My system....what and how will cabling impact?


Stereo Equipment


I know that not proving enough info is troubling so here is my complete list for my system.

All in around 100k.


Wilson Audio Sasha DAW

D’Agostino Integrated Amp

Clear Audio Ovation w/ 9” tracer tone arm

Clear Audio Concerto V2 MC cartridge

DCS Bartok DAC

VTL 6.5 phono pre amp (used w less then 50 hours of use)

HRS RXR Maple rack w/ isolation shelves

Transparent Music link and music wave cabling.



The room is strangely laid out. First, high cathedral ceilings with several peaks for sounds to bounce around. Second not too wide from speaker fronts to my ears but long. Approximately 25’ X 50’. From speaker fronts to my ears maybe 15. Speakers are positioned close to back wall and I am sitting on a sofa that places me about 2 feet in front of the front wall which is comprised of windows.


Now onto my first impressions. It sounds fantastic. Very warm, melodic, clean, rich and juicy are a few adjectives that come to mind. The TT sounds as good or perhaps at times better than the DAC. The soundstage is fairly wide given the limited space between my ears and the speakers.


Now onto my question. I have spent around $2,000 for cabling. I am figuring that those are what many of you would consider basic cabling. I see folks spending much much more for cabling. What does investing in high end cabling buy you? How does it effect the final outcome? Will the sound be richer and more realistic? What high end cables are recommended for the system I have? How much should one expect to spend for cables for the system I have assembled?


Thanks for your input.


lawmnsuu
I have found cables to be system dependent, so the Audioquest cables that I use for my system may not work as well as yours.
Given that you have Wilson and D'Agostino, I would try to find other owners with similar equipment in order to get the best advice.
B
Still use my Kimber 8TC from the nineties and when I change speakers they sound differently.
This is sadly the way a lot of us think. Yes there is a grain of truth in that sometimes there are interactions that can sometimes have an impact on the sound. There are indeed times when the design of one component makes it incompatible with another. For sure this can happen.

The vast majority of the time however a wire is a wire is a wire. Otherwise, what is the point of reading reviews, or asking anyone’s opinion of anything? If all these things interact so much then the only opinion that might possibly have any value is when every single thing right down to the color of the carpet and the chair is identical. Even then some guy will pop up and complain about expectation bias and demand a double-blind study, preferably one that runs till the end of time so we never have to reach a conclusion.

The plain fact of the matter is interconnects, speaker cables and power cords sound fundamentally the same no matter what system or components they are used with. There is no such thing as buying cables to go with speakers and amps. There is only buying cables to go with listener preferences.

If you like a big bold 3D sound there are cables that will deliver this, regardless of what components they are used with. If you like a lean analytical surgically sterile sound there are even more to choose from. Either way, same thing, don’t matter a bit what you use them with that is how they will be. No sterile tipped up flat wire ever suddenly magically became all warm and fuzzy just by being matched up with the right speakers. Or amp. It simply does not work that way.

I go on because this is one of the bigger hurdles holding people back. If you think it is all about the components then this eliminates a whole world of listener impressions. If you believe this nonsense then why would you care what I think? My speakers are different. My amp is different. Etc etc. You just eliminated a huge amount of useful listener impressions. Technically, if you think about it, you have eliminated all listener impressions!

But if on the other hand you wake up to the fact these things sound the way they sound regardless of where and how they are used, which by the way isn’t that our experience with everything else? Does salt magically become sweet when used with potatoes instead of eggs? So it is just nuts. Wake up to this simple fact, open yourself up to a whole new world of possibilities.
Here we go with this bulls**t again Chuck. I’m sure you recall I had to light you up over this exact same topic a few months ago. The fact that, this time around, you admit there could be compatibility concerns when choosing cables for your system is indeed ironic. No one ever claims that a cable can or will change its inherent sonic characteristics.  At least not in any of the threads I’ve observed. Rather, people simply ask for advice on which cables might be a good match for the current components they have or the particular sound they are looking for. With so many cable options out there it’s impossible to know how they all sound. The most useful response you could offer would be sharing your personal experiences with various cables over the years and what they sound like. Then people could decide if that’s something they’re looking for. That’s all I was looking for when I asked my question.  And that response certainly would’ve sufficed here too. But instead you choose to be insulting and condescending and basically an a**hole....and just like that you lose all credibility in my opinion and probably in many others too.  Not today Satan. Not today. Don’t you bring that hate in here. Ha