tube DAC. The units are available in different versions - a version with a transistor output is also possible, as well as a balanced unit. The latter employs two complete converters, in which twice the number of Vishay resistors are required! 

All versions include a volume control, working with 69-bit resolution in the digital domain in the FPGAs. I hear a gasp now among some readers! Among most digital attenuators there is indeed the problem of bit-loss resulting at low volume levels with high damping. The version used here should eliminate this problem of bit-loss - but regarding this topic, Brient is also not very informative. This secrecy is of course understandable due to the great amount of knock-offs coming out of some countries.

I'm quite curious. The whole thing is controlled – in fact exclusively - using a plastic Philips remote control. This machine certainly deserves a more chic version, but it does of course do the job properly. If the remote control should get lost somewhere in the crack of the couch, you won't be able to operate anything at all!

JIn any case, with an output impedance of 420 ohms you can also drive a power amp directly from the tube DAC. Thus, with Vincent's DAC you are getting a simple, but very sophisticated front end. As I mentioned before, the tube DAC delivers a maximum output of 1.4 volts rms, so you should know what voltage is required by the power amplifier to max it out. Commonly it is 2 volts or less.

What other special features does the DAC offer? The remote control can control several functions:

• FIR: the totaldac is designed as a non-oversampling DAC. Experience shows that it will play somewhat  more harmoniously, having a more natural sound. The disadvantage is a -3 dB frequency drop at 20 kHz. This is not a characteristic of the totaldac - this effect occurs in all non-oversampling DACs. For those of us who have ears like bats, this drop can be compensated via a switchable FIR filter. 
• PHASE: Here the absolute phase can be switched.
• EARTH: Using another switch, you can separate the signal ground from the power supply ground. Here you just have to try the best variation.
• BASS BW: A high-pass filter, which lessens the deep bass, listening sessions at the witching hour...

But it gets even better for the connoisseurs among us - Brient offers an addition to the DAC. This includes a digital crossover with a choice of up to three channels. Here, crossover is performed in the digital domain in the FPGAs. Thus, you can select all crossover parameters such as crossover frequency, filter slope, filter order and digital delay. While this is a very interesting solution, it would be beyond the scope of this report and the test machine is not set up for this.

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To get a first impression, I connected the tube DAC directly to the power amp. This resulted in an incredibly transparent and musical reproduction. Despite all the concerns that the 0.01% precision of the R2R resistors may not be sufficient, the musical reproduction was at an extremely high resolution. I also could not notice any limitations at low volume levels. Then I connected the preamp up to the DAC and set the output level to 0 dB.  Using the preamp as an "afterburner", it played with a little more thrust and volume. Resolution and transparency is slightly reduced due to the additional electronics. The total reproduction also, of course depends on the preamp used, so I continued with a direct connection in order to make a better evaluation of the unit.

First on the turntable is “Mass in B Minor” by Johann Sebastian Bach with Sergiu Celibidache. Well known is the fact that Celibidache refused to publish his music throughout his lifetime because he was of the opinion that his music could only be truly experienced in the concert hall. After his death, his son had finally released all existing recordings on EMI. Regarding Celibidache's conducting, there were very different opinions at that time. Some found his slower tempos completely inappropriate, while others would have awarded him with a medal. In any case, the Mass in B Minor should be predestined as his style of music. This large orchestral work is also a “home game” for the tube DAC. With its extraordinary resolution, the orchestra and choir do not appear as an undifferentiated mush, but very detailed. Not that everything is reduced to their original component parts, but always maintaining the overall unity of the music. Nevertheless, the chorus is so easy to understand that you could almost write down the lyrics while listening. This is also indicative of the maestro's intuition, who has always placed great value on clear articulation. Also, the balance of choral voices among themselves remains true. Very often the alto voice is drowned out by the soprano in other interpretations. Overall, the music exudes incredible strength and calm that is appreciated accordingly by the tube DAC. Too bad that the maestro is no longer able to hear this. Maybe he would indeed have changed his mind.

