Thanks for that link, frame11…I had not seen Roger Russell’s
“History of Speaker Wire” before. I didn’t
need convincing but I found his closing comments revealing. He says:
“When confronted with the truth, believers do not want to
hear about it. They want to remain in the magical world of fantasy where they
think they can hear improvements in their wire, often arrived at by making
listening tests without adequate controls or understanding of the problems
involved including speaker impedance and amplifier stability. One of the prime
tools in creating such a faith for the average consumer is by capitalizing on
fear and ignorance as in many other things that aren’t readily apparent. There
is fear that the wire currently in use is not good enough. There is ignorance
because most people do not have scientific knowledge in this area and lack
adequate measuring equipment to prove otherwise.”
Since those touting the increase in SQ with “expensive” cables,
can, without any scientific proof, only fall back on….well…"I could hear the
difference." Hmmm….the sense of hearing
proves their case? Russell takes this “sense”
and flips it to a sense of sight analogy…seeing, arguably a more reliable,
testable and provable sense and continues with this…which, for some reason, I
find quite refreshing:
“We have been told by advertising that the exotic speaker
wires offer fabulous advantages over ordinary lamp cord. It would seem
reasonable that using this same wire for lamps would also enhance their
performance. In the same vein as wire literature, you can have your lamp reproduce
light with the full spectrum color fidelity of natural daylight, finally
allowing you see light the way it should be seen and bring out the natural
performance of your lamp. It could offer greater warmth, detail, brilliance,
definition and speed by providing wider bandwidth and reduced skin effect. It
can provide a distortion free illumination that reduces eye strain, resulting
in clearer vision and optimal color perception. It can allow you to work for
longer periods of time with less visual distraction or fatigue. Just imagine
what it might do for your electric razor or microwave, etc.!”
Bravo, Russell!!
