At this year’s 2026 Hong Kong High-End Audio Visual Show, Richcoln, in addition to setting up a top-tier music demonstration system in Meeting Room S427 on the 4th floor, also statically displayed the six major cable series and multiple noise-reduction products from the renowned British cable manufacturer Chord Company. As a British audio cable specialist with over 40 years of history, Chord Company enjoys an excellent reputation among audiophiles thanks to its proprietary ARAY technology and innovative insulating materials.

From Flagship to Entry-Level – A Complete Range
Chord Company exhibited six series of various cables at S427: ChordMusic, Sarum T, Signature, Epic, Shawline, and Clearway, covering signal cables, speaker cables, power cables, tonearm cables, and more, catering to audiophiles with different budgets and system requirements.

The ChordMusic series is the brand’s flagship, representing the highest level of Chord Company’s cable craftsmanship over more than forty years. It employs the newly developed Taylon® military‑grade insulating material, which has a lower dielectric constant than traditional PTFE, maintaining phase stability and accuracy during signal transmission. The conductors use Super ARAY silver‑plated copper conductors with a specific geometric configuration. ChordMusic is the first speaker cable to feature Tuned ARAY conductor geometry, with each of its positive and negative conductors having a cross‑sectional area of 5.26mm² (10 AWG) and independently shielded design.

The Sarum T series builds on the success of the award‑winning Sarum Super ARAY. Its conductors are twisted from multi‑strand silver‑plated oxygen‑free copper wire, retaining the Super ARAY structure, and are fitted with PTFE RCA plug housings that both suppress resonance and further enhance contact stability and durability. The Sarum T series offers a variety of options including speaker cables, signal cables, tonearm cables, and streaming cables.

The Signature series is one of Chord Company’s longest‑standing product lines. The recently introduced SignatureX models adopt XLPE (cross‑linked polyethylene) insulation, combined with a high‑density silver‑plated braided screen and aluminium foil for high‑frequency shielding. The conductors are multi‑strand silver‑plated oxygen‑free copper with Tuned ARAY conductor geometry. The Signature series is equipped with the brand’s exclusive ChorAlloy®‑plated RCA plugs and precision‑machined PTFE plug housings.

The Epic series sits between mid‑range and high‑end. Its conductors are high‑purity multi‑strand silver‑plated oxygen‑free copper with Tuned ARAY conductor geometry, fitted with ChorAlloy™‑plated VEE 3 RCA, DIN, or XLR plugs, and feature XLPE insulation with dual‑layer high‑frequency effective braiding and aluminium foil combination shielding. The cables use high‑quality silver‑plated conductors, high‑speed insulating materials, and high‑density independent shielding.

The Shawline series uses the same silver‑plated conductors, XLPE insulation, and twisted‑pair configuration as the RumourX. ShawlineX ARAY analogue signal cables are equipped with ChorAlloy™‑plated VEE 3 RCA, DIN, or XLR plugs. Shawline Digital cables employ Tuned ARAY technology, using silver‑plated PTFE‑insulated conductors and dual‑layer high‑density braided and aluminium foil shielding to suppress high‑frequency interference. The Shawline series offers a wide range of options including tonearm cables, power cables, and HDMI AOC.

The Clearway series is Chord Company’s entry‑level line, yet it equally applies the ARAY conductor geometry derived from the higher‑end Sarum series. The conductors are high‑quality oxygen‑free copper, upgraded with XLPE insulation, and shielding is provided by dual‑layer heavy‑gauge aluminium foil. The ClearwayX speaker cables, in addition to the latest XLPE insulation, deliver sonic performance far exceeding their price point thanks to a clever combination of materials.

ARAY Noise‑Reduction Engineering and Taylon/XLPE Insulation Revolution
Chord Company is most acclaimed by audiophiles for its Tuned ARAY noise‑reduction engineering project, initiated in 2012. The core of ARAY technology lies in reducing high‑frequency noise interference at the source through precise conductor geometry and material selection. The first ARAY product was the Sarum TunedARAY cable launched in 2012, and since then ARAY technology has continued to evolve, being applied across the range from the flagship ChordMusic to the entry‑level Clearway.

