How much do you invested in cables?

[chadnliz]

Looks like there are some here who dont think cables make any difference so I am curious to see what others have invested into their cables.

My cables include, for Audio:
Cardas Hexlink Digital Coax (2)
Kimber Hero Cables (2)
Audioquest King Cobra (2)
Audioquest Side Winder (2)
MIT terminator 3 (1)
Silent Audio Ribbon solid core Silver (1)
Dayton Audio High Definition (6)
Tara Labs Prism (1)

For Power cables
Tekline Refrence Power cables (5)
2 Hubbell Cryo outlets
Monster 3500 Power cond
Monster 2500 Power Cond
Blue Circle Noise Pillow

and Video
Audioquest YIQ3 Component Video (3) One is 5 Meters, other are 1 meter

I am sure I forgot a couple but I do know my total is a bit over $2000 or so, this is just a poll to see what folks run and how much they invest. It would be nice if the "any cable will do, just go to Home Depot" crowd would see that they have nothing relevant to add to this thread but I doubt they can keep quiet, I know many feel that cables do not make any improvement and there are some questionable at best claims, prices and reviews but CABLES CAN AND DO MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE so lets hear what you use.

 

[MDS]

I am sure I forgot a couple but I do know my total is a bit over $2000 or so, this is just a poll to see what folks run and how much they invest. It would be nice if the "any cable will do, just go to Home Depot" crowd would see that they have nothing relevant to add to this thread but I doubt they can keep quiet, I know many feel that cables do not make any improvement and there are some questionable at best claims, prices and reviews but CABLES CAN AND DO MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE so lets hear what you use.

Yes, you will find that the majority will say that you have spent a ridiculous amount of money on cables that will make no appreciable difference in sound quality. I'll be the first to say that I'm part of the majority on this topic.

 

[mike c]

while I agree that the cables won't improve SQ ... if I had the money, I'd buy nice looking cables anyway. (or even branded ones)

 

[jonnythan]

No matter how rich I was, I could simply not bring myself to spend more on cables than, say, however much Blue Jeans Cable charges.

And I would never, ever, ever, ever, ever buy a *power cable* that someone is telling me will make my equipment sound better. I'd get way too upset that someone was feeding me a line of BS that I'd never purchase anything from said person.


As for this crap:

"It would be nice if the "any cable will do, just go to Home Depot" crowd would see that they have nothing relevant to add to this thread"

So you want to know how much we've invested in cables.... but only if we've invested hundreds or thousands of dollars in cables?

 

[chadnliz]

How simple can you be? I asked what you have invested, if its $40.00 or $4000 that would be an answer but I see I must have asked too complex of a question.

 

[jonnythan]

Just looking at your words.

You specifically said you don't want the "any cable will do" people to respond because they have nothing to add to the thread.

 

[chadnliz]

And I was right, nobody has added anything of value or substance to this thread, if you dont think cables are of any benefit then why bother posting, do you have nothing better to do? Cables for Power, Speaker, Source, and Video ALL can and do make a diiference if you know what you are doing and anyone who simply ignores this is never going to know what most quality systems are capable of but ignorance is bliss so I say smile away.

 

[mike c]

no offense,
this entire site and forum was kinda built on finding out what's snake oil and what's fact ...
http://www.audioholics.com/education/cables/allContents?b_start:int=0
http://www.audioholics.com/education/cables/allContents?b_start:int=30

that's like going into a manufacturer forum and asking if their products are crap or not.

 

[chadnliz]

As far as I am concerned people either have no experience with trying cables, have cheap equipment, poor set-up and position, bad rooms or an ear that cant detect changes or some hybrid of some or all of these problems or simply follow a opinion of somebody who is skeptical.
I stated from the start that there are plenty of questionable claims, reviews and price schemes but the simple truth is that many cables do make a marked change in sound.

 

[MDS]

As far as I am concerned people either have no experience with trying cables, have cheap equipment, poor set-up and position, bad rooms or an ear that cant detect changes or some hybrid of some or all of these problems or simply follow a opinion of somebody who is skeptical.

If you're going to quote from the Audiophile handbook you need to be sure to add 'can't afford it' so you've covered all the common excuses.

 

[trnqk7]

I call troll for this thread...can you pick a topic on this forum that would have more people with serious differences in views that will never be reconciled? This has to be in the top 5 or top 10 of contested topics...

 

[Seth=L]

As far as I am concerned people either have no experience with trying cables, have cheap equipment, poor set-up and position, bad rooms or an ear that cant detect changes or some hybrid of some or all of these problems or simply follow a opinion of somebody who is skeptical.
I stated from the start that there are plenty of questionable claims, reviews and price schemes but the simple truth is that many cables do make a marked change in sound.

*can't resist urge, anger rising...*

I have tried Audioquest (still own some), Monster Cable (still own and use some), and Straight-Wire (still use them) and guess what, not different in "sound". I am still fairly young, and last time I checked my hearing was pretty good. I have had some pretty fine gear by my standards (separates and all), and none of these boutique cables made an audible difference. Cables should be transparent, and it's extremely simple to make them so they are. If you boutique cables truly sound different, it's because they have been somehow engineered to sound different (meaning coloring and distorting the true signal).

