@mrdecibel
Mr D!
first let me say that I can't believe that its 1AM and Im up replying to a post on Audiogon. There must be more to life.
"I don’t know about this test. You and this audiophile buddy, discussed what it was you would be listening for : " imaging, dynamic range and overall SQ ". So, it was already " in your minds " that these differences would exist. 2ndly, 6 times ? Was that really enough times to make a determination, and to reach a conclusion that one was better than the other. Hogwash"
Let's not forget who you're talking to. I am the KING of Skepticism. My birth mark is a "S" and if I were reading this I would probably say the same thing lol. Its all good tho. Im sure that there are MUCH MUCH smarter people on this forum than me who could have done this a lot better, and they still may. They may even have different results and I will respect that too. When doing something like this you hear what you hear for whatever the reason. No one is immune to Bias, and brand loyalty etc. When ever you play back a recording sure conditions can change from one minute to the next. The tubes in my phono stage could have gotten warmer towards the end of the test or a portion of the tape may have had a bit of degridatoin from the last time I listened, the room temp was definitely different from when i did the first recording, all these variables do play a roll im sure. The tape head was a tad bit more magnetized, and on and on. With all that going on I still heard a difference between the two recordings. Not easy to accept I know but my resolve and my integrity is the only thing I can say with certainty that is actually stronger now as it was then to get this as right as I could. One thing is for sure This is way way too much work to consider buying a cable and tell anyone about the experience. But hey it was fun, and I did enjoy talking to all you guys and gals so Im happy I did it if not for those reasons. Have a great New Year Mr D.