audiophile folklore - cables and claims from manufacturers

At this point, it would be silly to say cables don’t sound different...They do.. I have picked out cables in my assortment 18/20, 24/25, etc times in a blindfold (statistically significant).

But, there is absolutely no guarantee that one will always pick the sound of some expensive cable over a cheap cable whilst seated in a blindfold.

Here’s an example where 2 guys picked a 27 dollar cable’s sound over some 20k+ cable in the host’s supposedly "ultra high end" system.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPlwcZaJzKw

I am sure i can produce such results over and over if i had guys seated with a blindfold in my house.

On the same note, some of the best " sounding" cables on earth continue to exist on aliexpress at a cost anyone can afford. If you have a larger bank balance, some predictable options exist within the audioquest lineup. Even on the latter AQ line-up, passing a blindfolded test is like pulling teeth between a <1000 dollar AQ cable vs a couple of 5k+ AQ cable on one of my tweaked out rigs. I have tested myself and a couple of golden ear bats i know several times. 

IME, the diminishing returns for cables can hit very early...around a 100 bucks for most guys in most rigs. Some guy like Ken Ishiwata or the Yamaha, tad sound master guys may be the exceptions to such observations (to some degree)..

On the same note, some of the best " sounding" cables on earth continue to exist on aliexpress at a cost anyone can afford.

That’s right. @deep_333 

Properly-made cables are sold on aliexpress. I’ve used them before switching over to world’s best cables out of curiosity. The reason I stayed with World’s Best Cables was/is for their warranty. It’s really class leading. I gave the aliepress cables away to a friend who was building his first system, and he still uses them without any issues. There was no consistent or repeatable improvement in sound quality. Both sets sounded just as good and not broken or defective. 

As I’ve said many times before - the electronics make the biggest difference of all. Even before your speakers, might I add.

@frank009 

I'll chime in for WBC also. I bought quite a few balanced cables many years back. Quality stuff.

Since then, I've begun building my own. This way I can control length, and keep capacitance to a minimum.

I use Belden 1505F double shielded coax video cable (17pf/ft) for unbalanced and Mogami 2552 for balanced. I always use Neutrik or Rean for connectors. My DIY cables work great providing low loss with robust shielding. 

A six foot pair of either kind costs me less than $50 in parts and an hour of labor. Pride in accomplishment - priceless. 

+1 @kevemaher 

@kevemaher 

That’s exactly what you should do if you want custom cables.

I can undertand the sense of accomplishment. I sometimes enjoy painting rooms in the house if the Wife and decide a change should be made, so no need to call the painter.