Description
The TUBULUS Argentus i2s cable V2 is specifically designed for i2s signal transport and is based on high quality pure silver conductors. These are solid core conductors to prevent strand interaction, which is a major source of distortion.
The conductors are individually insulated by air. Which is unique for a i2s cable. We use air insulation because (next to a vacuum) air is the best dielectric.
With a special thermo-process the silver conductors are restructured at a molecular level to reach a quality close to mono crystal silver. The conductors are also twisted with a high twist rate for the purposes of minimizing electromagnetic interference (EMI).
To preserve signal integrity the conductors are individually shielded. An overall copper braid completes the triple shielding with a 100% coverage. The TUBULUS Argentus i2s cable V2 is terminated with high quality shielded HDMI or RJ45 plugs which are soldered with silver containing solder.
The TUBULUS Argentus i2s cable V2 is compatible with all i2s devices and also with the Auralic Lightning Link.
NOTE: If a ‘standard’ HDMI or RJ45 cable doesn’t work in your setup a Tubulus i2s will not either. Then you might need a i2s cable with custom pinout.
For custom i2s cables please contact us by email: info@tubulus.net
TUBULUS cables are hand crafted with love, expertise and devotion with no excess decoration or luxury packaging and therefore true value for your money!
WHY BUY A TUBULUS I2S CABLE?
A high end i2s cable may sound like nonsense. After all it’s just 1’s and 0’s it has to transport. Any hdmi cable can do that. But those 1’s and 0’s have to be transported by a bunch of electrons traveling through a wire and electrons don’t know if they are ‘analog’ or ‘digital’. In fact, all electrical signals are analogue.
However, the digital signal is different; it is a pulse train, a square wave instead of a sine. But a perfect square wave doesn’t exist, because transition from one to zero requires time. So there is always a rise/fall time and the edges of the square wave will be rounded. In fact the square wave is a kind of trapezium with rounded edges.
Depending on the quality of the cable, the corners of the square wave will round off to a greater or lesser degree and the “flat” portions of the wave will become uneven as well. Small changes will make it harder for the receiver to detect the exact moment the rise or fall is happening. This will induce jitter. And if the changes become too big, the receiver will not even be able to reconstruct the logical 1’s and 0’s properly.
This is why a high quality i2s cable like the TUBULUS Argentus can make great improvements in sound quality.
Shaun –
A quick note to let you know that the cable arrived yesterday. The cable is clearly very robust and I was surprised by its weight. I’ve had a listen to the cable and straight out of the box it was really impressive (noting you recommend some 100 hours of burn in time). Admittedly I was only using a $100 cable prior to that (ETI) – so that might not be a fair comparison. The mid and high frequency detail is impressive and the bass is much more pronounced. There is good balance and tonality and already improved sound stage. I also seemed to be able to comfortably turn up the volume without my wife complaining!!
Thanks for the great service – and so far – great sounding cable.
Shaun
Denafrips News –
…The audiophile grade i2S/HDMI cables arrived one/two weeks later, and time was up for the real test. First the Denafrips Hermes/Pontus combo with the Excelsior Bluewater Sommer HDMI cable. Already after a few hours — better impression compared to USB. But, the big change happened after the Tubulus Argentus i2S cable arrived. Manufacturer recommended long cable burn-in before evaluation (at least 100 hours), but already after 24 hours the Hermes/Pontus sounded really well. Now, after two weeks of cable burn-in, especially the lower midrange and bass sound superior and soundstage is even wider, more datailed and more precise, compared to USB. With the Tubulus Argentus cable listening to Hermes/Pontus is very, very good. The Hermes DDC does not colour the music, but the overall presentation reveal more focused vocals and musicians, even more details in the upper frequencies, more air and a fantastic lower midrange and bass, wide soundstage — all very much helped by the Tubulus Argentus i2S cable.
Denafrips News
Steve G. –
The Tubulus Argentus i2s cable HDMI to RJ45 has arrived and I’m very happy straight from the packaging. Excellent soundstaging etc and my existing XLR is no slouch. My Transport {source} is PS Audio DSMP using HDMI to send the I2S signal. My DAC is a Metrum Pavane Level 3 which for I2S uses a RJ45. Been seeking and searching the net every few months for such a cable for ages.
Steve G.
Alex G. –
The Tubulus Argentus i2s cable is a very good cable. The highlight for me is the excellent powerful low end, very rich, dense mid range. Clean soundstage and great imaging. Your service is also excellent.
Alex G.
Bob M. –
After about a week it is very easy to hear the difference. Soundstage improvements in depth and detail and more of a 3 dimensional presentation. Detailed but not bright, provides a very balanced sound.
Very happy I was able to find your product.
Bob M.
Ramsey C. –
Just received the i2s cable this afternoon & immediately hooked it up in my system (cd transport to dac). I am a very happy man, even straight out of the box without any run in, the audio playback performance is definitely superior to any other existing audiophile i2s cable. no comparisons with coax or aes/ebu connections. pin point imaging, details, depth, 3d, bass slam, name it & improvements on all of them. looking forward to run in results with great anticipation…
Ramsey C.
Ray C. –
Your Argentus i2s cable I purchased is utterly amazing, a sheer revelation. The $1,000 Wireworld Platinum HDMI cable (tried for over a month), the $500 Nordost Heindall HDMI cable (which I currently use for video only) and a hand-made audio-only i2s cable from Germany of unknown origin (tried for 3 weeks) could not begin to compare with your i2s cable. Music has never sounded so wonderful in my system (currently even without a preamp). This is simply the most transformative cable I have experienced. This 12s cable is a keeper. The sound I have heard from your cable (only with 70 hours of break-in) is full of air, transparency and presence as if I were in a concert hall.
Ray C.
Audio En Zo –
With the TUBULUS Argentus I2S cable the music gains in detail and it sounds spotlessly clean. There is lots of space making the stage wide and deep combined with a beautiful powerful and layered middle area. The improvements ensure increased involvement and you are dragged into the music. You get the feeling that nothing is getting in the way of the music, as if there is no cable at all. With the TUBULUS Argentus I2S cable the genuineness and naturalness of the string sounds has further increased. The small vibrations in a voice, the ridges in a guitar string, the soft details in the background, almost inaudible but oh so important, they all come out better.
Review Audio En Zo