Looking For 90% of the performane of the super expensive cables for much less money

RJA, I make them under the Acoustic BBQ brand. The Tweak Geek makes them, Parts Connextion makes them.

Cables are the most overhyped, overpriced components in the world. Come on people !!! it is wire !!!! The people paying tens of thousand or even thousands of dollars or even hundreds of dollars are idiots. I apologize to all of the idiots.

Bravo, Herman!

I’ve said this before somewhere on Audiogon but it applies to this thread…about WHY people buy expensive cable/wire when there is no reason for these “exotic” products to perform better than good quality cables of the proper length and resistance.

Likely the main reason is that this stuff looks really great if/when you can see it. Those proud of these accessories’ visual appeal, have their equipment well spread…giving the viewer opportunity to see how well equipped and connected the audiophile owner’s system is. When systems are referred to as “music reproduction devices” (or other pompous definitions), they are really proud of their stuff. I have no issue with buying anything for the looks as long as you have the honesty to say so. If I bought a Rolex, for example, I would never say I bought because it is such an accurate timepiece. If I put the optional rear wing on my Mazerati, I’d never try to get you to believe I drive fast enough to need or achieve the downforce it creates. It, to me, just looks neat.

Another reason is that if it looks good "and costs a lot, well….it’s gotta be good." A manufacturer can produce a cable of "exotic" design and beautiful appearance for, say, $5 a foot. He can then choose to sell it for $10 per foot or $750 a foot. If it looks good enough, he might decide to market it as exceptionally high-end and sell it for the higher amount knowing that those with a higher disposable income, but no particular knowledge of basic acoustic science, will assume if it is priced at $750 it MUST be better and will, accordingly, sound better. Once the cables are changed out their eyes will widen and their jaws will drop at the amazing increase in sound stage, transparency, texture and openness the new cables provide. And….this actually IS science...the field we know as psychology.

Don't believe it?  In another thread, people are buying $900 wall receptacles, burning them in for 500 hours (a critical step, I guess) and then raving about the eye-popping differences they hear.  I kid you not.....plugs for $400.

Geoff, you got me there, conductive liquid. A wonderful marketing spin but at the end of the day they are just transferring energy from one component to another. You will never convince me that the $20,000 + you would need to cable your system with them couldn’t be better spent on some other part of the system or room. Cables like that are for people who want to brag to their friends they spent over $20,000 on cables.

Dyna, interesting point about a Rolex. I have one, Would never have bought one but it was my grandfathers and it is beautiful so I wear it. They really aren’t very accurate timepieces. They are jewelry and if you realize that then fine, people wear jewelry for a variety of reasons, just don’t ask me what exactly the time is when I wear it because it may be close but it won’t be exact. If you want accurate time buy one of Geoff’s clever little digital clocks. Not only will it keep accurate time, it will transform your room into a symphony hall.

I am not saying that conductive liquid does not work, maybe even better than our usual hard metal cables. I have no experience and superficially see the reason for it being reasonable (I have not given it deeper thought). Maybe they are that leap that should shut up all the cable non-believers. I truly hope so.

However, in the field of Audiophilia, anything that has properties that may approach those of oil will be fiercely debated. It must be an annoying uphill battle for the manufacturers.

dynaquest4,

I have also mentioned elsewhere on Audiogon that many may buy cables because of the looks, but my idea has not been noticed. Oh well, maybe some day...

I admit that I bought a pair of XLR interconnects just so they look "better" when placed where I do not even see them. Going from mid $10s to a few hundred. I accepted it was for the looks and it was worth to me on that level. The difference in the price was, to me, acceptable for that kind of game. As far as sound goes, if anything I would say it is "worse", but would not firmly claim that. The bad part was convenience. Pictures did not tell me that cables are not as flexible as the old ones.