Kimber Kable Orchid AES/EBU Coaxial Digital Cable

Orchid Is Kimber's Reference AES/EBU Digital Cable

Kimber Kable's Orchid is, in Kimber's words, "an AES/EBU cable of exceptional achievement." Kimber says it "has captured the passions of digital devotees and the respect of analog enthusiasts worldwide; both for recording and playback." It is the top of the Kimber digital range we carry today.

Smooth, Detailed, With Amazing Transient Attack

That is Kimber's own description: "The Orchid is smooth and detailed with amazing transient attack." Kimber says only the finest materials are used in its construction and that the technology is proprietary. It publishes no conductor material or gauge, so this page does not claim them.

Kimber does publish two measurements. Orchid shows 47.1 picofarads of parallel capacitance and 1.06 microhenries of series inductance per meter. It sits in Kimber's Specialty Series, whose digital slogan is "Push Every Bit."

Built for the Balanced Digital Standard

Orchid is an AES/EBU cable, the professional balanced digital link that runs on a 110-ohm twisted pair. Kimber lists it for both recording and playback. Despite the word coaxial in our listing title, it is not a 75-ohm coaxial cable and will not fit an RCA socket.

The XLR Plugs, Explained

Orchid ends in a three-pin XLR plug at each end, one male and one female. Kimber factory terminates it with "studio grade" XLR connectors with silver-plated contacts. It does not name the plug's maker, so we do not claim it.

What Reviewers Are Saying

Stereophile lists Orchid in its Recommended Components 2025 Edition, calling it "expensive, but the best AES3 link JA has used." Reviewer SD is quoted: "Probably the best out there for now….A stunner!"

The listing adds that two more of the magazine's writers, RH and RD, "are also fans," and notes that a lower price has brought the cable within reach of more music lovers.

Who Is This Digital Cable Best For?

• Your DAC and transport have AES/EBU sockets — the XLR plugs fit them directly and latch, so the link will not work loose
• You want the reference — Stereophile calls Orchid the best AES3 link its editor has used, so the recommendation is on record
• You record as well as play back — Kimber lists Orchid for both, so one cable serves the studio and the listening room
• You want silver at the contact — the XLR contacts are silver-plated, so the signal meets better metal at the pin
• Your DAC has only a coaxial RCA or BNC input — this XLR cable will not fit it, and it is not a 75-ohm coax cable. Call us and we will match the plug

How Does It Connect to Your System?

Plug the male XLR into the AES/EBU input of your DAC and the female XLR into the AES/EBU output of your transport or streamer. The plug latches, so press the tab to remove it. Then choose that input.

Then listen. Other and longer lengths available. Call for prices.

Pairs Well With

A digital cable is one link in a digital chain. It usually joins these categories.

• Digital-to-Analog Converters — the receiving end of the link
• CD Players and Transports — the classic coaxial source
• Music Streamers — a streamer with a digital output
• Power Cables — clean power at both ends

Frequently Asked Questions

What is AES/EBU?

The professional balanced digital standard. It runs on a 110-ohm twisted pair with XLR plugs and carries the same stereo PCM data as S/PDIF over a link that rejects noise the way a balanced analog cable does.

What is Orchid made of?

Kimber does not say. It calls the materials the finest and the technology proprietary, and publishes only capacitance and inductance. Older listings claimed silver-plated copper; Kimber's current data does not, so we do not.

Does Kimber publish measurements?

Two. Orchid shows 47.1 picofarads of parallel capacitance and 1.06 microhenries of series inductance per meter. Kimber lists no resistance figure for it.

Is this a coaxial cable?

Orchid is an AES/EBU balanced digital cable with XLR plugs on a 110-ohm standard, despite the word coaxial in the listing title. For a 75-ohm coaxial link with RCA or BNC plugs, look at Kimber's D-60.

Is there a step up?

Not in the Kimber AES/EBU digital range we carry. Orchid is the top of that ladder. If you want to go further, call us and we will talk through the whole chain.

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