Review: Black Rhodium Speaker Cable

Firstly I would like to thank Black Rhodium for this sample to review, I always try to write honest reviews, and I know a lot of people do not believe in cables making a difference.

Gear Used (very basic hifi system):

Opus #2 DAP / Marantz CD-52 > Marantz PM5005 > Mission 702e speakers.

Packaging and Build Quality:

The Foxtrot came in a nice white card box, the cable inside is carefully placed in tissue paper. On the top of the box it just says Black Rhodium Foxtrot, a very nice box for a cable and well packaged.

Build quality is superb, a big reason for buying upgrade cables is the build quality. This cable is very well built with fabric sheathing over the cable and sturdy Z plugs at each end. This cable has an Amplifier end and a Speaker end, depicted on the heatshrink just below the connectors, which is also red or black for R and L.

Sound:

Now as stated before, my setup is far from high end, and probably not well placed, but I A/B’d this cable with some 12awg copper cable from Maplin that was £20 (fitted with Z plugs).

First off you notice a slight increase in clarity, the highs shine through a little better without taking anything away from the lows. I always found my setup to be lacking a little in control and the lows could be a little uncontrolled sometimes, I found the Foxtrot cable to tighten the sound a little. I think the main difference is the control of the lows, you get better punch and quicker response with this cable. Soundstage is slightly improved, as is the separation.

Again these are not night and day differences, they are subtle, but subtle differences are still differences. I find the sound of my system to be better controlled with tighter lows, a little added clarity, openness and increased separation with this cable, whereas the Maplin copper cable sound a little bloated and dull in comparison.

Now for a 5m pair you are looking at £325 which is not actually that much if you look at some of the competition, the cable is well built, looks good and sounds great. If you have a system you are happy with but want a little extra out of it, I would highly suggest taking a look at this cable, or others from Black Rhodium. The company are great to deal with, you get quick responses and the turnaround is very quick, you will also be supporting a UK based manufacturer.