Chinese fake cables How fake, how good?


I have noted a number of warnings about cheap Chinese fake cables on this site but curiosity led me to the Aliexpress site where I found a number of presumably fake big name cables from predominantly Cardas, Nordost and Siltech at about 15% of the USA or Australian price. I found Cardas Clear Light interconnects at about US$100 and decided what the heck let's give them a try at that price. Before buying I asked the seller the daft question as to whether they were genuine and got the reply that they were an OEM and constructed the interconnects from genuine Cardas cables and connectors. They arrived in a plastic bag rather than the Cardas box , not a great start but the cables looked real, and when connected, much to my surprise, they sounded really good. After 100hours or so burn in they sounded great and better than the Nordost Quatre Fils I had been using. I then took them to an Australian hi end dealer who sold real Cardas and asked rather ingenuously whether my cables were the real deal. The dealer would not commit but agreed to compare them to the real thing on a set up costing at a guess around A$100,00. Neither I nor the sales person could tell any difference so he then tried them against the Cardas Clear. Then there was some difference, not extreme but subtle, and certainly IMO not worth the price difference even if you bought the genuine Cardas Clear Light. So are these cables really fake and even if they are given my experience they are well worth a try. Maybe I'll try Nordost Odin or Siltech 770i next.
128x128mazian
Well, the consumer's attention has never in history been in such voracious demand as today. The sheer number of sites tracking everyone's online activity is bewildering.

I guess the consumer has responsibilities too, but at the end of the day we all want good value. Which is why Amazon is king right now. Just wish Mr Bezos was more willing to share his success with his colleagues. Never mind.


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Maybe the manufactures could reveal some method (measurements or something) that could identify counterfeits.
There is no grey area here. Counterfeit goods are illegal. If you use counterfeit goods you are also an infringer, and admiting it on a public forum. Doesn’t matter how good you think the counterfeit goods sound - you are contributing to lost jobs and supporting breaking the law.
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