˻ PREMIERE ˼

⌈ DIVINE ACOUSTICS is a Polish specialist company founded in 2003 by Mr. Piotr GAŁKOWSKI. It focuses on loudspeaker development and production, but the lineup also includes an anti-vibration base, anti-vibration feet and a speaker cable. Divine Acoustics products are proprietary designs, significantly different from other products available on the market. ⌋

BELIEVE THAT EVERYONE WHO actually had a chance to see and/or experience the DIVINE ACOUSTICS BELLATRIX speakers, must have been impressed (review HERE). The idea, make and quality of their finish deserve the highest respect. Attention to even the smallest detail of the design, construction and aesthetics places this Polish manufacturer among the best in the world. Which makes me happy, all the more so as recently there have been several manufacturers in Poland with a similar, perfectionist approach to the product. You can learn more about this art in an interview with the owner of the company, Mr. PIOTR GAŁKOWSKI that you can find HERE.

▌ COPERNICUS

THE LATEST ADDITION to the Divine Acoustics' RANGE is the Copernicus speaker cable. Although the connecting cables are offered by many companies dealing in the production of loudspeakers, and Divine Acoustics is a specialist in this field, it is usually nothing more but an addition to their lineup. Looking at the Divine’s cable, reading about its design, and most of all listening to it, we can be sure that it is a fully-fledged component of the system and that it was prepared with the same passion and care as the loudspeakers themselves.

Its special feature is an unusual choice of material for conductors. If we looked at the design of cables available from the leading cable manufacturers, we would see that the overwhelming majority of them are copper cables. In the form of a twisted pair, Litz and multi-Litz cables, or also solid-core ones, but usually with copper conductors. Let’s just mention products of such Japanese companies as ACOUSTIC REVIVE, OYAIDE |PL|, ACROLINK or Furutech or the American Cardas. The second, rarer group are cables made of silver. In Poland, the representative of this group is VERICTUM, and in the world primarily the Dutch SILTECH.

Both of the above groups are linked by the use of pure material, not of alloys. After all, there are also companies such as Crystal Cable using silver conductors with the addition of gold. But there is another group of cables, they can be found in the lineups of the manufacturers of the former group, where another metal is plated over the base one. Most often used in such cases is silver-plated copper, but the oldest type historically, that is, tin-plated copper, is also often found. This is how Western Electric cables were produced, and today we will get them from the Swedish Supra and the Canadian LUNA CABLES. Let me add that in Poland, near Krakow, we have a very rare representative of cables made of gold-plated copper - the SOYATON brand ran by Julek Soja, one of the hosts of the Krakow Sonic Society.

This short list is not exhaustive, of course, as we haven't mentioned Van den Hul's conductive carbon products, or gold-silver, copper-silver, copper-carbon and other hybrids. Against this background, the Divine Acoustics cable looks particularly interesting, because it is made of gold-plated silver wires.

⸜ TECHNOLOGY As I’ve mentioned, the conductor of Copernicus is a round silver wire with an added layer of 24 carat gold. This is a custom made conductor and according to Divine Acoustics specifications, it is made by one of the Polish companies. Since gold is reluctant to bond to copper, a so-called "substrate" is needed that would guarantee this bonding. In this case palladium is used. The conductor is then vibration relieved and polished with walnut granulate at the same time.

The so-called mechanical "de-stress" process of the conductor is used by the best companies, including ACROLINK, which uses the term "stress-free" in the description of its products. Its purpose is a faster settling of metal crystals and thus improved conduction. Also, polishing the surface of the conductor is a frequent procedure aimed at improving the conductivity at its very outer layer, i.e. where the highest frequencies are transferred. OYAIDE (Japan), AUDIOMICA (Poland) and AUDIO PHONIQUE (Poland) treat it as an important element of the design. As you can see, Copernicus combines the best of everything.

The air plays a role of a dielectric in Divine Acoustics cables, as well as several layers of woven cotton and carbon fibers. As we read in the company materials, thanks to the non-corrosive properties of gold, it does not react with oxygen or ozone, the wire is not coated before it is introduced into the first layer of cotton insulation. And next:

When designing the Copernicus, we paid a lot of attention to the insulation, the way of arranging its individual layers, their joining and the appropriate ratio of the amount of carbon and cotton. The insulation also has anti-vibration functions, which is why its composition, arrangement, and the way in which the cable was braided, were so important for achieving its sound. In order for the cables to be flexible and easy to use in a system, and at the same time so that the shielding and the conductors themselves do not move in relation to each other, the layers are sealed with an “everlasting” caoutchouc-based substance. The whole is covered with an aesthetic dark gold interspersed with black and white braided sleeve.

