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Patrick J. Trostle
As a music lover, I am addicted to the clarity that the Indra brought to my system. Like many audiophiles, I have tried other high-end cables (most recently Acoustic Zen Silver Reference IIs), as well as combinations of Indra and other interconnects in the signal path. Nothing I have ever heard comes close to the clarity and expansive detail of the Indra cables. Before going on, let me describe my system.
- 47 Labs Shigaraki transport and DAC
- Klimo Merlino Gold tube pre amp
- Klimo Beltaine 300B tube amps
- Acoustic Zen Hologram speaker cables
- Duevel Jupiter speakers
- An ExactPower EP15A for power conditioning
- Stealth "Cloude Nine" power cords round out the system
- Indra between the DAC and the pre, and between the pre and the power amps.
I listen primarily to jazz, blues, and '50's/'60's/'70's rock. Before I tried the Indra, I thought my system sounded good -- warm without being fuzzy, detailed without being harsh. A few months ago, Ted Lindblad of HighEndAudio (my friend and audio guru) told me about the Indra. He said that I had to hear them to believe them, so I stopped by his house and picked up a pair of demos. I took them home, swapped out my old interconnects (Acoustic Zen) between the DAC and the pre, and sat down for a listen. What I heard was incredible -- treble expansion and greater detail was the first thing I noticed. Brushes on cymbals sounded real -- very real! Voices sounded less like a recording and more like the real thing. Bass was tighter. I was amazed that cables could improve the sound so substantially.
I then tried a second set of Indra between the pre and power amps. At first, the sound seemed almost too detailed with two sets of Indra, and some of the warmth that I enjoy seemed to disappear from the lower midrange and bass. Could two sets of Indra be too much of a good thing? Initially, that was my judgment at least for my system. I decided to be patient, so I waited a couple of weeks to allow for a reasonable burn in period. I'm glad that I did, because something wonderful happened over the next full weeks, and the sound began to blossom like never before. Trebles remained crystal clear, but the bass went low, very low, after a couple of weeks. After a few more weeks, more of the same -- clearer highs, lower lows -- all with a slightly warm sound. Many of my better-recorded CDs (e.g., most XRCDs) now sound almost spooky good! I can't imagine that my system could sound any better without upgrading the components themselves, and I attribute much of what I hear as a direct benefit of the Stealth Indra. The fact that I have not tinkered with my cables for several months says a lot. There's nothing like knowing you have the best there is of a certain product. I think that the Indra fit into that category -- best of the best.
In sum, I think that Indra simply reveal more information than other cables. They do not soften the highs or embellish the lows like other cables I have heard, all while giving a slightly warm presentation that sounds very realistic and musical. Serguei, many thanks for your product!
Patrick Trostle
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