Hello, I have quite a different experience with AQ Diamond interconnect cables. One of the aspects I seek in an audio system is its ambience, bloom and 3D. This is one thing about my system (ARC PH2/LS5II/DAC3II/VT130 and Maggie 3.3) that I really like. I could insert another preamp, e.g., the ARC LS2, and totally lose the magic of this system. And I have learned the same to be true for the cable that goes between the preamp and amp.
I can deal with some loss at the frequency extremes and the not-so-perfect imaging and ultra low resolution, but if piano notes do not have a natural decay or the same is true for saxaphone or female vocals, I really don't care about what else the sound has to offer me.
I too tried the AQ Diamond....and I tried the Transparent Ultra, Straighwire Virtuoso, SilverAudio Apassionata and NBS Master and Statement and Cardas Golden Cross. The AQ Diamond did one thing in my system that none of the other cables did....it totally wiped out the ambience and decay that I had worked so hard to achieve in my system. This was such a huge surprise for me as it was totally unexpected. Afterall, the AQ Diamond was a Stereophile recommended component! So much for that. And, I had a special XLR AQ Diamond ordered from a dealer just for the sake of my in-home cable shootout.
The critical link for me is from the line stage to the amp. The Ultra had a rolled off top end but otherwise was very musical. The Straightwire was incredibly bright but still the midrange bloom was intact. The SilverAudio gave just a slight sense of analytical sound, and it too lost some of the midrange magic, but not too badly, and its resolution was so incredible. The Cardas was a little too warm, lots of bloom but I too realized it was just too much of a good thing in the context of my system as the midrange was a bit too forward after hearing the others. The NBS Master was tried last and it blew away the competition. I had never heard of NBS until then but the local dealer told me to take this home and try it in the cable shootout as well. Like the AQ and SilverAudio, the NBS had the resolution in spades....but unlike these others, the NBS brought on a level of musicality (in the mids specifically) that the AQ could not even begin to touch. Wow, in the female vocals specifically, you could hear the harmonic richness in the voice like none of the other cables could do....it just came right out in the room. A most incredible experience. For such a cable-skeptic as I was at the time, I was a true believer in cable differences at that moment. Unfortunately the NBS was so darn expensive that I went ahead with a mixture of Cardas and SilverAudio in my system. I have since gone on with a great deal on NBS Statement in this link and wow, the difference this cable makes here is simply amazing.
I have learned that other links in my system, e.g., phono stage to line stage, are not very critical of cable changes in the sense of tonal differences. This does not make much sense and yet it is the case in my system. However, I found the SilverAudio to work well here due to its incredible resolution for the $$. The SIlverAudio clearly had the Cardas beat for resolution. I did not try the AQ Diamond in this link ..... only between the line and amp.
So here is yet a completely different viewpoint on the AQ Diamond. It only goes to show that you better not buy something based on someone else's comments because you might end up very disappointed.
So as Carl is very much a big fan of AQ, I myself think the NBS is the GREATEST cable I have so far heard. Its price is absolutely ridiculous and yet there are some good deals to be had on the used market. For an overall great cable value, I think this goes to the Cardas Golden Cross.
John
I can deal with some loss at the frequency extremes and the not-so-perfect imaging and ultra low resolution, but if piano notes do not have a natural decay or the same is true for saxaphone or female vocals, I really don't care about what else the sound has to offer me.
I too tried the AQ Diamond....and I tried the Transparent Ultra, Straighwire Virtuoso, SilverAudio Apassionata and NBS Master and Statement and Cardas Golden Cross. The AQ Diamond did one thing in my system that none of the other cables did....it totally wiped out the ambience and decay that I had worked so hard to achieve in my system. This was such a huge surprise for me as it was totally unexpected. Afterall, the AQ Diamond was a Stereophile recommended component! So much for that. And, I had a special XLR AQ Diamond ordered from a dealer just for the sake of my in-home cable shootout.
The critical link for me is from the line stage to the amp. The Ultra had a rolled off top end but otherwise was very musical. The Straightwire was incredibly bright but still the midrange bloom was intact. The SilverAudio gave just a slight sense of analytical sound, and it too lost some of the midrange magic, but not too badly, and its resolution was so incredible. The Cardas was a little too warm, lots of bloom but I too realized it was just too much of a good thing in the context of my system as the midrange was a bit too forward after hearing the others. The NBS Master was tried last and it blew away the competition. I had never heard of NBS until then but the local dealer told me to take this home and try it in the cable shootout as well. Like the AQ and SilverAudio, the NBS had the resolution in spades....but unlike these others, the NBS brought on a level of musicality (in the mids specifically) that the AQ could not even begin to touch. Wow, in the female vocals specifically, you could hear the harmonic richness in the voice like none of the other cables could do....it just came right out in the room. A most incredible experience. For such a cable-skeptic as I was at the time, I was a true believer in cable differences at that moment. Unfortunately the NBS was so darn expensive that I went ahead with a mixture of Cardas and SilverAudio in my system. I have since gone on with a great deal on NBS Statement in this link and wow, the difference this cable makes here is simply amazing.
I have learned that other links in my system, e.g., phono stage to line stage, are not very critical of cable changes in the sense of tonal differences. This does not make much sense and yet it is the case in my system. However, I found the SilverAudio to work well here due to its incredible resolution for the $$. The SIlverAudio clearly had the Cardas beat for resolution. I did not try the AQ Diamond in this link ..... only between the line and amp.
So here is yet a completely different viewpoint on the AQ Diamond. It only goes to show that you better not buy something based on someone else's comments because you might end up very disappointed.
So as Carl is very much a big fan of AQ, I myself think the NBS is the GREATEST cable I have so far heard. Its price is absolutely ridiculous and yet there are some good deals to be had on the used market. For an overall great cable value, I think this goes to the Cardas Golden Cross.
John