Cables - When Did it All Start?


OK, here we go...

This is not another "I just installed cable X and the soundstage and microdynamics just shot through the roof..." or "What cables do you guys recommend for..." but a simple question. When did people start noticing that different cables in audio gear apparently sound different? Or another related question, who was the first cable company to offer different "audiophile" cables?

I do not have golden ears and with two children constantly chirping in the foreground/background I can barely hear the music most times anyway, thus I really have no practical experience if cables make a difference.

Regards,
david_berry
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Thsalmon: No wonder that the wire / cable industry is such a rip-off. The guy that you claim started the industry ( P.T. Barnam ) was nothing but a pale imation / con artist working off of the name of someone else that was famous ( P.T. Barnum ) !!! A crooked industry started by a fraud !!! There IS a sucker born every minute : ) Sean
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Guys,

Thank you for the responses. I have been bitten pretty hard with this hobby (started out with a home theater setup and converted to two-channel) and I have done more than my fair share in reading/researching its many different aspects. One of them, of course, has to do with cables.

So far, the general consensus is that "audiophile" cables have been around for about 30 years.

Regards,
Albert, at even 200 sucks to get to the center of those suckers (the actual number of which Mr. Owl refues to disclose), that equals 8,333,400 sucks by sucker suckers each minute.