AUDIOQUEST CV-4

TR19.11.2011

Speaker cables

There is one thing that is common for both the CV-4 and the Rocket 33: the complex perception of a music and analog feel to it. The CV-4 is more mature, however, and the listener hears it.

Funkce a forma

95%
Ergonomie
45%
Zvuk
95%
Zpracování

The CV-4 features what Audioquest calls Star-Quad geometry: there are four twisted solid core PSC (perfect surface copper) conductors with two different diameters to eliminate the sonic signature inherit to the cables with unified cross-section areas (according to Audioquest). The outer shell is PVC with a nylon braid.

So called DBS or Dielectric Bias System is the CV-4’s outstanding feature. There is a small battery pack attached to the cable that provides a bias to the insulation of the cable to reduce energy storage in the dielectric, the producer says. Audioquest provide the DBS system to most their higher models including the flagship, WEL signature.

The Audioquest CV-4 is, like its lower priced sibling Rocket 33, directional so you need to connect the SPEAKER END to the speakers and the AMP END to the amplifier. The connections via hollow expandable bananas are secure and tight. The CV-4 boasts of an emerald green outer braid that feels like fabric on touch. It gives the cable nostalgic feel which contrasts with the technology: the DBS 72V system cases attached to each channel of the cable. There is a tiny green LED on each case indicating that the system works properly. Should the green light is gone you need to change the battery inside. I had no strain working with the CV-4 with its bend radius of 40mm.

Nízké frekvence

Váha
56
Výbušnost
58
Artikulace
59

This review is a part of The Low and Mid-tier Speaker Cables Megatest that includes 18 different speaker cables. The pilot article is available at SPECIAL EDITION REVIEWS section of Audiodrom.

Čistota rozlišení

Detail
46
Vzduch
47
Transparentnost
47

Tonální věrnost

Témbr
46
Dynamika
48
Časování
46

If the Rocket 33 was fluid and smooth then the CV-4 is even more fluid and smoother. It is also more transparent and its lows are better defined which highly contributes to Ron Carter’s bass line correctness in White Rabbit. The bass is swift and informative and though it does not extend to the depths of, let’s say, Kimber’s Monocle X, it is punchy and easy to follow. I would not object to having both definition and earthshaking depth but this is the challenge of high end audio that is to be solved yet. The CV-4 was very articulated on Johnny Cash’s voice in Hurt and somehow managed to project it in a throat-to-mouth style.

Prostorovost

Trojrozměrnost
76
Šířka scény
78
Hloubka scény
74

When compared to the best, the Furutech Evolution II, or to the reference, the Krautwire Fractal, the CV-4 has to step aside. The Audioquest’s sonic picture is like a painting: it is complex, it focuses on the leitmotif, it glows with deep colours and it induces emotions in us. The longer we enjoy the painting the more and more details, those we did not notice before, are apparent. This is how the picture is painted by the CV-4. The Fractal adds one more dimension: you also see the canvas and you see that the paint is peeling and cracking a bit. If you switch back to the Audioquest it can also reveal the cracks, however, without being notified by the Fractal, you’d never notice it.
I spent many hours with the CV-4 and it is likely that its sound would further improve as it was clear that with the time (and breaking in) it matures. And this is surprising considering the DBS correction.

Cena v době recenze:11 800,- Kč

Doporučení prodejci

AQ s.r.o., Červenka, tel. +420 585 342 232

Připojené komponenty

  • Sources: Primare CD32, Luxman D-05 and Accuphase DP-510
  • Amplifiers: Primare I32, Luxman L-590AX a Accuphase E-560
  • Interconnects and speaker cables: Krautwire Fractal, Cardas Clear, Homegrown Audio DNA
  • Loudspeakers: Audio Physic Virgo V, Dynaudio Confidence C1 and Xavian Giulia, Chario Constellation, Xavian Preludio, Revel Ultima Studio2, B&W 805 Diamond and Atohm G 1.0
  • Power conditioning: Nordost Thor (modified), Snakeblock, Nordost Valhalla

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