Silver Audio Hyacinth Review: Audio Fragrance

I wish audio manufacturers would stop using letters and numerals to designate the various models in their product line. They are too difficult to remember. It also lacks the descriptive quality that a well-chosen name can provide towards the image of the product, especially a newly launched one. What if Ford’s Thunderbird and Mustang were renamed the R22 or GLS18? Would these combinations of letters and numbers convey the same feelings and emotions that accompany the images of mystical birds or powerful stallions? I think most people would agree with me on this point. Names rock. So, as you can imagine, I was happily surprised to find a pair of Silver Audio Hyacinth audio interconnects at my doorstep. I immediately conjured up pictures of fresh purple flowers with silky petals and a deep, rich fragrance. Would these cables have the same positive impact on my review system that it already had on my senses? Read on closet gardener.

As one can determine from the company name, Silver Audio manufacturers audio interconnect and speaker cabling for the high-end market utilizing pure solid silver conductors. Prices range from $140 to $700 per meter pair for interconnects and $1,100 to $1,700 per eight foot pair for loudspeaker cables. The Hyacinth is the newest member of Silver Audio’s ever-growing product line and falls within the company’s ‘Baseline’ or midrange in terms of pricing. At $250 per meter pair, the Hyacinth audio interconnect cable competes in the highly saturated sub $300 category. What sets it apart from the rest of the crowd are individually insulated, solid annealed silver conductors, a rarity in this price category. But silver conductors alone will not ensure a better signal transmission cable. Implementation of design is just as important, if not more critical to the overall sound quality of the cable.

Silver Audio believes in a minimalist design. Instead of using a more common single large round conductor, they begin with four runs of unusually thin, custom tempered silver conductors. This Litz configuration helps to reduce both self-inductance, thereby addressing the “skin effect” or phase shift, and capacitance surface area. The quad silver conductors are co-extruded with an extremely thin layer of PFA dielectric, a premium form of Teflon, and then braided around a non-reactive core in a ‘nude’ configuration. The Hyacinth is a non-shielded design but can effectively resist induced noise such as EMI and RFI through its field controlled geometry. Silver Audio, “… divides the signal into several separate runs in a continually changing orientation such that only a small fraction of either polarity is ever in the ideal orientation to the wave front.” Crossing the opposite polarity conductors on each other serves to weaken the field effects that these conductors normally have on each other when positioned in a parallel configuration.

In addition to electrical properties, Silver Audio also addresses possible mechanical effects on the sound quality of the Hyacinth. The fine silver conductors and flexible core are wrapped with dual constrained damping layers that attenuate mechanically and/or acoustically generated voltages within the cable. This outside layer also attenuates any deleterious external electrostatic effects on the signal. Finally, both ends are terminated with high quality WBT locking connectors.

A handful of manufacturers such as Kimber Kable approach cable design from a similar perspective, but few have produced cables with the quality of materials and design exhibited by Silver Audio’s Hyacinth.

Smooth As Silk

The Silver Audio Hyacinth sounds uncannily liquid and buttery smooth in my reference system. Cueing up Joe Lovano’s Tenor Legacy (D 102604) cymbals have that glorious ‘S-S-S-s-s-s…’ to the taps. Lewis Nash’s drum work on “Blackwell’s Message” highlights this realistic sonic attack and effortless fade of beats into the background of the music. Snare and tom jump out at the listener with fluid strokes, begetting me to groove with Nash’s incredibly creative rhythm.

The Hyacinth is a very quiet line-interconnect. Considering that it is unshielded, the cross wire geometry obviously works and in my situation prevents unwanted noise from degrading the audio signal. With this cable inserted into my system, I feel that the music emerges from vast emptiness, a sonic curtain I can better describe as a ‘blackground’ instead of the more common use of the word ‘background’. On “Blackwell’s Message”, dueling tenor saxophones harmonize with each other in synchronicity. Joe Lovano and Joshua Redman play off one another with incredible passion and precision that is effortlessly communicated by the Hyacinth interconnect cable. I believe that the lowered noise floor aids in the removal of audible hash and grain in the audio spectrum, further exploiting the cable’s ability to sound velvety while maintaining a sensitively tactile presentation. I am left with texture without coarseness and smoothness without diminished resolution. As a result, horns have a wonderfully crisp attack and forward presence that will reach out and bite you. The duo’s raspy notes sway back and forth across the soundstage, exchanging lines that leave behind an emotional tribute to the late Ed Blackwell.

