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Do "Cardas Caps" make a difference?

A new inexpensive, and quite compelling, tweek are the caps George Cardas makes to cover unused input and output jacks, therefore rejecting stray EMF. This is a logical tweek, and I trust George's integrity here, but my question is: How noticeable is the improvement? Can everyone who has tried them hear a difference?
fzxguy
killerpiglet
374 posts
 
Fzxguy, can't speak from personal experience but I had done a bit of research into these a while back and I did not find a single user who said it made a difference.

KP
krell1's avatar
krell1
250 posts
 
I agree and if you are truely happy with your system and are looking for that last tweak, this should be it. I am not moving pieces around anymore and have isolated all and just ordered my sets. BTW I think they are going up from $3 to $3.75 each. I heard an improvement using a Shakti stone but I want the piece of mind if I don't.
sc53
719 posts
 
I got a set in an auction and was able to cap unused RCAs on both my ARC CA-50 and my BAT VK-30SE (in another system), but was unable to hear any difference in either system. Like the other poster, I like the idea of neatening up my equipment and insuring against that stray RFI.
sean
6,231 posts
 
You will gain more ( on most systems ) by using / building "shunts" than by using "shields". The parts can be procured from Rat Shack and will set you back WAY less than what a set of the aforementioned "caps" cost.

The difference between shunts and shields are that shunts can only be used on unuesed inputs whereas shields can be used on any unused rca jack. As such, you can shunt the unused inputs and shield the unused outputs for maximum effectiveness. Sean
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sdcampbell
2,136 posts
 
The Cardas caps were among a group of tweaks reviewed not long ago in "The Sensible Sound" (TSS). Now, I realize that TSS is not the ultimate high-end reviewer, but several of their writers have good systems, and like the rest of us, they have two ears and the ability to judge effects of tweaks on their system. The TSS article pretty much concluded that the Cardas caps added nothing (at best) and maybe even degraded the sound a bit.

Personally, I think that if you are concerned about dust getting into the inside of a component, then a plastic cap will work fine, and it's a whole lot cheaper than the Cardas gizmos. If your concern is about shunts vs. shields, then Sean has already given the best response above, and there is no need for me to comment further. (Good job, as always, Sean.)
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