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Elsdon Wonfor Audio LS-40 speaker cables

The demo set are definitely a looser fit compared to the new ones i received. I imagine the demo set have had a lot of action
 
I only had them in once and out once here...... honest.

They seemed tight when I took them out.


Good contact is important.


Quick poll here, if you had the option of Z plugs or spades on both amp and speakers which would you chose and why ??

I really like the Z plugs, low mass and I believe they give a good tight contact.

If you use spades but have a banana z plug option do you plug the hole ? You can buy cheap inserts and looks like Europe and iec standards require you do plug.
 
Discopants said:
Quick poll here, if you had the option of Z plugs or spades on both amp and speakers which would you chose and why ??

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Depends on the amp or speaker and their ergonomics and layout of the binding posts sometimes it's more practical to use one rather than the other.
An example being speakers that have binding posts protruding at an angle from the cabinet can be awkward to fit heavy cable with spade connections or if the binding posts are too closely placed to each other.
Z plugs seem to work well and are convenient.
 
Personally I like the Z plugs too, for much the same reasons as has been mentioned. Spades are fine, but you do add quite a bit of mass when you make them stiff enough not to bend. And I do worry that spades might eventually slip out, and perhaps cause a short.

We offer some really expensive Furutech plug options for those who want then, and while they are higher mass I don't think they sound worse. They are really beautiful things to hold in your hand and I can understand some people calling them "cable jewellery". Personally I use the standard plugs as my preference.

I am surprised that the demo set plugs have compressed though. Being Beryllium they ought to revert to their original position every time, hundreds of times. That said, different binding posts, with different plating in them (thickness of the metals) means that maybe it's not the plugs.
 
I received my LS-40s from ABCaudio yesterday and have had a few hours listening since then. Thanks to Alan for producing these and sending them out so quickly. Lovely packaging too. (Note these are not the demo pair but I pair I bought for myself - 2.5m with z plugs).

My system:
  • Rega RP10 / Apheta II
  • Rega Aria
  • Musical Fidelity M6Si with full stage 2 John Sampson upgrade
  • Dynaudio Contour 20i speakers

I've been using Tellerium Q Black II as my cables for a few years and have had some LS-25 cables for the last month or so, which are being returned to ABC as the owner upgraded to LS-80.

I've been listening to a large variety of music from jazz (Herbie Hancock, David Brubeck, Bill Evans, Getz Gilberto) to EDM (Aphex Twin, Jamie XX, etc) to rock / indie (Wedding Present, Fleetwood Mac, Pavement, Squid) and Johnny Cash, Marvin Gaye (What's Going On), Al Green, and more. All on vinyl. I've tried to mix audiophile pressings and also regular pressings to hear not only the best but also how regular records sound.

In the last month the LS-25 have proven to be a massive upgrade from the Tellerium Black II in every way. The Tellerium sound muffled and held back by comparison to the LS-25. The sound opened up hugely and everything was rendered much more clearly - better separation of all instruments and more controlled bass is deep when it should be and less boomy. The speakers sound like they were receiving everything they could from the amplifier.

Now to the LS-40. On my system the LS-40 are another step up again. Perhaps the simplest way I can describe te LS-40 over the LS-25 is that they have a similar sound but render musical elements in three dimenions. A voice, or a guitar strum or a brass instrument sound like they are 3d rather than 2d. I don't really understand why but perhaps the lower noise floor of the LS-40s is allowing more subtle sounds to come through giving more shape to the edges of the music?

I was told that the LS-40 would extend the bass significantly over the LS-25 but on my system this hasn't been so apparent. This could be that a two way stand mount speaker has already reached the limit of the bass that it can put out? I'm not disappointed by this - to me the bass is fantastic - and rendered with good texture and doesn't sound rolled off.

Have there been any "super wow" moments? Compared to the Tellerium yes - almost everything is is hugely better. Compared to the LS-25, not really any particular jaw-hits-the-floor moments, but everything sounds next level up consistently. I was listening to What's Going On (Marvin Gaye) last night at quite low volume and it sounded much better than it has ever sounded. It's a strange recording in my view, very dense, and for the first time the bass parts were far more separated from the other instruments an the sound stage opened up too. The music is now pulled apart and simplified. Music sometimes sounds slower.

