Shunyata Research Sigma USB cable review

[bart]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Stephen.......I have been impressed enough with the Shunyata Sigma USB cable that I saw fit to order the Shunyata Sigma digital coaxial cable today. I should probably have it in a week. It will replace what has been my reference Wireworld Platinum Starlight coaxial cable between the Aurender N10 and the Esoteric K-01X DAC in the Studio system. Looking forward to discovering what's in store.

Congrats Dan!

We will want another review of course...

[CGabriel]

Originally Posted by jdandy

The Shunyata Sigma USB cable now has 126 hours on it. Listening sessions last night and this morning have been more intense as I sense an even richer, more organic nature to the sound. It is very subtle, yet my attention is being captured to a greater extent as I listen. I'm not sure if the Sigma USB cable is reflecting some improvement from the hours on it, or whether I am simply being overwhelmed as I become accustomed to the elevated clarity and resolution. Last night and this morning I felt the sound stage was slightly more three dimensional than I initially experienced during the hours up to and including the review period. Perhaps some break-in hours are impacting the cable performance, slight as it may be. Whatever is happening I can't seem to stop listening. The Shunyata Sigma USB cable continues to impress me beyond words.

First off, thank you for the stellar review of our USB cable. It was very informative and well written as are all of your reviews.

RE: Burn-in & settling-time
I have been studying the effects of burn-in, cable directionality and cryogenic treatment for about 20 years. They are all somewhat related in that the effects each cannot be easily measured, if at all, but they seem to have an effect on the perceived performance. Burn-in has been particularly annoying over years for us as a manufacturer. Let’s use burn-in of a power cord as an example. Typically, the cable will go through several very definable stages of burn-in with corresponding sound qualities. Unfortunately, these changes in performance can be VeRy radical, going from sounding OK but a bit fuzzy to down right bright and aggressive to completely opaque is a period of just 3-5 days. This makes for wildly differing opinions on the performance of a product depending upon when a person happens to check-in on the Sonics and how much patience they might have to get through the roller coaster ride. We have even seen people on some forums accuse manufacturers of simply inventing “burn-in” as a way to trick people into keeping a product that they don’t really like. It is also tough on dealers because even if the customer has the patience to tough out for a 5 day trial - the turn around time for the dealer’s demo cables hurts his ability to expose it to very many people. So, burn-in is no fun for any of us.

Then there is a whole micro-industry of burn-in device that claim to improve or accelerate the burn-in process. Some of them better than others which I will not comment on publicly. Some of these devices actually require a periodic “tune-up” or repeat wash to keep the performance up.

After years of research into this and directionality and to what is actually happening during the cryogenic progress I developed a working theory that could explain all of these effects. From that I was able to create a device that “theoretically” would solve all them simultaneously with a single process. So we built some working prototypes with the goal of making a device that we could supply to our dealers and distributes to solve the dreaded burn-in problem.

After creating the device, which we now call the KPIP processor, it quickly became apparent that not only were we onto something but that there was no way we were going to make these devices available to anyone outside the company. The effects produced were simply too profound. So we selfishly decided to keep the process and the processor as a performance advantage for our products. Essentially we could achieve the same burn-in result in a single day as could be achieved with weeks of normal burn-in procedures. And with 2-4 days of processing time the effects improved the cables performance beyond what could be achieved with an unlimited amount of normal burn-in time.

Now onto “settling-time”. This is different than burn-in. Burn-in is characterized by very radical shifts in performance over a period a few hours to days. Settling on the other hand is what occurs when a cable is disconnected or reconnected and or disturbed physically in some way. For instance, we could have a fully burned cable and send it via UPS to a customer. The customer would get the cable and say that it sounds terrible. We would tell them that it will require a period of “settling” that may last from a few hours to a few days depending upon the severity of the disturbance. Many people have reported this effect when comparing cables. Even if they are very careful with the cable it would take a few minutes for the sound quality to stabilize and return to its stable state. Also, the type of signal and the relative voltage level and current levels can cause a change in the sound of the cable until it adjusts to the new voltage/current states. This is also what we would call a settling period.

When a cable is treated with the KPIP processor it does not go through the typical, radical, ups and downs associated with “burn-in” when you plug it in. So the cable should sound pretty good right of the box, as you correctly noted. But since it was probably shipped (vibrated) and it is now inserted into a specific system with specific transfer functions it will gradually “settle” which means it will improve over a period time. The good news is that the effects of the KPIP process is permanent and does not need to be repeated. There are some burn-in devices that can actually screw it up however, so we advise people NOT to use a burn-in device with our products. Doing so will require that the product be returned to us for re-treatment to restore it.

I hope his helps

Caelin

[jimtranr]

Thank you, Caelin, for your commentary on burn-in and settling time. It explains why my Alpha USB sounded so sterling right off the starting line and seemed "settled" by the time it had accrued no more than 50 hours of playback here.

