Ormus
MONO AND STEREO HIGH-END AUDIO MAGAZINE
First off lets talk about the cables them self. They arrived in a good looking wooden box and the built quality seems they're built to last a lifetime. Despite their thickness they are very easy to bent around the corners. They are massively heavy and with a flawless finish. They choose vibrant colours for the sleeve and they're looking really nicely.
The Ormus CONSEQUNCE AES
First thing I noticed, was how well it behaves tonally. It really doesn't imprint any noticeable sonic signature and stands out neutrally. I've connected Ormus between the Audioheaven modded M2tech EVOII and the well known Bel Canto DAC3 in a upgraded version.
THE MUSIC
First up for the listening was the album with Brian Blomberg WOOD! This man can surely play the bass. With the Ormus supplying the DAC with bits bass just seems to be so untouched and alive. The finesse of the wooden bass was so darn real. One can easy distinct the difference between the notes and the timbre being played. Compared to my old reference AES the micro dynamics are more noticeable and full. There was a lot more going on than before. Slap on the strings were faster and more tightly pronounced. Notes became more airy with the better resolution in the air around Brian's bass. I've really got the feeling that he was performing right here and right now. Being huge fan of Brian Bromberg and with the Ormus in the digital chain it reminded me why I'm such a huge fan of him. The in-depth layering of his playing was spot on and full of avid details.
Fur further insights I've put on the latest Claire Martin album - To much in love to care. The Weaver Of Dreams starts of with few piano notes. Some digital cables are having a hard time in presenting them without a slight digital harshens. With the Ormus the piano notes were noticeably smoother and warmer. The distinctive high notes were much better with the Ormus and when her voice enter in Ormus had no problem separating the piano from her voice. With other digital cables its usually blends to much. Her voice appeared with the right age impression and richness one would only found in really great digital cables. Quit delicate. I found my self listening much more to this album than before. With the other digital cables it was really hard for me to enjoy this album to it fullest impact. With Audiomica I could. the Ormus really drags me into the music and makes me wants to listen to the music. I tried a ton of albums with female voices. And the sonic performance is superb and very non- digital. Beth Hart - I´d Rather Go Blind album has so much power and soul and the Ormus presented it as it was ment to be. Big and powerful. Scale and dynamics were breathtaking and so much more music were flowing throughout them with more passion in the music compared to my digital reference cables.
THE XLR TEST
As AudioMica sent me the cables in pairs I couldn't help wondering how they would perform as an XLR signal cables. So I gave it a try and man I didn't regret my urge. Connected between my Audio Note M6 And the Orpheus Three M monoblocks. the "digital" cable have had a huge positive impact. The music being played was presented with more depth and space. Background appeared pitch black and the soundstage was rock solid! No matter of the gain coming from my M6 preamplifier, Ormus dealth with music with what if felt like endless headroom. From the smallest trio with a easy jazz bands to the biggest and most demanding symphony the Ormus behaved superbly. The deepest bass could have a tiny bit more body, but thats really just a matter of taste. Top pend felt without the limits and midrange was transparent alive. Perhaps the Ormus is not JUST intended for AES use!?
SECOND RUN
I toke the Bel Canto DAC3 out of the system and replaced it with the AudioNote DAC 3.1x II signature. Now the fun really started. Despite the Bel Canto DAC not being really low performance DAC, AudioNote DAC was just added much more. I started out with my current reference digital cable and left it in the system for a couple of days just enough to got my preferences right on track before hooking up the Audimica Ormus.
The AudioNote DAC is one of my all time favourites, but it is insanely demanding with the cables used for the digital bit transfer. I've tried a tons of AES cables on my AudioNote and ended up with the very respected MIT Oracle MA-X AES. So the Audiomica Ormus was up against some heavy league now.
Eric Kunzel´s album round-up. An album full of soundtracks. This is a darn good album. With the Magnificent Seven track the share scale and drama, that this digital cable could produce was astonishing. From the most silenced passages to the most loud ones the cable never seems stressed! The attack of the drums were BIG and ALIVE. Sometimes it can get a bit scary when playing it loud as I often do, but this is what a cable is all about and should be. Just letting all the energy in the music flowing and unaltered. Micro dynamics might perhaps not being the best I've heard, but with what this cable can do in terms of share force in music outweigh this. MIT got the micro dynamics a bit better, but it has no way near to the same brutal and powerful energy transfer of the Audimica Ormus. Not even close. Even in scale and soundstage the Ormus was lightyears ahead of any AES digital cable I've listen so far. Its was very appealing how Ormus lets the music through. It doesn't really mattered what kind of music I played. Audiomica Ormus just lets you hear it whole heartedly. In the musical world of mine, thats more important than anything else.
SUMMING IT UP
To sum it up! If your looking for a serious performing AES digital cable look no further. The Audimica Ormus CONSEQUENCE is among the best I've ever had in my system. The build quality is top class and its performance rivals the best digital cables out there. This digital AES cable it's in the league of its own. I highly recommend the Audimica Ormus.
The only negative part is being only the loaner cable. It will be hard to depart from it..
Stay tuned for a follow up review of the CAINIT EXCELLENCE AES from AudioMica.
Kenneth Aagaard Jensen. Senior writer/editor at Mono & Stereo.
TECHNICAL SPECS FROM THE MANUFACTURER:
ORMUS CONSEQUENCE (AES/EBU and DMX Interconnect)
Ormus is the highest quality digital cable used In AES/EBU and DMX installations and is made of OCC copper. The cable is built of four separately-screened and helical-twisted wires. Each wire consists of three parallel conductors. Such structure eliminates mutual electric currents’ induction by the magnetic field of neighbouring wires. Research Has show that such structures doesn’t require additional filtering, hence instead of applying DFSS filtering we hale applied an unique FEP isolation of great density and electrical correctness. Each of the four conductors is separately protected against electromagnetic field by aluminium foil (100 % coverage).
The highest quality XLR plugs are gold-plated, which enhances the contact, and electric and mechanical properties of the cable. The cable provides the impedance of 110 OHM (measured decrease at 1% level).
The original cord is packed in a signed wooden box. The box includes the certificate of authenticity, a brochure with the description of the series, a product code and a personal quality assurance. Free Mica Clear liquid, a two-step cleaner, sold along with the cord.
Conductors: 4x3x21 AWG, OCC, N7
The outer diameter: 18 AWG
Cable diameter: 9 AWG
Screen: Aluminium Foil 100%
Divider: Textile Fiber
Plugs: XLR, Gold
Color: White
Series: Consequence Series
Standardized wire gauge (AWG - American Wire Gauge)
Audiomica Laboratory (Laboratoriy)
Ul. Tadeusza Kościuszki 30
38-300 Gorlice
woj. małopolskie
POLAND
www.audiomica.com
sales@audiomica.com
Mono and Stereo ultra high end audio magazine 2006-2014. www.monoandstereo.com.