⸜ press release.

The conductors are supplied to Divine Acoustics in small spools sufficient to build only one pair of the Copernicus. This means that each pair of cables has an individually defined direction and is listened to and compared to a reference pair during production

The manufacturer emphasizes that he also pays great attention to the splitters separating the cables at the ends. And that's good, it's one of the key mechanical and electrical components of the cable. Edwin van der Kley told me that the ‘boxes’ in Siltech cables were precisely calculated for electromagnetic interference. As you can see, Mr. Gałkowski also appreciates the importance of this element:

Their weight and repeatability of their physical parameters were extremely important. Like the shielding, they are part of the Copernicus anti-vibration system. The splitters are laser cut from high-quality poured, stress-relieved acrylic. Their shape also turned out to be important. Eventually, they took the form of a tiny violin – an instrument whose shape follows the “golden proportion”.

⸜ ibidem.

The box the cable is sold in, as well as the mentioned splitters, read: "Jewellery Speaker Cable". No wonder that the manufacturer wanted to finish them off with some eye-catching plugs. However, he did not reach for a type that would attract attention with its appearance, although it does not lack anything in this respect, but rather one that attracts attention with its technical aspects. It is the highest model of the copper gold plated Furutech FT-211G spade, in which the connection with the conductor is based on screws, not on soldering. A version with bananas is also available.

Let me add, that Copernicus is offered in two lengths: 2.5 and 3 m. The building process is performed completely manually. W break-in period for this cable is around 200 hours.

▌ SOUND

⸤ HOW WE LISTENED The COPERNICUS speaker cable was tested in the "High Fidelity" reference system and compared to the Siltech Triple Crown cable. It connected the output of the Soulution 710 power amplifier with the Harbeth M40.1 loudspeakers. ACOUSTIC REVIVE RSP-AZ9EX |PL| filters were connected to the speakers. They were connected using Western Electric WE16GA cables terminated with Oyaide banana plugs. It was an A/B/A comparison with A and B known.

Recordings used for the test | a selection

⸜ CHARLIE MINGUS, Tijuana Moods, RCA Records/Original Records Group ORG 174-3, SACD/CD (1962/2015).
⸜ WALTER BISHOP JR. TRO, Speak Low, Jazztime/Ratspack Records MZCB-1179, „Jazztime/Jazzline Premium Collection”, HiQuality CD (1961/2008).
⸜ VOO VOO, Za niebawem, Wydawnictwo Agora 5903111492953, CD (2019).
⸜ KATE BUSH, Aerial, EMI Records 3439602, 2 x CD (2005).
⸜ EURYTHMICS, Sweet Dreams(Are Made of This), RCA Records ND 71471 (1983/1987).

»«

SEEING AN AUDIO PRODUCT, LISTENING TO the music using it, we "see" and "hear" not only the product itself, but everything we know about it and everything that is associated with it. Although perfectionist audio distances itself from subjectivity, it does not differ in any way from other areas of life. And yet subjective perception of the world is embedded in all of them. Even if we are talking about measurements, that is - it would seem - an objective assessment tool.

When we start listening to music with the X cables in a given system, we have an initial idea of their influence on the sound. And there is probably no more lasting stereotype than that of the "own sound" of given type of the conductors a given cable is made with. This is nonsense, a relic of a time when designers were like children in the fog. Even so, hearing “silver” many audiophiles have a specific notion of a sound in their minds before they even start listening to it. And the thing is even more complicated when it comes to a mix of two materials, as in the case of the tested COPERNICUS cable.

Stereotypes are stereotypes, but in its sound each of their "followers" will find something to support their beliefs (by "sound" I mean how it modifies the sound). Because Mr. Gałkowski's cables show the warm side of the recordings. One could say that their sound is "golden", which would bring up the common opinion about the sound of CDs with a golden layer. On the other hand, the presentation we get with them is deep and saturated, which does not agree with the common opinion regarding "silver". Following the stereotype, it would rather indicate copper as the main conductor.

