FURUTECH Evolution II

TR19.11.2011

Speaker cables

Should I describe the Furutech Evolution II’s sound in the context of our group test I would have to say: sensational! It sounds excellent from the very first tones and it remains to be excellent after few days of auditioning and comparisons too. The Evolution II has no obvious flaws - it throws a very natural and precise soundstage, it performs with matured refinement, it is smooth across the whole frequency range, it does not try to impress you and rather relies on understated elegance and, with a grace, it mesmerizes the listener with pure music.

Function and form

95%

Ease of use

58%

Sound

98%

Appearance

The Furutech Evolution II is a second generation of well received Evolution series. It uses strands of μ-OFC Conductors around a center PE core and features, as synonymous with Furutech, cryogenic treatment. The process of cryogenization relieves the internal material stress on a molecular level and improves the conductivity (and sound). Unlike competitors, in the ‘alpha-process’ Furutech uses liquid N2 or helium to reach temperatures below -200°C. After the treatment the metal parts are carefully demagnetized. The Evolution II improves over its predecessor by newly-engineered anti-resonance cable clamps as well as an upgraded dielectric incorporating anti-resonance carbon particles.

The obsession with detail and perfect craftsmanship are two certainties in the Furutech’s world. The cable’s smooth black sheath runs into two precisely machined aluminum clamps and the ends were terminated with proprietary gold-plated non-magnetical connectors Furutech FP-202 (bananas) and FP-218 (spades). Of course, you are free to replace the connectors with a rhodium or other type from the Furutech’s catalogue. I did not find any indication that would say the Evolution II is a directional cable. That makes it even easier to use and I could swap bananas with spades according to the components I used in the test. Also, it is quite bendable with the radius of 50mm so I had not issue to manipulate with the cable behind a rack.

Bass management

Weight

Slam

Articulation

This review is a part of The Low and Mid-tier Speaker Cables Megatest that includes 18 different speaker cables. The pilot article is available at SPECIAL EDITION REVIEWS section of Audiodrom.

Clarity & delicacy

Detail

Air

Transparency

George Benson’s White Rabbit was questionably the best I heard during the six months I lived with eighteen different speaker cables. There was an exceptional sense of effortlessness and rhythm as if the musicians were spontaneously jamming in my room, as if the speakers just poured the music into my room. The fluidity of the Evolution II is a synthesis of the analog smoothness of the Audioquest CV-4, the relaxed and attentive artistry of the Kimber Monocle X and the dynamic drive of the Krautwire Clever. Perceived as a whole the Evolution II is perfect. If we start dissecting individual sound elements the Furutech is not always superior to the all aforementioned cables. For example, its bass is a tad less contoured than the bass of the Krautwire Clever as heard on the double bass in In The Wee Small Hours of The Morning or on timpanis in Star Wars. Though the bass is not that convincing as with the Clever, it reacts quicker than with the Monocle X and is wonderfully integrated in the Evolution II’s frequency response. I spent time speculating why the Furutech was so good and here is my resolution: it is totally seamless across all frequencies and manages to keep high level of inner communication in the music which results into kind of very organic sound yet rich with macro and micro details. And, above all, it intensively communicates the music towards the listener.

Tonal accuracy

Timbre

Dynamics

Temporal resolution

I would not say the Furutech Evolution II is extrermely resolving - the Kimber better accented the keys of a flute in In The Wee Small Hours of The Morning, for example, which add the extra dimension to the listening experience. However, all these comparisons fail in the case of the Evolution II which simply says So what! I suppose we are to listen to the music, aren’t we? During the listening sessions with the Furutech I often forgot to make notes and just enjoyed the music that was very physical and palpable in my room. The sense of palpability greatly enhanced the sound of a tambourine in Pink Floyd’s Young Lust: I heard it many times in the course of our test and only the Evolution II somehow outlined the hand that held it.

Spatial resolution

Holography

Soundstage width

Soundstage depth

In its nature the Evolution II is a forgiving cable that does not sort recordings to the good and bad ones. Does this mean that it has so strong signature that wipes out differences between the recordings? Not really – the bad recordings sound bad also through the Evolution II, however, the reproduction priority of the Evolution II lies in the enjoyment rather than in ruthless demasking of the flaws. I like early Columbia sound that is dynamic, delicately outlined and radiates warmth through velvety lows and mids. The Furutech Evolution II fits this model very well.

Price as reviewed:17 000,- Kč

Recommended resellers

Audiostudio s.r.o., Olomouc, tel. +420 608 752 475

Manufacturer's website: http://www.kimber.com

Associated components

Sources: Primare CD32, Luxman D-05 and Accuphase DP-510
Amplifiers: Primare I32, Luxman L-590AX and Accuphase E-560
Interconnects and speaker cables: Krautwire Fractal, Cardas Clear, Homegrown Audio DNA
Loudspeakers: Audio Physic Virgo V, Dynaudio Confidence C1 and Xavian Giulia, Chario Constellation, Xavian Preludio, Revel Ultima Studio2, B&W 805 Diamond and Atohm G 1.0
Power conditioning: Nordost Thor (modified), Snakeblock, Nordost Valhalla

Gallery

39%

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