audiophile folklore - cables and claims from manufacturers


The cable debate.

Cables make a difference, sure. 

But SHOULD they?

I have been grappling with this question for the better part of 20 years! 

Fanatical claims from manufacturers, talking about how their cables will improve your system in specific ways, sonically. 

More accurate bass, cleaner midrange sounds, treble resolution... etc. soundstage and imaging, you get the idea.

The fundamental disconnect is - they have never heard YOUR system! 

So then, how do they know what their cables will sound like in your system. Not to mention, astronomical prices on some of these interconnects. The wilder the claims, the higher the cost.

The behavior we should be looking for is passing on the signal, with as little losses as possible. That can be done relatively cheaply, with well made professional interconnects that cost less than 100 dollars in most cases.

If you could build an audio system (all of it) from thrift store finds and cables really did make that much of a difference, then wouldn’t the sound quality scale that way?

It seems many audiophiles I know are in denial. And even worse, some use cables as TONE controls! This is where audiophoolery becomes a religion. Audio dealers promote it, because it impacts their bottom line! 

frank009

@seymour-krelborn 

It amazes me that you took more time than necessary to rip out sections of my posts and then end it with a firework - calling my posts BS,.

I can do that to, just not at your "level" 

Simple is subjective.  The cables on the space shuttle are not simple.  The cables in stealth bombers are not simple.  The cables in the James Webb Space Telescope are not simple.

Have you sliced open a Shunyata Research Omega-X cable?  Tell us how it is constructed.  Tell us about the materials that are used in its construction.

You are not comparing apples to apples here. Nobody is suggesting that cables used in mission critical applications like where research programs alone cost tens of millions or billions of dollars are the same as audio cables. Many of you are not even audio professionals, yet live in a dreamland where improvements can be heard beyond what you heard last year, yadda yadda. 

Shunyata Research Omega-X Cable?

Are you talking about their power cable, ethernet cable? etc. ? 

Would be even more interesting if you were talking about their ethernet cable.

You can buy a CAT 8 or 8.1 ethernet cable for about 10 dollars on amazon.ca or a more costly varient from a brand called LinkUp that tests all of their cables and provides a print out of the results so you know you’re not being scammed.

The internet runs on TCP/IP. Packets either get sent or they don’t. If something happens mid-way, they are retransmitted. And look up the Shannon-Nyquist Theorem for how signals actually work. Audio depends on the same foundational theorem, which without, audio reproduction would never have been possible.

A FANCY ethernet cable is not going to change those packets in any meaningful way.

A FANCY power cable is not going to change the electricity inside the audio device, because it needs to go through a stage of power rectification, which is the JOB of the power transformer(s) inside the equipment. It gets converted to DC and passed along at the output... The power cable does not improve anything unless it was faulty or too thin to carry the current/voltage in the first place.

Shunyata - IT IMPROVES THE SOUND QUALITY, BLAH, BLAH.

We have a revolutionary new device... new cable... whatever.

There is even an article dedicated to medical-use, which I find laughable. 

If it were really necessary, any hospital operating around the world would use them and it would be MANDATORY industry standard, and a violation of code if they were not using Shunyata. Hostpitals are about life or death... your audio system, not so much.

You seem to not understand how things work in the real world. Living in an audiophile fantasy land.

This discussion has turned into a shouting match. 

Nothing is accomplished 

.So stand in your corner. defend it to he max. 

You've nothing but dignity to lose.

@macg19 

"Used to have." 😊

My system now is good, but not at THAT level. That was in the ’80s and ’90s, when I was still learning audio. I was just fortunate enough that my pocketbook could support my hobby. And my learning curve.

I’m guessing old Franky didn’t read How to Win Friends and Influence People. 

@kevemaher 

This discussion has turned into a shouting match. 

Nothing is accomplished 

.So stand in your corner. defend it to he max. 

You've nothing but dignity to lose.

Please name the parties that are shouting.  Otherwise, your comment hits unintended targets, grouping unnamed persons together, and could be taken as you gas lighting.