Contrasting program: Gaspar Sanz “Laberintos ingeniosos”, with guitarist Diaz-Latorre and the veteran Pedro Estevan on percussion. Gaspar Sanz is considered the father of Spanish guitar music. As usual in the 16th Century, Diaz-Latorre plays a five-course baroque guitar. In addition, the guitar of those days had a much narrower body width producing a very fine and clear sound. This comes across on the totaldac with  phenomenal precision. It is immediately evident that this is not a modern guitar. All the subtleties of the attack and the variety of the instrument's timbres have never been heard this well. You can literally count the individual strings! It's also nice to hear the creative use of percussion instruments by Estevan. They come from all over the world, but certainly not from the Spain of that time. Up until now, this fact never occurred to me.

To me, vocals are always interesting for an review. Carlos Lyra together with Baden Powell can show what they've got on the CD “Bossa Nova Guitar”. It is absolutely fascinating how Lyra's voice is reproduced. If you close your eyes, you might think he's sitting right in front of you. Reproduced by a hifi system, voices often sound - like hifi. Using tube equipment they sometimes have a kind of “aura” that can be very pleasant, but still has something wrong. Using transistor equipment, voices sometimes sound so bone-dry and indifferent, that I would prefer the “aura” in any case. Using the tube DAC, an unusually natural tonal reproduction is achieved. The acoustic guitars are also reproduced excellently as well in this recording. One can easily hear, for example, that they are not playing with steel strings. Interestingly, this recording was not made by a gifted recording engineer, but rather quite a standard one.

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Currently, there is a lot of hype about high sampling rates. Now it has about as high a level of prestige as how much horsepower a car has. To avoid any discussion, Brient has decided to optimally support both of them. One must, of course, keep in mind that the rest of the system also has to be on par. It doesn't do any good when the DAC – like the one here that has a S/N ratio of -160(!) dBFS gets lost again in the hum of the amplifier. There may be one or another unit that can even offer more resolution, but I have never come across it. The question is whether the music can be reproduced as harmoniously and naturally on that as on the totaldac. Basically, for me resolution means that if my guitarist sounds like he is playing in the living room on his acoustic guitar, then I have 100% resolution. No one really thinks about such a topic, but that is just the way it is. When first noticing stupendous detail while listening to a hifi system and then for a while not any more, this can quickly lead to a tiring effect after listening for a long time. At least for me. Resolution is one of the mosaics needed to create perfect musical reproduction, but not the only thing. The decisive factor is rather the right balance between musicality and resolution. To a great extent, the totaldac did a great job attaining this. Overall, its reproduction is slightly leaner, or shall we say, rather slimming! In addition, it is very open and neutral, which is not necessarily suitable to systems that are very brightly tuned or inherently tend to have a more analytical reproduction. However, this is no fault of the DAC. The quality of sound is  reproduced with such fine grading, that I am really only familiar with from very good analog sources. With the emphasis on very good. You get used to the clarity of reproduction very quickly, just how distinct it is. You realize this again only when you take the totaldac out the system.

Of course, I also played high-definition formats on a Macbook Pro with Amarra software. Brient recommends the software JPLAY in the "extreme hibernate" mode. Then, all the troublemakers such as the mouse, keyboard, monitor, and everything else like that should be turned off. But this only works with Windows computers. So back to the Macbook and the selection Keith Jarrett's “Köln Concert”. I have the record, CD and 24/96 HighRes versions. The differences between the CD and HighRes are minimal and in a double blind test, I would probably have difficulties.

Next, I tried a 24/192 recording: “A Trace of Grace” by Michel Godard. I have an advantage with his recording because I have also heard this group live and therefore, I can really imagine what this should sound like. Here again, the difference to the Redbook format is not such that it would cause me sleepless nights. It was most noticeable with the violin by Fanny Pacoult. It sounds a bit more natural on the high-definition format. Admittedly, this may be the decisive improvement for a classical music fan. Nevertheless, it is remarkable what the totaldac brings out of the Redbook format.

