I'm now a Cardas Woman. I used to be a Kimber gal

Elizabeth. I think you should try the Cardas Golden Cross ICs. Especially if you like the Cardas Sound.
Some people love them and others will say that hate them ,and that they are slow and rolled off. I am using a a pair from Dac to pre.
When used in the right setup or combination with other cables and components They can sound Excellent.

01-18-14: Elizabeth
I recently also bought a pair of 1m Cardas Golden Reference and am not so happy with them. they are too polite for me. And IMO kill the air in the room around instruments.

@Grey9hound, Elizabeth has already said the CGR is too polite, I would think that the Golden Cross would then be MUCH too polite. Elizabeth has also been on record as claiming that she really enjoys clean, extended high frequency response. So I doubt that she would have any luck with the Cardas Golden Cross, the warmest Cardas cable yet.

Oh , sorry . I missed that

Somehow, I think this thread has worn itself out. First, because it seems to make music secondary to the audio equipment that electronically produces it Sure, everybody wants to get closer to the emotional content of the music they like, but such obsession turns into a game of one-upmanship and seems pointless.

Second, there seems to be a cult being nurtured by this thread. I can see where someone less knowledgeable, with less financial resources and less time to test and flip IC's (or whatever) could be reluctant to ask a simple, even naïve question, or make an equally simple comment.

It might be time to hang up this hobby, and move on. It is not fun anymore

For sunnyjim.
Why should people with better systems stop discussing them? Just because it might discourage someone else from even trying? Sorry that is how you feel. When I am talking about stuff most of the time it is rather subtle. At this point in the game it is millimeters. not even feet.. Where others are talking about big pictures. I am down to the minute details..
Sorry if it all seems pointless to you.

For me it is 100% about the music and having it sound good. This thread started as just saying i wnet to new IC.. Then it changed to moaning about one which went too far. i went a step too far buying the 7m Cardas Parsec, and all this beyond is just scrabbling to regain what i threw away in error.
The Parsec wires I bought sound good. Except the one long one. Folks with comments and suggestions are really welcomed. Though i agree the Golden Cross is totally the wrong thing for me. (PS the 'new' Cardas are really a whole new paradigm compared to the 'old' Cardas. and are different from them. If you love the old Cardas, buy them up NOW, cuz' Cardas has totally changed it's sound. And the new stuff is different.

I spent $1,290 on one wire pair, then another $550 on raw wire to try to replace THAT one which did not work. (the $550 was dirt cheap compared to the finished wires would have been $3K OUCH!) And I am still interested in blowing another $350 on some other Kimber wire to try. (I can use the wire anyway... but trying both types on my 7m run is great)
So I am 'bad? for wanting to try stuff out? Maybe folks who have lots of money spent on stereo stuff should go hide? I do not have a lot of money, But i do spend a LOT of what I have on either stereo or music. Of late it has been 100% on cables.. Crazy. But probably the LAST big chunk of money i ever spend on IC.

My next big plan is the spend $15,000 to buy some Magnepan 20.7. If all this makes you want to quit.. Not really my fault.

As for less mature folks asking questions? I try hard to help answer anyones questions. this thread is helping some folks too. Gennerally it is like blogging. Letting others know what i did, and what worked, or not. Entertaining to some I what I hear.

IMO the main thing is changing IC is not just spending money.. It takes time to sort out stuff. And yes some things just do not work out at all. that is life. Not discouraging to me at all.
i just chalk up the waste of money to "What if I went to Las Vegas? (sort of gee I spend five grand and all I can remember was I had a bad hangover and no money...) LOL

This is better than that anyway.