scientific double blinded cable test

Well, I did once do a single-blind test with Wireworld vs. Nogami. The results were interesting.  My test subjects heard what I did, but completely disagreed on the value. 

The Wireworld had better imaging, but was darker. Nogami lost out in imaging, but brighter, more enthusiastic presentation. 

Of course, double blind is better, but it was convincing enough for me. Will I spend $300 on speaker cables again? No, but there's something interesting going on. 

Best,

E

I don’t know that one can “prove” that wire sounds different (better) in one direction over the other to anyone but themselves. Especially if the person(s) you are trying to prove it to is not open to the idea, or even hostile towards it. Either they hear it for themselves, or they don’t. The great thing is that if you hear a positive difference, you don’t have to prove it to anyone in order to enjoy the benefits of it.

For me, this hobby is not about proving anything. It is about enjoying, engaging with, and being moved by, music in my home.

I agree with you @tommylion. 

At the same though, and in the absence of any proof whatsoever, those such as Geoff who profess to hear positive differences in wire direction ought to keep that observation to himself (i.e. without posting on a public forum). It's akin to someone writing "I can walk on water", and then expecting that no one will chime back in asking for proof. And while the hobby is not about proving anything, it shouldn't/wouldn't hurt where possible and applicable. 

gdhal
“At the same though, and in the absence of any proof whatsoever, those such as Geoff who profess to hear positive differences in wire direction ought to keep that observation to himself (i.e. without posting on a public forum). It’s akin to someone writing "I can walk on water", and then expecting that no one will chime back in asking for proof. And while the hobby is not about proving anything, it shouldn’t/wouldn’t hurt where possible and applicable.”

>>>>>You act as though you’re a complete newcomer to a debate that has been going on for twenty years, at least. Are you Rip Van Winkle? 😬 We already have evidence that wire measures (resistance) better in one direction than the other from the data sheets on the HiFi Tuning web site that involves measuring directionality of fuses. And it’s always that direction that sounds better. It’s not random. And all fuses are directional, not just the latest spate of high end fuses. And they’re direction because the wire itself in the fuse is directional. 

We also have evidence of all the high end cable manufacturers who control directionality and mark their cables with arrow to guide the user how to connect them. Have been for years. Especially very well established high end companies like Audioquest (very outspoken on the subject of directionality) that controls directionality for ALL of their cables including power cords and HDMI cables. Hel-loo! Wakey, wakey! Geez, you’d have to believe there is some sort of enormous global conspiracy by manufacturers attempting to fool gullible and naive audiophiles. We also have the evidence of all those who have reported on these forums over the years, the great many years, hearing differences in fuse direction and cable direction. Wake up and smell the roses! 🌷🌷🌷

This whole directionality debate serves as an excellent example of the Backfire Effect, which is what oft occurs to someone has strong beliefs or is extremely skeptical when confronted with contradictory evidence. He becomes more strongly convinced he must actually be right and that the contrary evidence is intended to somehow deceive him. The more contrary evidence the stronger the Backfire. Ka-pow!

As Juror 3, the last holdout in 12 Angry Men, kept saying, “You can’t prove it!” In many cases there is no proof, only evidence. We must weigh the evidence.

As I said anyone can try it for himself by reversing interconnects or speaker cables or a fuse. It’s not rocket science. 🚀

jetter

...The purpose of the double blind test ... is to determine whether there is really a discernable difference in sound or its a case of people wanting to believe they are paying the dues to buy into an elite club.

Please tell us how you can design a double blind test that could determine why a listener might be unable to detect a difference between two items subject to the test.

@geoffkait  with regard to your 03-12-2018 7:31am post herein, I'm not disputing the resistance measurement being different in one direction or another. I'll save that dispute for another time and thread, if you don't mind. 

But with specific regard to the listener evidence of all those on the forum who have reported hearing a difference in wire direction over the years, did any of that evidence involve any kind of blind testing?

From what I've read from you thus far within this thread, it has not. Hence my point that perhaps if those same listeners were to subject themselves to a blind test, they might (or might not) arrive at a difference conclusion. So without the blind test, the listener "evidence" is meaningless as far as I'm concerned. 

To your point "...anyone can try it for himself by reversing interconnects or speaker cables or a fuse. It’s not rocket science" of course. But to reiterate, performing that activity knowing what you have or have not reversed is completely, utterly and entirely different than not knowing (i.e. blind).