So I will definately be keeping these LS-40s! I'm really very happy indeed, my system sounds absolutely right for the first time and I feel the amp and speakers are working beautifully together and no parts are over or under emphasized.

Great, great cables!
 
I would concur with much of MB's post.

LS 25 to LS 40 for me was not super wow better , but it was still wow.

They do have very similar benefits but with the 40s being that bit better at pretty much everything. One thing I have noticed after going back to 25s is I have some treble glare in my system, that the 40s removed.

So for me they removed some top end glare, improved attack and leading edges more noticeably detailed and more realistic, improved soundstage width, improved resolution (both of stereo images and depth and more details in very quiet sounds). This all combines to give the improved PR&T. I did notice better bass with a little uplift in weight and more textures. Looks like bigger driver speakers get more in the bass, which is entirely logical when you think about it.

So listening to some well recorded live albums it was actually like hearing the recording as a new piece. My last evening with them I played a Katie Melua live album with the choir. I could hear some very quiet comments from the audience that I had never heard before and the voices in the choir and the harmonies within the choir were sublime :D


My 25s are 2m pair , the touring set of 40s I think are 2.5m. If you need a longer run I think you are going to hear more and more differences between EWA cables if the rest of your system is up to it. Guys needing 5m pairs on this thread do appear to be the most delighted by stepping up the series.

I'm prepared to buy the 40s at 2m , but want to see if the value proposition for the 80s stack up first for me. Great speaker cables.

My tastes are eclectic here is some of what I threw at the 40s

Rolling stones
Wishbone ash
Eva Cassidy
Alice Coltrane
Led Zepplin
Eddie Higgins quartet
Ben Webster
Grace Jones
EDM
Classical
Cowboy junkies
The Delines
Miles Davis
Clean bandit
Leonard Cohen
Bob Dylan
Ella and Louis
Melody Gardot
Fugees
Thievery Corporation
Tony Allen
 
MB_Rega said:
I received my LS-40s from ABCaudio yesterday and have had a few hours listening since then. Thanks to Alan for producing these and sending them out so quickly. Lovely packaging too. (Note these are not the demo pair but I pair I bought for myself - 2.5m with z plugs).

My system:
  • Rega RP10 / Apheta II
  • Rega Aria
  • Musical Fidelity M6Si with full stage 2 John Sampson upgrade
  • Dynaudio Contour 20i speakers

I've been using Tellerium Q Black II as my cables for a few years and have had some LS-25 cables for the last month or so, which are being returned to ABC as the owner upgraded to LS-80.

I've been listening to a large variety of music from jazz (Herbie Hancock, David Brubeck, Bill Evans, Getz Gilberto) to EDM (Aphex Twin, Jamie XX, etc) to rock / indie (Wedding Present, Fleetwood Mac, Pavement, Squid) and Johnny Cash, Marvin Gaye (What's Going On), Al Green, and more. All on vinyl. I've tried to mix audiophile pressings and also regular pressings to hear not only the best but also how regular records sound.

In the last month the LS-25 have proven to be a massive upgrade from the Tellerium Black II in every way. The Tellerium sound muffled and held back by comparison to the LS-25. The sound opened up hugely and everything was rendered much more clearly - better separation of all instruments and more controlled bass is deep when it should be and less boomy. The speakers sound like they were receiving everything they could from the amplifier.

Now to the LS-40. On my system the LS-40 are another step up again. Perhaps the simplest way I can describe te LS-40 over the LS-25 is that they have a similar sound but render musical elements in three dimenions. A voice, or a guitar strum or a brass instrument sound like they are 3d rather than 2d. I don't really understand why but perhaps the lower noise floor of the LS-40s is allowing more subtle sounds to come through giving more shape to the edges of the music?

I was told that the LS-40 would extend the bass significantly over the LS-25 but on my system this hasn't been so apparent. This could be that a two way stand mount speaker has already reached the limit of the bass that it can put out? I'm not disappointed by this - to me the bass is fantastic - and rendered with good texture and doesn't sound rolled off.

Have there been any "super wow" moments? Compared to the Tellerium yes - almost everything is is hugely better. Compared to the LS-25, not really any particular jaw-hits-the-floor moments, but everything sounds next level up consistently. I was listening to What's Going On (Marvin Gaye) last night at quite low volume and it sounded much better than it has ever sounded. It's a strange recording in my view, very dense, and for the first time the bass parts were far more separated from the other instruments an the sound stage opened up too. The music is now pulled apart and simplified. Music sometimes sounds slower.

