Difference in sound between copper and silver digital cables?

Steve - Can either the Duelund or Mundorf XLR version be used for AESEBU?

grannyring:

 "  Copper tends to deliver more mid-bass body and weight and is not as well defined in terms of leading edge detail. Bass is a tad more rounded and yes this can vary, but in general is accurate."


This is pure bs. 

About digital cables; buy a piece of Vivanco kx 710 or 910 and terminate it. Then put some duct-tape under your jaw cause it will drop. Thank me later 

I am sure you like it and that’s wonderful.  Please try and be a tad more civilized here on the Gon.  Enjoy. 

Bill

The differences/advantages of copper and silver are much more obvious AFTER they’ve been burned in and AFTER they’ve been cryo’d. All cables should be determined to be in the correct direction, too. Otherwise, it’s like shooting blanks in the dark. 

@maxima95 - I have only tried this for SPDIF cables up to 2 meters long. Others have tried it for SPDIF up to 3 meters long.

AES3 (also known as AES/EBU) is a standard for the exchange of digital audio signals between professional audio devices.

I have only tried Helix cables up to and including 24/192 for SPDIF cables between a USB interface into a 24/192 DAC

I do not know what sample rates Professional Audio Devices work at, but I would have to assume sample rates much higher.

I would think that the Mundorf XLR style cable would be able to support much higher rates, but to date nobody has tried that design in the digital realm.

Duelund is very good for analogue, but that has more to do with the cotton/oil insulation.

Before spending lots on the Mundorf wire - I would try using the cryo-treated...
- the 24 gauge silver plated Mil-spec wire/Teflon for the signal
- and 20 gauge silver plated Mil-spec for the neutral

Also, I would increase the ratio of neutral:signal to 4:1 or even 5:1 to increase Helix coverage for higher sample rates

Other reasons for trying the lighter gauge mil-spec in place of 20 gauge Mundorf or Duelund
- smaller gauge wires are less prone to RFI/EMI - I just tried a 28 gauge wire for a phono cable I am prototyping and the hum significantly reduced as the gauge got smaller - I compared it to using the 20 gauge Duelund, signal wire which hummed a lot.
- also, early tests of the RCA plugs revealed that using the higher grade Pure Harmony and Absolute Harmony plugs (which have better IACS ratings, provided no additional benefits over the lower grade Silver harmony RCA,
when used for SPDIF cables.

I have not personally tries any XLR connectors either, so I cannot recommend a specific type or brand
- based on my experience with other connectors I would have to assume silver plated copper pins would offer the best results

Sorry I could not provide better info, but I stopped using/developing SPDIF three years ago when I replaced my USB-DAC setup with a all-in-one Ethernet streaming device.

The photo’s of the XLR cables are analogue cables and courtessey of a fellow DIYer in Bulgaria that developed them and reported extremely good sound quality.

I hope that helps - Steve