Thread: Shunyata v2 speaker cables and IC’s

• Shunyata.com
Shunyata Research Reveals Sweeping Technology Upgrades Across Full Range of Reference Series Power Cords and Cables
Two Years of Development Culminates in Largest Product Release in Company History
Seattle, Washington (August 31, 2020) - On the heels of the lauded Everest Power Conditioner release early this summer comes a complete series upgrade from the world’s premier designer of power and audio cables. Shunyata Research’s Reference Series v2 launch offers a suite of improvements across the entire line of speaker cables, interconnects and digital cables, each providing a palpable and measurable enhancement to fidelity and the listening experience.
“Our approach is to educate and then exceed expectations,” says Richard Rogers, sales and customer liaison. In contrast to the many companies that provide little evidence of technical differentiation, Shunyata Research offers thorough documentation on the patented technology integrated in this evolution of the full product range. “These improvements are not abstract. They are the tangible results of years of research and development,” says Caelin Gabriel, founder and lead designer of Shunyata Research.
Reference Series v2 Speaker Cables feature new VTX-Ag conductors, constructed with concentric OFE copper surrounding a core of pure silver, offering greater dynamics, precision timing and three-dimensionality.
Reference Series v2 Interconnects have been upgraded to include Shunyata Research’s most advanced signal conductor technology. Delta v2 interconnects now include patented ΞTRON technology while Alpha v2 and Sigma v2 boast single and dual TAP (Transverse Axial Polarizer) modules, respectively, effectively mitigating EMI field micro-distortion.
Reference Series v2 Digital Cables now include the CMODE module on both Sigma and Alpha v2 models, reducing common-mode noise without introducing sonic compression effects associated with conventional filters and ferrite beads. Delivering analog ease while reducing high-frequency noise distortion, this iteration closes the gap between digital and analog front-end performance.
With 22 years in business, dozens of critical awards and a fervent online fan base, Shunyata Research remains focused on innovation and pricing integrity. “Intelligent luxury from our Omega Series and accessible high performance value from the Venom line. We serve the best listeners in all categories,” Caelin says. “The v2 release offers unrivaled quality for any system.”
Shunyata Research provides patented and proprietary cable and power technology designed by Caelin Gabriel to eliminate the deleterious effect noise has on high resolution sound and visual imaging systems. Since 1997 Shunyata Research products have been designed and manufactured by hand and on site in Poulsbo, Washington.


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Great news! i should have a set of the new Delta v2 speaker cables arriving shortly and I'm excited to hear how the upgrade will improve my system.

Wow!

Our biggest and most extensive release of new products in our 22 year history! 34 all new audio cables including speaker cables, RCAs, XLRs, and Phono cables. 22 new digital cables including a new Delta USB cable.

New VTX-Ag conductors that combine the best qualities of silver and copper. The speed and transparency of silver with the warmth and power of copper.

This has been a huge effort and we are very proud of the results. Check out our website for the details.

Originally Posted by MusicLover

Hi Mike,

do you happen to know when you receive the Alpha/Sigma speaker cables?

I‘m eager to hear if you prefer the Alpha or the AQ Thunderbirds with which you have plenty of experience and if the Sigmas are worth the substantial additional costs. I‘d say, if the Sigma is on par with the AQ Dragon that would make them excellent value and I might consider the upgrade!

Best regards

I’m not sure, but we have our orders in!


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SIGMA v2 XLR

TAP MODULE

SIGMA v2 SPEAKER CABLE

Still waiting on news of the mini-Everest or whatever it was that we were teased with recently.

I see there is a new CLOCK-50 v2 but I don't recall seeing mentioned what changes were made to those cables.

SIGMA v2 SPEAKER TERMINALS

Congratulations!

Does the new V2 line also include Sigma AES-EBU cables?

Thank you.

Cheers,
Bernard

Three levels of cables: lowest to highest level.
-Delta v2
-Alpha v2
-Sigma v2

Types of cables that are new:

Speaker cables
Speaker cable jumpers
Interconnect RCA
Interconnect XLR
Interconnect Phono
Digital AES/EBU
Digital S/PDIF
Digital Clock-75
Digital Clock-50
Digital Delta USB
CGC/SGC Ground Cables

What hasn’t changed are Venom line cables.
And the Ethernet cables have not changed since they are relatively new and the Alpha USB and Sigma USB are not revised since they are also relatively new.

So exactly what is a transverse axial polarizer?

Originally Posted by mep

So exactly what is a transverse axial polarizer?

Originally Posted by mep

So exactly what is a transverse axial polarizer?

sounds like an audiophile marketing term designed to get audiophiles all giggly .............

Originally Posted by Puma Cat

Nope. It's based on physics of the propogation of EM waves; there is a patent application on the TAP device.

interesting, so where / how is the audio signal influenced ? is this part of the IC or PC ? what is the audible benefit ?

Originally Posted by Puma Cat

Nope. It's based on physics of the propogation of EM waves; there is a patent application on the TAP device.

When was the patent applied for? Never mind. It was i June of 2018.

Originally Posted by Puma Cat

TAP is used on Alpha and Sigma ICs and the Omega Ethernet cable. TAP reduces sonic glare caused by parallel (longitudinal) electromagnetic waves interfering with the signal.

again, interesting, I'd love to hear if it is 'audible'........

