AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE Ethernet Cable at Vinyl Sound Toronto Canada

The AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE is a high-performance Ethernet cable from AudioQuest (Irvine, California, USA), available at Vinyl Sound in Toronto, Canada. Designed for audio-grade network connections between routers, network switches, network streamers, and music servers, the Cinnamon RJE features Solid 1.25% Silver conductors, Hard-Cell Foam insulation, and a Metal-Layer Noise-Dissipation System (NDS). Where standard Ethernet cables are engineered solely for data throughput, the Cinnamon RJE is built around the same conductor and noise-dissipation philosophy AudioQuest applies across its analog and digital audio cable range, addressing the RF noise and jitter mechanisms that affect audio quality in networked music systems.

Solid 1.25% Silver Conductors and Hard-Cell Foam Insulation

The AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE uses solid conductors drawn from a 1.25% silver alloy across all eight Ethernet signal paths. Solid construction eliminates the strand-interaction distortion inherent in the stranded conductors used in standard Cat 5e and Cat 6 Ethernet cables, where micro-arcing between strands introduces high-frequency noise into the cable. Silver plating further reduces grain-boundary distortion compared to standard copper conductors, lowering the noise floor present on the cable and its ground reference. Hard-Cell Foam insulation surrounds each conductor, providing a low-dielectric-constant material that minimizes energy storage around the conductors and maintains precise, consistent impedance along the full cable length. In a networked audio system, lower conductor noise and tighter impedance control reduce the RF noise that couples from the network into the signal path of connected streamers and DACs.

Metal-Layer Noise-Dissipation System

Standard Ethernet cables are not designed to manage the RF noise they pick up from the network infrastructure environment, including switch-mode power supplies, routers, and Wi-Fi transmitters. The AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE's Metal-Layer Noise-Dissipation System addresses this by adding a shielding layer configured to absorb and dissipate captured RFI before it reaches the cable's ground reference, preventing the ground-plane modulation that conventional shields cause when they drain noise directly to component ground. In a networked audio system, this matters because RF noise carried on the Ethernet cable and its ground reference couples directly into the power supply and analog output stages of the connected streamer or music server, raising the noise floor and increasing jitter in the digital audio signal. By managing this noise at the cable level, the Cinnamon RJE reduces the RF contamination that the streamer's internal circuitry must handle.

Key Features

• Solid 1.25% Silver Conductors: Silver-alloy solid conductors across all eight signal paths eliminate strand interaction and reduce grain-boundary distortion, lowering the noise floor on the cable and its ground reference.
• Hard-Cell Foam Insulation: Low-dielectric-constant foam insulation minimizes energy storage around each conductor and maintains precise impedance consistency along the full cable length.
• Metal-Layer Noise-Dissipation System (NDS): Additional metal shielding layer absorbs and dissipates captured RFI before it reaches the ground reference, reducing the RF noise that couples into connected audio components.
• Audio-Grade Network Connection: Engineered to reduce the RF noise and jitter mechanisms that standard Ethernet cables introduce into networked music systems, streamers, and music servers.
• Standard RJ45 Compatibility: Compatible with any component using standard RJ45 Ethernet connections, including network streamers, routers, network switches, NAS drives, and music servers.

Technical Specifications

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE Ethernet cable?

The AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE is an audio-grade RJ45 Ethernet cable built with Solid 1.25% Silver conductors, Hard-Cell Foam insulation, and a Metal-Layer Noise-Dissipation System. It is designed to connect network streamers, music servers, routers, and network switches in high-performance audio systems, addressing the RF noise and jitter mechanisms that standard Ethernet cables introduce into networked music playback. The Cinnamon RJE is available at Vinyl Sound in Toronto, Canada.

How does the AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE compare to the AudioQuest Pearl or Forest RJE Ethernet cables?

The AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE sits above the Pearl and Forest in the AudioQuest Ethernet cable range. The Pearl uses Solid Long-Grain Copper conductors and a simpler noise-management configuration, while the Forest adds a more refined shield arrangement without the silver conductor upgrade. The Cinnamon RJE advances to Solid 1.25% Silver conductors and a Metal-Layer NDS for greater RF noise absorption and a lower noise floor on the cable's ground reference. Compared to audiophile Ethernet alternatives such as the Chord Company C-Stream and Shunyata Research Sigma Ethernet, the Cinnamon RJE's silver conductor and Metal-Layer NDS address ground-reference modulation in a technically coherent way at its price level.

Does Ethernet cable quality affect audio quality in a streaming system?

Yes, Ethernet cable quality affects the RF noise environment of connected audio components, which in turn influences the noise floor and jitter performance of the digital audio output. Standard Ethernet cables act as antennas that pick up RFI from the network infrastructure environment and carry that noise into the power supply and ground reference of connected streamers and DACs. This RF contamination raises the noise floor of the analog output stage and increases jitter in the digital signal, both of which are audible as a reduction in low-level detail, soundstage clarity, and musical naturalness. The AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE's silver conductors, Hard-Cell Foam insulation, and Metal-Layer NDS reduce all three noise-injection mechanisms.

What audio components is the AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE compatible with?

The AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE is compatible with any component using a standard RJ45 Ethernet connection, including network streamers such as the Bluesound Node, Naim ND5 XS2, Lumin U2 Mini, Cambridge Audio CXN, and Auralic Aries G1, as well as music servers, NAS drives, routers, and network switches. It is also suitable for connecting an audiophile network switch such as the English Electric 8Switch or the ifi Audio SilentPower LAN iSilencer to a router or streamer. The Cinnamon RJE supports Gigabit Ethernet speeds and is fully backward compatible with 100Mbps and 10Mbps network equipment.

Is a wired Ethernet connection better than Wi-Fi for audio streaming?

A wired Ethernet connection is generally preferred over Wi-Fi for high-performance audio streaming because it provides a stable, consistent data path without the packet retransmission and latency variation that Wi-Fi introduces in congested wireless environments. Wired connections also eliminate the RF emissions from a Wi-Fi receiver operating inside or adjacent to the streamer, which can couple directly into the analog and digital circuitry of the device. For lossless and high-resolution audio streaming at 24-bit/192kHz or MQA, the reliability of a wired Ethernet connection using a cable such as the AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE provides a more consistent foundation than wireless.

Where can I buy the AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE Ethernet cable in Toronto or Canada?

The AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE Ethernet cable is available at Vinyl Sound, an authorized AudioQuest dealer in Toronto, Canada. Vinyl Sound carries the full AudioQuest network cable lineup in-store and online, with complete manufacturer warranty support for Canadian customers.

Can the AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE be used between a router and a network switch?

Yes, the AudioQuest Cinnamon RJE can be used at any point in a home network, including between a router and a network switch, between a switch and a streamer, or directly from a router to a streamer. In a high-performance audio network, AudioQuest and other audiophile cable manufacturers recommend using quality Ethernet cables at every connection point in the network chain, as RF noise introduced upstream of the streamer by lower-quality cables can still reach the streamer's internal circuitry through the network switch's power supply and ground reference.