In terms of insulating materials, Chord Company has adopted two major innovative technologies. Taylon® is a flagship‑grade military‑spec insulation material with an extremely low dielectric constant and excellent phase stability, but its high manufacturing cost means it is reserved for top‑tier series such as ChordMusic. XLPE (cross‑linked polyethylene) , on the other hand, brings similar high‑performance insulation technology down to a wider range of product lines including Signature, Shawline, and Clearway, delivering the sonic benefits of improved phase stability to more audiophiles.

GroundARAY and PhonoARAY – The Most Popular
In addition to cables, Chord Company also exhibited a number of audio system noise‑reduction products at S427, including GroundARAY, PowerARAY, PowerHAUS, PhonoARAY, as well as the EE1 Plus network noise isolator and the 8Switch audio‑grade network switch from its sub‑brand English Electric.

GroundARAY is a new‑generation high‑frequency noise suppression device that connects to unused sockets on audio equipment (such as RCA, XLR, USB terminals, etc.), providing a low‑impedance path for high‑frequency noise to be drained away, directly improving the background noise of the “host” component. Its internal structure incorporates a series of special absorbing materials that effectively divert high‑frequency noise away from the signal ground.

PowerARAY is a noise‑reduction device designed for power supply systems, providing a low‑impedance escape path for high‑frequency noise coming from the household mains, reducing the amount of noise entering the audio system and thereby lowering the noise floor, allowing music more room to breathe.

PowerHAUS is Chord Company’s first power distribution block, available in three models: M6, S6, and P6. All avoid the use of noise‑generating filters, neon power indicators, and switches. PowerHAUS tackles noise and radio‑frequency interference from two directions simultaneously, while also providing high‑quality grounding connections.

PhonoARAY is an independent grounding filter solution designed specifically for turntable users. It is connected in‑line between the turntable’s ground terminal and the phono stage or the built‑in phono input of an amplifier, working through electromagnetic shielding, virtual grounding, and physical isolation to maximise suppression of electromagnetic interference that affects vinyl system performance. PhonoARAY features a thick‑walled housing precision‑machined from solid aluminium billet, internally filled with resin to reduce microphonic effects. The thin ground wire supplied with most tonearm cables is intended to eliminate hum, but it can actually form an antenna with the metal tonearm, actively picking up high‑frequency radiation from switch‑mode power supplies, Wi‑Fi, and the like. PhonoARAY is the solution specifically designed to address this pain point.

EE1 Plus is an advanced network noise isolator under the English Electric brand. It uses a passive design that converts unwanted noise into heat energy, ensuring that digital data quality remains unaffected. EE1 Plus features galvanic isolation, targeted common‑mode filtering, and Chord Company’s patented ARAY technology. The 8Switch is an 8‑port Gigabit audio‑grade network switch equipped with a custom‑built TCXO (temperature‑compensated crystal oscillator) with an accuracy of 0.1ppm, far superior to ordinary crystal oscillators.

Growing Popularity of Noise‑Reduction Products
With the increasing prevalence of digital sources and streaming playback, high‑frequency interference in audio systems has become a growing concern among audiophiles. Chord Company’s noise‑reduction products are gaining ever more popularity in the market. Whether for vinyl systems, digital systems, or streaming systems, there are targeted noise‑reduction products available. Among them, GroundARAY and PhonoARAY are particularly popular – the former can be used for grounding noise reduction across various types of equipment, while the latter precisely addresses the long‑standing grounding interference pain points of vinyl systems. In the S427 room, many audiophiles paused to examine the design principles and applications of these noise‑reduction products in detail, showing keen interest in Chord Company’s complete solution from cables to noise suppression.

Developed and originally manufactured in the UK, Chord Company draws on over 40 years of technical expertise to offer one‑stop solutions ranging from signal transmission to noise suppression for audiophiles with varying budgets and audio systems. For audiophiles in pursuit of pure music reproduction, the Chord Company showcase featuring the S427 is undoubtedly one of the most worthwhile stops to explore in depth at this year’s exhibition.