Originally Posted by Puma Cat

It's described in U. S. Patent Application #US2018/0183227.

From the background discussion, "In the simplest terms, the invention blocks longitudinally oriented EM waves while passing transversely oriented EM waves."

EM waves are transverse waves so there shouldn't be any longitudinal waves to "block."

Originally Posted by thyname

Congratulations on the new release! These look truly fantastic! I am in the market for a pair of SOTA XLRs, and cannot help but notice that the new v2 Alpha XLRs are now identical to the v1 Sigma. Which is great!

Actually the new Alpha v2 XLR gets the new XLR connector. A very nice upgrade.

Originally Posted by u-sound

would you rate the xlr version higher than the rca?

No. The difference between an RCA and an XLR interface is largely dependent upon the specific implementation of the specific equipment manufacturer. Some put a lot of money and design effort into the balanced interface and others don't focusing more on the single-ended interface. Generally speaking one is not inherently superior to the other. Each has advantages.

Now when you are talking just about the cables and not considering the component's specific implementation then yes there can be a substantial performance difference between RCA and XLR. Just like component manufacturers, cable manufacturers may focus on one or the other cable and do a better job with one or the other. Or, even worse a manufacturer may use the exact same cable design for both the RCA and XLR cables, changing only the connectors.

In my opinion, a balanced cable using XLR connectors has very different set of design factors than that of a single-ended RCA type cable. We treat each as a completely separate design. So although we have an Alpha v2 XLR and an Alpha v2 RCA cable they are in fact completely different cables in function and in design. The RCA cable is optimized for a single-ended type signal transmission and the XLR cable is optimized for a balanced type transmission method.

To further expand on the point; an RCA type cable achieves its best performance with a good coaxial type design with an integral braided shield. And conversely, a good design for a balanced cable is a twin-axial type geometry with a controlled twist rate and protected by a good braided shield. This is how we approach the two different cable types. And of course each cable has a different characteristic impedance even though they do not operate as transmission line conductors at audio frequencies.

We take a very similar approach to digital cable design. Each type of cable is individual to its function and task and characteristic impedance which is very important with digital cables.

Originally Posted by Adyc

Only in free space are EM waves are transverse. In a waveguide, EM waves can have longitudinal modes.

We aren't talking about modulators/RF final amplifiers connected to antennas with waveguide. We are talking about audio cables carrying audio signals.

I would suggest you get the new Alpha v2 speaker cable. Just pretend that it has a retail price of 8500 and the dealer just gave you an incredible discount!

The Alpha v2 has the new 6-gauge VTX-Ag (silver/copper) wire. And it inherits the HARP technology that was previously only available in the Sigma model. The Sigma v2 model is now essentially a completely new model based upon a massive 4-gauge VTX-Ag conductor which makes it a substantially more expensive product. Based on its competitive performance and build quality we could have easily slapped a $40K price tag on it and no one would have blinked. We just don’t want to operate that way.

We have managed to keep the prices of our new cables reasonable due to advancements in our production procedures and amortizing of technology costs. For instance, the new Alpha v2 XLR is essentially similar to the prior generation Sigma v1 but the price is much less than what a Sigma sold for. So, we are actually offering more performance at a lower price. Don’t get hung up on model names - look at what’s in them and their relative performance. Instead of raising prices we are effectively lowering them across the board while competitors are increasing prices.

So, get the Alpha v2 speaker cable. You won’t be disappointed. There is nothing wrong with spending less as long as the performance and quality are superior.

Originally Posted by MusicLover

Thanks for the detailed answer. As I said in the beginning of the thread, I‘m eagerly awaiting the first impressions of experienced customers. I know e.g. that Mike has been impressed by AQ latest speaker cables as many others. However, I find that AQs cables once there is some silver in it and especially additional length comes with stratospheric price increase. 5k, 10k ... Okay, but not 30k!! An ounce of silver is $20 and these cables don‘t weight half a ton!
Back to what you said, I‘m willing to spend that extra for the Sigma, if it really is that good. Just waiting for some initial feedback whether it‘ll be Alphas and Sigmas.
I also appreciate your hints about the new series a while ago, since I was about to get some of the AQ speaker cables, but now am willing to wait for the Shunyata cables to see what‘s what. My choose for the Sigma USB was an easy one on the end.

Kudos and real appreciate your sensible and value oriented product line-up!!

Our Deutschland distributor has put in a massive order. We are getting great feedback from many of the dealers that received products. So, lots of products should be arriving in the coming weeks.

Just think of shot sizes (shotgun) as the size # increases the shot becomes smaller.

Neither the American AWG measuring system nor the EU measurement in mm gives a good understanding of the actual difference in size between wires.

The cross sectional area of a wire is probably the most useful to understand the difference in size between two wires. That is measured in millimeters squared and is the cross-sectional area of the wire.

The wire size in a common power cord is 18 AWG which is ~1.0 millimeters in diameter.
The next size up would be a 16 AWG wire which is ~1.5 mm. (1.63mm to be exact)

The (mm2) measurement gives a much better idea of the size difference:
18 AWG = .82 mm2
16 AWG = 1.31 mm2