Takshaka Speaker Cables

The Snake River experience begins with the unboxing. It’s evident from the impeccable packaging that these folks care about their product, and the reveal was eye-opening and fun.

The plan was to connect the Takshaka speaker cables and interconnects and fire up the system to let it break in while I went about my day, but I couldn’t resist sitting down for a quick listen. First impression: they sounded very similar to the cables they had replaced. I should say those were not zip cords, but pretty high-quality cables from high-end companies. (I’d suffered a fire in my apartment, caused by roofers and hot tar, and they had fallen victim to being stomped on by very large firefighters wielding axes and wearing heavy, Sasquatch-size boots.)

So even though I wasn’t overwhelmed as I had hoped, equivalent out of the box was no mean feat. I was going to leave it at that, but stayed put for some reason, and the music began to... change.

Change is a weak adjective. The music was becoming warmer, full-bodied, downright lush, as if the musicians were morphing from flat cutouts to Harry Potter holograms. I’d experienced this only once, when a behemoth pair of new monoblocks had suddenly reached the requisite break-in hours after about three weeks and bloomed like an old Disney documentary of flowers opening in time-lapse.

I guess the company’s pre-cooking the cables allowed this to happen so quickly, but it was as if the cables kind of took the measure of my system and said, “OK, got it. Here you go.”

I ended the session with a very non-audiophile recording: Gordon Lightfoot, “Song for a Winter’s Night.” (You needn’t listen if you have no soul.) There are sleigh bells that are heard in the distance between the verses. Thanks to the ravages of time, they began to sound like digital artifacts over the years, indeed disappearing on bad days. Now the detail, highs, and the horse-drawn sleigh of my younger years were back.

So, a snake, the woman smiling alluringly on their home page, and eternal youth. Throw in an apple and there might be a story here...

Thanks, Jonny. Your product makes music.

You, sir, are an artist.

Takshaka Bi-Wire speaker cables -
I’ll apologize in advance for the length of this post, but I hope you’ll understand. I’m absolutely thrilled with the new Takshaka speaker cables I recently purchased from Jonny at Snake River Audio, and with the outstanding experience I’ve enjoyed while working with him.

Some background: about a year ago, I decided it was finally time to upgrade the last remaining “non-upgraded” component in my system – the cabling. I wasn’t unhappy with my existing setup, which consisted of a mix of solid, mid-level cables that have served me well for years. Still, I knew there was untapped sound quality potential in my system that better cables could reveal and determined that new / better cables might help me get there. I decided to begin with a search for speaker cables to replace my Thales Precision Speaker Cables (Thales is a Swiss Turntable manufacturer, who also makes good audio cables, but for me it was time for something different!)

Yes, I know many people recommend starting with power cables, but I already have some excellent ones in place — Stage III A.S.P. Reference Kraken and Vertere Pulse HB Mains. I’ll revisit those later if I decide to move toward a unified loom, which is a real option down the road.

Having heard Siltech cables many times at my local dealer, I thought they would be a great place to start. I love the sound these offer but I’ll admit, I wasn’t prepared for how steeply prices increase as you move upward in their range, but my dealer was kind enough to provide demo samples within my budget for in-home listening. I tried the Classic Legend 680L, the Classic Legend 880L, and the Royal Single Crown (this last one was over my budget, but I had to hear it for comparison’s sake).

After several weeks of careful listening, I decided on the 880Ls — they offered exactly the level of improvement I was hoping for – to my mind superior to the 680Ls and while still apart (not too distant) from the Royal Single Crowns, they were what I needed. I even wrote in a few Siltech threads that this was the direction I planned to go. But life, as it often does, right at that same time other priorities came up – helping grandchildren with college tuition and other commitments – and a year slipped by without me making the purchase.

In mid-summer I came across this thread about Snake River Audio and found myself returning to it frequently as new posts appeared. Then, in late August, Tom (at What's Best Forum) mentioned that Snake River was having a Labor Day sale, and that caught my attention. I went straight to the Snake River website, read everything carefully (twice, actually), and decided to reach out.

When I called Jonny, he couldn’t have been more enjoyable to speak with – friendly, attentive, and genuinely focused on understanding my needs, what I was looking for. He spoke thoughtfully about his design philosophy, describing both how his products differ from others and where they share similarities. His clarity and passion for what he does were immediately apparent, and I came away fairly impressed.

So, even though I hadn’t arranged a demo (something I almost never skip, but Snake River does not have a demo program) I went ahead and placed an order for a set of Takshaka speaker cables. Normally, I prefer to hear a component in my own system before committing, but Jonny’s straightforward and generous return policy gave me complete confidence to proceed.

A couple of months later, I was still waiting for my order to be completed (though I knew I was in his build queue); apparently, his Labor Day sale drew lots of orders.) When the targeted delivery date came and went, Jonny reached out proactively to explain the situation, and as he quickly discovered, I’m a patient customer. He was completely transparent about the delays, detailing the difficulties he was having obtaining the essential required materials (spools of the precious metal wire strands he uses) from his supplier. Tariffs, supply chain issues, and related price pressures were affecting availability, but his honest disclosure was reassuring about the delay.

Knowing how eager I was to hear what his products could do, Jonny went above and beyond: he sent me the only returned set of speaker cables he had on hand (a pair of his Signature Series speaker cables) so that I could enjoy an immediate sonic upgrade while waiting for my Takshaka’s. That, in my book, is outstanding customer service. (To be fair, I need to state the only reason this set of speaker cables had been returned was because the customer had upgraded his entire loom from the Signature Series to Takshaka.)

It gets even better. Earlier this month Jonny called to let me know that my cables were nearly finished with their curing phase but wouldn’t be completed before he had to leave for this month’s Capital Audiofest. I told him that wasn’t a problem and I asked if he could extend the burn-in process on my Takshaka’s while he was away. He readily agr...

Takshaka Bi-Wire speaker cables -
Takshaka speaker cable really impressed me. With its true bi-wire design, Gryphon D333 seems to breath more freely and can make the big PSA FR 30 speakers really sing. I briefly turned up to volume to 90+ db. (20 above my normal), the music is still delivered in a very relaxed manner. but the music became so dynamic and energetic, and the bass is abundant without any strain. I heard more detail, texture, better defined layers, and better soundstage structure. But the real beauty lays with its midrange, the vocals are richer and more complex. But there is more, the vocals and instruments sound more neutral yet sweeter. The music becomes more additive. Takshaka brought not just beautiful music but has found the soul of my system. I am done on searching speaker cables.

Takshaka speaker cables (straight) -
My relationship with Snake River Audio began with a pair of Signature speaker cables to replace then current Audience FrontRow speaker cables. The Signature cables completely transformed my system. The soundstage opened up along with increased definition.
When Jonny finished developing the Takshaka speaker cables, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on them. The wait was well worth it. I must admit, the jump from the FrontRows was huge with the Signatures. For me, the Takshaka continued that journey. The first thing I noticed was the bass hitting me in the face. All in a very good way. Then I noticed the depth and height of the soundstage increased. One of the most noticeable improvements was the beautiful clarity and definition of the highs and midrange. That was as sweet as could be. This is a purchase I’ll never regret. Thank you, Jonny.
Greg P.
Ventura, CA

Takshaka Bi-Wire speaker cables -
No more Magnum Opus. I have one word to say,Takshaka. The entire loom is amazing,and at these price points they are a money saving bargain. Stop here and look no farther. The service and craftmanship are A 1 . By hand means something special. Do give them a try, with your trial period.