[Puma Cat]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Stephen.......I have been impressed enough with the Shunyata Sigma USB cable that I saw fit to order the Shunyata Sigma digital coaxial cable today. I should probably have it in a week. It will replace what has been my reference Wireworld Platinum Starlight coaxial cable between the Aurender N10 and the Esoteric K-01X DAC in the Studio system. Looking forward to discovering what's in store.

Excellent!

Really looking forward to your impressions, insights and another world-class review!

[Puma Cat]

Originally Posted by CGabriel

First off, thank you for the stellar review of our USB cable. It was very informative and well written as are all of your reviews.

RE: Burn-in & settling-time
I have been studying the effects of burn-in, cable directionality and cryogenic treatment for about 20 years. They are all somewhat related in that the effects each cannot be easily measured, if at all, but they seem to have an effect on the perceived performance. Burn-in has been particularly annoying over years for us as a manufacturer. Let’s use burn-in of a power cord as an example. Typically, the cable will go through several very definable stages of burn-in with corresponding sound qualities. Unfortunately, these changes in performance can be VeRy radical, going from sounding OK but a bit fuzzy to down right bright and aggressive to completely opaque is a period of just 3-5 days. This makes for wildly differing opinions on the performance of a product depending upon when a person happens to check-in on the Sonics and how much patience they might have to get through the roller coaster ride. We have even seen people on some forums accuse manufacturers of simply inventing “burn-in” as a way to trick people into keeping a product that they don’t really like. It is also tough on dealers because even if the customer has the patience to tough out for a 5 day trial - the turn around time for the dealer’s demo cables hurts his ability to expose it to very many people. So, burn-in is no fun for any of us.

Then there is a whole micro-industry of burn-in device that claim to improve or accelerate the burn-in process. Some of them better than others which I will not comment on publicly. Some of these devices actually require a periodic “tune-up” or repeat wash to keep the performance up.

After years of research into this and directionality and to what is actually happening during the cryogenic progress I developed a working theory that could explain all of these effects. From that I was able to create a device that “theoretically” would solve all them simultaneously with a single process. So we built some working prototypes with the goal of making a device that we could supply to our dealers and distributes to solve the dreaded burn-in problem.

After creating the device, which we now call the KPIP processor, it quickly became apparent that not only were we onto something but that there was no way we were going to make these devices available to anyone outside the company. The effects produced were simply too profound. So we selfishly decided to keep the process and the processor as a performance advantage for our products. Essentially we could achieve the same burn-in result in a single day as could be achieved with weeks of normal burn-in procedures. And with 2-4 days of processing time the effects improved the cables performance beyond what could be achieved with an unlimited amount of normal burn-in time.

Now onto “settling-time”. This is different than burn-in. Burn-in is characterized by very radical shifts in performance over a period a few hours to days. Settling on the other hand is what occurs when a cable is disconnected or reconnected and or disturbed physically in some way. For instance, we could have a fully burned cable and send it via UPS to a customer. The customer would get the cable and say that it sounds terrible. We would tell them that it will require a period of “settling” that may last from a few hours to a few days depending upon the severity of the disturbance. Many people have reported this effect when comparing cables. Even if they are very careful with the cable it would take a few minutes for the sound quality to stabilize and return to its stable state. Also, the type of signal and the relative voltage level and current levels can cause a change in the sound of the cable until it adjusts to the new voltage/current states. This is also what we would call a settling period.

When a cable is treated with the KPIP processor it does not go through the typical, radical, ups and downs associated with “burn-in” when you plug it in. So the cable should sound pretty good right of the box, as you correctly noted. But since it was probably shipped (vibrated) and it is now inserted into a specific system with specific transfer functions it will gradually “settle” which means it will improve over a period time. The good news is that the effects of the KPIP process is permanent and does not need to be repeated. There are some burn-in devices that can actually screw it up however, so we advise people NOT to use a burn-in device with our products. Doing so will require that the product be returned to us for re-treatment to restore it.

I hope his helps

Caelin

"Fascinating." – Mr. Spock

[jdandy]

Caelin.......Thank you for the compliment on my review of the Sigma USB cable. Much appreciated.

With respect to burn-in and settling-in, your explanation was enlightening. After researching your KPIP process I expected the Sigma USB cable to perform well from moment one, and it did. I was probably hindering the final settling-in of the cable by connecting and disconnecting the USB cable during my A/B comparison with the Wireworld USB cable. I did this continuously over a two day period as I listened to both USB cables in two different sound systems. It wasn't until I relocated the Sigma USB cable a few days ago to its permanent home in the Living room system where it has not been disturbed since that I began to notice a certain glistening in the midrange that seemed to improved from last night through mid-morning today. Your explanation of settling-in makes sense as to why the Sigma USB cable's performance "sweetened" if you will, and now sounds even more life like and organic in nature than I describe in my review. In my opinion, the Shunyata Sigma USB cable has raised the bar for USB cable performance to a level by which all others should be measured.

