The CLASSIC cable series of the Tchernov Audio company is a middle line, and is designed for connection in Hi-Fi and High-End equipment. I will try to highlight in this article what these products of the company represent.
The following cables were provided to me for acquaintance:
TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC XS MKII AC POWER; TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC XS SC Bn/Bn speaker cable; TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC XS MkII IC RCA interconnect.
Some of the cables were already burnt-in, and some of the cables were new, just out of the box. Therefore, I had to be patient and, having connected all the cables, put the system into a weekly "warm-up". I would like to note right away that the audition was conducted in two different systems of a sufficient level to indicate and summarize the conclusions set out below.
Cables of the CLASSIC series, as well as other series, are supplied by the manufacturer in beautiful branded boxes. To protect the connectors during transportation, special polyurethane mesh is additionally provided. The appearance of the cables is very decent, they are moderately flexible, good assembly draws attention, the connector contacts also look very good. In general, I didn't have the slightest complaints about the appearance, everything is at a very high level. I decided to start listening with a power cable, since there were most of them in the kit, as many as three pieces, besides, I like to reveal the system starting with the power cable. The test scheme was as follows: first I listened to each cable separately, and then the full set.
I will not bore you with a long description of the technical characteristics of the TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC XS MKII AC POWER. I note that the cable uses multi-wire BRC conductors 3 x 3.00 mm2 (63 x 0.245 mm), which is about 12 AWG.
Looking ahead, I will say that this cable showed itself best when connected to a source. To understand the overall level of the cable, I changed it on the sources instead of the OEM cable. Both on the CD player and on the DAC, the power cable showed itself with the same sound handwriting. The separation of instruments is more than good, each imaginary source is distinguishable, there is no blurring in the sound, the tonal balance is neutral, there is a slight emphasis on medium frequencies, as if the musical presentation is slightly more convex, while maintaining good relief and not to the detriment of other parts of the range. The upper frequencies are transparent, while there is no excessive brightness and muting at the same time. The length of this range is excellent, the feed is clear and open. The middle is informative, there are no smoothings, all peaks are played out well, microdynamics are at a height, while the overall feed is merged. The lower range is not as deep as I would like, but there are no special complaints about it – it is mobile, with sufficient volume, good relief and transmission of semitones. There is no droning, booming or uniformity in the delivery of the bass.
In general, the sound can be described as clear, open, solid, with a good transfer of all the accents and nuances of the sound presentation. I liked the general supply of sources with this power cable. Everything is balanced and in moderation, the sound is dense, rich, merged, the music is listened to with interest. This cable plays its price perfectly when connecting sources to it (DAC, CD, etc.). I liked it – a worthy product! At the same time, on the amplifiers (in both systems) TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC XS MKII AC POWER did not show the same impressive results for me, apparently not a very large cross-section of the conductors has an effect. Perhaps with tube amplifiers and low-power transistors it will behave differently. In the case of connecting to an amplifier, I lacked mainly roundness, breadth and thoroughness in sound.
Leaving the Tchernov Audio power cable connected to the source, I tried the TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC XS MkII IC RCA interconnect. The official manufacturer's information about this cable: "Thanks to the BRC conductors of increased cross-section (2 x 0.75 mm2) and improved noise immunity due to the "Multi-element screen System" X-Shield®, the new Classic XS MkII IC significantly exceeds the Classic MkII IC in breadth and linearity of the frequency response, and in terms of resolution it approaches a fundamentally higher Reference line. The Classic XS MkII IC can be successfully used for connection in the most complex modern High-end audio-video systems."
So, the first acquaintance revealed the Classic XS MkII IC interconnect has an even tonal balance, articulated bass and very pleasant comfortable treble with excellent drawing. I specially put a CD with the recording of Cornerstone "Arrival" 2002, where some emphasis on HF is present, and was surprised how well the cable coped with this sharpness in recording. The scene is medium-sized, both in depth and width, there is no stretching or tightness. The music sounds relaxed and natural, the musical canvas, with its unity, blooms with "colors". The cable demonstrated a good balance between density, physicality of sound and detail. The middle is slightly (not at all critical) slightly pushed forward, which also increased the tangibility of the vocals, the mood and manner of singing of the performer was felt. The readability of the backgrounds of the Classic XS MkII IC is not bad for its price category, but of course I heard some better ones. The cable places a slight emphasis on the foreground, as a result, the separation is reduced. The top is long, with a good level of resolution. The percussion is very tasty, the rhythm is excellent.
The cable transmits music fresh, dynamically, but without excessive affectation of "synthetics". The cable is tonally balanced, the sound is very clear, timbral correct, the resolution over the entire range is at a high level. Localization of sources is good, images do not pile up. The cable feed is cheerful, I would even call it "sunny". Genre is universal. The dynamic range was fine with me. Macrodynamics would like a little more, but for such a price it is already a quibble. In general, one conclusion is that the price of the product does not correspond to the "sound quality", the cable should definitely cost more. In a word, a very successful product!
