EWA 25 speaker cable .
as a follow up to the power chord the gents at EW audio sent me some speaker cables built using the same tech that is utilised in the power cable .
it looks similar in size to previous cables I was using , this should give a clue to my findings on this wire , in any system I have tried them in they just give more than the old cables which, incidentally were more expensive than the EW audio 25 speaker cables .
lets take Richard Hawleys lp , standing at the skys edge . love this record and have listened many times ,the sound is vast but with the new cable came a new set of background sounds waayyyy back in the soundstage , quick swap back to the old cable and even though I was looking for those sounds I couldn't hear them , swap back to the EW audio and boomshanka they are back again .
this wire isn't about finding new though , playing Melody Gardot , worrisome heart on 45rpm vinyl and all the wonderful recording techniques in this lp become more apparent , miss Gardot has a wickedly powerful voice but in this lp you can really hear her working on controlling that power and to awesome effect , the wonderful use of pronunciation of individual words is just sublime , sadly this was missed a bit with my old cables in place like the mic sock has been removed with the new cable, bringing more detail and shape to her voice . her backing band seemingly being able to connect right to her and giving perfect punctuation and counter point to her comforting tones the brushed snare drum now more subtle but more impactful when required than previously.
switching to something a bit more , erm , well , lets just say modern music with DJ Shadow the mountain will fall . as most of the recording is pinched samples I usually expect a certain loss of quality but not this LP , from the opening track it was like a new version I hadn't heard before , all the descending bass lines are so well defined and have real character , not just lows but tuneful "reach right into your core" bass . the layering of the mix is incredible , shadow has a real talent and has become a real master at building sonic landscapes where every little thing in the mix serves a purpose . on the track ,mambo' , there is an acoustic echo that was slightly lost with my old cables .
the use of clever processing to give the sense of a huge and lively acoustic is soooooo much better with the new cable , in fact every record I play now gives more , regardless of system combination this cable brings more than anything else I own from QED , tellurium q , chord , ecosse and black rhodium . I don't mean this new wire brings treble detail or emphasis , as it applies its voodoo across the board . next time someone tells me cables are snake oil I am going to throttle them with EW audio cable so they can at least die with better fidelity .
cables make a difference but this is not just a hook up wire , this cable is the kind of stuff every dealer should have when demoing equipment as it consistently gives you more of the components ability , and that is a huge statement I will stand by .