And now with a vengeance: In a heroic self-experiment, I then played a file with the lousy sampling rate of 256 kbits/s, ZZ Top Live: “Blue Jeans Blues”. I was totally blown away how the totaldac dealt with this recording. Actually, I was expecting the worst, but the incredible force of the music from the three men with the long beards is amazingly live sounding. The quality of the recording as well - the tube DAC didn't gloss over anything. Of course, no fine resolution is required here - which doesn't exist. I didn't want to subject myself to a classical recording in this format. Nevertheless, it was quite amazing. Um, a plea for the mp3 - or whatever that thing is called - this is certainly not one!

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The better the digital equipment, the more fun you have with totally basic CDs. Of course I would prefer to have all digitized recordings in HighRes format, but most of the digitized music I like to hear is contained on  CDs. On the other hand, the resolution of a regular CD is so high on the totaldac that actually a desire for HighRes is not that great. Finally, the component with no ifs, ands or buts? This is not available - in any price category. As mentioned before, the bass and tonic reproduction is a bit slimmer than usual, however very accurate. This only applies when the amplifiers are directly driven. One could classify this in the "it's a matter of taste" category.

Vincent Brient has earned my highest respect. All of this was achieved by a "one man show!" There is still no German distributor for his products, but if you are interested in auditioning his equipment, you can have it sent for a 10-day trial. Incidentally, Brient speaks English very well.

 

 

The designers of the Swiss Cables obviously have a clear understanding of the long history of cable design, especially about what worked exceedingly well and why. The inner structure of their products reminds me a little of the fabled Western Electric cables of yore and some principles found in their design.

But the Swiss are far from having simply repackaged a role of Western Electric wires in a new shell. Actually, their cables are a blank sheet design, starting from scratch. As designers for their cables, Swiss Cables has commissioned Lumen White Research in Switzerland, a company known, between others, for their ingenious loudspeakers designs.

In the early 70s, Pierre Johannet of the French National Institute for Electric Research published an article in the French High End magazine “L’Audiophile” on his research surrounding MDI, signal distortions in cables caused by electrical micro-discharges at the conductor-dielectric junction. MDI distortions occur predominantly in the presence of synthetic polymer dielectrics, the very materials which practically dominate modern audio cable design! While the engineers at Western Electric did not know about MDIs yet, they used natural insulators like cotton and silk for their cables, as synthetic polymers were not yet available. 

Swiss cables avoid the generation of MDIs in their cables, inter alia, by using a dielectric made from natural fibers which bears at least some visual resemblance with the Western Electric textile insulations. The Swiss Cables use air as their main dielectric. Materials widely found in cables today, like Teflon, are explicitly excluded from the Swiss Cables designs - for sonic reasons. While the Swiss cables’ diameter could remind one of a decent gardening hose, when lifted up they prove to be surprisingly light. Their protective shell is very solid and does not deform easily, hence the cables are not the overly flexible during installation behind racks.

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As regards the choice of conductor technology, the designers for Swiss Cables had their own innovative ideas. The cables use solid core conductors produced from a copper alloy, not as conventional wires are, by mechanical drawing, but via a specialized process of continuous casting. Continuous casting avoids the tensions, discontinuities and micro-gaps in the molecular crystal lattice which are present in all mechanically drawn wires and are known to cause various forms of signal deterioration. Hiroyasu Kondo of Audio Note used to age his wires for decades in an attempt to reduce these effects in his cables.

That the quality of signal transfer in cables strongly depends on the homogeneity of a wire’s crystal lattice has become widely recognized by now. It is the very reason why cable manufacturers try to improve the signal quality of their cables via various methods including cryogenic treatments, the use of special alloy like in the case of the Swiss Cables or other metallurgical measures.

Simply put, wires consist of many polycrystalline lattices, which again are made up of microscopically small crystals. Without special treatment, these structures do not form ideal signal conductors. Alloying copper with other metals attempts to reduce the discontinuities in the crystal lattice, aiming for a smoother and more consistent structure and signal transfer function. Naturally, this topic is a widely more complex subject from metallurgy than can be covered within the scope of this review.

