Belden ICONOCLAST Interconnects and Speaker Cabling

Galen mentioned that the Iconoclast website had been updated. It has really blossomed. If you haven’t had a chance to read some of Galen’s papers, they are available there now. You will need to carve out some time, however…we always asked to know how cables affect the sound, now we have a much better understanding thanks to our own audiophile EE :muscle:

www.iconoclastcable.com

It works on my iPhone now, so that’s a win!

You are killing me Bob…I haven’t even tried the first ones out yet and now with your new pricing I feel like I should try OFE just cause they are more reasonable

That’s OK, you can try OFE as well if you like. We don’t want you looking back and wondering…

May as well, count me in. The constant wondering would drive me mad. PM me if you need other info

Just wanted to share my experience. Got the Gen 2 TPC XLR cables few days ago, using it between DAC and headphone amp. Have used Monster, Tara Labs, XLO, RC Cables and Signal Cables in the past, most recent cabling by Anti-cables. Most of the time, I had to convince myself that I heard some improvements. Not so with Iconoclast, noticeable change for the better. Will be buying additional cables from Iconoclast in the future. Glad to finally get off the cable merry-go-around.

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Yup :sunglasses:

Galen sent me a text yesterday afternoon shortly after the snow storm struck his home in western Ohio. After 10" of snow he lost his driveway and his internet/land line phone. He shoveled for over an hour and then found a broken door knob to fix. Galen thinks it will be Thursday before his internet is restored. I can send him text messages and reach him on his cell.

We usually catch all of the crappy winter weather here in west Michigan and other “lake effect” areas (Buffalo NY comes to mind) but this winter it has all been south or north of us. Good for us and bad for them .

But after I shovel, I get to listen to all my 35 or so year old America records back to back and play Deus Ex Mankind Divided. Boy do those old records sound GOOD. Let’s not mention how bad I am at video games.

Galen

Alright it’s finally time to put the cables in! So @rower30 which do you think the most impact for the TPC xlrs would be, DAC to pre or pre to amp? I have two sets but was interested to hear the differences one at a time

The 4x4 XLR would be best tried in the analog path, first. The digital path is less severe a load as the reactive variables are much more consistent at RF than at analog frequencies.

We have users that have reported digital path improvements, too, but it is hard to place judgement on which is more and which is less.

My analog judgement is based on cable inconsistencies across the frequency of operation and where making better cable is harder, and that’s analog every time.

Some users may report opposite this but on average analog is the bigger upgrade.

Galen

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In Veneet’s question, wouldn’t both paths be analog?

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Thats what I was wondering too when I read Galen’s response! I do appreciate the quick response though Galen!

DACs use digital paths with RCA as S/PDIF 75 ohm or XLR AES/EBU 110 ohm.

XLR and RCA used analog the impedance varies with frequency. Fortunately, the wavelengths mitigate the reflections as they are too long to be considered waveguides. Interconnects see a stable 47kohm or higher resistive load, which helps things considerably compared to speaker cables as the speaker as a load is awful.

Some digital, like the PSAudio, use special I2S type digital signal on USB style cable and some true digital USB links.

Sorry for the confusion. Our digital customers use the RCA and depending on the impedance which design, the 1x1 or 1x4.

But, the analog signal path is still the toughest. I would use 4x4 XLR analog everywhere you can.

Galen

It’s not you, it’s me…but the DMP transport sends it’s digital information via I2S, for example, to the DAC and then the DAC converts that digital signal to analog, which it sends to the preamp which sends it’s analog signal to the amp. Yes?
All that said, I tried switching back and forth and your Gen2 inters make a significant improvement over my ZU Audio Event XLR’s on both paths, Dac to pre and pre to amp. Just sayin’…

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Thanks Ron, those two connections were the ones I was looking to switch out. So a good difference on both but not one better than the other? Either way I am going to switch them both eventually so will start my experimenting.

Thanks @RonP and @rower30

Yes, you got it. To my ears, very happy difference for both connections. But if one path excels over the other, I can’t hear it.
I’ll just say that for me, the investment was worthwhile. As is most often the case for me, going backwards to the component that I replaced shows me the magnitude of the improvement if there is one.
I wish the anti-cable guys were right; I’d be eating better.

You and me both. I always find it odd when I am willing to buy cables that cost as much as components like and Oppo, it’s kinda weird. But they do make such a difference, at least to me too

It’s maybe a sick hobby. But then, I have a friend with a six figure investment in stamps–that sit in a locked, conditioned, custom made vault. But those stamps make him happy. My stereo makes me happy. And so it goes.

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