The Invictus Cables
Contents
Invictus Referenz
So we ourselves use the Ricable Magnus cables from this manufacturer with the exception of the speaker cable. We tried those several times but each time we had the feeling that something was not right. And when colleague Jaap came to visit us and we replaced the Benchmark Media Systems Speakon cable with the Ricable Magnus Speaker MKII cable he immediately had the same reaction. It was as if this cable, in our system at least, was holding things back, preventing the music from releasing properly from the speakers. Perhaps this cable is still not sufficiently burned in but at least with the Ricable Invictus Referenz we did not have this problem.
On the contrary. It immediately showed its qualities. Or rather the qualities of the system because what a wonderful cable this is. We even heard so much difference with the Magnus cable that we did a small blind test. With slight pride we can report that we achieved six out of six. Of course you don’t always hear such a striking difference but here it was abundantly clear. Music flows effortlessly out of the speakers, the stereo image is completely open, voices and instruments are better aligned and perfectly positioned. Now nothing gets in the way. Or so we think anyway because there’s always room for improvement. Right?
Invictus XLR
Also with this cable we immediately notice things. We get more information through from the hall and hear the reverb of the room better. There is also more air between the notes than before. More quietness and blackness, so to speak. After a week of listening we keep noticing the same thing. More information through the beryllium tweeter without becoming analytical or sharp and more breathing room for voice and instruments. This cable is clear and open without becoming sharp. The Magnus XLR is a bit friendlier and softer in comparison so hopefully your system is balanced because the Invictus cables expose a lot!
Invictus AES/EBU
In our room and on our system, the differences between the Magnus and Invictus AES/EBU cable are minimal. It is quite difficult to tell the two cables apart. On a nice recording, like Jim Hall’s, and via the CEC TL2N transport, we hear small differences. On certain CDs, our attention goes to certain details that we didn’t pick up with the Magnus cables at first. But as said here the differences are very limited and certainly not always audible. Both cables are therefore almost equal in terms of construction and technology used.
Invictus Power
Finally, we add the power cord. We connected the Invictus Power to the Bryston 4B3, the Sonnet Morpheus and the CEC transport and on all three we hear advantages over a standard cord.
Recurring theme is the bass that goes a fraction deeper and is better defined. The control of the sub-low is better and the music is more backward. One thing to note is that the CEC transport throughout proved to be very sensitive to cabling. The full review is coming soon.
Rounding up
After a few weeks we swap the Ricable Invictus cables for our own Ricable Magnus cables. We happily retain enough calmness and refinement with the Magnus cables but the Invictus cables still allow more information to pass through. They go further in terms of resolution and provide a beautifully defined bass. Especially the speaker cable and XLR cable were clearly better than the Magnus cables in our system.
With the AES/EBU and the power cord the differences were limited but a whole line of Invictus cables clearly goes further than a line of Magnus cables