Which Cables Are of Most Importance?

Hi Frogman,

The question is reminiscent of the age-old debate about "speakers first" vs. "source first." As many past threads have made clear, a reconciliation between the two opposing positions seems unachievable.

FWIW, I happen to be in the camp that believes that a chain is as strong as its weakest link, regardless of where in the chain that link may be located. In the case of speakers vs. source, I believe that in general the choice of speakers will make a greater difference in the character and quality of the sound that is heard than the source component, which I believe means in turn that the speakers are more likely than not to be the link that should be given the most focus, and the higher priority. I recognize that there is an opposing philosophy, with which I agree to disagree.

In the case of cables, the issue is further muddled by the dependence of many cable effects on the design characteristics of the components the cable is connecting, and the unpredictability that results in. And that dependence, in turn, is one reason (among others) for what IMO is a considerably lower degree of correlation between price and performance in the case of cables, in comparison with the degree of correlation that exists in the case of components and speakers. Which muddles the issue still further.

The bottom line, as I see it, is what I said in my previous post:

IMO the lack of consensus in this thread confirms what Philjolet said early on: "There are too many variables in personal stereos to have a fair consensus for comparison."

Many technical factors could be cited in support of that position, including the dependency of many cable effects on the input and output impedances of the components that are being connected, balanced vs. unbalanced interconnections, ground loop susceptibility of the components, the rfi/emi environment, use of feedback in the components, power supply design, AC power characteristics, the lengths of the cables, etc., etc.

The reasoning you stated in your last post, while perhaps appealing in the abstract, does not take into account this multitude of variables and dependencies, and also seems to make what I consider to be the incorrect presumption that there will be a high degree of correlation between cable performance in a given system and cable price.

IMO. I recognize that other opinions can and will differ.

Best regards,
-- Al

I have been blind testing cables with 5 other guys for over 30 years with a scoring system and truthfully there are less than 10 cable manufacturers that make a cable that evokes emotion. In my opinion the best thing you can do is just stay within one reputable cable manufacturer when replacing cables. If the manufacturer makes his cable in a garage than there will be no professional R&D afforded by that person so find a manufacturer that is real. Also remember cables are like car tires; if you use several different makes of tires on 1 car you will never really know how any one of those tires actually performs unless you try the same tire on each corner. In my opinion change all the cables and if you are not emotionally connected to the artist after the change than move on. After testing over 400 different brands I do not know of 1 cable you can change in a system will leaving other average cables in your system that will evoke an emotional experience.

System dependant. However, for me: 1. Power (by far), 2. Interconnect, 3. Speaker.

Great post, Al. I agree with your positions. I have always maintained that the speakers should be the highest priority in any system, and I agree with your comments on cables as well. I happen to agree with Robert Harley's suggestion that cables/interconnects should cost no more than 5% of a total system budget, no matter what that budget may be. IMO, all other parts of the system are far more important.

Look at cables as the artery to the system; no matter how strong you are or how smart you are without the blood pumping you are dead. The problem is there are very few, possibly less than 10 cables manufacturers that can actually evoke emotion into a system and I can totally understand why some people would believe that cables are only worth 5% of your investment into a system. A really great cable can put you in the recording studio in front of the artist and create a total emotional experience; how do you put a price on that? A great cable is an experience not just another listening session!