Post by MartinT on May 25, 2019 18:17:19 GMT
This is just a quick review of the Coherent 6D interconnects, seeing as we have mostly mentioned their mains cables in the past. I have two sets in my system, a balanced XLR run from DAC to preamp and a single-ended phono run from preamp to power amp. I'm covering both as they have very similar characteristics although, as I've always said, single-ended cables make more of a different in sound quality terms than XLRs.
The cables are quite thick and not terribly flexible, very well made and come with an unknown brand of tightening phono plugs or nicely made XLR locking plugs. A silver coloured shield is visible through the sheaf and that is pretty much it as far as understanding the materials are concerned. There is a family appearance with the power cables, speaker cables and interconnects all having a similar look. I know they are all hand made by Coherent but I know nothing else about them except that shielding is taken very seriously, a characteristic that becomes obvious when listening. They are all cooked on a cable burner before being delivered. However, having spoken with several owners, we all agree that it's just the beginning of the burn-in process and they take a couple of hundred hours at least to give their best performance. This is the same as for the mains cables, although the speaker cables are more 'ready to go'.
So what is it that they do that makes them so special and worth the considerable cost? They are incredibly transparent and seem to add no character of their own. In the best 'cables can only subtract' manner, they do the least manipulation of the signal of any cable I've ever heard. Comparing them with two of the best cables in my possession, the Black Cat Airwave 3202 and Townshend Fractal F1, they reveal the BCs to be quite upfront, vivid and a little loose (similar to the NVA TIS) and the Fractals to be a little recessed in comparison. The high quality of the shielding is revealed as the noise floor is the lowest I've ever heard and music emerges in a sometimes quite shocking manner from absolute dead silence. The 6Ds appear to do nothing to add any flavour to the mix. What you do get is a level of insight into the music that is above what any other cable I've heard can do. The pinpoint focus within the soundstage is the first and most obvious sign of a classy cable. Next is the pin-drop level of fine detail. Finally, its dynamics are obvious but natural and not exaggerated. Headroom is significantly improved and the music doesn't become strained on peaks: for instance, Sade's voice in Why Can't We Live Together doesn't strain yet I can pick up a very slight croak when she's at full stretch. Timing is relayed extraordinarily well in both Steely Dan's Gaucho and Rosie Vela's Magic Smile. The soundstage is very well developed and makes my speakers image like very good small boxes, with the music being completely detached from them. This stands true for good analogue recordings like Dire Strait's Water of Love and Mazzy Star's Fade Into You. If it's dynamics you want, Alt-J's Dissolve Me gives it in spades. Finally, there is so much fine detail in Rickie Lee Jones' cover of Rebel Rebel that it's like listening afresh to something I know so well.
In conclusion, cable naysayers need not apply. If you have a well developed, highly resolving system, on the other hand, and want cables to do it justice, then loan a pair of Coherent interconnects. It's unlikely that you'll want to give them back.
www.coherent-systems.co.uk/coherent-cables
The cables are quite thick and not terribly flexible, very well made and come with an unknown brand of tightening phono plugs or nicely made XLR locking plugs. A silver coloured shield is visible through the sheaf and that is pretty much it as far as understanding the materials are concerned. There is a family appearance with the power cables, speaker cables and interconnects all having a similar look. I know they are all hand made by Coherent but I know nothing else about them except that shielding is taken very seriously, a characteristic that becomes obvious when listening. They are all cooked on a cable burner before being delivered. However, having spoken with several owners, we all agree that it's just the beginning of the burn-in process and they take a couple of hundred hours at least to give their best performance. This is the same as for the mains cables, although the speaker cables are more 'ready to go'.
So what is it that they do that makes them so special and worth the considerable cost? They are incredibly transparent and seem to add no character of their own. In the best 'cables can only subtract' manner, they do the least manipulation of the signal of any cable I've ever heard. Comparing them with two of the best cables in my possession, the Black Cat Airwave 3202 and Townshend Fractal F1, they reveal the BCs to be quite upfront, vivid and a little loose (similar to the NVA TIS) and the Fractals to be a little recessed in comparison. The high quality of the shielding is revealed as the noise floor is the lowest I've ever heard and music emerges in a sometimes quite shocking manner from absolute dead silence. The 6Ds appear to do nothing to add any flavour to the mix. What you do get is a level of insight into the music that is above what any other cable I've heard can do. The pinpoint focus within the soundstage is the first and most obvious sign of a classy cable. Next is the pin-drop level of fine detail. Finally, its dynamics are obvious but natural and not exaggerated. Headroom is significantly improved and the music doesn't become strained on peaks: for instance, Sade's voice in Why Can't We Live Together doesn't strain yet I can pick up a very slight croak when she's at full stretch. Timing is relayed extraordinarily well in both Steely Dan's Gaucho and Rosie Vela's Magic Smile. The soundstage is very well developed and makes my speakers image like very good small boxes, with the music being completely detached from them. This stands true for good analogue recordings like Dire Strait's Water of Love and Mazzy Star's Fade Into You. If it's dynamics you want, Alt-J's Dissolve Me gives it in spades. Finally, there is so much fine detail in Rickie Lee Jones' cover of Rebel Rebel that it's like listening afresh to something I know so well.
In conclusion, cable naysayers need not apply. If you have a well developed, highly resolving system, on the other hand, and want cables to do it justice, then loan a pair of Coherent interconnects. It's unlikely that you'll want to give them back.
www.coherent-systems.co.uk/coherent-cables
