Poll: How many believe cables can sound different? (1 Viewer)

[John Sully]

Ah, eutectic. Funny word that. I went and looked it up and it is defined thus:

eu·tec·tic Pronunciation Key (y-tktk) adj.

Of, relating to, or formed at the lowest possible temperature of solidification for any mixture of specified constituents. Used especially of an alloy whose melting point is lower than that of any other alloy composed of the same constituents in different proportions.

A magic word for brass? And just what is quad-eutectic?

I have no doubt that George builds some fine quality cables, but he does tend to throw around a lot of scientific terms without really showing how the affect the sound of a cable.

 

[Mike Knapp]

Neither does this poll have anything to do with an objective difference in cables.

Nor was it intended to.

Mike

 

[RobertR]

quote:

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Neither does this poll have anything to do with an objective difference in cables.

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Nor was it intended to.

Glad you agree, Mike.

 

[Lee Scoggins]

John,

I am surprised you pick on Cardas for inventing quad-eutectic solder. This is a WIDELY hailed solder that is used by multiple cable manufacturers and homebrewers because of its quality electrical properties.

I think it is unfair to George to say he is just throwing around a lot of scientific terms without any regard to effects on sound. If you know George, he is all about sound. Let's look at the evidence:

1. He imports the La Luce turntable from Italy for instance because in his listening tests he feels it sounds better than other turntables.

2. He records and creates widely acclaimed test LP pressing and CDs as well as many very well recorded audiophile LPs.

3. He sells high quality parts for people who do not have the budget to buy high end cables and want to try less expensive home brewed designs.

4. Most importantly, he and his family (also audiophiles) and his engineering staff ar Cardas regularly conduct listening tests to test new versions of their designs.

I like George because he is a nice man, an expert in the studio, and an artisan of fine audio accessories. I will not sit back and let you guys just assume that he is not doing one thing or another when you have no basis.

I started this poll to just gauge how many believe cables make a difference. Based on results so far, most of the responders do think they make a difference.

Lee

 

[JimN]

Like I have said before, if you do not think cables make a difference in your system, trying listening to your system without them.

 

[Stephen Houdek]

Lee,

Great information, thanks and I agree with the majority of it.

Notice he only talks about using teflon, I assume for the sheathing or jacket.

My major point is that copper manufacturing processes are essentially the same from manufacturer to manufacturer.

I'd bet most of the wire producers all buy from one or two copper manufacturers which will result in the only delta being the sheathing and core coatings which will make a difference in the wire, but a far less difference than the actual copper itself.

 

[Craig Robertson]

i've already posted my answer to the original question, in the affirmative, and i'm adding my wife's opinion. i changed interconnects between tuner and pre-amp recently and she asked me why the stereo sounded different. i'll put her down for a "yes".

and i'll go one further:

not only do different interconnect cables and speaker cables have an effect on the sound, i believe that different digital interconnects (coax) AND formats (coax vs. toslink) affect the sound. i prefer coax myself.

 

[Lee Scoggins]

My major point is that copper manufacturing processes are essentially the same from manufacturer to manufacturer.

Stephen,

I think you are probably right for most cables, however some do "draw" the wire strands differently and my understanding from work in the field is that this can be a labor-intensive and complex process.

Then working with the sheathing as you suggest can be tricky. One example of this is how Nordost creates their Valhalla cable.

George Cardas admits on his website what he likes about the better quality high end cable designs and why he settled on his design. He actually advertises the brilliance of his fellow wire engineers which I think is admirable. He then follows up with his Golden Stranding wire and its positives and negatives. Alas, he admits that the stranding leads to more expense from the labor.

How many cable folks do that?

I guess I sound like a cheerleader of Cardas, but in fact this admiration comes from recognizing (over around 16 years in the hobby and professional field) that in addition to some "snake oil salesmen" which clearly exist, there are some decent small-business oriented engineers that build a reasonable product. The cottage industry of high end audio and the resulting quality is what makes me really enjoy this hobby. And it just keeps getting better in terms of sonics!

Lee

 

[Marc_E]

I know they do also.

Marc

 

[Robert_Dufresne]

Good cables like any other component can and will

make a difference.

What realy burns me is those who pretend that their

so called high end inter connect cables

have a direction . That would mean that they act as

diodes and I definitely dont want diodes between my

components.

Robert.

 

[JimN]

Cables with directional markings indicate that only one end has a shield ground to act as a ground drain. I first noticed these type of cables in my car stereo days.