Cable Controversy

stringreen
3,852 posts
08-01-2016 9:28am
That’s why (for instance) changing the wire in your speaker cabinet is like designing a new speaker. I spoke to Vandersteen who agonizes over all the different wire that goes into his speakers to make them what he wants them to be.

I would be quite interested to know if Vandersteen agonizes enough over wire inside his speakers to worry about wire directionality. Or if ANY speaker manufacturer considers wire directionality. I will give Tannoy props for cryoing their flagship speaker's crossover network, at least that's a step in the right direction.

@hifiman5,....... VERY interesting, I must say. Never thought of it from that perspective.

@devilboy  - This conversation takes me back to the "original" audio press argument over whether or not something called "The Absolute Sound" existed.  Back when Harry Pearson was at the helm of TAS he asserted that "the absolute sound" of a musical event as reproduced by our systems was what the audiophile quest was all about.  I think we are both in agreement that there is no "absolute sound".  The most we might, as audiophiles and music lovers hope for, is to put together a sound system that reproduces music that sounds as much like the real thing as our ears are capable of perceiving.  

As much as I think I am close to that realization, I am certain I could find plenty of audiophiles who would find my system "colored" in some way as their perception of reality or "good sound" is different.  Example...I have been embracing the Vandersteen sound for the past 30 years.  My ears like the version of reality that RV employs in his designs.  I know audiophiles who embrace the electrostatic sound of Martin Logan speakers.  While I hear many virtues in the sound those speakers produce, my ears don't connect that sound with what I hear when listening to live unamplified music.  My Treo CT speakers do that for ME, but it certainly is not "the absolute sound".

What gear, including cabling, is in your system -hifiman5?

My four cents worth.  (1) Cables can (but not always) make a difference; (2) Good quality silver is always better than good quality copper; (3) DIY is the way to go if you know what you are doing; (4) Buying Commercial cables: They all have their 'magic ingredient' so that they are apparently all better than each other!  Buy from a company that has a three-tier pricing system, not a four-tier system.  The tiers are (a) cheap, (b) medium, (c) expensive, (d) silly.