Review

聖HIJIRI
Hijiri HGP-15R
Hijiri is a new brand that supplements the range of exclusive products
from Japanese Combak Corporation.
Hijiri is a lately established brand that is a part of Japanese
Combak Corporation, especially renowned for high quality
Harmonix cables. One might start to wonder why would they set up
an entirely new brand of cables, rather than simply introduce a newrange of Harmonix products. Perhaps it was because the leading
constructor and owner, mister Kazuo Kiuchi, wanted to emphasize theuniqueness of the new cables, and how different they are fromHarmonix. These are just my speculations, because this particular
manufacturer remains silent when it comes to construction details –the catalogue doesn’t even specify what is the main material used as aconductor in the cable, not to mention other technical minutiae, suchas the design of positive and negative conductors or their geometry.
The cables are made with the use of Resonance Control technology,
which suggests that the goal was to reduce resonance to achieve
possibly cleanest reproduction of signal fed from a source to an
amplifier or preamplifier.
A glance at HGP-15R’s appearance was enough to see that it is ofperfect quality. Everything is precisely connected, and as a whole, it
looks marvelous. Just like it is the case with Harmonix cables,
everything is hand-crafted, maintaining the highest standards, which
is what this Japanese manufacturer is famous for.
Combak Corporation is also known for the fact that the cables from
Hijiri or Harmonix can be perceived as some kind of circulatory system,
connecting particular organs, or components. It means they aredesigned to be as transparent as possible when connected to electricalequipment – which is why the manufacturer focuses on eliminating
uncontrolled resonance. Anyway, Harmonix cables have always beenrenowned for something called a “black background”, or the quality of
being free from strain. I’m not surprised that these qualities are also astandard in the new Hijiri cables. HGP-15R is characterized byindependent shielding system, which works to reduce radio
interference, and has gold-plated fork terminals to be connected withthe grounding pin of the device’s housing.

When it comes to esthetics, Hijiri is definitely likable, especiallybecause along the thick-woven cotton sheath, it features beautifully
crafted wooden blocks with brand logo and range name. The cable
also has a direction marking, and it should be plugged to the system
according to arrows.

NeutralGenerally speaking, a perfect interconnect is the one that doesn’t
constrict the system, especially a high-class one, and doesn’t interferewith its sound, so it remains as neutral as possible. Hijiri is exactly like
this, so you don’t have to worry that it would have any influence on thecharacter of sound – it doesn’t add or change anything. You can hearabsolute freedom and harmony. I think that this freedom and effortless
reproduction of each note stems from the specific approach of theJapanese manufacturer, adopted already on the stage of designing thecables. Mister Kazuo Kiuchi has a global approach towards audio
systems. From his point of view, a cable should not be perceived as aseparate component, tuned only on the basis of strictly physicalaspects, namely particular technical parameters they should posses.
Cables take part in the process of signal transferring from one audio
component to the other. What methodology did the Japaneseemployed when designing these cables remains a secret, but I’m surethat in this case, technical parameters aren’t everything and what’s
really important is how they behave in a given system, which depends
on a number of factors.

According to this principle, the designers must choose appropriatematerials for insulation, conductors and probably adjust theirdiameter. All in all, it works, because with these latest cables from
Combak Corporation, the sound was the best I’ve heard. And I’ve
already had the occasion to test a few models from Harmonix andcompare them to many other more or less renowned brands. Hijiri,
however, charmed me with its specific style. Basically, it is about its
phenomenal musicality achieved without interfering withtransparency, timbre or warmth – Bach sounds exactly like he should,
whereas Miles Davis’ trumpet is like the real thing.
Of course among numerous fans of expensive audio sets, there arepeople who like extremely smooth and sweet, and slightly warmer
sounds, and such people definitely will be pleased with Harmonix
cables. Whereas when it comes to Hijiri, as the name suggests (inJapanese, the word Hijiri means maestro or a leader), it is supposed toconstitute a sort of reference point for all the products manufactured
so far by the Japanese. And there’s something to it, because HGP-15R
offers particularly neutral sound, with incredible dynamics, both on
macro and micro level. As much as some people might accuse
Harmonix of being too mild, they wouldn’t say so about Hijiri.
Obviously this somewhat mild quality doesn’t stem from limited
dynamics, but rather from a specific style of rhythm management,
undisturbed, free from any coloration or exaggeration. Harmonix
doesn’t increase or decrease the pace, so it’s not good for the systems
that lack dynamics –it isn’t supposed to interfere with the dynamics
and impose its own character. When it comes to Hijiri, sure, the black
background is still present, and the soundstage and individual
dynamic accents are being drawn there, but here the dynamics is of acompletely different character. It is especially audible in the low tones,
because it is these frequencies that carry the greatest loads and it ishere where attack on a macro level occurs on a massive scale. So
there’s perfect control, precise timing, comparable to record results on
100 m run, as well as undisturbed balance between the energies ofindividual sounds. You could say that a lot has changed as far as pace isconcerned, because Hijiri instantaneously reacts to changes in rhythm.
It is still not a cable that is meant to improve the dynamic aspect of thewhole system,

but it is clearly audible that the dynamics is now shaped with greater
emphasis on timing and sound intensity, especially on a macro scale. Ina system with Accuphase E-470 amplifier and Naim CD5 XS player, so afairly affordable set, yet based on devices that are outstanding in theirprice range, Hijiri introduced marvelous harmony to the sound. It’s as if
both these components have been placed arm to arm and disciplined
when it comes to all dynamic nuances and timbre, both in the sense ofwarmth, and transparency.
HGP-15R definitely won’t spoil anything about the sound of a wellmatched system, quite the opposite – it will bring about what’s best insome sound qualities. For many people these cables might prove to beperfect.

Good to know
Hijiri’s offer is currently limited to HGP analogue interconnects, but
Million series, to which they belong, is growing. You can assume solooking for instance into a catalogue, where there appeared a newpower cable, which belongs to the absolute top of the best power
cables from this Japanese manufacturer, namely X-DC Studio Master
Million Maestro, offering studio-quality sound. The offer includes also
another power cable branded by Hijiri – Nagomi X-DCH20 – its review
will appear in the next issue of our magazine.

Summary
An absolutely outstanding product, in every aspect.

Verdict: Hijiri HGP-15R★★★★★ For the most demanding users, looking for a perfectcherry on top of their meticulously selected systems