Oyaide Interconnects- Across 750

I like the signature sound of Oyaide- airy mids with full bass and nice staging. I decided to venture into their interconnects also.

First, some background on the cables that were plugged into my system:

I was using the Grover 'S' interconnect then. I borrowed the Black version from Yotiao to audition at home before deciding to buy the cable off Yotiao haha. I need two pairs since i need one to connect from my CDP to my integrated and another to replace the jumpers between the pre and power on my integrated. It was coincidential that i chanced upon a sale of the white Grover 'S' on another local forum. The seller used to be into headphones also but is now into speakers. His home setup then was nothing to shout about- antique B&W floor standers powered by Pioneer A400. Now i am not belittling the equipment. It is just that the sound is so very warm and slow and boomy. His CD collection really impressed me though. He collects first-pressings, meaning the first few CDs that are cut from the master tapes, thus ensuring very good sound. My opinion is that his system does not at all do justice to his wonderful collection.

Back to the cables, Grover 'S' IC is quite decent for the money. It consists of wires brewed up by grover terminated with SwitchCraft RCA plugs. It is just that he keeps revising his model every few months. It is very difficult for the user to keep up. To be fair, Grover does offer trading-in and upgrading for a fee. Though the White version that i later got was an upgrade from the Black version that i got from Yotiao, personally, i do not find measurable differences between the two to justify the costs involved in upgrading the cables.

Prior to the Grover, i was using DIY interconnects- Klotz GY107 terminated with Neutrik Pro-fi and also DIY Silver interconnects.

The former is really decent for the money-the sound has a smooth mids with a mid-bass hump. Details-wise, nothing to shout about though it trounce the QED Qnect 1-my very first Interconnect (excluding those freebies type) :)

The DIY Silver interconnect was made myself after drawing inspirations (hehe) from the ICs that i borrowd from FuWen. Pretty simple recipe: I got 4m of teflon-coated silver from AHF-Art audio (pse do not pronounce the name of the shop with the hyphen before the F lol). Cut the wire into 1m length each and slot each length into teflo tubings. For the Right-Channel, use a wire for the Ground and another for the Signal. Terminate the hot and ground onto Neutrik-Profi and that is my DIY Silver Interconnect. Now, that is no cheapo- DIY Silver IC. A 1m pair costs (S$28 X 4)+ S$50= S$162. The Silver wire costs S$28 per metre and the 4 Neutrik Pro-Fi plugs cost S$55. The signature is very detailed but some have commented that the mids are not full. Well, i would only like to add that this is a very rudimental design and the quality of the sound derives simply from the materials used. Overall, i do not think this is a worthwhile exercise as the materials used are simply too costly.

A better alternative would be to get some Oyaide PA-02 and terminate them with Neutrik Pro-fi. A 1m pair would costs about S$90 and should be excellent sounding for the price. I have gotten a 0.5m length as a mini-mini IC. The details are really there and the colouration is minimal, if any. At S$25 (terminated with Canare mini plugs), i feel it is a bargain that it seriously worth considering.

OK, ramblings aside. I wanted to try out the Oyaide Interconnects so i went forth to Audio Basic again with my Grover IC to do a comparison with his Oyaide IC. He has two models available- the PA-02 and Across 750. The latter is more expensive compared to the former. I sprang for the latter to avoid upgradtis-(yeah right :p that time i did not consider the Acrolink IC that Steven also carries)

The mids of the Oyaide have more presence compared to the Grover 'S' IC. That was the first thing that struck me during the audition. Another factor that spurred me to switch over to Oayide was the price. The top-up would be minimal. One thing i have to mention is that the Oyaide RCA plugs are very tight. I have to use another female RCA plus to loosen the Oyaide male plugs before i can confidently plug the Oyaide onto my system.

So there it is, another Oyaide purhase. At this point, you might have guessed it- i got another Across 750 IC to replace the jumpers on my integrated. But would you have known that i am onto the Oyaide speaker cables next? :D