Network Acoustics muon2 Balanced Digital cable
Network Acoustics are, like myself, firm believers in the supremacy of USB cables when it comes to streaming digital signals from sources to DACs, but when they came up with the muon2 Balanced Digital cable questions were asked. In fact I have fallen for the qualities of this cable and have been using it in my reference system for the last six months.
Digital cables terminated in an XLR plug like this are often called AES/EBU interconnects after the standard created by those organisations (Audio Engineering Society, European Broadcasting Union). This was created with professional use in mind and includes the requirement that the cable has a 110 Ohm impedance so that it can transmit signal for up to 100m, for which typically pro style XLRs are required. Network Acoustics built muon2 Balanced Digital to be compatible with this interface but doesn’t call it an AES/EBU cable because of the impedance requirement. As they don’t make cables any longer than 3m this is not an issue. It is also not possible to get 110 Ohm XLRs that have solid silver pins which NA consider critical to the end result
The exact nature of the muon2 Balanced Digital cable is a closely guarded secret but they do tell us quite a bit about the materials used in its construction. The conductors are described as being a “proprietary high purity gold and silver solid core… configured in a helix formation.” Which indicates that there is no copper involved although this material might well be in the shielding sleeve that is included to keep out radio frequency and electromagnetic interference, something of a necessity with digital cables. The dielectric or insulation is organic cotton with damped air pockets, air being the ultimate dielectric of course and cotton being very popular in the Japanese high end and elsewhere.
The precious metals theme continues in the XLR plugs which have solid silver contacts but not the locking system found on pro style plugs, these plugs are a good fit however and have a simple but effective fixing system in locking sockets. There is a dark blue leather tag on the send end of the cable, the one with the female plug, there is no option to run an XLR cable the wrong way round of course but the leather is a nice touch and the only place you can see the brand. Network Acoustics could learn a thing or two from the big boys in this area.
The recommended (and minimum) length for muon2 Balanced Digital is 1.5m, it is available in lengths up to 3m but 1.5m (5 feet) is optimal according to Network Acoustics, all their digital cables start at this size.
Sound quality
Prior to the arrival of the muon2 Balanced Digital I had being using the best sounding digital cable that I have tested in the muon2 USB, and I was connecting my streamer and DAC with it right up until this cable came along. AES type cables have always had a certain appeal however and some experienced reviewers have never adopted anything else, however I have always found that they could not match the detail resolving powers of good USB. Balanced cables often have a more musically fluid and enjoyable presentation however, what they lack in minutiae they almost make up for with a warmer, more analogue sound.
When the muon2 Balanced Digital arrived, I discovered that when done this well AES connections get very close to its USB stablemate in terms of resolution and has the edge when it comes to musical flow.
The muon2 Balanced Digital cable has a shine and solidity in the high frequencies that is exceptional. The treble is where digital is usually at its weakest, it’s where the hard grainy sound that was associated with CD was most obvious, and it’s where this cable reveals its strength. It doesn’t achieve this by rolling off the top end which can be heard with other digital cables, in fact the sound is so open and expansive that it makes alternatives sound shut in. Neither is it bright and sparkly, if these characteristics are part of the musical signal then that’s how it will sound, but there is nothing being added nor apparently taken away across the board.
One thing that struck me when reviewing a very fine DAC recently was that the USB cable made by the same company sounded thick and shut-in by comparison with muon2 USB, quite dramatically so. The muon2 USB is a transparent to everything that it is fed, both good and bad, with the Xact S1 Evo server/streamer (which is restricted to USB output) the results were the best I have heard from a digital source. The AES connection provided by muon2 Balanced Digital is probably a little more forgiving, highs are a shade sweeter and it seems that there is more depth on many tracks.
But it’s hard to say which is definitively better because the quality of the source and the relevant inputs on the DAC also play a part. What I can say is that with the Lumin U2 Mini streamer into a Bricasti M11 Classic DAC the muon2 Balanced Digital is the better sounding of Network Acoustics’ digital cables, I accept however that even in modified form this streamer is not the best you can get and that the muon2 USB may be revealing its shortcomings in a way that its balanced brother does not.
I have used muon2 Balanced Digital with all the digital components I have reviewed since it arrived and the following are some of the observations I made with it in the system. With the Auralic Altair G2.2 used as a DAC I enjoyed some particularly engaging results, it has an ease combined with clarity that is rare and this means you can appreciate delicacy and fine detail as easily as driving beats and visceral impact. I love the way that it offers up the sound of the room alongside acoustics instruments, allowing you to hear the difference between natural and artificial reverb in the character of the sound.
The sense of ease is particularly welcome with more intense material too, this is the stuff that can get overly aggressive with some DACs because they add a little bit of extra bite to the attack. But here I enjoyed the complexity and fire power of Elephant 9’s I Cover the Mountain (contemporary Scandinavian prog), with Terje Rypdal’s inspired guitar amping up the intensity, material that would be very hard to enjoy without the Auralic’s, and by extension the muon2’s, innate composure under fire.
With the Melco S1 network switch in the system there is a real body and presence to pretty much everything played but this is especially noticeable on decent recordings of acoustic instruments. Such as the piano, bass and drums of Keith Jarrett, Gary Peacock and Paul Motion playing live on The Old Country (More from the Deer Head Inn). Their enthusiasm coupled with virtuosity makes for a thrilling concert, when Jarrett gets the muse between his teeth they really take off and the listener is carried along by the energy, it’s not quite like being in the audience at the time but close enough.
With the Bricasti M11 R-2R Classic DAC vocals are handled exceptionally well thanks to its communication skills, our ears are attuned to the human voice and we are very sensitive to changes here, so when you get a genuinely transparent, uncoloured converter (and cable) like this, voices are revealed in their full glory. I found this with a range of artists from Van Morrison through Joni Mitchell to Tamara Lindeman of The Weather Station. Each bringing a distinct character to the table that was easy to appreciate with muon2 Balanced Digital in the system .
Conclusion
Experience with a range of products over time has revealed that muon2 Balanced Digital is both exceptionally revealing and musically rewarding. It probably not as warts and all transparent as muon2 USB but only the best digital sources stand up to the sort of scrutiny which that cable brings to the table. By contrast muon2 Balanced Digital delivers transparency with an ease and fluency that makes listening to streamed music a real pleasure, it opens up the most complex of material and invites you in, revealing just what inspired the composer or artist in the first place. Put it this way, if a DAC doesn’t have an AES input I am not really interested in reviewing it, this cable is a gift to music lovers regardless of their tastes.