October 22, 2012

  • XLO Signature 5.1, Part 6

    25 years ago, with R&B, dance, heavy metal, and modern music so popular, adult contemporary sort of took a backseat.  And so that's where Belinda Carlisle's Heaven On Earth sat.

    During that Fall '87 semester, I went with some friends to San Francisco's wharf area.  Afterward, we headed for the Tower Records on Columbus & Jones.  Thought not a popular move, one of my friends bought Heaven On Earth.  And what did she get it on?  CD!  And bless her soul, a couple weeks later, I got to hear that CD, on my Sony D-10 Discman.

    It turns out that Heaven On Earth is an excellent recording.  On "Heaven Is A Place On Earth," the production is sharp, clean, detailed, focused, punchy, and clear.  Yep, Michelle Phillips and Diane Warren herself (Ms. Warren usually writes songs, but doesn't sing on them) sing backup.  And check out Thomas Dolby's masterful keyboard work.

    And again, Dolby is in high form on my favorite, "Circle In The Sand."  Thank goodness I had friends who took chances on music.  In the mid-90s, I would dust off Heaven On Earth, and use "Heaven Is A Place On Earth" and "Circle In The Sand" as audiophile references.

    Sound-wise, I think of XLO's Sig 5.1 as the Heaven On Earth of speaker cables.  But before you go crazy drawing circles in the sand, make sure you get the Sig 5.1 in the correct length.  If it's too long, you will have a devil of a time, hooking it up.  The sample above is too long, and you can see that I had to prop it up against the wall.

    Man, 25 years ago, we did not know about bi-wiring.  Nowadays, it seems as though there are more bi-wire speakers than regular single-wire.  With the original Signature series, XLO did not make an internal bi-wire version.  If you wanted to bi-wire, you had to buy (a) two runs of Sig 5.1 (gulp!), or (b) an S-J/S jumper cable.  As we know from reviewing the S-J/S, it is excellent.  It does indeed make the perfect compliment to the basic Sig 5.1 speaker cable.   

Comments (10)

  • Hi,

    Could you tell me if your XLO Signature 5.1 have holographic stickers (holographs).

    Thanks,
    seb

    • The original Signature series, which was in production from 1992-1997 or so, did not have hologram stickers. Due to the abundance of fakes out there, XLO decided to include hologram stickers on their latest series 3 lines. Thus, my XLO S3-5.2 does indeed have the hologram sticker with serial number.

  • Thank you for quick answer. Do you think that Signature 5.1 was also a subject to being faked or is it too old for the whole fake boom?

    I looked online and could not find any opinions about signature 5.1 fakes so far. I am looking to buy one just trying to figure out how big of a risk it is.

    Thanks

    • I'm not aware that the original Signature 5.1 was commonly faked. However, many users put odd or poorly-terminated connectors on the 5.1. Any samples of the original 5.1 will be over 15 years old. So while it remains an excellent product, be aware. Also know that the original 5.1 was/is a very stiff product. So you have to make sure that you get it in the correct length. Any excess length will be impossible to tame.

      The "series 2" Signature speaker cables were actually quite good (in contrast to XLO's disappointing Series 2 interconnects). I was told that, for the S2, XLO sourced the materials from east Asia. That is why so many fakes have come from China and Hong Kong.

  • Do you know what is the wire made of? Is it plain copper or is it a silver / copper mix?

    Do you know how they compare to more up to date cables?

    Thanks

  • Until Ultralink took over, XLO never used any silver. All o the conductors were copper.

    The current-production S3-5.2 is more transparent and even more self-effacing than the original.

    All with all cables, though, you will need a proper burn-in device, to unlock their true potential.

  • Would you say it is worth to get possibly 15 or more years old Singature 5.1 for lets say 400$ or a brand new speaker cable for that money (so low / mid range up to date cable)?

    Would you buy yourself a sig 5.1 over a 400 - 500$ current crop of cables?

    I am aware that I might be looking at redetermining 5.1

    Thank you one more time for taking time to answer all my questions.

    • That's not a question that can be answered. Everything depends on what your system is and will be; what your timeline, tastes, and budget are.

      Yes, XLO/Ultralink can and will re-terminated old products. They're usually quite good at not delaying, either. The review sample of the Sig 5.1 originally had 6mm spades. My friend had the 5. re-terminated with bananas - a very wise and cost-effective move.

      The original Signature 5.1 is not available in an internal bi-wire configuration. For that, you need to add a bi-wire jumper.

      But before anyone makes any cable changes, he or she absolutely MUST get a cable burn-in device, and condition the existing cables. Many times, audiophiles have told me that, after getting their existing cables treated, they didn't feel the need to replace those cables. Turns out, those cables were significantly better than the owners' realized.

  • My budget is up to 500$ for a speaker cable either new or second hand. This cable will stay with me for a year or two. It is brand new system with RRP of about 10 - 12k. Highe efficiency tube speakers all solid state, highly tuned as PC. The only missing link are the speaker cables.

    So the dilemma I am facing is to either go for new cheaper low / mid range cable of like ACOUSTIC REVIVE SPC or higher end from 15 years ago like XLO Sig 5.1.

    Which would yield better results.

    BTW XLO is gone. They will not retermiante anything I am afraid. They are out of business.

    If termination is bad on 15 years old XLO I wil cut it off and go straight wire both ends as it is going to improve the SQ anyway.

    Let me know your views on the subject

    • XLO haven't really existed for years, because Ultralink owns them. Just a few months ago, Ultralink re-terminated some XLO Ultra speaker cables for a friend of mine.

      I Cooked Acoustic Revive's SPC-PA speaker cable and RCA-PA interconnects. These products are AWFUL. Avoid at all costs. If you want your system to put you to sleep, fine, get the Acoustic Revive cables. These cables will absolutely drain the life, energy, and soul from the music. On top of that, the SPC-PA speaker cable is NOT terminated. The leads are bare wire. I haven't seen anything this unprofessional and amateurish in over 20 years.

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