I use and enjoy the Homegrown Super Silver IC's. I have not compared them to a lot of cables, just Kimber PBJ and KCAG, also to HT's Silway and Truthlinks. I own the Truthlinks and the Homegrowns and prefer both to the others mentioned. I have a CAL ICON II, Musical Fidelity X-A1 and Castle Isis speakers. The Castles are noted in professional reviews as having some sibilance to the mids but it does not seem to be present with the use of the Homegrowns. The only "SSSSS" sounds that I hear are from vocalists that do not know how use the microphone and their tounge/teeth to their best advantage. The whole range is very detailed which includes the mids. Warmth is not a problem in my system as my source has a very warm/analog sound to it. I tried them on a Marantz 67SE player and the system did lack warmth, but I feel that it was due to the sonic signature of the player which is too shrill for my taste. Their "light" design also helps with the use of isolation components as well. I also enjoy switching out IC's and will order a pair of the Mapleshade IC's as well. There is not a lot written about them and having recently talked with their designer I am even more curious than before. I am not familiar with what an RFI problem would sound like. If it is a hiss at very high volumes then I am experiencing it with these cables. I do not listen at these levels but recently boosted the volume (without playing a source) to check out a new piece of equipment and heard the hiss from the X-A1 at around 12:00 on the gain dial. The new amp that I was checking out hummed horribly even at 8:00 on the dial and was returned. A friend from this site is sending me RFI stoppers to try on the cable, Carl will be using them first and hopefully they will remedy the shielding problem. IC's are very system and taste dependent, but I do not have a problem recommending the Homegrown IC's to anyone. They are detailed, smooth and very well balanced (and yes they even have full articulate bass).
HomeGrown Audio Impressions
By now, I think enough of us have had the time to gauge the performance of this cable to be able to offer concrete opinions. I am curious as to the impressions of others on this cable. In my system(tubes and silk dome tweeters), I am shielded from the nasty things a silver cable can engender in some systems. They would be brightness, harshness, and irritating distortion. The negatives I have found with this unshielded cable are a significant raising of the noise floor(which you forget about when you start to play music), and a big dose of RFI when using the cable on my tuner. RFI stoppers sent to me by Eldragon(thanks so much) have done a great job cleaning things up. Otherwise, I cannot knock the cable on any level. In fact, I am able to hear farther into the music than with any copper cable I have ever tried. The sound is full, extended, and detailed. Bass response is excellent. I A/B the cable against Coincident. The Coincident has the advantage of not having RFI problems. But the HomeGrown lets me hear things the Coincident doesn't pass through. The fact that this cable is only $70 makes me think it has to be the best kept secret in wire. Better performance than Kimber KCAG, for less than the price of PBJ. Of course, it will not work for everyone. But, I am wondering how everyone else is perceiving this product. Please share with us your opinions of performance in your systems. I cannot say it is the best, because I am now using a cable that has redefined what I have gotten from wire. Just burning it in on my tuner now. Will switch to the CD player over the holiday. If performance transfers, this will be the best cable, BY FAR, I have ever used. Will report then. Thanks to everyone for your impressions.
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- 33 posts total
- 33 posts total