Speaker cables for Vandersteen 5As?

Cdw57 - My dealer sells Vandersteen, and AudioQuest exclusively. He claims that Richard Vandersteen has used AudioQuest frequently both in factory tests and in shows. I tried a number of different cables with my 5As and ended up agreeing with both, and now use the AudioQuest Volcano DBS. I honestly can't tell you what it sounds like - it just disappears. There may be others just as good, but you certainly can't go wrong with the top of the line Kilmanjaro, in my opinion.

Have heard Kubala-Sosna Emotion used on these speakers to great effect.

Cdw57 - I'm using Audioquest bi-wired Kilimanjaros on my Vandy 5s and concur with Zargon. They just seem to disappear and let the music through. They bested Acoustic Zens, Audience AU24, Nordost SPMs and Nordost Valhallas in my system.

Vandersteen likes Audioquest so much that he builds his Model 5 high pass filters using the top-of-the-line "Sky" interconnect as the connecting cable.

Also, both Vandersteen and Audioquest use battery biasing (or Dielectric Bias System) in their products.

As I have commented in previous posts, my local Vandersteen dealer (Advanced Audio Systems, Tacoma, WA) uses bi-wire Goertz MI2 cables to connect his Ayre demo electronics to the Vandy 5 and 5A's. It was after hearing this setup that I bought a pair of b-wire MI2 cables for use in my own system, and I doubt that I will ever buy another speaker cable. (As a side note, my local Vandy dealer, Curtis Havens, was a partner with Richard Hardesty in the high-end audio store they owned in Los Angeles. They were the first dealership in the U.S. to carry the Vandersteen line, so Curtis has a LOT of experience in knowing what mates well with Vandy's speakers.)

Thanks for the responses. I'm going to give the AQ Kilimanjaros a try- double run biwired set. I'll report back my impressions.

WOW! The Kilimajaros are absolutely incredible! They have taken my 5As to another level. The whole musical spectrum is completely balanced, with low level detail and resolution that is the best I've heard in my system. Very impressed.

Cdw57: Did you buy the Kilimanjaros with DBS? If so, are you finding them ready to go? If not, are you noticing a change during breakin?

Yes. Latest version direct from AQ with 72v DBS. Batteries were already connected. Sounding remarkable right out of the box. If it gets better with break-in, my smile will only widen! I can't tell you how pleased I am with these with the 5As. I'm also using a 1 meter Sky XLR 72v DBS from my preamp/dac to my amp.

According to AQ, there won't be any breakin or further change due to the DBS. I have been comparing the Cheetah DBS with some older Anacondas. No matter how long I leave the Cheetahs off the system, when I put them back they sound the same. Not true of the Anacondas.

Cdw57 - glad to hear that you like KJs. I also bought a pair after extensive listening to other quality cables. It easly bested Transparent Reference w/MM among others. and the difference was not subtle.

I also tried Everest, which are about 10% better than single run of KJ, but also 100% more expensive.

I would be interested to hear how double run of KJ compares to single run.