I’ve heard a number of prominent high-end designers claim that if you don’t get the midrange ‘right’, then the rest is for naught. I agree and apparently, so does Silver Audio. The beautifully textured midrange of the Hyacinth is best described using the fourth track on Tenor Legacy. “Laura” is a duet piece with Joe Lovano and Mulgrew Miller. On this dedication to Lovano’s sister, Miller’s piano opening is delicate and airy with just the right amount of musicality combined with analytic detail. The keys never sound cold or sterile and never give a sense of being softened or rolled-off. From a sonic standpoint, the Hyacinth is a well-balanced design. On many occasions, I find this cable to impart a rare emotional spirit to the music that is at times, lacking with even my $500 Cardas Neutral Reference cable. Musical instruments sound bigger and fuller with the Hyacinth in the signal path. Although the Neutral Reference has the edge over the Hyacinth in terms of sheer resolution and bass slam, I’m not confident that an additional $250 is worth the extra five percent gain in subjective quality in these two sonic areas.

One thing that I really love about this cable is the way rhythm and pace flow through the presentation. Check out “Fill Her Up” on Sting’s Brand New Day (0694904432). This country inspired tune skips along and begs the listener to stand up and dance away (forget that HiFi is a solitary activity and pretend there are friends around). Compared to the comparably priced TARA Labs Reference II, the silver veined Hyacinth has impeccable timing and always pulls the individual instrument lines together into a tightly woven and organized musical ensemble. In contrast, the Reference II detracts somewhat from the crack and snap of the drum kit as well as Sting’s bopping electric bass work. This effect is mostly due to the greater resolution capabilities of the Hyacinth as well as more defined transients and crisper leading edges to mid and low frequency notes.

Again, on Rachmaninoff Symphonic Dances; Vocalise (DAD 1004), the Hyacinth’s Teflon-glazed top-end lacks the grating and irritating glare that appears on lesser designs. On the third movement, “Lento assai; Allegro vivace”, flute has breathy crispness and smoothness that I found mesmerizing. The Hyacinth has openness throughout the registers that allows wind instruments to excel at communicating the essence of the composer’s message as well as the personal interpretations of the conductor and the orchestra.

If Fiona Apple had the sound quality available at my apartment the night she played at Roseland in NYC, she would not have stormed off the stage in frustration and disgust. Apparently, the conditions were not up to the standards she had experienced when recording When The Pawn (EK 69195). Regardless of her recent behavior, Apple’s wonderfully sexy and alluring voice on “Fast As You Can” still managed to entice me into the soundstage. Bass was also solid through the Hyacinth. The strength and power of the grand piano penetrates the lower reaches of audibility and along with her lyrics, helps to convey the intensity of Apple’s message.

Finally, I came around to the venerable jazz recording entitled Jazz At The Pawnshop 2 (PRCD 9044). Two minutes into “Over The Rainbow”, I realized that the Hyacinth did not sound like any silver cable that I have ever listened to. The dry overall character and aggressive upper midrange and highs of previous designs were thankfully absent. Midrange is fantastic and perhaps my favorite aspect of this cable. There is a lifelike smoothness to the Hyacinth that buffs out and glazes over the rough digital edges. Sound is organic and highly involving.

The opening track also helps develop the spatial characteristics of the cable. Imaging is well placed and easily perceived. Musical cues are prominently placed behind the right loudspeaker and deep stage left. The soundstage is also spread out and intricately layered with plenty of room between the outside edges of the hovering soundfield. What the Hyacinth lacks in this area is the last 6-10 inches of distance in terms of soundstage depth and height that can be observed when using some of the much more expensive cables on the market. Of course, this sounds very critical but only because I am trying to be. What the listener needs to keep in mind is that this cable holds its own against the very best out there at a mere fraction of the cost.