Right now I am listening to a 1961 recording by Coleman Hawkins - The Hawk Relaxes. It is surreal how clean, distinct, and richly textured the timbre of each instrument is portrayed. I couldn't contain my enthusiasm today, so I ordered a one meter Sigma digital coaxial cable from Ivan to replace a Wireworld Platinum Starlight digital coaxial cable that currently connects my Aurender N10 music server to my Esoteric K-01X DAC in the Studio system. I am excited to hear what the Sigma coaxial cable has offer this system. One question, since the digital cable can be install in either direction, am I correct in thinking the TAP end of the cable will be connected to the source component's output, like the USB cable?

I am pleased to finally become exposed to Shunyata cables. You and your team are a creative group of dedicated people in the cable and noise reduction arenas. Your constant search to improve what is already a formidable line of high performance audio products is what sets Shunyata apart from your competitors.

[CGabriel]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Caelin.......Thank you for the compliment on my review of the Sigma USB cable. Much appreciated.

With respect to burn-in and settling-in, your explanation was enlightening. After researching your KPIP process I expected the Sigma USB cable to perform well from moment one, and it did. I was probably hindering the final settling-in of the cable by connecting and disconnecting the USB cable during my A/B comparison with the Wireworld USB cable. I did this continuously over a two day period as I listened to both USB cables in two different sound systems. It wasn't until I relocated the Sigma USB cable a few days ago to its permanent home in the Living room system where it has not been disturbed since that I began to notice a certain glistening in the midrange that seemed to improved from last night through mid-morning today. Your explanation of settling-in makes sense as to why the Sigma USB cable's performance "sweetened" if you will, and now sounds even more life like and organic in nature than I describe in my review. In my opinion, the Shunyata Sigma USB cable has raised the bar for USB cable performance to a level by which all others should be measured.

Right now I am listening to a 1961 recording by Coleman Hawkins - The Hawk Relaxes. It is surreal how clean, distinct, and richly textured the timbre of each instrument is portrayed. I couldn't contain my enthusiasm today, so I ordered a one meter Sigma digital coaxial cable from Ivan to replace a Wireworld Platinum Starlight digital coaxial cable that currently connects my Aurender N10 music server to my Esoteric K-01X DAC in the Studio system. I am excited to hear what the Sigma coaxial cable has offer this system. One question, since the digital cable can be install in either direction, am I correct in thinking the TAP end of the cable will be connected to the source component's output, like the USB cable?

I am pleased to finally become exposed to Shunyata cables. You and your team are a creative group of dedicated people in the cable and noise reduction arenas. Your constant search to improve what is already a formidable line of high performance audio products is what sets Shunyata apart from your competitors.

Thanks for kind words. It is always gratifying when other audiophiles appreciate the energy and focus that we put into each of our products.

On the Aurender to Esoteric digital cable - I assume this is a S/PDIF cable. If so, it is a true 75 ohm cable and it is directional.

[jdandy]

Caelin.......Yes, S/PDIF. Happy to hear it is a true 75 ohm cable. Am I correct that the TAP end connects to the source component?

[CGabriel]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Caelin.......Yes, S/PDIF. Happy to hear it is a true 75 ohm cable. Am I correct that the TAP end connects to the source component?

Yes, TAP is near the source end.
But to be clear TAP has NO physical connections to any of the cable’s conductors or shields.

When we first introduced the TAP based cables, we would demonstrate them at trade shows and at dealer events. We built TAP modules that could be slipped over an RCA connector. This allows us to demonstrate an RCA interconnect without TAP and then quickly slip the TAP modules onto the exact same cable. This allows people to hear exactly what the TAP modules contribute to the performance.

[Puma Cat]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Caelin.......Yes, S/PDIF. Happy to hear it is a true 75 ohm cable. Am I correct that the TAP end connects to the source component?

Hi Dan,
If the Sigma S/PDIF cable is comparable to my Venom S/PDIF, Shunyata Venom interconnects or Ethernet cables, there will be some heat-shrinkable tubing (or some other means) with an arrow to indicate direction of placement. I know that these directionality indicators are sometimes not shown the professional products shots on many company web sites. FWIW, it's a common "best practice" by professional product photographers to remove tags, country-specific safety labels, other bits/things from product shots to show the product in its best aesthetic light (just as you often see Euro-spec cars in American car ads on TV, by way of example).

Here's a "quick 'n dirty" product photo I took for you with my wonderful little Fuji X100F of my Venom SPDIF showing a label indicating directionality of installation. Cheers!