Audio cables: Reduce the bias?
Expectation bias , if any, can work both ways.
If you don’t hear the differences and improvements , and/or you don’t think the differences are worth the $$ to you just don’t go there….EZ-PZ. Charts and graphs and the like be damned.
A frequent offering of audio pundits claiming audio listening bias (especially cables…) runs along the lines of: “ ….. Nah, it didn’t happen . You “wanted” to hear an improvement and so you did…”
I am not so cynical that I think there are a bunch of small, dedicated, and hard working audio shops keeping the doors open based on a business model of selling "snake oil" cables to foolish audio enthusiasts. I am interested though in knowing how a piece of 14 gauge cheapest crap wire from a hardware store could deliver the same performance quality as even a decent grade speaker cable.
simply put, Have you ever seen the audio expo exhibitors doing this? It would be a helluva marketing ad to preach “save money cuz we sound superior with the cheapest made in China crap cable shite available.”
Trust your own ears and just simply cull the noise, especially the written 3rd party rhetoric.
Clearly, I don’t think anyone is trying to say all audio options including cables will make a positive impression difference - that’s as outright as stupid as those saying none will.
It’s about quality and value, for the performance they offer. The educated customer will be skeptical and pick what’s best for them within their specific system and expectations. And hopefully, they have the opportunity for an extended, no-obligation demo as these things are subjective to bespoke systems.
Some people have much higher build and much higher resolution associated equipment with the capabilities to properly flesh out the sonic differences. The relationship between amp, speaker, crossovers, and the cable that ties it all together is not necessarily a simple one distilled down to “just make it a (insert qualifiers) test”
Just like how some may want to hear a positive change, others already have their minds made up that cables make no difference. And those people usually haven’t arrived at that conclusion after a thorough and careful comparisons that incorporate key factors below.I’ve test driven (too) many different cables over the years , and a couple of core tenets present themselves.
TAKEAWAY
There are no one-size-fits-all rules here …it’s a bespoke hands-on audition experience project. Resist all the “ expensive is always better “ expectations in certain marketing hyperbole…. AND SIMILARLY…. ignore and tune out the polar opposite “cables don’t matter and I’m fine with a race to the bottom for cheap as I can find it “ noise and mantra .
(1) Price-point strata in isolation is no prediction, much less assurance , of cable build improvements…. nor any assurance of its audio performance improvement…. Full stop.
(2) They DO sound different and their audio performance appeal - or not - are entirely system dependent . First and foremost, thei cables differences and audio improvements are distinct and unambiguous when you pair them up with advanced transparencies and resolutions in high-end systems. BUT ….Conversely …. Minimal to meh? in comparatively more modest and less revealing / budget systems. They are key in my $50K system , but nominal to proportionally less in my other three 2-channel systems ranging from $1200 to $6K
(3) There is another wild card - Two identical systems can - and frequently will - sound very different in two different listening arena because of the bespoke room acoustics warts and compromises that are present in each. This too impacts any and all “blind” listening tests and any related “bias”.
(4) Some people have better hearing than others. Aging does not help.
choose wisely.
“There are three sides to every story: my side, your side, and the truth. And no one is lying. Memories shared serve each one differently.”
— Robert Evans