I spent yesterday afternoon and late into the night listening to Oliver's SPOTFIRE RCA Phono IC cables in my system, positioned between the VPI turntable and the Croft preamplifier which is I feel the critical cable position in a system. It as this point the very delicate signal from the cartridge needs to be preserved as best possible without interference or loss. I have observed that other cable positions in my system are not as sensitive.
As I mentioned previously the SPOTFIRE is very nicely manufactured and the RCA plugs fit nice and snugly and the outer braiding is not too thick, so it is quite flexible. I let my system warm up a little and took a first listen. From the outset I could hear the potential this cable had but did not want to judge it straight away as my amps sound a little flat and grainy until they are warm.
I will skip over what I heard in the first hour and fast forward to the end of the evening ( 7 hours later). By this time everything was on song and I was able to evaluate what this cable was truly doing in my system. I know all these things are subjective as folk perceive different aspects of sound reproduction which is important to them. It is these aspects that tick the boxes as to wether something sounds good to them or not. The important aspects for me in sound reproduction are transparency, balance, realism, tonal quality and soundstage. The SPOTFIRE gave me everything I could wish for, ticking all these boxes.
I have never heard a cable at whatever price or by which ever manufacture that sounded this good in my system! It is truly remarkable and I scratch my head as to how Oliver has come up with the magical combination of components and construction that makes this cable so good. Large well known companies spend a fortune developing cables as R&D is a big part of the reason some cables are so expensive. I know talking to Oliver he has spent a lot of time putting this cable together, evaluating each aspect. It his ability to hear what is important and convey this into constructing a cable that makes is so good.
The SPOTFIRE is balanced perfectly from top to bottom. My top end is a bit much with the 2M black but this cable allowed it to give me all the detail and more but without the over emphasised hardness it sometimes has. The bottom end is articulate, fatter and more evident by someway compared to what I have heard before and the midrange is just to die for! The soundstage is way more 3D with fantastic depth and wider. Listening to some of my favourite albums was a complete joy. What was very pleasing was how difficult slightly hard recordings became much more listenable. Because the midrange is so good vocals are sublime and very real. The SPOTFIRE allowed my system to sound so transparent I was in awe how some instruments and vocals came across.
I could go on and on but I would simply say you
need to try this cable in your system!
I was so amazed at what it did in my system I have ordered one immediately from Oliver.