Introducing CZ Gel Interconnects

At Madrigal, we feel that every link in the audio chain should be as neutral as possible, allowing the music signal to travel from one component to another without any altering of the signal. This is as true of cables as it is of other components.

Over the years, however, an increasing number of audiophiles have chosen to use their interconnecting cables as "tone controls," deliberately changing the sound of the system in which they have already invested so much. This has led to an ever-increasing number of cables that "editorialize" the sound of the signal they pass. Some critics argue that these cables purposely sound different, in order to distinguish themselves from one another.

This presents a company like Madrigal with an interesting problem. For our purposes, utter transparency in cable design is crucial. When we design our products, we need to discern the sound of the component under development without the cables obscuring or skewing our evaluation. The level of transparency we require does not allow for any "filtering" of the signal at all.

Continuing a tradition begun over twenty years ago with our first cables, we once again set out to design a cable that would facilitate our own product development needs. We asked one of our senior engineers to develop a cable that would get the signal from one component to the next without altering it in any way. After many months of work, we finally have that cable.

What's In A Name?

Controlled Impedance (CZ): CZ Gel cable is made up of a helical array of conductors designed to maintain a consistent, controlled impedance throughout its length. The design of CZ Gel allows for the transfer of the signal from one component to the next without modification in any way. It delivers exceptional transparency, dynamics, and detail.

It also allows critical comparisons to be made of other components in the system, with minimum opportunity focable interactions that might influence the outcome of such tests.

Patented Dielectric Gel: Perhaps the single most significant innovation in these cables is the use of a patented dielectric gel to fill the intervals between the dieletric spacers that establish the relative positions of the conductors. The dielectric constant of this gel matches that of the spacers and the insulating layers surrounding the conductors, providing a uniform, consistent impedance throughout the length of the cable.

This remarkably uniform dielectric environment avoids any sudden discontinuity in electrical characteristics by completely filling spaces within the cable with a fluid that matches the dielectric characteristic of the insulating materials.

The gel provides another benefit: its viscous nature is extremely effective at damping any spurious motion within the cable. The vibration-absorbing qualities of the gel, combined with the tight construction of the cable, maintain a fixed, stable physical relationship between all the conductors. As a result, the cable itself is virtually immune to microphonic colorations.

CZ Gel was designed to be the clearest possible path from one component to the next that an analog signal might travel. Its original purpose was to facilitate the development of reference quality audio components by removing a significant source of coloration from the system.

It is now available for general use so that others may hear their components as they really sound-for the first time.