Smooth. There is no cable better.
Good synergy with Bryston and Magneplanar.

Over the years, I have used top or near top model cables from NBS, MIT, Van den hul, Straightwire,Kimber,Taralab, Esoteric, audioquest, Monster and Cardas. I have to say the Cardas Golden Cross beats everyone of them when used in my system. The Golden Cross can give you a presentation that you might find lacking in all other cables regardless of price. If there is a better sounding cable, it's not yet on the market yet ( will be interesting to see how the new Cardas Golen Reference can out perform the Golden Cross ). I agree with everything said by everyone who has contributed to this column about this wonderfully lovely cable. It's one of those you can spend more money but get not better sound stuff. My hats off for George Cardas.

Hands down the best cable under $15000. Beats out Taralabs The ONE (By a razor thin margin), Straightwires Crescendo, Nordost Blue Heaven and many many others. The only cables that I know sound better are The Oracle Shotgun EVO ($20000+) or the t5ransparent Reference XL ($15000+). These cables are greatest gift to audiophiles on a budget. For a reasonable price one can finally enjoy the sound usually reserved for those of ostentatious spending habits. I have heard these cables with the JM Lab Utopia and A/B'ed over 10 Top cables with them. I have also A/B'ed these cables with Martin Logan ReQuests, B&W Nautilus 802 and Kef Reference 4's on each and EVERY one of these systems, the Cardas cables were the most neutral and revealing. The noisefloor is so low as to be nonexistent, there was no coloration and many recording nuances were revealed that might have been lost with other cables. Trust me when I say these cables are FABULOUS!

Like so many things, people look for different characteristics in audioequipment. What's considered "best" is very relative. Cables can be made
to accentuate one characteristic, say bass response, at the expense of
other characteristics.

Cardas cable does a superb job at reproducing the original characteristics
of the music. No gimmics; no manipulation of the sound you'll eventually
hear. I have found no other line of cable which is able to convey the sense
that the performers are right there in the room performing.

The Golden Cross is Cardas' top of the line interconnect and speaker cable.
With this cable, every subtlety of the music is carried with exquisite
detail and realism. There is a nice blend of smoothness and crispness.

Cardas cable can be expensive - but well worth it for the purist/audiophile
who has mid to high end equipment.

Others have preferred Tara Labs to Cardas suggesting that Tara does not
color the sound. This has *not* been my experience albeit I did not compare
the high end Cardas with the high-end Tara. The midrange Tara was actually
unpleasant to listen to in the mid/high frequency range. Often a single
company has a particularly good product and a particularly bad one in the
same line. It's probably best not to generalize too much about a company's products unless you've tried them all.

Like so many things, people look for different characteristics in audioequipment. What's considered "best" is very relative. Cables can be made
to accentuate one characteristic, say bass response, at the expense of
other characteristics.

Cardas cable does a superb job at reproducing the original characteristics
of the music. No gimmics; no manipulation of the sound you'll eventually
hear. I have found no other line of cable which is able to convey the sense
that the performers are right there in the room performing.

The Golden Cross is Cardas' top of the line interconnect and speaker cable.
With this cable, every subtlety of the music is carried with exquisite
detail and realism. There is a nice blend of smoothness and crispness.

Cardas cable can be expensive - but well worth it for the purist/audiophile
who has mid to high end equipment.

Others have preferred Tara Labs to Cardas suggesting that Tara does not
color the sound. This has *not* been my experience albeit I did not compare
the high end Cardas with the high-end Tara. The midrange Tara was actually
unpleasant to listen to in the mid/high frequency range. Often a single
company has a particularly good product and a particularly bad one in the
same line. It's probably best not to generalize too much about a company's products unless you've tried them all.

IMHO the best high-end value for speaker cables. Does everything right, has stayed on in my system with changes to almost everything. Perfect for solid-state equipment wanting to get rid of harshness and a thin midband.

Similar Products Used:

Kimber, Alpha-Core, Straightwire, Wireworld, etc.

Detail, separation, smooth and warm, powerful low end

None

After using the Cardas Quadlink (Interconnect) and Cross (Speaker) combination, listening to the Golden Cross lets me hear another level of detail, and even more of what I had been missing from CDs. I now use Golden Cross for Interconnect and Speaker connections. I am able to connect directly from my CD player to amp, cutting the pre-amp.

The Golden Cross brings my system to life. All the suttle details lost with the previous Cardas cables disappeared. All the instruments are separate from each other and air surronds them. The low end is smooth, powerful, and more detailed than in the past. Before using the Cardas Golden Cross, I wondered if my amp could provide the power needed to provide deep and powerful bass. I now have the answer to that question, yes it does.

Although the low end is most noticable, the highs and mids increase detail as well. Singers voices seem to separate from the music, and raise above the music, in which it is never lost or wondering what they just said in a verse.
Great soundstage and imaging.

Yes, maybe they add a little something to the overall music recreation, but it works for my current set up.

Current equipment consists of Wadia, B&K, and Hales. As usual, try to find a dealer selling demo euipment, try not to pay retail.

Similar Products Used:

Cardas Cross, Cardas Quadlink, AudioQuest, Monster

This is a really great cable. I did a review about this cable in the review I submitted for Cardas Golden Reference (refer to that review for details). I will give it a 5 stars.

mucho

none

When I hooked them up to my high end system not only me, but "ordinary" people heard the dramatic difference, too. I did not have to justifie spending $ 950. on 2 pieces of 10 feet biwire speaker cable.

There is a big difference between the cheaper models and the Golden Cross.

Similar Products Used:

none

Very Musical. Smooth.

If you pay full retail, that may be the only weakness.

I have searched long and hard for an interconnect that would help my modest system get closer to my ideal and I think I've found it.

I tried various well-reviewed "budget" cables, but none seemed to be right. The Kimber was too lean. The Tara seemed to have compressed dynamics. The Monsters were too bright and analytical. The resolution of the DH Labs was very good, but ultimately ended up being too turned up at the top for me. The Cardas Microtwin was the smoothest of these, but had a bloated mid bass and seemed slightly veiled.

So after reading so many rave reviews about the Golden Cross I decided to take the plunge and spend the extra dough. Initially, the Golden Cross were rough. But after a couple weeks of constant play they smoothed out and opened up. I now have had the Cardas for about 3 months, and I love this cable. I can listen for hours without fatigue. They're wonderfully smooth and at the same time I don't feel like I'm missing any detail. They're very natural sounding and add a nice fullness to my sometimes lean system. My other components will eventually be upgraded, but I'm sure the Golden Cross will be part of my setup for a long time.

My system consists of the following:
•Sim Audio Moon i-5 integrated amp
•Musical Fidelity Electra E60 CD player
•Sonus Faber Concertino speakers
•DH Labs T-14 Silversonic speaker cable

Similar Products Used:

DH Labs BL-1, Monster Z, M550, Tara Prism, Cardas Microtwin, Kimber PBJ