CHARLIE MINGUS listened to using the Divine Acoustics cable from the perfectly prepared SACD re-edition of the Tijuana Moods, released by Original Records Group and mastered by Bernie Grundman, it sounded perfectly coherent. The fact that the sound was quite warm is one thing. More important, however, was that it was a perfectly smooth sound. Castanets from Ysabel's Table Dance or cymbals from Dizzy Moods were perfectly "arranged" in the mix, because although clear, distinct and strong, they did not pretend to be in the space in front of us alone. Ultimately, they played a servant role in relation to - this is how I see it - the brass section.

The bell that opens the second track had a very good filling. Just like the trumpet, trombone or saxophone. And this is probably the direction in which the sound with the Polish cable goes - towards strong timbres and dense bodies. At first it feels dark and warm, but it takes a moment to switch to this new perspective. There is something more to it, it's obvious, because Copernicus slightly pulls the back layers of the stage towards us, so that the drums in the aforementioned recording, recorded with microphones from a distance and with a lot of room acoustics, were more tangible and were shown closer than with reference cables.

Interestingly, the sound did not close in or folded in, which is common with a "warm" presentation. It was still a dynamic performance of a dynamic album. However, this dynamics was more "internal" than "external". It manifested itself with very good clarity within the recording, good selectivity of instruments, and not unexpected eruptions of sound.

It is all the more obvious since it is a cable with a strong bass, with a very well-drawn base of the sound. The monophonic version of WALTER BISHOP JR. TRIO’s Speak Low, released in Japan on HiQuality CD (HQCD), begins with the strong sound of Jimmy Garrison's double bass. The instrument was large, strong and laid the foundation for the entire recording. It was shown quite close to me, but it did not “jump out” from the loudspeakers, which speaks of good sound control. Although the instruments with the tested cable are tangible and close to us, the leader's piano, shown a bit further in the mix, was not extended - it sounded as it should have, presented from a distance.

The tested cable does something with the sound, thanks to which the presentation is extremely pleasant. At the same time, we will not get as many details with it as with other, often much cheaper cables. If we like clear, selective and detailed sound, the Copernicus is not going to be a good choice. But if we are looking for coherence, density and saturation - oh, yes, this is THE cable.

One should also reach for it when in search for a sound with a solid bass foundation. But a nice, a bit soft one. Because the bass from the beautiful VOO VOO’s Za niebawem, recorded in 2018 and released a year later, was great. It helped that the album was professionally recorded by Jacek Gładkowski in the S-4 studio, and Piotr Emade Waglewski, who was responsible for the mix, prepared it using the SSL analog mixing console in the Jacek Gawłowski’s studio, who was responsible for the mastering of the album. The cooperation between Piotr and Jacek is unique, I have seen them exchange small remarks during their work, thanks to which the mix is consistent with the master.

Anyway, the tested cable showed excellent low tones, a special feature of albums prepared by Jacek Gawłowski. But it also did not extinguish the treble, although this is an album that does not show any brightening or sharpness - another feature characteristic of Jacek's work. It was still warm and dense sound, but now it was audible that the test cable is incredibly resolving. It also can clearly point out differences in timbre, dynamics, and positioning on the stage, regardless of how an album was recorded.

▌ Summary

SUCH SOUND CHARACTER allows you to play music loud for extended periods of time without fatigue. We pay for it with a slightly rounded attack and impact. But we get beautiful timbres and depth. So when KATE BUSH sings "Could you see the aisles of woman?", thus opening the album entitled Aerial, in the original version released in 2005, you can hear a low, warm reverb that accompanies it and is it is part of an artistic expression, not an artifact, not an irrelevant element of the recording.

Also on this album the bass was low and deep. And the whole sound goes in this direction, as if with the Polish cable it was a bit lowered, closer to the ground, closer to the "guts" of the music, and not sliding on its surface. But if we listen to a warmer recording, like the mentioned Voo Voo’s album, or a darker one, like the early CD release of EURYTHMICS’ Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), from 1987, the sound will not be closed in, nor flooded with warm, sticky resin.

This IS a warm sounding cable, no doubts about it. But the "warmth" has a character known from beryllium tweeters or AMT ("harmonica") transducers, and not from tube amplifiers. This warmth comes from the high resolution and the rounding of the attack, not from any coloration. And you will love the bass ... And the coherence and density, which will bring a lot of joy, calmness and fulfillment into your musical life. Needless to say, these are intended first of all as partners for the Divine Acoustics Bellatrix speakers. ■