Wired up: tales of the unexpected

摘要

An inevitable by-product of hi-fi shows is a carrier bag full of brochures. If you're a reviewer, though, it may also include actual goods, like CDs or accessories to review. Equally inevitable is that the samples will include 1) some spikes or feet, and 2) cables. As I've pretty much abandoned reviewing cables I find it worrying that the latest to have been thrust upon me are actually, well, intriguing. Why would any cables be tempting to me, an avowed wire-hater? Because of the source: Franco Serblin, the brains behind the greatest designs from Sonus Faber. When I saw Franco at breakfast at Milan's TOP Audio, he beckoned me to join him and his son-in-law, Massimiliano Favella. It turns out that Massimiliano knows a thing or three about metallurgy, while Franco has ears so golden they could be smelted to make an FP Journe watch case.