My current project (and hopefully, a big money maker,) is how to adjust/modify 1/2 in. dia. copper piping used for domestic water, in order to 'produce' a wetter water...you know, sometimes it is beneficial to have wetter water, for example you may take showers faster - thus saving lots of water...makes sense?...So...by reading some of the posts here, based on analogy of copper wires....can anyone make few of those sophisticated suggestions adopted for my 1/2 in. copper pipe?....I can promise, if this thing gets flying...I'll share my profits with you....I thank you in advance
10 Audio Cable Myths and Facts
In a sea of audio cable industry snake oil, we’re sure you’re wondering, What really matters when buying cables?Save your money by avoiding overpriced cables with outlandish claims. Below are some common myths to look out for and some important things to consider when buying audio cables.
CABLE MYTHS1. Conductor skin effect
In some applications like power transmission lines, an electric signal tends to travel through the surface of a conductor and avoids traveling through the center of the conductor. Many cable companies claim that their design limits the skin effect and measurably improves your sound.
The TruthWhile skin effect is a very real issue for large scale power transmission, audio signals are in such a low-frequency range that the skin effect is negligible at best. The skin effect is only an issue in high-frequency applications. 20kHz is the highest frequency that humans can hear. If we calculate the skin effect on a 12 AWG speaker cable like Gene from Audioholics does in this article, we find that the skin effect results in a loss of only -.014dB. Your speakers, room acoustics, and the human ear have a much larger effect on your sound than the skin effect.2. Cable break-in
Don’t be fooled - any company that claims this thinks they can trick you into hearing better sound after a month or two. “Break-in” is a commonly used term throughout the industry. It is the idea that the dielectric of a cable changes and aligns itself to the electromagnetic field of the signal traveling through the conductors.
The Truth
There is no scientific evidence to support the idea of cable break-in, but there are still those who claim it improves sonic qualities. We’re not against optimism. We’re just not full of crap. Don’t drink the audio industry kool-aid and save your money for legitimate cables.
Cryogenic treatment is the process of freezing cables to -320 degrees Fahrenheit before use. The claim is that freezing the conductors of the cable at ultra low temperatures aligns the crystalline grain structure of them resulting in desirable improvements.
The Truth
Again there is no scientific data to support this notion. Cryogenic treatment can improve the durability of certain metals, usually steel, by stabilizing impurities. For example, the process is used to create strong tools or car parts.
But, steel is a terrible metal to use for audio cables. It is one of the least conductive metals out there! Copper and silver are the best conductors of electricity and the preferred metals for audio cables.
4. Cable signal direction
You might hear this phrase tossed around quite a bit. It’s the notion that a cable has an established signal direction, the direction in which it was initially used, and that this signal direction should not be reversed.
The Truth
The reality is, assuming the connector ends and terminals are the same, the cable will work in both directions and the performance will be equivalent.
5. Cable elevators, risers, or lifts
The claim is that the cables’ magnetic field can interfere with the surface it is laying on. Essentially, the magnetic field can “reflect” from the surface back into the cable and cause distortions.
The Truth
There is no evidence to support these claims, and these unnecessary devices are merely for looks. They are in no way proven to improve cable performance.
In the modern age, wireless signals are all around us all the time. The rapid growth and spread of technology means that these wireless signals will become more widespread and more likely to cause unwanted interference. Cellphones, wifi, and Bluetooth signals can enter your cables, but shielding can block these signals and preserve your sound quality.
No matter how well a cable is designed, cable length will always impact performance. As the length of a cable goes up, so does the risk of unwanted interference and signal loss. We always recommend keeping your cables as short as possible, but we understand that is not always possible. A well constructed and shielded cable will help combat this issue.
The best conductors to use for audio cables are pure silver or pure copper. Both are valued for their high conductivity, but copper is more widely used due to the high price of silver. Additionally, some variations are constructed with silver-plated copper. However, because the metals have different conductivities, the sound is more likely to travel through only the silver plating and not the copper.
The purity of the conductor will affect performance more than anything. Look for Oxygen-Free High Conductivity (OFHC) conductors. This means that a significant percentage of oxygen and other impurities have been removed from the conductor resulting in high purity.
4. Wire gauge should not be overlookedThe amount of wattage your system is using will determine the total gauge size needed for safe and optimal performance. The standard is 14 gauge wire minimum for the transmission of 250 watts of power. Many electronic devices use much less than this, but some speakers and listening setups may be using more. If your system uses more than 250 Watts, we recommend a higher total gauge cable.