What then is the effect of inserting the Swiss Cables into the listening chain? I started my tests with the Swiss cables power cords, and later added their interconnects and loudspeakercables. I first used the power cords with my power amplifiers, simply because the respective ac outlets were the most accessible in my system. Doubtlessly it may have made more sense to start with the preamplifier, but that notwithstanding, starting with the power amplifiers already yielded a memorable effect which was clearly audible in my system even without any lengthy burn-in. When I hooked up my power amps with the Swiss Cables power cords, the sound became instantly more transparent and dynamic. The high frequency range however appeared slightly leaner, indicating the need for more initial burn-in. Which made me wonder whether inserting additional power cords already now would thin out the treble even more. At this very moment, the often quoted “synergy-effect”, routinely invoked by corporations in need of justifying costly overhauls, came to my mind. Next day I connected my preamplifier with the Swiss Cables Reference power cord as well. 

To my utter surprise this resulted in a complete sonic harmony in the system – something I had envisioned, but not expected. I recognize that this may not sound logic to some, but it simply is what happened. On top of that, the system made another leap forward in clarity and dynamic agility. This came as even more of a surprise, considering the fact these sound improvements were brought about by a cable which was installed outside of the system’s signal path. With this accomplishment at hand, I simply settled into listening to music, and could have easily forgotten about any further writing, were it not for my editor in  chief who would probably show me the red card for such nonchalance. After a week of further burn-in, curiosity got the better of me and I went back to the initial set-up with only the power amplifiers connected via the Swiss Cables power cords. The treble which had been slightly on the lean side a week ago, had made place for a vastly more fluid and richer high frequency portrayal as a result of the additional burn-in. An effect to be noted. Some may think that such observations are merely the result of the ears undergoing a habituation process and adapting psycho-acoustically to a new component. But to know such with certainty, would necessitate solid expertise in the disciplines of psycho-acoustics. Lacking such, and being the pragmatic I am, I simply trust my ears and let listening be my guide. In any case, the Swiss Cables clearly benefit from being given time for proper burn-in. And, something I did not know yet at the time, they continued to get better and better for weeks to come !

After a few days, I received the Swiss Cables Reference interconnects and loudspeaker cables which allowed me to connect my whole system with them for the first time. Expecting the need for another round of burn-in, I was in for a surprise once more, as the interconnects and loudspeaker cables integrated themselves instantly and seamlessly right out of the box. Checking back with the manufacturer provided the explanation: the interconnects and speaker cables undergo a special burn-in program at the factory, while the power cords do not. With the complete system now wired with Swiss Cables, the sound improved again across the board, making another leap forward in transparency, dynamic capabilities and sonic wholeness, while the increased transparency at all times remained fully and harmonically integrated with the music, the sound staying free from any traces of sterility.

As most audiophiles know well, increased transparency can easily give rise to listening fatigue, when weaknesses in the system or the music get overly magnified. On the other hand, it is increased transparency which makes the full musical expression and details available to us when listening at low volumes. Navigating this sonic challenge successfully is something the Swiss Cables do extremely well!

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Reinhard Goebel's recording with the Musica Antiqua Köln ensemble provides a ruthless test for all equipment. Founded 30 years ago with the goal to reproduce historic classic performances in their original format, the ensemble were pioneers of a new idealism in their time. Their use of original historic instruments can easily give rise to edginess, further accentuated by Deutsche Grammophone recording style which often verges on treble overdose. How do the Swiss Cables navigate these treacherous waters?Naturally, they can’t trans-mutate these recordings into RCA Living Stereo gold, but with the Swiss Cables in the system, the instruments sound much more harmonious, without any glossing-over or sugarcoating in the play. The original character of the music is fully preserved, but with the Swiss Cables simply more music emerges from the recording. A real class act!

