Mogami balanced cables .... or another brand?

05-13-08: Tvad
If Atma-Sphere's balanced designs negate the effect of balanced interconnect cables, then Ralph's use of Mogami wire says more about his endorsement of using inexpensive balanced ICs than it does about the quality of Mogami wire.

I think you have jumped from a qualified statement to a sweeping generalization without cause.

I have not seen Ralph write that all low-cost balanced IC's work well, but I think I have seen him write that Mogami's do.

And I have seen him write that well designed and executed differential/balanced systems minimize most cable influence. But, I don't think I have ever seen him write that D/B systems negate "all" cable influences from all balanced cables. That is why I attempted qualified my statement with "mostly" because an extremely low-quality, poorly designed and constructed, balanced cable might still have a profound negative effect.

I mostly agree with you, but I stand by my observation. If Atma-Sphere's D/B design mostly negates the effects of balanced interconnect cables, then the quality of cabling (expensive/inexpensive wire, insulation and geometry, manufacturer mark-up) should mostly not matter. Having used Mogami 2534 and terminated it myself, I saw nothing particularly fancy in the wire or design...insulated and spiraled copper conductors with a stranded copper shield. Good basic materials and construction.

Regarding the cost of Mogami versus other inexpensive wire...I can't recall seeing a less expensive balanced interconnect than Mogami, so to me the argument seems moot. However, having said that it's certain that several posters will list some that are less expensive.

Perhaps I'm off base, but I understood Ralph's point to be that the effects of more expensive wire would be mostly negated. I know Ralph likes Mogami wire as he uses it internally in his preamps and amps, and he made me a pair of balanced RCA (with ground wire)>XLR phono cables out of Mogami wire.

I use Oyaide PA-02, which I compared to Mogami 2534 with my Atma-Sphere MP-1 and M-60. I heard a difference, and I thought the Oyaide sounded better (more extension, wider and larger image).

Mogami are nice quality. I use Mogami and Yorkville and Mogami are better built but roughly twice the price.

I switched PAD Dominus Rev C cable (at quite a few $ K) to Mogami 2534 between my MP-1 and MA-2, saved more than $3K and have indistinguishable sound. I repeat and stand by that statement!

Good points Tvad, it just that I don't have any first hand experience with Atma gear or RK's thoughts outside what he's posted on audio forums. So, I was unqualified to say anything more.

I've followed your component swapping journey and know you put parts through their paces, so I happily defer to your greater hands-on experience.