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Can hi-end cables benefit less expensive electronics?

Some time ago, there was a guy on a Polish hi-end forum claiming that in his case it was better to buy some hi-end power chord than investing in a more expensive CD player. Has anybody had an experience where they invested in an expensive cable and felt the investment justified without upgrading the unit utilising the cable? Overall, would there possibly be any point in buying some expensive cable to feed electronics nearly the cost of the cable itself? I'm currently using a KT88 amplifier with a Metronome CD8 (which is also used as DAC) plus Metronome DSS as the streamer (transport only). Speakers: Franco Serblin Accords. In my case, an upgrade in electronics would involve spending at least USD 15,000 to make it sensible. But I can also spend much less and buy a Transparent XL Digital cable to replace my DIY cable that I currently use, at a much smaller expense. Is a high-end digital cable in some cases able to make it a worthwhile investment in a setup which is not top hi-end? I can afford the Transparent XL digital cable, but not necessarily any upgrade to the electronics I own. Has anybody experienced an improvement with an expensive cable even if the rest of the system would rather call for a less expensive one? When I wrote to Transparent about it, they said I should get advice from my dealer. Cable naysayers please do not comment. Also I'm not looking for cheaper alternatives to the Transparent XL. Just fancying buying a cable that many people say is an excellent cable. Of course, I do not expect the same improvement with this cable as with a full DCS Vivaldi setup, but am I likely to get an improvement, considering that the system is balanced and nothing really bothers me in it? Or should I absolutely get a cheaper cable because the more expensive one is bound to make things worse? 

serblinfan
Post removed 
audphile1's avatar
audphile1
4,833 posts
 

@skinzy their Absolute Copper ICs are really good as well. I had pretty much the entire AZ line  

I now have Audience FrontRow speaker cables and they’re fantastic!

attila7
23 posts
 

If you believe that hi end cables make a difference then it stands to reason that the mediocre sound produced by mediocre equipment will be transferred to you much more efficiently allowing you to experience the mediocre sound so much more thoroughly and be disappointed so much more completely.  

jc4659
547 posts
 

High end cables will color the sound less than mediocre cables and let you hear what your up stream components are doing.  If you have decent components and mediocre cables then when you replace them with "better" cables you will hear the contributions of those components more accurately. In other words, the cables are more transparent to the signal going through them.  High end cables won't fix problems that are upstream but will let you hear them more accurately. I would start by building a system with better components and add higher end cables as budget allows. Trust your ears. You will know when it sounds right (see previous posts above).

soix
9,455 posts
 

If you believe that hi end cables make a difference then it stands to reason that the mediocre sound produced by mediocre equipment will be transferred to you much more efficiently allowing you to experience the mediocre sound so much more thoroughly and be disappointed so much more completely.

Let’s be clear here — the OP is being, to put it mildly, humble when he mentions “less expensive” electronics because his streamer/CD player/DAC retail for $17k so we’re not in a situation here where a better digital cable is going to be accentuating glaring shortcomings of mediocre equipment. Certainly at this level this is a case where experimenting with a better digital cable over even a good DIY cable is fully justified and would be irresponsible to not do so IMHO.

Also, the OP politely asked cable naysayers to abstain here because clearly he believes cables matter yet still you can’t help yourselves.  C’mon. 

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