You didn't start this thread because you thought you would have a meaningful conversation with someone that believes in cable voodoo, you started it so you could argue about it. Until you do a level matched double blind test and can verify your results I don't want to hear one more peep from you about your fancy danceable cables.

 

[krzywica]

Hey guys anybody want to talk about speaker break in? Ok then how about global warming? No? Alright lets go for a peace in the middle east topic then.....keep it light.

 

[landonspop]

I went to a high line video and audio store. The salesman told me I should buy the better cables. I said do they really make a difference. He said "oh yes, for sure". I asked him if he could tell the difference, he again said "yes".

So I offered him a bet. Double or nothing on the receiver. All he had to do was let me hook the unit up with two different cables, using the $75 cables I was going to buy and the $150 cables he suggested.

He would have to be correct on 5 straight guesses as to which cables were being used, he quickly said "NO".

If you are running cables 20 plus feet, I could see there might be a difference. But 8 ft, come on. Who wants this bet?

Could you spend even more money to hear a difference from the $75 type?

 

[krzywica]

Sounds like the salesman needs to watch "Boiler Room" a few more times if he is gonna try and wheel and deal like that. lol.

 

[trnqk7]

I prefer the dealer I went to a few weeks ago who sold Kimber cables...he told me never to buy them and that they only carried them b/c people with too much money liked to have big, thick, expensive cables laying on the ground so that they could show off how much money they spent...I believe this is a big reason for exotic cabling-to show off.

 

[JKL1960]

Let's see.

Coax digital audio - Reclaimed composite video cables that came with VCR or DVD. Just strip it off a cheap AV cable - $0

Toslink Cable - $5

8 Channel output from PC 3.5mm to RCA - 4 at $1 each. Love Monoprice.

Speaker wire - In wall CL3 rated 14g two conductor about 200 ft at $0.65 a foot.

Banana Plugs - $1.20 each monoprice.

Sub signal wire maybe 60 ft, Quad shield RG6 at $0.11 a foot.

A few component cables. Begged, borrowed, stolen or the cheap ones that come with stuff. $0

I think the most expensive single cable I have is a 5m DVI - HDMI that was about $45. (Before I discovered monoprice.)

After thirty or so years of playing audio and video equipment owning and working at AV stores doing installs and sales I have played with hundreds of miles of wires. Wires are either able to properly conduct the right amount of current or they aren't. Wires either provide adequate shielding or they don't.

I don't always recommend buying the cheapest wires because they can have poor connections, inadequate shielding or improper impedance but when I see people spending thousands on interconnects I die a little inside. That money would benefit your system more being spent on speakers or material to use on the system.

Sorry I don't really have anything to offer.

 

[j_garcia]

I tried about 10 different component video cables, including a variety from AQ. Which one won? Bluejeans not only cost the least (with the exception of a $9 special buy on AR PRO2), but it outperformed all the others.

This debate seems to go straight to speaker wire vs interconnects. With respect to analog interconnects, I do use various AQ cables because I can hear the difference, subtle though it may be. I didn't pay top dollar for them though, and they don't sit anywhere where anyone can see them -they are well built and I have no problem with what I paid for them (a lot less than MSRP). I feel there is a difference to be had with a quality analog interconnect, but with the typical system there is immediately a point of diminishing returns - meaning spending a lot doesn't net you enough improvement that would justify that added cost IMO.

With speaker wire, I have yet to hear a meaningful difference with high dollar cables/wire.

 

[ChrisSovari]

My 2 Cents say's if you need to ask if cables make a difference then you probably don't have the knowledge to notice if they would or wouldn't. I am in the group of I wouldn't notice the difference.

 

[no. 5]

...people either have no experience with trying cables...

Probably true.

...have cheap equipment...

So it requires hi-end gear to notice a difference? Then cable choice is irrelevant for people without Eggleston Works and Halcro in their system.

Furthermore, if it requires ultrahigh quality gear to notice a difference, can it really be that big of a difference? I mean, if a a set of Revel F12's have too much "grain" to make the difference in cables detectable, is it really going to be a "night and day difference" with a pair of Ultima Salon2's?

...poor set-up and position...

If a cable can make a "marked change in sound", the setup must be very poor.

...bad rooms...

If the room has bad acoustics, choice of cable is the least of that persons audio problems.

...or an ear that cant detect changes...

Than those who cannot hear the difference will be happy to be saving the money.

...or some hybrid of some or all of these problems...

And I would not want to watch a movie at those peoples houses.

...or simply follow a opinion of somebody who is skeptical...

Unfortunately often true; people should prove things to themselves.

but the simple truth is that many cables do make a marked change in sound.

Of course they can, but a good cable shouldn't. And aside form high inductance, or capacitance, how does a cable make a vast improvement in sound quality?

Think about it, by what electrical process would a pair of Nordost sound better than a pair of AQ's? If we excuse perceptual bias for a moment and assume there is a great sonic difference, there is only one possible reasons for it; one cable is producing much higher distortion than the other. But the question then is; what kind of distortion could a length of copper introduce that would have an effect on sound stage (which is mostly dependent on the room, by the way)? Or on detail? High enough inductance will attenuate high frequencies, but what would a cable need to do to altar the waveform to make music more "beautifully listenable"?

But to answer your question, AudioQuest interconnects on my stereo, and generic and Monster in my home theater. A grand total of ~$175 for all speaker wire and interconnects.