Spatia "marking"

An interconnect has dielectric too - because the wires are insulated!

Sixteen years ago, I quickly made up an interconnect to use between the Reflex prototype. I took a length of coax, folded it in half to cut it, so both cables were equal length, and sleeved it. I then soldered the phono plugs on.

At the time, Elna RODs were being banned by RoHS, and I was frantically trying all kinds of replacements and redesigning circuit values to try and obtain a good sound stage. No matter what I tried, nothing sounded right to my ears. This went on for months. I was worried that it was game-over - I could not release a product that sounded wrong.

Eventually, John asked me about the interconnect I was using between prototype and amp. I told him how I'd made it, and he suggested I use one he'd made. The prototype sounded utterly different!

He then took my cable apart, and we realised one channel had the print going opposite to the other. He had both channels with the print going in the same direction.

I eventually got the sound staging to my liking. During listening tests, we tried connecting them about-face and could hear a difference. I preferred a particular direction which just happened to be the direction the cable came off the drum.

Two tracks stood out as great test tracks: Tusk - Fleetwood Mac and Los Endos - Genesis. I noted that it sounded like a speaker phasing problem one way, but the other way was spot on. Every time John started a new reel, he secretly marked up a set of unfinished interconnects for me to try. I would then send them back to him with what I thought was the correct direction marked on masking tape stuck to each cable channel. Every single time the direction was 'run of the mill'.

It wasn't just double-blind - it was time after time after time.

Make of that what you will.

It's a fair question Steve. The arrow end of the cables should be plugged into the Accession's output sockets and the arrows point towards your amplifier's input sockets at the other end of the Lautus cables.

My new Spatia cables have a neat sleeve at the amp end with arrow pointing towards the speakers. Smart marking and very well made cables. Thank you John C, these are well worth waiting for.

It may seem a luxury but it is a treat after a year without holidays, cinemas, and many other things I took for granted and gladly spent money on. With the new cables I am hearing more detail in the soundtrack than with than the T* blue cables I had before. I expect the sound to improve further over the first few days of use.