The engineering behind Flow Ultima
Flow Ultima updates Argento's original Flow platform through changes to conductor geometry, mechanical damping, shielding, and connector construction. It sits below Flow Master Reference and Extreme Edition, but its newer connector designs give it a distinct place in the range. Comparing the series therefore involves more than conductor quantity alone.
Connections designed around the conductor
The XLR and banana designs use the silver conductor itself as the electrical contact. RCA connectors use thin, fully annealed 6N silver contacts. The two approaches make connector construction a defining feature of the selected configuration.
Pressure-fit assembly avoids soldered joints in the signal path. PEEK provides the connector dielectric, while zirconia ceramic housings and non-ferrous hardware form part of the mechanical design. Argento combines these elements with dual-cycle cryogenic treatment and, in the speaker cable, annealed and dual-polished silver conductors.
Damping, shielding, and separate cable runs
Argento injects its proprietary Vibration Damping Material, or VDM, through the cable structure to control mechanical movement. Carbon fiber absorptive shielding is used on interconnects. These are construction choices directed at vibration and interference control; the relevant implementation depends on the cable type.
The power cable uses separate runs for its polarities, with 6N silver specified for live and neutral. The protective-earth conductor is an exception to the silver-conductor specification. Custom power connectors use silver contacts, and the equipment end must be specified to suit the component's inlet.
Cable types and available lengths
The range includes analog RCA and XLR, digital RCA and BNC S/PDIF, XLR AES/EBU, USB, Ethernet, speaker, power, phono, and ground cables, plus speaker jumpers.
Base lengths are 1 m for line-level analog, digital, USB, Ethernet, speaker, and ground cables, and 2 m for power cables. Speaker jumpers are 25 cm. Phono cables have a 1.2 m base length, with 0.3 m length increments; other signal and speaker cables use 0.5 m increments, while power-cable pricing increases in 1 m steps.
Phono and grounding configurations
Phono cables are offered as RCA-to-RCA or XLR-to-XLR connections, or with a female DIN connector feeding RCA or XLR. The DIN end can be straight or angled at 90 degrees. The tonearm output and phono-stage input determine the required connection. Jumper and ground-cable terminations are selected for the connected equipment.
Choosing Flow Ultima with Unveil Sound
Choosing Flow Ultima starts with your existing components, your listening preferences, and what you want to improve. We know Argento well and have paired it with a wide range of high-end components. Tell us about your setup and the sound you enjoy. We’ll help you decide whether Flow Ultima is a good pairing, how it compares with other options, and how to integrate it into your system. Talk to us about your system.