Next in line is the Art Ensemble of Chicago’s LP The Third decade. Founded in 1960, this avantgarde-band has always prided itself of its black roots and its African musical heritage. Original African costumes and full warrior body paintings used to be an integral part of the band’s live performances. Their music features an abundance of instruments, especially of the percussive kind. In the case of this LP, I counted no less than 70! Recorded in 1984 The Third Decade marks the end of the band’s cooperation with the ECM record label. At that point in time, their music had already lost part of its avantgardistic edge. The LP’s first title „Prayer for Jimbo Kwesi“ starts out in a rather relaxed and harmonious fashion, but that changes not long thereafter. Of special interest here is track 4, which features an abundance of percussion effects. After a slightly spaced out contra bass intro, the drummer brings on a multitude of bells, cymbals and who-knows-what other instruments. Via the Swiss Cables, they are all placed in the sound-space with superb precision and natural timbre, devoid of any trace of edginess. These instruments are harmonically extremely complex and very difficult to reproduce. The human ear will mention instantaneously if something is off-target here.

With my system completely wired with the Swiss Cables References, the sound had become utterly organic and immensely musical. While every individual Swiss Cables cable brings these signature qualities of the whole product range to its specific position in the chain, the brand's design approach clearly aims beyond offering individual super-cables, and provides for a complete cable system with consistent quality and integral sonic performance. While many of us have assembled a diverse mix of different cable brands in our systems, when it comes to the Swiss Cables, replacing all cables in the chain with their products clearly results in a added performance enhancement. That’s certainly good for the company, but before all else its simply the fact. Compared with my own eclectic mix of cables, the Swiss Cables sound clearer, more transparent and dynamic, while a little less voluminous. I view the latter as the result of their improved precision and time-coherence in the mid-range and bass bands. The sound-space projected by the Swiss Cables is slightly more compact in size, a quality which will especially benefit those with horn systems. The mid-range is slightly less forward and more relaxed, which places the musicians about one step backward in space. Especially those recordings which always make one feel as if the microphone had fallen into the piano now sound more natural and realistic, while at the same time less artificially “in-your-face”. The Swiss Cables bring immense subtlety and finesse to the sound and endow it with an infinite palette of sonic colors. Especially the latter is of great importance to me. The realistic reproduction of solo violin has remained one of the most difficult tasks in audio - the Swiss Cables master this challenge better than any other cable I know! Unsurprisingly, classic music benefits immensely from the cables’ sonic homogeneity.

Such performance reminds me of a well known Japanese tube guru’s invocation of “No superfluous sound !” While made in another context, it fully grasps the nature of the Swiss Cables. They are now the second excellent cable brand from Switzerland which I have come to know. Does the country's pristine high mountain air have any role in this ?

In my view, a system’s active components ultimately determine its sound, while cables play a supportive role. While my loudspeakers’ 98db efficiency tend to reveal even minute effects and changes, that may be different in other systems. To provide our readers with a second opinion, my colleague Dirk Sommer has listened to the Swiss Cablesin his system as well. Here his report:

The first set of Swiss Cables arrived accompanied by Anton Suter who heads their manufacturing and distribution. Unlike my „tube loving“ colleague Juergen Saile, I heed no general preference for tube amplifiers but at the time of my review happened to listen via a tube-preamplifier and tube power amplifiers as well. To connect them I need very long, symmetric interconnects while my Ayon Epsilon power amps only accept loudspeaker cables terminated with spades. Since I didn't mention these details when ordering the Swiss Cables, I had to bring in the excellent Einstein ‘The Poweramp’, which normally does duty in the living room, to handle amplifying duties in the meantime – naturally, starting with my usual set of cables. Power cable duties were handled by an ac cord originally handcrafted by the former German Cello distributor and marked by a rather substantial cross section. When I replaced it with the Swiss Cables Reference power cord, the playback leaped forward in transparency, resolution and dynamics, while the sound became more airy and slightly more spacious. In short: simply more detail emerged from the music.

