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Pro Cables vs. Audio Cables....Are We Being Duped?

Like probably most of you audiophiles out there, I have a few friends who are musicians. I told one of these friends that I was looking for a long (25+ ft.) pair of balanced interconnect cables. He suggested that I consider looking into some nice studio/mike cables, as all studio cables are of balanced design.

He further stated that most audio interconnects are a ripoff when compared to similar studio cables. To illustrate his point, we looked at comprable lengths of balanced cables from Monster Cable and the Studio versions were a couple of hundred dollars less. While it was hard to tell if the cables were truly apples vs. apples; the construction and description of each cable appeared to be extraordinarly similar.

While the thought of using "mike cables" in my home audio system makes me shudder, I certainly would not be opposed to saving a few hundred bucks either.

Do any of you have any experience comparing studio vs. balanced audio cables? Is there anything in the construction or design of home cables that makes them superior to studio cables in a home system (and therefore worth paying more for)? If any of you can shed some light on this, I would truly appreciate it.
daddyo
blues_man
133 posts
 
I have been using RC Audio cables for years. They are as good as (or better than) most high-end cables. They cost much less. I've got top of the line 1 meter interconnects for about $200 a pair. Compare that with the $$$Thousand+ interconnects. I have a friend who spent more on his speaker cables than on his speakers, amp, and preamp combined. Old P.T. was right.
phild
603 posts
 
There are differences...plenty in some cases. Do the differences make them sound better?? In some cases yes...in some cases, probably not. We all know that cables are ridiculously overpriced, but regular balanced mic cables could use some improvement too.

I suppose there's no way to know until someone compares a 6ft length of ProCo balanced mic cable with a pair of $2000 balanced interconnects.
kirk930's avatar
kirk930
285 posts
 
the pro cables compared to monster are probaly better. they are made to run very long distances without problems. until you get into very good cables i would think the pro would be better.
psychicanimal
1,738 posts
 
That's why I love Phoenix Gold by Carver Pro interconnects. High quality pro audio cabling and mil-spec connectors at reasonable prices.
fineberg
151 posts
 
Some of the posts seem to assume that there is only one level of pro cable which is not really true. However, it is very clear that studios needing tons of cables cannot afford to spend $500 per meter. Generally a cable like the Canare StarQuad is regarded as a high-end studio cable. One of the biggest differences with consumer cables is the plating of the contacts. Pro studios plug and unplug so much that they need contacts without soft metals like gold or silver. These connectors are often noticably inferior to high-end home audio cables.
For the cable runs themselves one must remember that the whole point to balance audio is that cable quality and length is less important. The biggest differences are in RF/EMI rejection. I think in a fully balanced setup a good pro cable like StarQuad mated with high-end connectors would be very similar to mega-bucks cables. In a certain sense this is the whole poit of going balanced.
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