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Most Important, Unloved Cable...

Ethernet. I used to say the power cord was the most unloved, but important cable. Now, I update that assessment to the Ethernet cable. Review work forthcoming. 

I can't wait to invite my newer friend who is an engineer who was involved with the construction of Fermilab, the National Accelerator Lab, to hear this! Previously he was an overt mocker; no longer. He decided to try comparing cables and had his mind changed. That's not uncommon, as many of you former skeptics know. :)

I had my biggest doubts about the Ethernet cable. But, I was wrong - SO wrong! I'm so happy I made the decision years ago that I would try things rather than simply flip a coin mentally and decide without experience. It has made all the difference in quality of systems and my enjoyment of them. Reminder; I settled the matter of efficacy of cables years before becoming a reviewer and with my own money, so my enthusiasm for them does not spring from reviewing. Reviewing has allowed me to more fully explore their potential.  

I find fascinating the cognitive dissonance that exists between the skeptical mind in regard to cables and the real world results which can be obtained with them. I'm still shaking my head at this result... profoundly unexpected results way beyond expectation. Anyone who would need an ABX for this should exit the hobby and take up gun shooting, because your hearing would be for crap.  
douglas_schroeder
unreceivedogma's avatar
unreceivedogma
1,096 posts
 
Old_scribe, could it maybe be that Cable Theologians are also suffering from confirmation bias, otherwise also known as the placebo effect (I spent a lot of money on it, it must be good!)
unreceivedogma's avatar
unreceivedogma
1,096 posts
 
I'm copying this comment from another thread about speaker cable and pasting it here:

I've experimented with cables over the years, and have come to the same conclusion that the founder of Monster Cable finally fessed up to: expensive cables are a gimmick conjured up by marketers who figured out that audiophiles will pay a lot of money - even an insane amount of money - for wire (those with wife problems need look no farther than what can be wasted on speaker wire). IMHO, the discussion around interconnects are akin to a theological cult.

Unless they are are really cheap wire bought at a hardware store, it's not gonna amount to a hill of beans. The Meineke muffler slogan applies here: "I'm not gonna pay a lot for this speaker (interconnect, etc) cable!"
dgarretson
2,613 posts
 
(Sigh) For this thread it would be nice to confine the "great cable debate" to Ethernet-- which is at least a fresh context for cable discussions.  To paraphrase The Kinks, other Kable Kontroveries are sufficiently covered in the archives.  
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grannyring's avatar
grannyring
6,603 posts
 
Agreed! You tired, old, cable naysaying cavemen please let us, the enlightened, talk about Ethernet cable. Yes I did run 50 feet of Tera $30 Ethernet cable and sounds better than my also cheap cat 5 cable...period. IT has no answers, just adherence to conventional wisdom and closed minded thinking. Go away!

There, I said it. Most likely the most direct language this long time and active Agoner ever used. However you guys do tire me with your telling me I am not really hearing, tasting, smelling, or seeing something you have bias not to. 
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