5. Quality connectors matterTruly, the best connectors are no connectors at all. But, if you can’t hardwire your system, gold plated connectors are the industry standard. Gold plating exhibits great corrosion resistance when exposed to oxygen and has good conductive properties. Connectors range from basic to extremely high end and flashy.
The bottom line is:
Choose connectors based on your personal needs and the type of connection being made. Overall, always choose quality connectors.
We hope these myths and facts will help you choose quality, reasonably priced cables to complete your listening room, studio, or whatever your setup may be.
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Time out. A little logic: When someone says they can't hear a difference this is evidence that they can't hear a difference. It is not evidence that there is no difference. When someone says this or that can't explain why there should be a difference, this is not evidence that there is no difference. This is evidence that they don't know how to explain it. When someone makes fun of something this is not to say the subject is a joke. All this shows is they would rather evade than address the subject. Time in. The fact remains that there are indeed differences between metals, and geometries, and insulators, and even things like cryo. Differences that can be heard. But not by everyone. A lot of guys simply have not yet developed the requisite listening skills. Some have not even tried. Those who can't hear have all sorts of ways of evading the subject of their lack of ability. We now return you to our regularly scheduled attempts at evasion, lame humor, and excuses. |
rcbashaw525 posts04-11-2020 4:26amAfter making all sorts of Interconnects over the years, I agree with you (Shieldedaudio) about what’s relevant in IC design. I’ve never really heard a difference in copper quality! But silver (7% less resistance) can drive me crazy, it can be so bright! Maybe I just proved your point! What's funny, you could be standing right,next to a person that loves that that blistering sound. Me I running I can't take it. I've never heard it from good silver wire (pure (er)) but copper/silver clad, and certain dielectrics/covers, sizzle my ears. I found with NO covers, just bare wire in cable armor that "brightness" is gone for the most part. Something to do with how the conductor reacts with the the cover (dielectric) (not sure on the nomenclature). I've ran single wires no covers, in a harp like frame, and hooked one wire at a time end to corresponding end. Not a huge difference compared to wire with insulation/shielding covering them.. I tried; silver (sc), copper (sc and MS), copper/silver clad, alu, alu/copper clad, nickel/silver (sc), white gold (sc) lead/tin (solder. resin). SS (sc), mechanics wire, and a few other alloys. I found some pretty amazing stuff, especially with certain mixes.. When I use certain combinations of wire and certain networks, there are some REALLY neat changes... It thickens the sound, adds things that just aren't audiable before.. Again I must stress, A persons hearing is the key, it has to be good...at the least. Just like marksmanship, have to be able to see the target..right.... samo samo..Hearing, seeing... Lot of the time the individual can NOT hear the difference...Doesn't mean others can't.. Take care of the ears girls and guys..... NO hair blowing BASS shows...LOL Regards |
As I read this all I can do is shake my head and laugh. In the '80's (yeah... last century) I was a recording engineer ate Quincy Street Sound in Albuquerque. A stupid mistake by one of the engineers rtesulted in blowing up the console power supply. I was tasked to rebuild it. I searched out the very best components I could to rebuild it (er, build a new 0ne) and upon firing the cansle back up, we all stood around in amazement at the improvement in SQ. We discovered in one instance the difference the best components can make in SQ. I then rebuilt all of the gear in the studio, one piece at a time except for the 200XL reverb, the LA-2A and Fairchild compressors and the API mic pres that we had. I swapped all of the coupling capacitors in the console (cheap, ROTM electrolytics) to Panasonic Z low impedance capacitors bypassed with low value poly caps on the recommendation of John Bau (look him up). I dove into dBx, Aphex and every other low priced piece of gear we had. We upgraded cabling from the old Belden patch cord standards to Mogami. Sara K's Gypsy Alley ( https://www.amazon.com/Gypsy-Alley-Sara-K/dp/B001BJ9ICA) one of the great recordings that came out after that. That album was mastered on a 14 (yep: FOURTEEN) bit Sony U-matic recorder. Even so, it still doesn't suck. Certainly not up to the quality of contemporary SOTA, but somehow still solid. Anyone that states that "these things" don't matter are either ignorant, deaf, arrogant or needs a different profession/hobby/avocation. Just sayin... |
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