QED Reference XLR 40

MJ22.11.2016

Interconnects

This cheapest QED's analog cable is a stellar interconnect. Anyone who is looking for an affordable high fidelity audio cable should put the Reference XLR 40 on top of his list. I was prepared for a 'quite okay' type of experience but I got full fledged and mature sound instead, with which the QEDs can easily aspire to a 'best-buy-in-a-decade' award. Highly recommended!

100% reference

Function and form

95%

Ease of use

66%

Sound

90%

Appearance

The Reference XLR 40 is designed for low capacitance (35pF) as this is responsible - according to QED - for most of audio signal detoriation. Over the previous (non-40) version further steps have been taken to eliminate minute timing errors in the cable by the use of a special floating Zn/Mn ferrite jacket. The terminations, Neutrik XX-14 gold plated connectors, are an audiophile standard.
The QED Reference XLR 40 uses OFC copper and silver plated conductors (with total conductor section of 0.25 mm2) and LDPE dielectrics. It is a very flexible interconnect with bend radius of approximately 50mm - it was very easy to manipulate the cable to any place behind my rack. The red colour of the cable looks high-endish and raises questions about the cable's price, that is unbelievably low for the sound it offers.

Bass management

Weight

Slam

Articulation

I have tortured the low frequencies with Telarc's Toccata & Fuga D-moll (Cameron Carpenter behind the organ) on TAD speakers. In my room the lowest point I can reach without bass attenuation is around 23Hz which covers almost all organ's operating range. The QEDs replaced my AudioQuest Wild interconnects and let me stunned with how convincingly they portrayed the impressive church organ. The sound did not miss anything - mass, articulation, and textures were all there even though just slightly less resolved and dynamic than with my reference.

Charlie Antolini's Knock Out 2000 (InAkustik) features some very nasty bass and drums patterns. The QEDs virtually knock-outed me with punchy and energy-packed lower frequencies that were not muffled or bloated, quite opposite. It did not stop amazing me how mature and balanced the sound was.

Clarity & delicacy

Detail

Air

Transparency

The Reference XLR 40 is a very open sounding cable. Most cables below 1kEUR are a sort of veiled. Those that are not are usually too bright and fatiguing. The QED interconnect had none of those attributes. I may have missed a bit of extra airiness, a type of ultimate breathing transparency, but other than that I was receiving very honest, detailed and open sound with whatever I played, without any etch or sibilance. Actually, the sibilants were among the best I heard at any price.

Tonal accuracy

Timbre

Dynamics

Temporal resolution

Comparing to reference cables (and for the price of some of them you would buy 30 sets of the Reference XLR 40) I could heara bit of dynamic compression. It was not apparent in huge orchestra swings or KODO drummers beats, rather on microdynamical scale. Subtle transient variations were less dynamic through the QEDs than through the best interconnects that I'd auditioned. In the context of the Reference XLR 40 price corridor this is a minor quibble as the cable shoots down similarly priced competitors with ease.

Spatial resolution

Holography

Soundstage width

Soundstage depth

I let Nordost Blue Heaven and CrystalConnect Micro challenge the QED Reference XLR 40. Though any of these cables may help improve voicing of your audio system, the QED proved itself to be the most fidelity cable (and delivering better transparency, articulation and timing too). Which brings me to the important point: do not expect the QED to cure tonal imperfections of a bad audio set up. Use it only when you are satisfied with the sound that is coming from your speakers - doing so is the best proof of what the expression "to elevate the performance" means.

Price as reviewed:5 490,- Kč

Recommended resellers

Horn Distribution, Praha, +420 272 656 485

Manufacturer's website: http://www.qed.co.uk

Associated components

Sources: Accuphase DP-720, Luxman D-05u, Audiolab 8300 CD
Amplifiers: Accuphase A-70, Luxman C-700u and M700u, Audiolab 8300 MB mono blocks
Interconnects and speaker cables: Audioquest Wild, Audioquest Redwood, CrystalConnect Micro, Nordost Blue Heaven, Accuphase OEM cables
Loudspeakers: TAD Evolution One, Ubiq Model One
Power conditioning: Nordost Thor (modified), Isol8 Axis, Nordost Valhalla, Nordost Blue Heaven, Siltech, Neyton, Harmonix

Gallery

89%

Back to category