I allowed myself to compare this cable with a more expensive opponent - the Audioquest cable, and the sound of the cable from TCHERNOV CABLE was in the same league with it. Yes, his opponent showed a slightly deeper bass, more air and was a little more informative, but at the same time TCHERNOV's vocals were more natural and the sound a little rounder. But the price difference between these two cables is simply not comparable. And the supply of each interconnect cable is different.
Leaving two cables in the system already (network and interblock) I started testing the TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC XS SC Bn/Bn speaker cable.
From the manufacturer's technical description: "The distinctive design features of the Classic XS SC are BRC conductors with a large cross section of 2 x 4.00 mm2 in the most advanced individual "Semi-air Tape Insulation" SATI®, a damping "Cable Core" Cable-Core with FTDA® technology and improved noise immunity thanks to the "Multi-element screen System" X-Shield®. The multi-wire BRC drainage conductor in the X-Shield® structure reduces contact noise in the screen system and its impedance, and also equalizes the shielding properties along the entire length. According to its technological level, the degree of protection against EMF, the breadth and linearity of the frequency response, as well as the timbral reliability, the Classic XS SC is a step towards a higher Reference line. It creates a perfectly balanced sound picture on a real scale with the finest detail." So, the TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC XS SC Bn/Bn showed an articulated punch bass, the speed characteristics in the lower range are more than good, but I lacked their fullness quite a bit, and they are not as deep as I would like. Or as they write in specialized publications, "the bass is delicate in terms of juiciness and scale." But you will never understand this if you do not compare it with "more bass" cables. However, with such a cable, you will not lack the depth of the bass. It's just a matter of taste, nothing more. The informativeness in the middle is good. There is timbral confidence. There is a melodiousness, the piano sounds "with the whole tree", the cable "draws" all the nuances, while the overall picture is very fused and does not break up into small details. There are also no problems with HF, they are reproduced at a good level, everything is quite transparent. The scene with this cable is average, both in depth and in width, the dimensions of the stereo images are clear and of the correct shape. I lacked a bit of "openness" in the sound and the length from the middle to the very bottom. But this does not spoil the overall impression of the sound. In general, the sound is clear, informative, dynamic, without annoying detail.
In comparison, I had two cables at hand. They were Audio Magic Clairvoyant Liquid Air (retail 4500 USD) and Hovland Nine Line (retail 1200 usd). After the "race" with them, I can say that the TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC XS SC Bn/Bn fully corresponds to the price stated for it (1.65 meters for 64500 rubles).
The full set of TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC, due to its neutral nature, showed genre omnivore. I can say that this is one of the best-in-class sets of universal cables and, so to speak, "with a modern sound vector". The presentation with them is clear, detailed, lively, dynamic, at the same time comfortable, without "digital" artifacts or "synthetics", sibilants, roughness. The sound is harmonious and smooth, solid, quite dense, voluminous, transparent over the entire range. The CLASSIC series cables are well balanced and well suited for many systems.
At the very end of testing, I decided to compare the ARKANA EXQUISOTOR and TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC interconnect cables with Clairvoyant Liquid Air speaker cable. And, considering the price of ARKANA, the result was predetermined. But by changing the speaker cable to TCHERNOV CABLE, the difference in the overall sound was greatly reduced. It turned out that the monobrand in this case benefits the overall sound.
This turned out to be surprising, since the difference in cost between the pairs of TCHERNOV CABLE and ARKANA EXQUISOTOR + Clairvoyant Liquid Air is simply huge, and the sound of the complete sets is almost balanced. The TCHERNOV CABLE CLASSIC XS MkII IC interconnect "sounds" better with the same brand speaker cable than with a third-party one.
I almost never recommend monobrand in systems, but in this case, apparently due to the neutral nature of the TCHERNOV CABLE, as well as the uniformity of the material used in the conductors, I would call the sound of the cable set very self-sufficient and the use of cables of the same company in the system for all types of switching is only welcome.
Setups:
Speaker System: Audio Physical Scorpio II; Dac: Muse Electronics 296 DAC 1704K; CD Transport: Muse Electronics Model Eight CD; Preamp: Counterpoint Solid 8; Power Amplifier: Threshold S 300 Series 2; power cable Acoustic Zen Gargantua, Kubala Sosna Emotion, VooDoo Platium; interconnect cable Revelation Audio Labs IC, Hovland 9 line speaker cable.
Speakers: Dynaudio Contour S 1.4; Meridian G08.2 CD player; Mcintosh 6900 amplifier; Acoustic Audio magic Clairvoyant Liquid Air cable; PS Audio 12 power cable; AQ Niagara and ARKANA EXQUISOTOR interconnect cable.
Musical material: Aaron Parks - First Romance 2000; Alexander Schimmeroth - Arrival 2005; Dark Tranquillity Haven 2000; Arch Enemy Wages of Sin 2001; Vivaldi La stravaganza, Op.4; Carlos Kleiber Beethoven symphony No.5; Cornerstone – Arrival 2002.
