Inakustik Reference LS-4004 Air

Inakustik Reference LS-4004 Air is an ultra-high-end loudspeaker cable that will bring out the very best in audiophile reference systems.

AIR HELIX STRUCTURE

Of course, the individual leaders themselves still play a major role. With the LS-4004, they also consist of 24 high-purity copper wires that are braided on a PE core and previously provided with a very thin layer of lacquer to isolate the wires from one another. This also ensures “calm” in the conductor, as it prevents eddy currents. The reason for this is that by far the largest currents in an audio chain flow via a loudspeaker cable. In order to create space for the “more” of copper, it became necessary to develop a new clip that could cope with the increased demands. Not only must the higher weight of the cables be statically absorbed, mobility must also be guaranteed throughout the construction of the cable. Like its little brother, the clip “embeds” the multitude of veins in a helix in an exact position and at a distance in the air. The Cross Link Super Speed ​​waveguides are threaded in the in-house factory with great care and the clips are mounted. The resulting Air-Helix is ​​then also handcrafted into the PE network jacket. 

SOLID CONSTRUCTION

In the area between the aluminium splitter and the connectors, the LS-4004 AIR uses highly flexible molded parts made from a special elastomer. These are fixed in the splinter with a specially developed plastic plug. This means that the cable remains flexible in the connection area. The molded parts run to the front part of the connector and enclose its interior – which underlines the simple and attractive design of the LS-4004. The aluminum splitters are firmly screwed into the cable with the first clip. All in all, the result – from the connectors on the amplifier side to the connectors on the loudspeaker side – is a visually appealing and mechanically reliable, solid unit.

Every additional material used (e.g. PVC insulation) worsens the electrical properties of a cable. This is why the reference cables are braided with the PE network jacket in a complex process. The cables therefore only consist of two materials: copper and PE. The knowledge that speaker cables should primarily have a low inductance is optimally implemented in the LS-4004 AIR. Due to the two-layer arrangement of the double-layer multicore, the magnetic fields generated around the individual conductors overlap and neutralize each other. This significantly reduces the inductance of the cable and all frequencies are transported unhindered and without time lag.

AS IF FROM ONE PIECE

The connectors and their assembly processes are also completely new. Instead of brass, the base material of the plug consists of tellurium copper, which has a conductivity that is about twice as high as that of brass. In a complex process, the lacquer layer is removed from the high-purity copper wires of the Cross Link Super Speed ​​waveguide using a specially developed machine. The bare wires are then bundled and pressed directly onto the connectors. Through this processing step, contact resistances are created by additional materials such as B. solder or ferrules avoided. The plugs each consist of a basic terminal and a spade or BFA banana front part. The order part is screwed to the basic terminal from the side. This technical trick now ensures that the angle between the cable and plug can be individually adapted to the environment and the devices, and ultimately it reduces unwanted mechanical forces that act on the cable and on plugs and sockets including the contact surfaces. The surfaces of the connectors are coated with rhodium (rhodium is an extremely robust material and guarantees constant contact properties even after many mating cycles).

WHAT HAPPENS IN TERMS OF SOUND?

The sound experience is difficult to describe, especially because most of the “sound metaphors” now seem pretty trite. Will a curtain still open? How many curtains does such a stage have and how wide can it be? Even more dynamic, even more details and even more open? We should all be sitting outside, right? But somehow these statements hit the nail on the head. More conductor material enables more current to flow through. This always remains controlled and dynamic with an incredibly open and detailed musical presentation.