Do Costly XLR Cables Make A Difference?
Serious question here. I currently own a rather good XLR cable that goes between the amp and DAC. I’m considering a better XLR cable to improve things, basically all the good aspects of sound reproduction such as deeper and more defined bass, better separation and detail across the frequency spectrum and an airier and more 3-dimensional sound in the midrange and treble. Will a different XLR cable supposedly one that’s costlier bring me to that direction?
My current XLR cable costs about $2k actual price paid.
I’m looking at an alternative pair up to about $2k perhaps $3k tops if it is proven that the cable is able to bring a noticeable or worthwhile if not significant difference. I am actually looking at the Wireworld Silver Eclipse 8 and Gold Eclipse 8 XLR.
Any experience would be appreciated.
If your system is good enough to hear it then it maybe worth it, also very important is that from your dac to preamp,or integrated it is Differentially balanced , meaning true balanced on both pieces of equipment , some are or many Fake balanced , it has to state this ,if not you will not reap all the benefits. |
I'm an electrical engineer and many time have serious doubts about one might consider "woo-woo" claims about the impact of more expensive interconnects, power cords, fiber optic, etc. I've used the Cable Company in Pennsylvania (www.thecableco.com) and found them to be extremely knowledgable about cable, have a world-class selection, and have a test-drive before you buy program that lets you a/b test multiple cables before making a purchase. I auditioned 6 different sets of speaker cables before finding the perfect match for my system without risking a $5,000 purchase for a set that didn't work out. |
And yet, based on the rest of your above post, you apparently do believe that there are differences in the sound produced by different cables, despite there not being any clear explanations for why that is the case. Is that correct? We can all agree that more expensive cables are not necessarily better than less expensive ones. But if you find differences between lower cost cables, why would there not, at times, also be differences found in higher priced cables? Value, and diminishing returns are related, of course, but only part of the story. |
Hello @phishhhhh4, I too avoid (hate) the little battery packs associated with some cables. I have high end stuff with a mix of Kubala Sosna Elation and Realization and I love them. I have tried many others and I did have a full loom of Audience AU24SX which I thought wonderful until I heard the Elation cables. Battery packs may help, but I am just not going there! And op @ryder , All my cable upgrades have made an improvement to my ears and in my system. I believe in synergy, and would want all cables the same or very similar. I do not like any silver in my interconnects, power cords or speaker cables. Not sure about silver in USB cables but mine is pure copper K-S Ralization. or part of my MUON Filter System from Network Acoustics (recommend highly). Disclaimer, I do not use any XLR balanced cables as Audionet recommends single ended interconnects (RCA) to avoid the op-amps associated with the conversion of the XLR signal in their equipment. I do not have long runs for these at 1 or 2 Meters. Good Luck! Cables are the hardest thing to figure out. Disbelieving is the easiest way out, just not (to me) the best sounding! |
