Some sense creeping into the hifi press at last?

LOLOL

 

Chaps

If someone is mug enough to spend vast amounts of money on cable, why be concerned about it. If it makes them happy, so what.

You cannot blame the industry for satisfying a demand.

Worry about your own system instead of someone elses.

Regards

Mick

 

You could, of course, say the same thing about any component in a system.

 

Stickman

Very true but why be concerned about someone elses system.

The latest topic going around is "Mr X must be mad for spending his money on whatever"

My point is I don't care what other people spend. It has nowt to do with me.

Regards

Mick

 

This is the key point – I'm sure cables that sound markedly different to one another do not measure the same.

Having sad friends who are into such audio geekery (obviously I only join in out of politeness), I have been subjected to many blind cable dems over the years. Assuming a well set up and revealing system I can tell many (but definitely not all) cables apart in a random blind test with considerable accuracy, I have also managed similar astounding audiophile mind stunts with certain interconnects.

Tests were carried out in a dark room so neither of us had any visual clues, and the listener left the room to allow cable changes. They were random in that it wasn't necessarily A to B to A etc, it could be A to B to B to B etc. The volume was always left untouched, if any attenuation is present then it is[/] IMHO a valid difference!

On many occasions, such as between Naim A5 and Kimber 8TC, I was 100% accurate (and in this instance could actually name the cable, not just say A or B). I only said 'don't know' once when my friend flung in some other cable (which turned out to be Cardas) as a wildcard in an attempt to trip me up, i.e. I got that right too. Once I had worked out there were three players and it wasn't the A B I was expecting I could accurately identify all three. My friend had a similar success rate so to me when I had a go at switching. This is IMHO is conclusive that differences are real, and therefore it becomes a subjective choice like the rest of audio.

I do not have the electrical knowledge either to measure, or understand electrical measurements made by others, but I am prepared to bet that say Kimber 8TC and NAC A5 measure totally differently to one another, and therefore the sonic differences that IMHO are easy to hear are totally explainable. Same with say XLO to Chord Cobra – they are made from totally different materials, have a totally different design and construction, and I am prepared to bet measure totally different to one another in certain areas – how anyone expects them to sound identical is beyond me! I can hear a difference blind, and have proved it.

I am still a cable sceptic through and through, the differences are real enough and I have proven to myself that I can hear them, though IMHO most cables are a cynical rip-off as very frequently the cheapest and least pretentious one in a blind test tended to be the one I subjectively preferred. In my opinion there are a lot of really crap expensive cables out there!

Tony.

 

Mick,

couldn't agree more. I have my own financial excesses to justify without worrying about someone else's.

Mind you, I have spent money on some nice looking cables.

 

Well, a quick search on Google found this post from the guy who is offering the £1000 DBT cable prize http://groups.google.com/[email protected]&output=gplain

Quote: "Outside of gross electrical mismatches like say Naim NACA5 and Kimber 8TC, *no one* has yet shown an ability to tell apart two speaker
cables under blind conditions. Crucially, no one has yet distinguished
good ol' Home Depot 12AWG zipcord from any of the 'magical mystical'
cables."

Apparently it's to do with the different inductance. Naim very widely spaced. Kimber woven closely together.

 

so which one is the 'wrong' or 'broken' cable then? naca5 or 8tc? and why?

my contention would be neither, they are both legitimate (and very popular cables) yet once more a doubting zealot is fudging figures to suit his own agenda.
cheers


julian

 

Well, I guess you would measure the frequency response to see why they differ. I think in this case, it would be Naim's high inductance which can cause treble roll-off but not sure. Obviously, the 'ideal' hi-fi would have a flat frequency response but that isn't to say that someone may prefer boosted bass or rolled-off treble for a warmer sound or a peaked up midrange for a more forward sound etc.

Julian2002, the whole point of the sceptics argument is that any audible differences can be explained by measurement. The argument is with those who say electrically similar cables sound different.

 

And who defines "similar"?

 

Scientists with measuring things.

 

Does she use esoteric cables?

 

Does who use esoteric cables?

 

The old lady in Hull.

 

You lot still haven't answered any of my questions Yet

Not a clue/Mike B and Pete H, as all cables make little difference, you chaps won't mind swopping to 10mm T^E for a month shouldn't be an issue to you, as by your constant and unwavering beliefs, they make none or very little noticable audiable difference, Quad said at the show last year, so how about it guys
What about the cables with all the same measureable parmeters, are they going to sound any difference?
Come on you've been banging on about for long enough, thoughts suggestions, comments bring them to the thread, problems see Bub

 

Old lady? Hull?

 

notaclue,
but naim cable is designed to work with a specific amplifier type so why is it 'broken' again?
cheers


julian

 

Tone, you are wasting your breath mate, I wouldnt bother. Nothing is going to convince the sceptics/believers one way or another.

 

Who said it was broken? I am not an expert but (from what I have read) I believe it is designed to have high inductance (as required by Naim amps) and that this can, in some circumstances, cause treble roll-off.

wadia mesiter, although I would be prepared to accept that mains cable would be just as good as my current speaker cable (QED Silver), it wouldn't look as nice and old (audiophile) habits die hard! I mean, I still have my most expensive interconnect connected - even though I don't think it sounds better than the one I have at a quarter the price.

 

Oh I don't know - Michael succumbed to the pressure