very neutral, Deep soundstage, timbre and fascinating voice reproduction

Expensive or difficult to build.

INTRODUCTION
I build my own cable out of 2 m without connectors I bought from the reel. The original product is worth a fortune. The manufacturing (using excellent WBT connectors) was a torment. If you got the money do yourself a favour and leave it to the pros. Having to solder this thing I wouldn't wish my worst enemies!
Like the M 2.2s (read the review?) it is surrounded by some kind of plastic fabric making it a little stiff. But it is more flexible than it looks. For the specs visit: www.monstercable.com.
I had to burn in the cable for aprox. 2 days before getting the sound I expected. When I first connected it, the sound was horrible. No order, no musicality, flat soundstage, I was allmost shocked. And give the cable 30 min to warm up! It will reward you.

THE SYSTEM
For this comparison I used:
Amplifiers: Yamaha DSP-A1 and AX 2000
CD-Player: Denon DCD-3000 and Marantz CD 10
D/A: Denon DA 500
Cables: Different brands, see above
Speakers: Self made, using quality components (Dynaudio, Seas and Morel Chassis, Mundorf and copperband coils, MKP condensators, metal resistors etc.)

THE SOUND
After the burn-in procedure the cable sounded very "monsterlike". Meaning the wide and very deep reproduction of the soundstage that Monster Cable usually produce. And the controlled "black" bass which may sound a little thin on some systems (because it's well controlled).
The Monster Cabel M 1500 is a little on the warm side but not dull. High frequencies are presented clear but not analytical. For persons liking analytical cables though (like the Kimber products) it may sound a little dull. For me it just sounds natural.
A clear plus for this monster is the outstanding voice reproduction. Vocals and instruments keep the natural proportions even in big arrangements. Other cables make voices appear bigger than they are (Straight Wire, even Fadel Art). The cable lacks the harsh aura other cables present surrounding the voices. You'll never get a harsh tone out of this cable (unlike the cheaper M-Series Monster Cables).
Compared to the Fadel Art Aerolitz it has supirior voice capabilties and seems to be more dynamic. And has the better bass control. The Fadel sounds very similar (and is much cheaper) as do the cheaper Monsters. But they simply don't achieve the kind of musical perfection this cable is capable of. It is just fun to listen. I can't think of anything that could have been better.
In combination with a high quality speaker cable (my favourite: the Monster M 2.2s) you'll get the last out of the M1500. Making listening a truely enjoyable experience and letting you listen to the music again and forget seeking any differences between cables all the time.
I myself stopped switching hearing these two cables together every time. After two hours of comparison the switch remaint in that position and has never changed since!
Using cheaper cables (which are nontheless great) I recomment using the Monster M950i, M1000i or Fadel Art Aerolitz. They do cost much less and are allmost as great sounding as the M1500. But only allmost...

SUMMARY
Like any audio component, a cable has its own characteristics which are very similar among one product family. So if you don't like the "monster sound" don't waste your time and money buying the Monster Cable M1500!
And different cables can sound very different using various components. It allways is best to test the cable at home (not a store!) with the chance to bring it back if it didn't fit into your chain.
Wow this is just a great cable! If it weren't for the price! But if you absolutly need the last kick in voice and soundstage reproduction: go buy it. You'll never regret it.
And if you own a Monster M 2.2s allready (and love it) you just got to get it and your ears will love you for the rest of your life! Promise.
4 out of 5 Stars for Value (the price: ouch!) and 5 of 5 overall, cause it is simply great!

Any comments are greatly appreciated! And pardon my english, my german is much better, I promise!

Similar Products Used:

Fadel Art, Straight Wire, Kimber, Van den Hul and other "Monsters"

Balanced sound and amazing what it does to vocals

none

Bought this cable second hand for about $200 (Fl. 400 dutch guilders), which was my luck because it is about $550 when you buy it new in the store.

Mainly bought it because I was not very happy with my TaraLabs PrismCD. My set is a Denon PMA1500 amp, with a Denon DCD1550AR + B&W DM604 (series 1).

When I plugged the M1500 into my cdplayer I was amazed what a difference it made. Perfect sound, well balanced and vocals were perfect.

I will keep this cable for a long, long time!! Now I have to buy a matching speaker cable. If anyone has suggestions for good speaker cable, send me an email.

Similar Products Used:

TaraLabs PrismCD (piece of crap)

I agree with Henrik. :)

Extremelly ballanced cable; great bass, vocal reproduction, and soundstage.

The price. But this is the case today with most good cables.

I have had these interconnects for more than three years now. I think that it is hard to bit them. Am using them
with monster cable 2.4. System consists of Sony SCD 777 ES, BAT amplification, YBA preamplifier, and Dynaudio speakers. Recently, thought of trying Ensemble interconnects, but decided that it is simply not worth it to throw more money into the system, The Ensemble are great, but so is the Monster.

Similar Products Used:

Heard the Sigma, transperent XLO, and others