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A further gain in clarity and definition happened when I replaced my reference loudspeaker wires with the Swiss Cables References. The upper bass region saw a slight attenuation as my Lumen White monitors don’t emphasize this region, something one becomes occasionally aware of when playing less accomplished recordings. Despite their considerable length of 6 meters, the Swiss Cables interconnect stayed true to the brand’s signature qualities, revealing that my down-to-earth EAR 912 preamp is capable of more detail and sound-field extension than I had previously imagined possible. Thus inspired, I ordered a set of the – physically surprisingly light – Swiss Cables loudspeaker cables with spades so I could use them with my Ayon power-amplifiers. 

When the loudspeaker cables arrived, I inserted them into my system and reinstalled the Swiss Cables interconnects for further listening, when, on a very quiet evening I suddenly became aware of a nearly inaudible hiss emerging from my speakers. Something neither Anton Suter nor me had noticed during our initial listening session which had simply overwhelmed us with the Swiss Cables’ leap forward in transparency and dynamic impact. With the EAR 912’s output transformer-balanced and the Ayons featuring a symmetric circuit, complete silence is the usual outcome. The riddle`s solution: the Swiss Cables are available shielded or unshielded, with the latter considered sonically preferred, where suitable. In my listening room however, in which every nonsymmetric phono-stage will morph into a radio receiver whether on single-ended or symmetric cables, shielding is a must. My order redefined, a set of the shielded version of the Swiss Cables Reference interconnects were dispatched my way. In the meantime I left the loudspeaker cables in my system, allowing them plenty of additional hours of burn-in.

When Thomas Wendt, owner of Genuin Audio and Swiss Cables’ German distributor visited me with the shielded version of the interconnects, I took the occasion to insert them right away into the system and embark on a listening session with numerous of our habitual superbly recorded test tracks put to work. The session yielded a consistent and conclusive outcome with both of us preferring the better defined,dynamically more differentiated sound and superior sound-space projection of the Swiss Cables over my previous reference cables on all tracks. While listening to multiple test tracks in a row is an efficient way to map the sonic capabilities of components under review, such sessions are not primarily designed for listening pleasure. Hence, after our firework of reference tracks, Thomas Wendt suggested that we conclude the evening with Pink Floyd's „Money“ – strictly for entertainment only. Out of convenience, I selected to play a version I had on my hardisk, originally ripped via iTunes, but that quickly turned out less than an audiophile revelation. So we switched back to my old interconnects as their fatter upper bass helped to gloss over the slightly harsh accents of the originally thinly recorded track. I then remembered that I still owned a version of the track on vinyl, on the 4-LP “Echoes” album. That remastered edition of the classic is said to have seen significant input from analog recording virtuoso Tim de Paravicini. Via the Brinkmann-EMT cartridge the LP revealed lots of low frequency information, but already at the beginning of the track, during the ringing of the cash register, we both yearned for more resolution. Exactly that more in transparency we got when we re-installed the Swiss Cables Reference interconnects. Whenever we listened to well recorded tracks, the loudspeaker cables and interconnects from Switzerland became our first choice.

As the sonic signature of the Lumen White monitors and the Swiss Cables is nearly identical, when combined, their outstanding transparency, exceptional bass control and love for detail can occasionally become too much of a blessing with poor recordings. As I write this, the Swiss Cables reign undisputed in my system, connecting my preamp, mono-blocks and Lumen White reference monitors. While they don’t put any lip-gloss on bad recordings, there is no way to live without these cables, once one has experienced the wide, airy sound-space they project, their wealth of details and abundance of timbrel colors, their superbly resolved dynamic gradations, all fully and harmonically embedded as natural attributes of an integral musical wholeness.

As my colleague already mentioned in his introduction, the Swiss Cables are not a five dollar buy. During the past 15 years, I have reviewed a lot of cables, including some very expensive ones, and some where the pricing logic was clearly beyond comprehension. The latter is not the case here: while, ticket-wise, the Swiss Cables are not cheap, they clearly stand out in the overheated high-end cable market by offering an extraordinarily attractive price-performance ratio.

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