Harmonic technology president jim wang officially introduced eight new (well, some have been around for a while) products at HE2003 in San Francisco in June. Those new products included the Pro-Silway Mk III interconnect (under examination here), the Harmony Optical 1 fiber optic cable, the Rainbow video cable, the Truth Link Silver interconnect, the Fantasy AC 10 (which I reviewed in January of 2002 for another journal), the Fantasy Loudspeaker cable, and both new Furutech Line Conditioners, the e-TP80 (review in the works) and e-TP60. Some of them, like the Truth Link Silver and Fantasy AC 10, have been around a while; they just have never been given an official "introduction"—until now.

Having had the privilege of being the first reviewer to get to play with and report on the Harmonic Technology cable line back in December of 1998, when the line had just been introduced, I am always curious when Jim calls to tell me he has a new product about to be released. And, after the remarkably good performance I have seen with each previous iteration of the Pro-Silway, I admit that I was rather curious when the three one-meter sets of single-ended cables showed up.

Given the Mk III designation, they simply cried out for direct head-to-head comparison with the Mk II, which have long been the reference in my system for a number of reasons: primarily their broadband truthfulness of timbre and the spaciousness and dynamic rendering of the signals they carry. In those areas, I have yet to run across a cable at anywhere near the Mk II's $399 price that can compete, let alone compare.

Enter the Mk III, a fine looking, clearly related (though improved) member of the same cable family. The Mk III has an obviously different black sheath: one that is much more shinny than that of the Mk II. And, the new version is terminated with the Furutech Single Crystal Copper RCA jacks that have an octagonal black barrel. No small thing, it would seem, either the composition or the construction. The fact that this new, sturdy, locking termination is fabricated from Single Crystal Copper would seem to make for a much better match than the original, plated-metal, locking connectors used on the Mk II and other HT single-ended interconnects and digital cables. Its smaller diameter and angular geometric shape makes for easier finger tightening and loosening in real world installations. Offering both higher-quality materials and better facilitation of the physical connection, this would seem to be an obvious win/win move for HT.

As with all the previous Pro-Silway cables, the Mk III is a bi-metal hybrid. The Mk III adds approximately 10% more individual conductors of both OCC single-crystal copper and silver, yielding a larger aggregate cable. Jim claims that both the silver and copper conductors used are refined to a purity level of 99.99997 percent. As well as this increased number of conductors in the signal path, the trademarked HT Balanced Field Geometry has been modified somewhat. That is about all Jim will admit to! Well, that and that the braided outer shield is pure silver plated copper, with a secondary, defensive-noise-barrier shield fabricated from an aluminum-coated Mylar shield, situated closer to the conductors to help ensure a very high signal-to-noise ratio.

With all the techno stuff out of the way, I removed the Mk IIs from my system and replaced them all with the Mk III, then hit repeat play on the CD player. After about 8 days of continuous play (and a road trip from San Diego to South Bend), I suspected that they were ready for a closer listen.

When compared directly to the Mk II, the difference is rather apparent and very positive. In terms of timbre, the cables are very similar, with the mids being just a bit more fleshed out with the new Mk III. They proved to be a bit more dynamic as well, both in revealing micro-dynamic shadings and in unleashing macro-dynamic events into the listening room.

The most notable areas of improvement over the Mk II, however, were at both the frequency extremes. They have the ability to pass perceptibly deeper information and offer more control in the bass and sub bass realms than the already remarkable Mk II. This attribute offers greater extension and better pitch definition down into the nether regions. This is one of the areas where the Harmonic Technology Magic is unrivaled in my experience, yet the Mk III starts to encroach on that performance. Very nice.

The treble, as with all HT products, is offered up with that familiar correctness, with no etch or edge. Yet, the Mk III serves up seemingly greater levels of detail, contributing significantly to the creation of an even more expansive and focused soundstage and rock-solid imaging than the Mk II provides. This, and the resultant slightly higher resolving power offered in the bass regions, plays a huge hand in contributing to the size and stability of the soundstage. This newfound clarity and detail up top, with no accompanying grain or exaggeration, is very moving and seductive and slightly outshines the Mk II version.

The Mk III clearly surpasses its predecessor at recreating the space and ambience of the recording venue, offering a more convincing look "into" the recording and the space in which it was recorded than I would have expected. So, while instruments are more natural sounding with the Mk III, they are also presented in a more real-sounding environment, with more space between individual instruments, than with the Mk II. And they do so with no loss of focus or bloating that some "highly resolving" cables can produce.

I must say that with a $479 asking price versus the $399 retail for the Mk II, the Harmonic Technology Pro-Silway Mk III offers enough improvement to be considered an entirely different and significantly better product rather than just a simple improvement on an older, very good product! The most remarkable of its characteristics to my ear was the obvious improvement in both the extension and control of the lowest frequencies, bringing the Mk III within "spittin' distance" of the remarkable Magic One in that regard.

For just 20 percent more than the Mk II, the discerning listener will find the Mk III a no-brainer. I know I did. They have permanently replaced all the Mk IIs that had been in my system.

Price: $479 one meter single-ended. See also: www.harmonictech.com. 

Copyright 2003 OS&M. All Rights Reserved.