Stereo and Subwoofter Cables

Adam

Adam

Audioholic Jedi
Hi. It really depends on your definition of "good or better." There's audio performance, and then there's aesthetics and ease of use (which I attribute to the connectors and stiffness of the cables).

The Monoprice optical cables that I purchased are excellent. Well made and inexpensive. The analog audio cables that I purchased (which fall into your category of digital coax, subwoofer, and stereo cables) transmit a signal just fine, but the connectors are a bit loose for my tastes. Monoprice sells two different levels of cables, and I purchased the less expensive versions.
 
JerryLove

JerryLove

Audioholic Samurai
The Monoprice optical cables that I purchased are excellent. Well made and inexpensive. The analog audio cables that I purchased (which fall into your category of digital coax, subwoofer, and stereo cables) transmit a signal just fine, but the connectors are a bit loose for my tastes. Monoprice sells two different levels of cables, and I purchased the less expensive versions.
I've had the same problem with the more expensive set. I picked up several component video cables from them and actually have a problem with the cables unplugging themselves when I installed or move the geat because the stiffnes of the wire well exceeds the "grabbiness" of the connectors.

My other cables (monster, AR... hey I picked them up *real* cheap) don't have this problem.

My Monoprice opticals (the cheaper ones) have been fine.
 
Miltcharlie

Miltcharlie

Audioholic Intern
Take a look @ AudioQuest.

I did Monster once. Switched and never looked back.

I now have Analysis Plus. You can go that way, but they do cost alot more.

So, I would look into AudioQuest.
 
mtrycrafts

mtrycrafts

Seriously, I have no life.
where can I get cables as good as or better than this

http://www.monstercable.com/productdisplay.asp?pin=3858

http://www.monstercable.com/productdisplay.asp?pin=3861

at %5 the price?
(ok maybe %10 of the price but you know what I mean, for lots cheaper)

I heard blue jean cables, monoprice, and dvigear is good for HDMI cables but do they make good Stereo and Subwoofer cables also?

what about Optical Audio? or Digital Coax?
No need to go beyond the price of BlueJeans cables:D Certainly the mono stuff is good too:D
 
P

panzeroceania

Junior Audioholic
Take a look @ AudioQuest.

I did Monster once. Switched and never looked back.

I now have Analysis Plus. You can go that way, but they do cost alot more.

So, I would look into AudioQuest.
What is this cable used for?

http://www.analysis-plus.com/images/DigitalOval-1.0-Web.gif

is that just a digital coax audio cable or can it be used for anything else, I got it from the bottom of this page

http://www.analysis-plus.com/prod_digitalcable.html

anyone who knows can answer :)

I don't mind paying more for better quality or professional cables. In fact I'm interested in professional grade stuff as I am trying to learn more about professional audio equipment, I just don't want to pay more for no reason at all (aka Monster Cables)
 
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mtrycrafts

mtrycrafts

Seriously, I have no life.
What is this cable used for?

http://www.analysis-plus.com/images/DigitalOval-1.0-Web.gif

is that just a digital coax audio cable or can it be used for anything else, ...
I don't mind paying more for better quality or professional cables. In fact I'm interested in professional grade stuff as I am trying to learn more about professional audio equipment, I just don't want to pay more for no reason at all (aka Monster Cables)
That is a digital cable that can also be used as an interconnect. While it looks good, the cost doesn't justify performance as it has nothing over other such cables.
Professional grade is perhaps what stands up to abuse that some cables in a professional environment may come under, or not. Professionals use what works for the least cost. Or, they use the free cables cable vendors give them so they can be used as advertisement and convince the gullible folks out there;):D
 
P

panzeroceania

Junior Audioholic
That is a digital cable that can also be used as an interconnect. While it looks good, the cost doesn't justify performance as it has nothing over other such cables.
Professional grade is perhaps what stands up to abuse that some cables in a professional environment may come under, or not. Professionals use what works for the least cost. Or, they use the free cables cable vendors give them so they can be used as advertisement and convince the gullible folks out there;):D
thanks for the protip :)
 
lsiberian

lsiberian

Audioholic Overlord
I never have to buy these(I've got a million of em)

But I use to get them at radioshack back in the day. They always held good and looked fine to me.
 
Miltcharlie

Miltcharlie

Audioholic Intern
Analysis Plus makes supreme cables.

Monster, AudioQuest and many others can't come close.

As you make steps in quality you go up in price.
I've never used BlueJean cable so I won't comment on their sound.

Never beleive the notion that. "Cables are cables".

Everytime I added an AP cable to my system. I would think. This is so sweet. This is just what my system needed. The sound is so clear with no cable coloration.
It's as if the picture and sound passes without any influence.

So make your choice by listening with your own ears.

Visit a nice shop that will let you audition their cables or even their equiptment before you buy.
 
mtrycrafts

mtrycrafts

Seriously, I have no life.
...So make your choice by listening with your own ears.

.....
I bet your eyes made all the differences, not your ears.
I seriously doubt you would come to the same conclusion using only your ears;):D People rarely do that and let their eyes do the listening.
 
Miltcharlie

Miltcharlie

Audioholic Intern
What?

When I listen to music at home. Most of the time my eyes are closed. If you can't picture the performance then your cables are crap.

