Banana plugs on the BHK amps are a pain.
I found that you have to loosen the nut up and at the same time you are loosening it, push the banana plug in.
As of last night i’ve tried the following:
I’m still using my Cardas Quadlink 5c speaker cables.
For my source I have the following two that i’ve been A / B comparing:
- mark levinson 5101 with RCA Cardas Quadlink 5c interconnects to the BHK preamp
- Hegel Viking XLR Audioquest Water interconnects to the BHK preamp
I even brought my wife into the mix to see her opinion. It seems that the mark levinson has more sparkle, where the Hegel is more natural / organic sounding.
In the long run, after maybe an hour i think the mark levinson will get grating on the 802 D4s. But on the Hegel that wouldn’t happen.
Remember, I’m trying to work with these speakers
Later last night, I tried what Walt suggested about inserting the banana plugs into the bare wire slot in the side of the binding post. Genius, it really worked much better than i could have expected.
So now I switched from the Cardas Quadlink 5c to the Norcost Heimdall. My dealer is all excited that I try these cables and expects me to love them.
All listening was done on the Hegel Viking with XLR Audioquest Water interconnects to the BHK preamp.
I found that the Cardas cable sounded much fuller and natural than the Norcost on my setup. The Norcost made everything sound thin, bright, quicker…but again, I don’t want to feel like i’m at a Disco.
When inhad my Focals I found Cardas the best. I think you will too with those B&W.
Also look into the speaker cables from Triode Wire Labs in NY. Pete’s cables have all of the qualities you are looking for and he has a 30 day money back trial period. Many dozens of professional and user reviews are online.
I contacted Cardas directly today, and spent quite a bit of time explaining my audio system to them.
They suggested I try the:
Cardas Clear Reflection Bi-wire configuration.
The person I spoke with was familiar with both the 802’s and the BHK 300 amps.
I’m not familiar with these cables.
The TWL cables are warm, full sounding cables with no hint of harshness in my usage. Also as they are a direct sale they are quite a bit cheaper and Pete uses Cardas connectors. Read the reviews and reach out to Pete. Same thing applies to his IC’s.
I will read the reviews
Listened the last several days with the Norcost cables with the Hegel Viking cd player.
It’s amazing what you hear after a few days. I find that the Norcost cables are very transparent, but so are the 802’s. Together, it’s too much of a good thing. Midbass is suprisingly nice on the Norcost cables.
Compared to any of my old cables, I like the detail, but not the hyper-detail I’m achieving with this combination.
So the search is on for a speaker cable that is transparent and will compliment the 802’s better
After another week listening to the Nordost cables, I’m starting to appreciate the clarity and openness of the sound. My question is it an exaggerated clarity and transparency, that my brain is merely adapting to?
Is this why so many dealers are saying that speakers need 300, 400, even 500 hours of break-in, when the manufacturer themselves say 15-20 hours?
My newest dealer is saying 500+ hours for a new DAC.
Is this starting to get carried away?
Depending on the type of DAC 200-300 hours is more likely but since you spin discs mainly you need to make sure that the transport has the reuqisite digital outputs which your Levinson does not and the Hegel is limited to BNC. If you like the sound of the AKM DAC in the Hegel then you are good but if you want to try another type of DAC like an R to R then try something inexpensive like the Laiv uDAC that has a return policy. You will just need to order the appropriate cable from any of dozens of sources.
As Cheryl Crow says “If it makes you happy, it can’t be that bad”. If you are satisfied with music sound quality, that’s all that matters.
I don’t fully understand the acronyms your talking about, but I do know that I have to live with my 802 D4s and I’m making the best of it. I do know that the Hegel Viking is very nice sounding compared to my mark levinson 5101. just sounds more natural.
Not sure about speaker cables, now my cable guy tells me that i should change my interconnects first then worry about my speaker cables
every day it seems the plan changes
Sounds like you are getting a lot of strange and frequent recommendations from your source. Not sure I’d trust the salesman, it hasn’t served you well up to this point.
If you like the sound of the Viking just stay with it and don’t worry about other DAC types for now. Concentrate on doing your own research about cables and don’t rely on the dealer that sold you the speakers. There are plenty of cable brands available with trial periods you just have to do something and quit procrastinating about everything. You even have one here on this forum with a free trial period so reach out to them. At some point you have to decide do you want the advice of the members here with many decades of experience or the dealer who sold you the speakers you didn’t like. One of the two has a financial stake in the equation while the other has just been trying to help you for well over a year.
i’ve moved on to different outlets and salepersons. Each one has their own different opinions making it even more complicated
aren’t too many dealers that have lots of cables in inventory, or will lend you cables for free
The Cable company
Yup, contacted them. Got their name from Cardas directly.
Cardas recommends Clear Reflection bi-wired speaker cables for the link between the 802 D4s and the BHK 300s.
Cable Company recommends tossing the Audioquest Water interconnects and getting better interconnects with a cheaper speaker cable. They say that Nordost is a bad match for my system.
Anyone have any experience with any of these cables?
It looks as if I’m going to purchase the Hegel Viking. It just sounds natural with any cable or speaker I’ve tried it with.
BTW, some of you really get off on bashing me and my system. Can we put it to rest already. I have moved on from my dealer and am trying different avenues.
Also, The Cable company does not lend cables for free. They charge, but the fees go towards the cables if you purchase. So if I try cables from the Cable company, I am committed to purchasing from them.