So I will definately be keeping these LS-40s! I'm really very happy indeed, my system sounds absolutely right for the first time and I feel the amp and speakers are working beautifully together and no parts are over or under emphasized.

Great, great cables!
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Good write-up Bro!

You independently appear to have reached much the same conclusion as me about the sound signature of these LS-40 cables and the upgrade over the already distinguished LS-25. We do both use MF amps and Rega front ends!

In brief summary I found the sound more organic and real, with much more depth in the soundstage and each element of the sound having a tangible shape and form. Although I too found the bass far better textured, where we differ slightly is that I found bass both deeper and a greater presence in the overall presentation, which got "darker" in comparison to the leaner LS-25. The bass was actually one of the most significant changes for me between the cables.

While my overall assessment of LS-40 in my system was extremely positive and I could easily have been happy with it as a destination cable, the bass was the one thing that didn't always quite work for me, as it occasionally caused a bit of bloom (and I mean occasionally). This prompted me to venture into LS-80 territory and as you all know from my previous posts, that cable is just amazing in my system in every respect, some 5-6 months along. It seems like the extended and expanded bass presence with the newer cables (40/80) might only be very evident with larger speakers, which makes sense in terms of the cabinet size, frequencies reached and volume of air moving. My PMC Twenty-five 26 speakers produced far more bass with both 40 and 80. However, in my system, the 80 presentation was far more massive, but also cleaner and more controlled.

Has anyone else noted a big increase in bass with standmounters using 40/80, or just with larger volume floorstanding speakers?
 
Rana said:
CK has been recommending to me that I get my name on the LS40 list as he says there is a synergy with Aavik, but can't find the latest list in the thread. Can someone please add me? The Aavik amp is still running in and getting better but overall it's still not as engaging as my Audionet system. Also want to try it on my Audionet before it leaves the premises, as I appear to have sold it subject to payment. I've told CK that I don't think it will outperform my Belkin PureAV Silver cables on the Audionet system but I remain open minded (bought for all of £19 from Ebay and the best speaker cables I have ever used with that amp regardless of price).
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l had the Belkin years ago- the LS40 is on another planet all together- all in my room and system of course.

@CliffB Yes l reported back regarding the increase in bass from my ProAc Tablette 10, is was quite profound ( akin to adding a subwoofer l would imagine) plus the smooth and very weighty soundstage.:D
 
It just shows that every experience and system is different, doesn't it? There have been some members of the tour that didn't really hear much benefit to them, and they were also correct. However, the general consistency of opinion that's emerging is quite interesting.
 
It's a while since I tried the 40's. I do seem to recall a bit more bass when moving to the 80's with my SCM19 standmouts, but what struck me most was an overall increase in everything across all frequencies.
Purely subjective, but it felt as if the amp was directly connected to the speaker and I was no longer able to hear the speaker cable.
 
Now I still think Ian and I could make wet string work, wet with liquid Hydrogen sounds cool or Mercury or is that to flighty. ;)

H0105-L153705936.jpg


But do not get confused with Hermes, they can't deliver.

11-hermes-greek-god-cartoon-clipart.jpg


Best all have fun.
 
Heckyman said:
It's a while since I tried the 40's. I do seem to recall a bit more bass when moving to the 80's with my SCM19 standmouts, but what struck me most was an overall increase in everything across all frequencies.
Purely subjective, but it felt as if the amp was directly connected to the speaker and I was no longer able to hear the speaker cable.
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That Sir is a great description of the sound of these cables.
 
“More of everything” was just what I said when my friend and I compared the LS25s to the LS80s on his Scintillas.

Hey Col, I might try the wet string in my fuses first ;)
 
Muttley2 said:
Colin/ Alan What is happening with the amp tour have asked several times but not heard back.
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Hi Matt,

Forgive me please, I did see your emails and I'm catching up this morning. Colin is busy designing in regulators for a new amplifier circuit.

Colin only just visited, so I now have an EWA M-50 and a Claymore integrated that can do demos. If I don't get swamped with orders over the weekend, I'll also be able to complete a demo set of LS-80 early in the week as well, and a set of balanced interconnects too.

What I need to do next is go through old forum posts and find who it was that wanted to hear an amplifier.:)
 
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