Conclusions

The Hyacinth is a top-tier cable and certainly a great value as an audio component. At $250 per pair, I strongly urge any audiophile looking for an upgrade to seek out an audition of this under exposed high-end over-achiever. The highs sound delicate and airy, the midrange is lusciously smooth and textured, bass is prominent and well defined, and soundstaging is expansive yet focused. This cable imparts a sense of musicality to the music while maintaining sharp leading edges, defined transients and impressive detail. In its price range, I have yet to audition a cable that comes close to the performance level of the Hyacinth. In fact, I believe that one must spend approximately twice as much money in order to gain a significant improvement in sound quality. Some would argue more.

So, what’s the bottom line? At $500, the Cardas Neutral Reference remains my reference interconnect cable. But the Silver Audio Hyacinth has forced me to re-evaluate the cost-performance ratio of consumer high-end products and has become the benchmark for all interconnect cables under $500. If it were necessary, I would gladly replace all the cabling in my system with Hyacinth. It is THAT good. And some Planet HiFi readers agree with me. After receiving a number of emails from dedicated readers regarding Silver Audio’s Hyacinth, they also informed me of their $700 top-of-the-line Appassionata interconnect cable. According to these readers and industry insiders, this is the be-all, end-all of high-end audio cables. Based upon my experiences with the Hyacinth, it would not surprise me at all. But remember this. It only takes $250 to get extremely high-quality audio interconnects into your system. Silver Audio has proven with their introduction of the Hyacinth that sometimes, it’s worth it to stop and smell the flowers.

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Manufacturer’s Response:

Dear Planet HiFi and Co:

Thank you for such a flattering and expertly written review of my new Hyacinth solid silver interconnect cable. Teasing out the subtle differences between different high-end cables is not as easy as folks may think, and putting them into words is much harder still. A very commendable job on your part. As for my job, if anyone thinks designing a really pleasing audio cable is just a matter of limiting capacitance, I can assure you there is a lot more to it than that! I am confident this new design is a winner, and I think I’ll leak the word here that the Hyacinth will be the foundation of another, more sophisticated cable design that can be expected from Silver Audio as early as this summer.

I sure hope it is common knowledge that Silver Audio has built itself up on much smaller margins than is normal for most of the high end audio cable industry, and instead making up for the loss in volume. This risk has definitely worked, and (modesty almost prevents me) we managed to do this WITHOUT the traditional recipe for high volume sales; lots of reps and distributors pushing us on lots of dealers, orchestrating lots of formal reviews, all backed by lots of expensive marketing. The only real down-side is that we are at the mercy of highly variable manufacturing costs, none of which can simply be “absorbed” by otherwise steep mark-ups.

Without going into the whole story, I therefore regret to inform everyone that there will have to be some necessary, though relatively minor, price increases for some of our cables, the Hyacinth in particular. I sincerely hope all our customers understand that these increases are necessary, and due ONLY to an unfortunate recent increase in OUR manufacturing costs. I run an honest, straight-shooting company here, and I’m sure all our customers out there would agree that, regardless of a small price increase, Silver Audio is the undisputed “Robin Hood” of the high-audio cable industry! Thank you again for providing such a valuable evaluation for your readers.

Sincerely,

Max J. Kreifeldt Owner, Silver Audio

GREG’s SYSTEM:

Main:

Meridian 586 CD/DVD player >> Cardas Neutral Reference / Silver Audio Hyacinth single-ended interconnect >> Jeff Rowland Design Group Concentra integrated amplifier >> Cardas Neutral Reference speaker cable >> Energy Veritas v1.8 loudspeakers

Secondary:

Marantz CD67se CD player >> WireWorld Atlantis II single-ended interconnect >> Decware SE84B amplifier >> JPS Labs Ultra Conductor speaker cable >> KEF Q15 loudspeakers/Osiris speaker stands

Placed beside our WireWorld Atlantis II, Custom House Barracuda and Harmonic Technology reports, the Hyacinth review preserves a useful cross-section of cable design and listening in this period.