Hello all, more listening results from me on the RCA's, below is a copy already sent to Mr KARMA with some more info.
"I am listening to the KARMA RCA's now as we speak which is very interesting. Initially I tried them between the EAR MC4 SUT and the LFD Phono stage(MM setting), I did not like this at all, it seemed to muddy things across the spectrum, the output from the SUT would have been around 4mV. A couple of thoughts on this, firstly the cables may be too long for such a low voltage, or perhaps I stupidly did not have them the right way around. I will give them another go in this position.
I then put them from the LFD phono stage to the ALLNIC amp and there was immediately a noticeable change in tonality and I think an extra depth to the musical presentation. They replaced a pair of Eccose Reference RCA's. I switched back and back again with the same couple of tracks from Jethro Tull - Songs from the Wood to make sure my ears/brain was not playing tricks, and they certainly were not.
So from this initial listen and at this point I would say that the KARMA RCA's are a definite improvement over the Ecosse Ref's, the Eccose actually sound a tad bright and possibly slightly grainy. The KARMA's seem to bring a richer overall presentation, especially in the low-mid range, and musically seems more energised(if that makes sense). With my Vienna Acoustic Mozart speakers this is a very pleasing musical result. I am also listening to track one of Moody Blues - A Question of Balance, lots of dynamics and spacial soundstage, this track has some serious bass in sections from bass drum and bass guitar, I have read others report that with these RCA's it can be too much in the low end but at the moment I am not finding that."
I did some more listening last Friday and Sunday afternoon.
With Vienna Acoustic Mozart Grande SE speakers:
Eva Cassidy:
Fields of Gold(original live recording 45rpm vinyl) a very pleasing tonal presentation with good harmonics and tonality between the two guitars, Eva's voice sounding very natural.
Baby I Love You (original live recording 45rpm vinyl) this was presented in possibly the best I have heard with my system, an awkward track as the bass can overpower the overall mix in places, also Eva's voice can sound dry and receed in the soundstage. This was not the case with the KARMA's, a good balanced presentation with lots of bass but not OTT. I was surprised as I though this might be the let down track.
10cc - The Worst Band in the World: A very good rendition, lots of dynamics and fast sharp attack on guitar and drums, bass good and controlled, and exciting and dynamic listen.
I change the speakers over on Sunday to the JBL L100's and listened as below:
Both Eva Cassidy tracks as before, with a bit more bass, as you would expect form the JBL's, but still in control and not over powering. Ravi Shankar - Portrait of a Genius, Tala Rasa Ranga: this was a quite stunning listen with deep hollow bass from the Tabla's and lovely tone to the the flute, sitar was clear and natural in the mix. The KARMA's certainly doing a great job.
I also listened to Vol 1 of David Bowie live in Montreal FM recording newly re-released on vinyl in two volumes. This rendition was punchy, good dynamics and an open soundstage, live recordings can IMO be difficult to not sound muddled, obviously this can depend greatly on the recording process at the time, so a good result from the KARMA's
Summing up -
I am of the opinion that the KARMA's are a very competent cable giving a clear and open sound stage. One area to be aware of is the bass and low-mid range, tonally they could be viewed by some as being slightly warmer than other cables, this is not to say they are wrong in their presentation of the music, far from it. I found that with my Vienna Acoustics speakers the overall listening experience was actually better than with my other RCA's, with the JBL's it just added to the overall experience.
Another aspect was that I found when put between the EAR SUT and LFD phono stage it had a very big impact on the sound, making everything sound as if the bass/mid pots had been cranked up, I suspect this is because the cable may be too long in this application or that it is not suited to low voltage/current.
So I would give the KARMA's a very strong 9/10 leaning towards 9.5/10 if they work in your set up.
Originally Posted by Alex_UK
