New Audioquest speaker wires.... "Mythical" series.

[joey_v]

Seems very expensive for what it is.

I still don't get how it is better than the tree series that is counterspiral whereas these are simply double starquads.

[mcpaf76]

I agree, they're pricing on what they think people will pay now. Look how much the higher models jump in price when they all have the same tech. Since when do upgraded conductors in any of the lines increase that drastically. Something like this makes me seriously reconsider giving them any more money.

[mcpaf76]

Tonight instead of ordering one of these at a reasonable price or something like a Castle Rock which apparently isn't even available anymore I'm going to throw together some DIY 8 gauge cable and call my system done for now.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by joey_v

New AQ speaker wires have been introduced, they call it the "Mythical Series". Apparently, Thunderbird, Firebird, and Dragon.

Looks similar externally to the Tree Series, but the internals look different. My guess is more shielding, the new DBS 72v unit, but looks to be less complicated in terms of a wire geometry. Does not appear to have differing gauge wires, looks to be a double star quad geometry, which makes me wonder why they chose this geometry when their Tree series is a Counterspiral geometry.... their Flat Rock series is double star quad, which is lower than the Tree.

I wonder if it's more hype than substance.

Either way, I ain't moving from my Tree series WEL.

Somehow with this new series of cable the impedance of the cable becomes essentially zero. AQ doesn't say how this is possible. I have on order a 3 meter Redwood (37.5% silver) for my Thor. I could have chosen a Firebird but I feel more comfortable with the Redwood. It's an extremely fine copper/silver cable whose geometry matches my Wel Sig to my Alexx. Seemed more logical to match the geometry than to go with the latest cable. I suspect the Tree Series will be discontinued in the near future. Doesn't bother me. Redwood is a fantastic cable, extremely well built and 9 gauge. In absolute terms your not ever going to get much better than a Redwood including my Wel Sig in my opinion.

Also ordered 7 meter Wolf (10% silver) balanced IC for Thor and 3 meter HC Hurricane. All KK copper will with installation finally be out of system. Looking forward to top line all AQ system. AQ says solid silver cable overkill for sub woofer like Thor. Not necessary as it operates below 30 Hz. If your sub is extending into upper bass and low midrange you might want to consider a Firebird bass cable as opposed to Redwood. I'm going with Redwood. But the Wild Dog has been discontinued. Only Wolf available. I'll post a few pics of the installation. My KK copper cables and IC's and power cord were over 12 years old. My MIT power conditioners were 20 years old. I certainly don't plan on replacing my new Wel's or Redwood or Wolf for many many years if ever. Or my Dragon or Hurricane power cords, or my Niagara's.

[joey_v]

I’m not convinced by the new claims

I would like to start reading reviews on it.

No plan on replacing my wels

[mcpaf76]

Originally Posted by joey_v

I’m not convinced by the new claims

I would like to start reading reviews on it.

No plan on replacing my wels

For me it doesn't matter what they claim or even actually do. They're priced proportionality too high for my setup. Just wouldn't make sense. Even base cable is more than my speakers and amp are individually.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by joey_v

I’m not convinced by the new claims

I would like to start reading reviews on it.

No plan on replacing my wels

Joey, did you know that Audioquest is as big as Monster Cable? When you read TAS or Stereophile they advertise heavily in these mags.The new Firebirds are on the back cover of the latest TAS, for example. I believe they have a very large R&D budget also. This is quite important IMO. I think the build quality of AQ cables very high also.

I don't pay much attention to reviews. Rather I talk with AQ directly and rely on them for advice. For example, it was their recommendation to go with Redwood over Firebird, even though the Firebird is their latest most advanced cable (other than the new Dragon).

Now if I had an unlimited budget, and were just beginning with my Alexx upgrade, I'd go all Dragon with the Alexx as opposed to Wel Sig cables and Dragon power cords. Then add the new Firebird bass cable. I'd keep the Wolf and Hurricane power cord the same. However, I am totally satisfied with what will eventually be my last cable upgrade for many many years. This is after my new Redwood, Wolf, and HC Hurricane for my sub-woofer system arrives.

I also value a lot folks like yours opinion that actually own their cables more than reviewers'. I wonder how these folks can swap fantastically expensive cables in and out of their systems. Cables that routinely cost significantly more than their other equipment.

[mulveling]

Redwood is a really nice cable; hopefully there are some really tempting deals (used & demos) on Redwood/Wild/WEL over the next few months due to the new line.

AQ pricing has always been based on a simple formula of <fixed cost> + <length> * <gauge> * <metal type>. The new speaker cables have a much higher <fixed cost> than the prior line. They always incrementally increase the metal costs every few years. But that part of the calculation shouldn't be different versus the old line. The question is what the actual gauge of the new cables is, and what the proportion of PSS silver vs. PSC+ copper is on the Firebird and Dragon models (say Redwood was around 25% PSS; Wild was around 75%). The metal cost of PSS is several times higher than that of PSC+, so that alone causes the price to explode really quickly.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by mulveling

Redwood is a really nice cable; hopefully there are some really tempting deals (used & demos) on Redwood/Wild/WEL over the next few months due to the new line.

AQ pricing has always been based on a simple formula of <fixed cost> + <length> * <gauge> * <metal type>. The new speaker cables have a much higher <fixed cost> than the prior line. They always incrementally increase the metal costs every few years. But that part of the calculation shouldn't be different versus the old line. The question is what the actual gauge of the new cables is, and what the proportion of PSS silver vs. PSC+ copper is on the Firebird and Dragon models (say Redwood was around 25% PSS; Wild was around 75%). The metal cost of PSS is several times higher than that of PSC+, so that alone causes the price to explode really quickly.

Totally agree. I think discounts will be hard to find but I hope folks can find them. Also I think used cables can get thrown around, stepped on, and abused. Redwood according to AQ has 6 silver strands (37.5%) and 10 copper for a total of 16. At 9 gauge and 3 meter I'm sure the characteristic impedance (resistance) is very close to zero. It's a better match for me than Firebird.

BTW, I think there is going to be a new line of Firebird power cords. Am I correct?

[johndoe21ro]

I will probably die with the WEL ICs and the Everest loudspeaker cables!
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