will different lengths affect sound

PS68, thanks very much. I should further clarify my earlier comment, however. As it appears you realize but others may not, I was not saying that the effects of a considerable difference in speaker cable lengths will necessarily be inaudible. I was saying two things:

1)There will be no audible effects AS A RESULT OF the difference between the two channels in propagation delay/arrival time.

2)If the longer cable is chosen such that it behaves in an essentially neutral manner with the particular speaker and amplifier, the shorter one will also behave in a neutral manner, and therefore they will perform identically.

As you realize, for item (2) to occur the resistance and inductance (actually, inductive reactance) of the longer cable have to be insignificant in relation to speaker impedance at all frequencies that matter, and capacitance has to not be excessively high (in which case it might affect the behavior of the amplifier). Also, it is conceivable that under some circumstances the amplifier may be sensitive to rfi (radio frequency interference) that may be picked up by the cables and enter its feedback loop, if it has one. That pickup would figure to be length sensitive, although of course with essentially no predictability.

Other less readily explainable effects may come into play, as well.

So while I would approach claims of audible effects due to speaker cable length differences with a good deal of skepticism, I would not completely rule out the possibility that they may be perceivable under some circumstances. Especially if the cables are not chosen such that their parameters result in neutral or near-neutral behavior in the particular application.

Best regards,
-- Al

Rok2id, this is not an evasion; I have many times wanted to post extended discussion of my philosophy of testing and thoughts about blind testing. I have been writing about this for years but have not posted my thoughts here.
For now, in response to your question (and more than a bit of skepticism) I was changing cables on a system I had been using when I noticed the distinction in sound between the shorter and longer ICs. If that is not good enough for you, then so be it. Feel free to discount my observation.

Inna, like a medical test I try to ensure the testing equipment (stereo) be sensitive enough (the rig have enough definition/detail) to avoid false negatives (to avoid non-detection of differences).

>>12-09-11: Douglas_schroeder
Bill, you are telling me that what I can do on a regular basis is impossible<<

You can't do it.

But neither can anybody else so don't feel bad.

However, an alien abduction story like "Cocoon" would be more believable. Got one of those?

Bill, When you have something of value to contribute I'll be willing to hear it. I'm not interested in speaking with you if all you can do is mock and insult. Find someone else on that level to converse with.

BTW, I believe sufficient microbiologic and probibilistic evidence has been shown to preclude the existence of Aliens in the universe. If you wish to rest your faith on such things you'll have to turn elsewhere. :)

"I have many times wanted to post extended discussion of my philosophy of testing and thoughts about blind testing"

I wish you would post your thoughts. This is the kind of info that is sorely needed. Someone who thinks!! A lot of us, are here to learn, although most of our systems are not sophisticated enough to be used to decide much of anything. BTW, your system is awesome!!

"Feel free to discount my observation"

I would never do that. To discount a personal observation is stupid. I am skeptical, but, I remember the time when I thought JBL made the best speakers in the world. :) We all learn and grow.