
Listening
When a cable has a special focus on vibration control and damping, one might expect a calm and mellow sound. I’ve certainly encountered this a few times, where the sound was free of edge and hardness but also lacking pacing and expression, and I feared this might also be the case here. However, this fear proved entirely unfounded with the White Magic cables.
White Magic
I did not have very high expectations for the entry-level White Magic cable, but it clearly punches above its weight, with a surprisingly neutral yet upbeat, confident, open, and propulsive sound. The cable sounds remarkably linear and transparent, with no coloration, thickening, or restraint.
Thanks to its single-conductor run and basic shield, this cable is very flexible and easy to bend. Although it may be entry-level in terms of cost, it still delivers with such enthusiasm and truthfulness that it almost instantly earns a seal of approval. This cable ticks so many audiophile boxes that it requires willpower to dissect further, which is an excellent sign. Rather than being lean or dry, as can happen with very neutral cables, the White Magic has a fluid and refined delivery.
When approached more critically, it is slightly less articulate in the bass and a bit splashy in the treble compared to the Driade Flow Link Reference 808, making it enjoyable, expressive, and exciting, albeit slightly less neutral and refined.
As the Mad Scientist alluded to, White Magic is a new direction, and I wholeheartedly agree. The Black Magic cables are darker, more sober, and less refined compared to the White Magic generation, or the Driades, for that matter. While the earlier Black Magic generations had a very special, ultra-robust, and earthy quality that was impressive and well-suited to my system at the time, they were not as neutral or linear as what I am hearing now.
White Magic Ultra
The White Magic Ultra features more advanced screening and is thicker than the entry-level White Magic, yet remains quite supple and nowhere near as stiff as the earlier solid-core copper designs.
The Ultra sounds more full-bodied than the entry-level White Magic, along with higher precision, notably, and a more accurate treble that is cleaner, crisper, and more refined. By comparison to the White Magic, the Ultra’s treble is also relatively darker and subjectively less airy. A slightly more pronounced treble can also be nice, but one has to ask: is it accurately relaying the source, or is it enhancing it? Between the entry-level White Magic and the White Magic Ultra, there is certainly no doubt that the Ultra is more precise and overall closer to the truth.
The Driade Reference 808 has an airier and more refined delivery, but the White Magic Ultra counters with a more direct, energetic, and exceptionally tangible and realistic rendition. The cable is highly resolving, but it does not sound Hi-Fi. As with the entry-level White Magic, the Ultra does so much right and sounds so involving that it almost immediately finds its way into your heart and stops the brain from asking further questions.
There’s another aspect that makes the White Magic Ultra stand out from the entry-level model and the Driade as well, which is a hint of the familiar Black Magic solidity and harmonic richness, but in this case, married with considerably more refinement and higher resolution.
White Magic Prime
The White Magic Prime is quite thick and less easy to use than the Ultra. Especially considering the fixed orientation for the XLR connectors, it would not be my first choice from a reviewer’s standpoint. However, compared to the earlier solid-core copper designs, it is still easy to bend and less springy, so it stays in place. Upon sharing my concerns with the maker, I was assured that the cable is strong and can withstand being modeled in any required position, including being rotated as needed to fit XLR inputs and outputs.
Whereas the differences between the White Magic and the White Magic Ultra are easy to hear, the differences between the Ultra and the Prime are far more subtle. The most apparent differences are that there is a higher level of refinement, and the treble has more air. A less obvious aspect is that the soundstage is a little deeper and feels more organic. But otherwise, I was hard-pressed to hear any other differences.
As I heard no differences in focus, resolution, or transient behavior, I wondered, would this really be it? Not content with this outcome, I stopped my comparisons and resumed them later, but this time listening “blindly” (toggling between inputs with the display off) to ensure I stayed objective. During this test, one of the two cables sounded consistently more magical and emotionally engaging. While repeatedly swapping inputs, I kept gravitating to one input. You guessed it: that was the one fitted with the Prime.
So, there you have it: differences that may appear subtle can be quite profound in terms of emotional engagement and overall involvement. The jump from Ultra to Prime is perhaps less distinct than the jump from White Magic to Ultra, but the difference is real and worthwhile.
Conclusion
I realize it can be annoying to read about how the next generation consistently outperforms the previous one. One might resent the manufacturer for effectively devaluing the outgoing line, or suspicions may arise concerning the believability of the review(er). Still, I have no choice but to report what I hear. To my ears, the White Magic interlinks are simply the best cables I have heard yet from the Mad Scientist.
Product ranges can be tricky. Sometimes, top-tier products excel in certain areas while sacrificing others compared to lower-tier products. Fortunately, this is not the case with the White Magic interlinks. The Ultra and Prima are successively higher-priced, but not objectionably so. Their higher price 100% reflects the higher cost of the source materials and labor, and they are absolutely worth the extra outlay. That said, the cable that most surprised me is the entry-level White Magic, by performing better than any other cables I have heard in its price class.
Importantly, despite being the most neutral and revealing cables from this brand yet, in line with everything the Mad Scientist makes, all three cables remain musical and involving. Their most significant achievement is their well-balanced nature. There is no hardness or edge, but neither is there any thickness, abundance of warmth, or other coloration. These cables are all about effortless musicality, lifelike dynamics, and emotional expression, combined with excellent precision, transparency, and linearity.
External Links
Manufacturer: madscientist-audio