Home Authentic Audio Image – AAI: cables and pads – High level tweaking

Authentic Audio Image – AAI: cables and pads – High level tweaking

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Price: € 380 - 3230

Intro

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Authentic Audio Image – AAI – is a manufacturer of cables and accessories from Slovakia. The Dutch importer, Musicom, has sent us three sets of pads and a whole set of cables from the “Vittorioso” line for some tweaking. In short: there’s work to be done!

AAI’s motto is ‘just natural sound’. We are testing the products – supplied by Musicom – to investigate that claim. The testing was done by your faithful authors, Jaap and Martijn, together. In Martijn’s setup at home it didn’t really work out. The cables were either of the wrong type or too short, except for the Ethernet cable. The pads were absolutely no success in combination with the Naim amplifier and streamer, but the feeling was that this was a Naim specific issue and not of the pads (Naim already decouples the boards internally, which could possibly cause an undesired effect).

Fortunately, we always have other options. There is an extensive reference system in Haarlem. In short: your author went to Haarlem with cables and pads under his arm! It was a day of intensive testing and also many new issues. You’ll be reading a lot more on Alpha Audio about cables, effects and measurements. And hopefully also the necessary clarifications and explanations of what cables do now. But before we go off-topic too much: this article is about the AAI products.

Type test
Multitest
Tested price class
Price cheapest product: €380
Price most expensive product: €3230
Properties
  • Brand and model: AAI Vittorioso Ethernet
  • Build quality: Nicely constructed, good plugs
  • Overall impression: Nice warm sound, rounded high without losing colour. Non-digital sounding cable.
  • Price: €690
  • Brand and model: AAI Vittorioso Speaker (3 meter)
  • Build quality: Separate cables per channel, very nice plugs that you screw on and that make good contact
  • Overall impression: A lot of detail, but a tilted stereo image: highs and mids are very prominent.
  • Price: €3230
  • Brand and model: AAI Vittorioso USB
  • Build quality: Nicely constructed, standard USB plugs
  • Overall impression: Huge soundstage, a lot of warmth in the sound.
  • Price: €690
  • Brand and model: AAI Vittorioso XLR
  • Build quality: Beautifully constructed cable, plugs click into place
  • Overall impression: A lot of emphasis on highs and mids.
  • Price: €1725
  • Brand and model: AAI Pad mini (per 4)
  • Build quality: Beautifully polished surface, stands firmly on the ground
  • Overall impression: A lot of calmness in the soundstage and creates space around the sound, making the listening experience relaxed.
  • Price: €380
  • Brand and model: AAI Pad midi (per 4)
  • Build quality: Attractive polished surface, stands firmly on the ground
  • Overall impression: A lot of calmness in the soundstage and creates space around the sound, making the listening experience relaxed.
  • Price: €720
  • Winkels met AAI

    Cort van der Lindelaan 11
    9722 LP Groningen, NL