I have been using cables made by forum member jls001 for the past couple of months and have been wanting to share my impressions on here but was caught up with travel in the last few months. There has been mention of his work on other threads but I truly think they deserve a thread all by itself. As many have already found out they are very good and really special.
USB Cable
When I talked to Josh (jls001) about cables he offered to send me some cables based on my preferences. The first cable I chose to try was a USB cable. As a first step Josh sent me a prototype cable which came with exposed naked wire. I had already asked Josh to remove the 5V wire as my DAC does not need it. To be honest I was sceptical at the prospect. But first impressions were good and surprised me. On the whole the cable sounded good but it was lacking a little something in the overall presentation.
Josh decided to send me another cable soon after. This time the cable was completely built with cable sleeve and neatly terminated. On appearance alone this made a much better impression. I placed it into my setup and was surprised at the leap in sound quality. This time the sound had texture and richness. Bass had weight and was well defined. Upright bass notes were natural with the thwack of the strings palpable to the ears. This was a cable I could easily keep in my setup. When I called Josh to talk about the cable he surprised me with news that he would like to send me another cable which he felt was better!
To cut a long story short - the next cable which came was the business. Josh had sorted out the build quality. And it came with my name handwritten on the cable - very nice touch! When I placed it in my setup, I could not believe that Josh had somehow managed to squeeze out some more goodness. This time it was in the mids - a denser tone and added texture. This complemented the already solid low end to give the cable beautiful rich tone and weightiness. Black background with natural organic sound. This was easily one of the best USB cables I had ever used in my setup.
Single Ended Interconnect Cable
My next discussion with Josh was for an IC cable between my DAC and Integrated amp. Having tried several cables I had settled on the Belden 8402 which to me gave the best sound. With any other cable there was a drop off but the Belden was the only one which tamed that problem. Josh's cable came in with his now standard build quality with my name handwritten on the sleeve. When I placed it in my setup I was amazed. Not only did the cable easily outclass the Belden but it brought out more richness to the sound. Full bodied and dense the sound was several notches above what I had earlier. The sound was fuller but yet more clearer with what I call the trademark "texture".
One of the genres that really benefited was Rock specially tracks with heavy guitar work. Listening to rock music electric guitar riffs is a lot more fun. Soaring guitar tracks have a sweet sound that is no longer scratchy. Trumpets have a full rich sound that reinforces nuanced tone and texture. Drum snares and high hats have a more palpable sound to them. Vocal recordings also benefit with a natural ease to the sound.
Summary
My amp has a sound signature that is typical of fast wide band design. Josh's cables adds body and texture to the sound. It would be interesting to hear what others have to say especially those with tube amps. Initial feedback from those I am in touch with has been positive. But it would be worth mentioning this to caution those with lush / tube sound amps to have a chat with Josh. From whatever my experience has been, Josh has the ability to fine tune the cables towards a system sound.
This kind of service and flexibility is truly what separates Josh's cables from any cables that you may find elsewhere. I also don't want to give the impression that he can magically cure a setup but given that he is locally available (on our forum) I would highly recommend him to anyone having a serious look at their cable loom.
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USB Cable
When I talked to Josh (jls001) about cables he offered to send me some cables based on my preferences. The first cable I chose to try was a USB cable. As a first step Josh sent me a prototype cable which came with exposed naked wire. I had already asked Josh to remove the 5V wire as my DAC does not need it. To be honest I was sceptical at the prospect. But first impressions were good and surprised me. On the whole the cable sounded good but it was lacking a little something in the overall presentation.
Josh decided to send me another cable soon after. This time the cable was completely built with cable sleeve and neatly terminated. On appearance alone this made a much better impression. I placed it into my setup and was surprised at the leap in sound quality. This time the sound had texture and richness. Bass had weight and was well defined. Upright bass notes were natural with the thwack of the strings palpable to the ears. This was a cable I could easily keep in my setup. When I called Josh to talk about the cable he surprised me with news that he would like to send me another cable which he felt was better!
To cut a long story short - the next cable which came was the business. Josh had sorted out the build quality. And it came with my name handwritten on the cable - very nice touch! When I placed it in my setup, I could not believe that Josh had somehow managed to squeeze out some more goodness. This time it was in the mids - a denser tone and added texture. This complemented the already solid low end to give the cable beautiful rich tone and weightiness. Black background with natural organic sound. This was easily one of the best USB cables I had ever used in my setup.
Single Ended Interconnect Cable
My next discussion with Josh was for an IC cable between my DAC and Integrated amp. Having tried several cables I had settled on the Belden 8402 which to me gave the best sound. With any other cable there was a drop off but the Belden was the only one which tamed that problem. Josh's cable came in with his now standard build quality with my name handwritten on the sleeve. When I placed it in my setup I was amazed. Not only did the cable easily outclass the Belden but it brought out more richness to the sound. Full bodied and dense the sound was several notches above what I had earlier. The sound was fuller but yet more clearer with what I call the trademark "texture".
One of the genres that really benefited was Rock specially tracks with heavy guitar work. Listening to rock music electric guitar riffs is a lot more fun. Soaring guitar tracks have a sweet sound that is no longer scratchy. Trumpets have a full rich sound that reinforces nuanced tone and texture. Drum snares and high hats have a more palpable sound to them. Vocal recordings also benefit with a natural ease to the sound.
Summary
My amp has a sound signature that is typical of fast wide band design. Josh's cables adds body and texture to the sound. It would be interesting to hear what others have to say especially those with tube amps. Initial feedback from those I am in touch with has been positive. But it would be worth mentioning this to caution those with lush / tube sound amps to have a chat with Josh. From whatever my experience has been, Josh has the ability to fine tune the cables towards a system sound.
This kind of service and flexibility is truly what separates Josh's cables from any cables that you may find elsewhere. I also don't want to give the impression that he can magically cure a setup but given that he is locally available (on our forum) I would highly recommend him to anyone having a serious look at their cable loom.
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