2. cables
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Opening a can of worms

Here is the can filled with opinions. It's been hashed and rehashed to infinity and beyond with no clear result. Since I am a seeker of truth I'll post my thoughts here for the yea and naysayers to debate over. Question is: Are expensive speaker or any other cable in a system worth the exorbitant cost over a reasonably priced cable loom? I thought I'd  experiment myself to find out. My comparison is between Transparent Ultra cable loom and Blue Jeans cable loom on a pure stereo system comprised of Proceed PAV,  Proceed PDSD,  Krell Kav 250, Musical Fidelity A3cd, Sony Ps4300 TT and B&W 803D2 speakers. All sources were used by this experiment using identical playback material. Cables had in excess of 200 hrs burn time and all were identical in lenght. The only variation were the connector manufacturers.
One change that occurred during this 4 week long endeavor was that I'm firmly seated on the sharpest picket on the fence.
My result is that I'm now a believer that there are audible differences in cables. I also believe that these differences are minute and one has to really listen carefully and for a long time to discern these differences.
Now to the crutch of the matter, $$$$$, As we all know Transparent Cables would reside in the upper tier of Audio Cable expense.  Blue Jeans Cable on the other hand falls into the lowest tier of expense (well maybe not lowest but low nontheless )
One would think then that the Transparent would be far superior to the BJs. Not really! Yes the highs were a little cleaner, mids a little tighter and lows a tad more pronounced but not by as much as one would expect. Soundstage was somewhat more open and airy and depth was somewhat more defined with the higher priced cable but again less than one would expect. 

Now for my personal opinion regarding the cable debate: expensive cable looms are slightly better than reasonable priced looms, if a dollar equals a penny to you then by all means opt for the higher priced loom, if a penny equals a penny don't be ashamed for opting for the best you can do. The differences are so minute that it's not worth going into debt over. BOTH looms sounded superb on my test system and I would be happy with either loom.

Now let the debate begin, just know I'm a fence sitter and not in one camp or the other
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czarivey
5,946 posts
 
@geoffkait 
Only in the muddled mind of the cost benefit analyst is Honda best.
Yet, again delivery of the proven fact with some cheapy labeling. Label means nothing at least to me. Do you still go to yer mama's bed if yer scared at night boy or my assumption a-bit off axis?
toddverrone's avatar
toddverrone
840 posts
 
Let me they're this it there: DIY cabling reduces the cost factor significantly while still providing solid performance..

Many arguments against cables hinge on their cost.. reduce that factor, then reevaluate.
twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,320 posts
 

What this does is call into question the notion of the "sweet spot", at least as far as cables are concerned.  No, not your listening chair, but rather the price point in the "family" of products where performance and price are best balanced.

If you need to spend $5000 to hear even a minor significant improvement over $50, why ever spend $500? [numbers rounded for the sake of argument]


hifiman5's avatar
hifiman5
1,832 posts
 
@twoleftears  To follow up on your point, another way of looking at the "sweet spot" is expressed as "the law of diminishing returns."  Finding equipment that is in line with your budget that gets you the maximum sonic performance for the amount of money spent, such that to get much better sound you would have to spend a great amount more than the component you selected.  That is where you want to be.  So there is a "sweet spot" within a specific category of components ie. amps, preamps etc. and also as you were eluding to, a "sweet spot" in a particular manufacturer's line.  Specifically, this can be seen in a cable manufacturer's line where there is a cable that gives you most of the sonic virtues available at a price point and to significantly improve sonic performance would require a major jump up in that line to a prohibitively expensive offering.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,605 posts
 
Yes wires can and often do sound different.

How much do they matter and how much should they cost? The only possible answer is "it depends".

In general. I’d reserve a fairly small % of overall budget for wires. The smaller you can get away with the better. After all, they are only wires. No rocket science needed there if all else is well.

Good quality wires made for pro use are always a safe bet if not sure how to cut through all the BS one will encounter with many products marketed mainly to audiophiles.
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