Interconnects—Just a thought.

I confess that while I had a very small slice of audio information to impart, my main goal was to further edify this already well educated crowd  The last man to know everything was a British polynath named Thomas Young (1773-1829). He found a flaw in Newtonian physics, discovered the Rosetta Stone, and was a brilliant surgeon. 

But as the Age of Enlightenment caught speed, even Young was lest in the dust. And given all the knowledge that the technologiCal revolution has dumped in our laps, I would consider knowing 1 percent to be an unattainable goal. 


But the field of accoustics would seem to be near and dear to the hearts of the people that frequent these regions. Below, I’ve cited a few of the first few hits that Google returned today. 

A few of the basic concepts of a science that got it’s start with Pythagoras in the sixth century B.C., a field that has benefited greatly from recent landmarks established by brain science. 

The power of this science cannot be overstated. This forum would be roiled; combatants in the lost running cable war could lay down their arms and embrace. “I love this new hi-res.” “I think it’s all hype. You’re not listening to hi-res even when you think you are. And there’s no way that you can tell hi-res from Redbook. 

I suppose we could have new fights about who has the fastest neurotransmitters or the thinnest skull to permit sound vibrations to penetrate the fastest or the most neutons in auditory-centric regions but those fights should move to, I don’t know, a medical site  perhaps. Meanwhile, the rest of us can study the really important issues like when KEF is going move the new mete material to the Blade? Is every speaker with a Uni-Q going to get it? That’s pretty much their whole line. Strong move. 

A half hour is all I ask, my compatriots. Thirty minutes devoted to an activity in which you already have a strong interest. You won’t find many win/win situations like that to often. 
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroscience_of_music

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5819010/

https://www.cognifit.com/science/cognitive-skills/auditory-perception

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/perception-auditory/

Schiit don’t make the interconnects. They’re made by others and sold by Schiit.

re-read russ69 's post.

stereo5

I honestly never heard of Fulton Brown or Gold.  Was it a regional brand or major brand?

Fulton was a major national brand - the name of the company was Fulton Musical Industries. As I recall, Fulton made the first "high end" cable, before Monster jumped into the market. In addition to the Brown and gold speaker cables, FMI also made interconnects (there may still be a pair in my system) but was mostly known for its speakers. Bob Fulton was a very interesting guy - a real innovator. There is some info on him here.

I think we've covered this topic before, and before , and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before, and before………………

When asked what the requirements of a good speaker cable were, Peter Walker, the designer of Quad ESL have replied:

"There are only two requirements a speaker cable should satisfy. The first is that it should be long enough to reach between amplifier and speaker. Then having done that, the only other requirement is, ideally, the colour of the insulation should match that of the surface on which it is lays".

To make it short, cables do some difference, but this is exactly the last component you need to think about in your system.

Let's say that you have a budget of 20.000$ for your audiophile system. I would invest 7.000$ on speakers, 7.000$ on amplification, 5.000$ on source, 800$ on room acoustic treatement, 200$ on cables. 

Major brand, though possibly west coast only.

I bought mine in Seattle and if I remember correctly, they made interconnects as well.
I just Googled it and they have an Audiogon forum discussion on them.

I honestly never heard of Fulton Brown or Gold.  Was it a regional brand or major brand?

Jay Leno is an autophile. He once talked about Ferrari, and how they recommended that you use only their Ferrari branded oil at $80 a quart. He said that he knew damn well that Ferrari didn't make oil, so that means it comes from someone else, and that someone else was probably one of the major motor oil providers. Sure, he can afford to pay that price, but he refused, simply because his knowledge and common sense told him that the top dollar major brand at $8 or $10 a quart had the same viscosity as that "special" Ferrari oil and would provide the same protection. Adding more digits after a dollar sign doesn't guarantee more value, it just fools some people into thinking they are getting more.

@stereo5

Weren’t Fulton Brown and Gold the first audiophile speaker cables? At least that what my dealer told me back in 70’s. They were basically heavy gauge (6 & 12) lamp cord and not much better sounding either.

Recall "Fuller" Hi-Fi cables from the late 70's (might be slightly off on name - but "sounds like/resembles").

Heavy gauge stranded copper wire in a clear jacket.

The company may have been based in Orange County, CA.

DeKay

Been there, done that. Take the money, buy whatever it will buy. Copper or silver, does not matter. It will be better. Go and listen. You will see.

I make my own from 20 AWG fine silver wire that I buy from Amazon. Then I use some fine silver tubing the right size for an RCA male plug, and 10 AWG fine silver wire for the inner conductors. That way, the entire signal path is 5-9’s pure silver. 
It’s MUCH cheaper than buying pure silver interconnects!

Monster was considered audiophile in 1976.  The only other audiophile cable which came a few months later was the Mogami cable.  Everything else at that time was 16 or 18 gauge lamp cord or DIY,

I've got those Schitt cables. Too short, stiff and crappy RCA plugs to be much use.
Put the player and amp sideways on the shelf and IC them end to end.

"... Well, Monster came out with their cable line in 1976..."

I was talking about audiophile cables, not lamp cord. 

"...So I should throw away my Mitchell Cotter Verion Triaxials because they were made in 1978?..."

Maybe? Wire technology and more importantly, materials have improved over the years. Not many people were thinking about wire and it's contribution to sound in 1978. Wires were purely conductors back then but if it's still working for you....why change?  

So I should throw away my Mitchell Cotter Verion Triaxials because they were made in 1978?

Sorry paul6001, but you walked right into that one. Not sure this is any consolation, but I have to check the spell-checker myself all the time.

The best dealer I ever knew, and a friend who mentored me from 1991, taught me the importance of quality wire. Stewart introduced me to Ted Denney III and Caelin Gabriel. Again, this was back in 1991. 

People today who still do not get it, they are not years out of date. They are not decades out of date. They are a freaking millennium out of date!

"...I know exactly how much cables matter and so does anyone else that has studied acoustic science for 10 minutes..."

I'm not sure you have the experience to make that final assessment. I have LS-50s and some NAD gear and I'm not sure if it's at the level where cable assessments can be made. The important part though is that you are happy with your choices. 

Apt phrase. There are a lot across from me that are fiends.