Phono cable, are they really different?

My experience has been that the signal from your cartridge is especially susceptible to EMI. I had a phono cable from a very well known company and everytime I tried to use my TT there was background noise from a radio station. I switched to another cable and the problem went away.
So, I would say that there are two things that make a phono cable different from a regular IC. It needs better sheilding and many arms require a din plug. Other than that I would say that the differences in the different brands are the same as the differences in any IC. Which means some people will claim that changing from one to another is as significant as buying another pair of speakers and some will say that it will have about the same effect on your audio system as painting your walls a different color.

I think the Audioquest DBS cables a winner especially when conducting a weak phono signal. The DBS minimizes the great affect the insulation has on a weak phono signal. You get an open , coherent but detailed sound with a great sense of space.

VPI email me today and state that they do not use Discovery cable in their arm nor their phono cable. This is contrary to what I have read on discussion forum, but maybe VPI switched vendor recently. Or maybe VPI just doesn't want people to buy straight from the vendor.

I am aware of EMI/RFI issue that weak phono signal has to battle and phono cable should provide better shielding than vanilla RCA cables. But what about impedance or capacitance? What's the typical cartridge output impedance/capacitance and is there a need to match up phono cable to your cartridge to minimize top end loss for example?

Wondering if any cable manufactures have a white paper on this topic.

Linn makes alot of turntables and they offer your choice of two analog interconnects, one black and one silver. Mint 1.2 meter pairs of the basic black sell for about $45 used. Linnies get a pair free with every purchase so they don't get no respect. They're beautifully built and they are shielded. My first pair solved my TT hum problem. Also great for replacing way more cheaply made cables like Nakamichi supplied with their tape decks. Google deeply or visit Linn and you may find specs.

VPI must have switched vendors then, because two years ago Mike at VPI told me they DID use Discovery cable in their JMW arms. Maybe when they started making their own cables they stopped using Discovery, who knows?