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What if the cable is too cheap that it cannot be that good?

I am a huge..HUGE fan of the cables from Chris Sommovigo---the Black Cat cables.
Yesterday, I was at a store that has some excellent gear, most of it very pricey! The conversation got around to cables...and the pricing that some of them demand. The point that was brought up was: the value ( price) of some of the cables just cannot be justified...not only in the construction aspect, but also in the performance aspect. Couple of examples were floated ( we all know the usual suspects) and I mentioned that the Black Cat cables could easily compete ( and in most instances- surpass) with these examples. As some of you know, Chris’s cables are priced more than fairly---and if you take into consideration the performance that they give...should be an absolute nightmare to the folks who are trying to sell multi thousand $$ cable. ( never mind the fact that they are at least as well made, if not more so!)
Black cat cables are maybe an exception here--as their price to value equation is off the charts IME, but the question becomes...what ( besides bragging rights) does the ultra pricey cable buy you...if it is not necessarily a performance increase due to?
128x128daveyf
sgordon1
455 posts
 
I have no audiophile friends.

And self-deception has never worked anyway.
Well, almost never.
daveyf's avatar
daveyf OP
2,976 posts
 
@douglas_schroeder   While what you say may be true for a number of different less expensive ( cheap is a relative term) cables....it sure isn't correct for all of them. The Black Cat cables are a perfect example of this. Plus, the alternative is also true, there are a large number of supposed wonder cables that are anything but inexpensive ( cheap)- and are actually poor....which is what this thread is all about!
czarivey
5,946 posts
 
In the world of cables, money do not really reflect quality. You can get better sound with $20 than with $2k cables depending on your equipment so you really never know. Obviously placebo will really kick in after you spend a fortune on fancy looking cable, but the fact will remain. I still question myself (being crazy rational freak) why go for high buck cable at all at all??
I guess marketing professionals are able to convince portions of population, but really not me, because I don't invest unless I expect return.
daveyf's avatar
daveyf OP
2,976 posts
 
@czarivey   I don’t think that all expensive cables don’t deliver performance...that’s not what I am saying at all. (This does seem to be your position, however). What I am noticing is that there are certain cable manufacturers who can somehow compete with these very same manufacturers— and can do so while at the same time pricing their wares at far lower prices.
stereo5's avatar
stereo5
6,505 posts
 
The 25 foot speaker cables (Groneberg Quattro Reference) in my main rig were 2K. I recently replaced them with a 25 foot pair of Canare 4S11 speaker cables which cost me 130.00 for the pair professionally terminated. Right now I am very much leaning towards keeping the Canare cables in the main rig at 93% cheaper than the expensive ones. To me that proves that price is irrelevant to quality of sound.
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