2. misc-audio
  3. 128728-1324

A Big DIY Bang for Your Buck?

I believe in getting the biggest bang out of my audio buck that I can. I don't know about you but my audio budget is actually limited. I find it interesting when I hear about folks spending a zillion on the best magnetic cables and then someone comes along with some new cable technology like new liquid-infused cables that equal or best the magnetic cables at a fraction of the price. Some makers of magnetic and other cables may want you to believe that a patent pending means there must be something there that ordinary Joe Audio could never make himself. My experience leads me to say -- don't believe it.

I have been using neodymium magnets for years in my cables and around my system to improve SQ -- at a fraction of the cost that makers of magnet-containing products charge. OK, mine may not be at the very top of the performance chain when compared to those expensive products, but who cares? I have managed to get stunning returns for a pittance. It would have cost thousands, or tens of thousands, to obtain similar results from various makers.

The same applies to audio makers with a patent pending (or an actual patent) who market little aluminum audio resonators the size of pimples. I make my own resonator pimples for about a buck apiece -- with stunning results. I saved over $4,000 making 70 of my own. Maybe they are not at the very top of the performance chain compared to those expensive products, but who cares? I am very happy with results that are far beyond what I expected when I started out.

I am having a lot of fun doing DIY projects at home that reap wonderful results at a small fraction of the cost charged by audio makers for their similar products. Have others had similar experiences making their own audio products at home? Can you share your DIY experiences with us?
sabai
sabai OP
2,027 posts
 
toddverrone,

I use top-of-the-line Futurech wire and connectors for my DIY wire. I have used other wires, and the connectors you mention, including Oyaide. Nothing comes close to Furutech in my system.

Regarding magnets in power cords, I use small cylindrical neodymium magnets in the empty spaces inside the connectors.

dave_b,

You make a lot of sense.

herman,

I agree.


geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
Whoa! Hey! What's this, the weekly meeting of Anger Management? 

sabai OP
2,027 posts
 
Anger Management. LOL. Keep it coming. That's a classic. 
herman
2,261 posts
 
on topic, no anger

too Todd's point, I use DIY cat5 cables for both speaker and interconnects.

IMHO opinion there are so many other variables that the wires you use are the final piece to the puzzle. Since things like speaker placement and electronics (amps, sources, etc.) play such a huge role in the sound and wires so little I don't see any reason to spend megabucks on wires when other things have so much more impact. As I see it I will never reach the point, for that matter get even close, to spending money to improve   components that I can justify spending more on wires.

If I was filthy rich I would play with wires but paying so much  for wire is a huge waste of money on my budget. I think the elephant in the room is how much the sound varies between recordings. People  spend way too much time optimizing their system for a particular group of recordings (whatever they consider to be their reference recordings) when optimizing for whatever they picked may have a negative impact on recordings they don't

On the other hand, I do find that when I have my wife stand in the corner on one leg and cluck like a chicken for a few minutes before a listening session that the sound waves bend downwards then slightly upwards as they approach my chair revealing  subtle details that I would otherwise overlook. YMMV


sabai OP
2,027 posts
 
herman,

You stated, "If I was filthy rich I would play with wires but paying so much  for wire is a huge waste of money on my budget."

I feel the same way, which is one of the main reasons I am really into DIY.

I loved the one about your wife in the corner on one leg.
More to discover