So please keep your comments to the facts!
 
lsiberian

lsiberian

Audioholic Overlord
What?

When I listen to music at home. Most of the time my eyes are closed. If you can't picture the performance then your cables are crap.

So please keep your comments to the facts!
The fact is it makes no difference what cable you use as long as it bitstreams adequate data. Paying 60 dollars for a 10 dollar cable is ridiculous. Suggesting others do the same is downright crazy.
 
JerryLove

JerryLove

Audioholic Samurai
A great thing about electricity is that we have such good tools to test it. The truth is, once a signal is electric, what comes out of the source is (for all intents and purposes) identical to what goes in to the speaker wire (amplified of course, and equalization/matrix decoding not withstanding).

Unless there is a defective piece, or the amplifier is incapable of delivering the requested amount of power. The real sources of variation are in the decoding, the reproduction by the speaker, and the room acoustics.
 
Miltcharlie

Miltcharlie

Audioholic Intern
So! If the signal is distorted by the carrier. Then what is received by the speakers is also distorted.
Most cable are developed to treat that signal by either amping up or down the signal in certain areas or by trying to pass the signal without interfering with its delivery.

Cables that are included with the equiptment ( your basic wire) is inferior because the signal passed has imperfections caused by the cables inability to carry the full signal without signal loss.

If the cable cannot relay the full signal or the signal is corrupted by its relation to the other strands nearest to it, then the signal that is passed is lost. What is lost does not reach the speakers resulting in the loss of definition, presence and staging.

You don' have to spend a fortune on cables.
But do replace (the included) cables and upgrade.

Plus! under Isiberians logic.

All objects sold are equal in purpose and value.
So by his reasoning a Lexus should cost the same as a Dawoo. Even though the Lexus will get you from here to there with the least amount of sensory degradation.

As a car is a car. The value of technology in the Lexus is negated buy it function.
 
mtrycrafts

mtrycrafts

Seriously, I have no life.
....
Most cable are developed to treat that signal by either amping up or down the signal in certain areas or by trying to pass the signal without interfering with its delivery.
HUH??? You talk about facts? Where are your facts???

Cables that are included with the equiptment ( your basic wire) is inferior because the signal passed has imperfections caused by the cables inability to carry the full signal without signal loss.
You have some data for this? Frequency plots of interconnects??? Please.

If the cable cannot relay the full signal or the signal is corrupted by its relation to the other strands nearest to it,
Where are you getting your facts from???

then the signal that is passed is lost.
Really???

What is lost does not reach the speakers resulting in the loss of definition, presence and staging.
Really??? Facts may be found where???



All objects sold are equal in purpose and value.
Is that what he said???

So by his reasoning a Lexus should cost the same as a Dawoo. Even though the Lexus will get you from here to there with the least amount of sensory degradation.
Did he talk about cars????
 
mtrycrafts

mtrycrafts

Seriously, I have no life.
What?

When I listen to music at home. Most of the time my eyes are closed. If you can't picture the performance then your cables are crap.

So please keep your comments to the facts!
I guess my post went over understanding?

After all, you brought up differences in cable, audible, right? That is where your eyes come in to destroy the evidence.
 
lsiberian

lsiberian

Audioholic Overlord
So! If the signal is distorted by the carrier. Then what is received by the speakers is also distorted.
Most cable are developed to treat that signal by either amping up or down the signal in certain areas or by trying to pass the signal without interfering with its delivery.

Cables that are included with the equiptment ( your basic wire) is inferior because the signal passed has imperfections caused by the cables inability to carry the full signal without signal loss.

If the cable cannot relay the full signal or the signal is corrupted by its relation to the other strands nearest to it, then the signal that is passed is lost. What is lost does not reach the speakers resulting in the loss of definition, presence and staging.

You don' have to spend a fortune on cables.
But do replace (the included) cables and upgrade.

Plus! under Isiberians logic.

All objects sold are equal in purpose and value.
So by his reasoning a Lexus should cost the same as a Dawoo. Even though the Lexus will get you from here to there with the least amount of sensory degradation.

As a car is a car. The value of technology in the Lexus is negated buy it function.
Actually many luxury cars are simply rebranded lower line models. Even sharing engines, transmissions etc.

You have no idea how marked up cables really are. I do my family worked for Best Buy and I could get any cable for about 10 percent of it's posted price.

That's a 90% markup.

But since you want to have a physics conversation.

Cables have a resistance which is very low. So low that we didn't calculate their resistance when crunching circuit numbers in engineering physics. The only time length starts to matter with a wire is when you start to get extremely long. At that point a signal can be attenuated but it takes a long length to really degrade sound quality audibly. A double blind test would most certainly demonstrate this to anyone. However I prefer measurements to double blind tests. Get an SPL meter and try switching a cheap cable with your current one. chart the values using a frequency generator. Then draw up a graph. Your graph will tell you the differences. Please note the difference must be greater than 1 db in the audible range for their to be an audible difference. I think it's high time for me to do some of these on my system. I might compare my amp to the receiver for fun.

Now some cables are made in America, look really nice, Seem to be more durable(etc). Those are very fine reasons to spend a bit more cash on a nice interconnect.
 
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