RAPPORT YPB 621B

TR19.11.2011

Speaker cables

The 'raport´is an expression describing two human beings to be on the same wavelength, in an accordance. Thus I was wondering if the Rapport could induce such a state in a listener and made a harmonizing link between me and music. Easily - the YPB621B represents a set of good values, it is a cable with real raport.

Function and form

65%

Ease of use

31%

Sound

84%

Appearance

The Rapport YPB621B uses two signal strands of OFC copper covered in a polyethylene dielectric.The core employs cotton padding that helps the cable to look more bulky than it is and also helps to maintain stable inner environment by absorbing air humidity and thus preventing the conductors to degrade. The outer perimeter is shielded by aluminum foil and a PVC jacket.

The Rapport did not arrive in a carton neither in a wooden or metal box. It is delivered in a very practical traveller bag so it could be easily repacked and carried during our tests. I believe that you will find another use for the bag after the cables safely sit in your system.

Bass management

Weight

Slam

Articulation

The YPB621B is a thick and inflexible cord that is difficult to bend in a radius below 65mm. If you need to zigzag with a cable in the gaps between pieces of furniture or hide it invisibly behind a rack then go somewhere else - Nordost, Van den Hul or Atohm may be a good fit. The Rapport was terminated with bananas and spades that made a good connection. The only remark is that the weight of the cable and its radial pull may try to pull monitors down from a stand so you need to fix somehow the cable in its place.

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

The Rapport is wonderfully open cable with quiet background and decent dynamics so you have to love it from the first tones. Delicate sounds (like soft rolling drums at the beginning of George Benson's White Rabbit or a sudden burst of tambourine around 1´30) emerge from inky black background with fragile transient power before they integrate with the rest of the orchestra. The sound of the Rapport can be indeed described by words like wholeness, control and raport.

Tonal accuracy

Timbre

Dynamics

Temporal resolution

The YPB621B balances on the warm side of the frequency response that slowly absorbs a listener with envoloping sound and cradles him or her on the rhythm of the music. At first glance you may miss sparkling highs and ultradeep lows - and indeed, there is nothing like that. The highs are understated yet defined and tonally correct and brushing cymbals in In The Wee Small Hours of The Morning (Barbra Streisand) were among the best I have had heard in this category not only due to resolution but also because the natural color they had. The Rapport resolves with charm rather than with a cut of a surgical knife and this makes the listening very comfortable.

Spatial resolution

Holography

Soundstage width

Soundstage depth

There are two things I would appreciate to be slightly different: the more prominent bass as the existing one is mabe too modest. It is dynamic and defined but too understated. The other thing is the Rapport's soundstaging which is not that deep as it should be and musical events are moved too much forward to a loudspeakers plane and the sound hardly travels to the left or right of the speakers. The symphonic The Arrival At Naboo was therefore way too compact which was apparent after the Rapport was benchmarked against our reference, the Krautwire Fractal. The Fractal is many times more expensive, however...

Price as reviewed:4 700,- Kč

Recommended resellers

Rapport Audio, Praha

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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