Cables, cables , cables for a modest setup

[admin_exported]

Hi,

I recently bought a modest setup to do stereo music playback and eventually 7.1 Home Theater system. I am looking into buying superior quality cables and it is a mess. The price range is unbelievable and the number of possibilities infinite. Since it is really hard knowing which quality cables I need, here is my setup.

- Marantz SR6004 7.1 receiver

- NAD C 515BEE cd player

- Energy RC70 loudspeakers

If someone would kindly help me, I only need speaker cables and an RCA audio interconnect for my CD player. How much should I spend and for my setup, is it really worth it???

Thanks in advance,

Martin B.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi, I personally do think that it is worth spending extra on cables, it made a huge difference to my set up. The supposed rule is to spend 10% of your overall budget on cables.

As for what products to reccomend, you don't actually state your budget, but a decent start would be Chord Carnival Speaker Cable which is available for £6 per metre, this made a huge difference to my speakers!! As for the interconnects, I would go for something like a QED Performance Audio 1. That is available for about £25 if you shop around.

I hope this helps!!

 

[Anonymous]

Chord Carnival Speaker Cable and chord crimson rca's should do the trick.

 

[ESP2009]

THESTIG08:Chord Carnival Speaker Cable and chord crimson rca's should do the trick.

You might want to go for the extra expense and splash out on the newer version of the Crimson - see latest WHF issue for review and stupendous leap (NOT!) in price.

On the other hand, there is a strong view that you need not spend a significant sum on those high profile cable names. Yes, it may leave your head whirling, but you may want to read some of the threads about such things. However, as I did recently remind a fellow forum member:

1. Buy off eBay (or similar) and you save money on major names. If not satisfied, you will at least be likely to get a good portion (if not more) of your money back if you resell.

2. Buy cheaper, less well-known brands and you may find it harder to sell them on if not happy.

See if you can get some interconnects or speaker cable on approval - try before you buy.

 

[the record spot]

Might have been me who was the "fellow forum member". My point was to find cables which are unbranded, or less well known, offering the same or similar construction/build and going for those - as happened in my case. An Audioquest Copperhead (£65) was replaced by a cable costing £6.99 as there was no change to a greater or lesser degree to the sound I heard.

Hence, why pay more for a fancy box and sharp marketing? Indeed...and it's your call if you want to buy the fancy box with the pretty coloured cable therein at half price (but still likely a fair bit more than the unbranded or pro-audio equivalent).

Do consider alternatives to "audiophile" cables, much of it is open to question, but only you can decide if they deliver enough to warrant a purchase.

 

[scene]

I would second ESP's comments on eBay. Chord Crimsons (original version) can be found for around £20 buy it now - which frankly is a bargain and well worth getting IMHO. You can spend more, but I think as a £40 original rrp cable they're damn fine.

As for speaker cables, the Chord Carnivals are good, but your amp + speakers might deserve better; in that case you might want to consider some QED Revelation or Atlas Hyper. If at all possible, see if you can get some kind of demo / money back option on the cable, as the Revelations and Hypers are about twice the price/m of the Chords.

 

[Anonymous]

+1 on that. There is absolutely no reason why audio RCA phono cables need to be expensive (but tireless marketing by QED, Nordost etc to keep the fire burning).

Buy a pair of these and be happy.

Edit: that was a comment to the record spot , not scene!

 

[scene]

storsvante:
+1 on that. There is absolutely no reason why audio RCA phono cables need to be expensive (but tireless marketing by QED, Nordost etc to keep the fire burning).

Buy a pair of these and be happy.

Edit: that was a comment to the record spot , not scene!

's'ok - I guessed that! I tend to agree on expensive interconnects, hence why I've got ThatCable HDMI leads and lots of ebayed Crimsons. I think the only possible advantage of more expensive leads is that the build quality can be better and that over longer runs, their shielding can be better (note the use of the word "can"). I'm not convinced that these benefits justify some of their price hikes.

On speaker cables, the jury's out - because of the higher currents, and the variations that materials - purity of the OFC, silver content, surface effects, etc, can make - that more expensive cables can (again "can") be better than cheaper ones, but again, a lot of the benefits do seem to be down to number of strands and total cross-sectional area...

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys for taking the time, very much appreciated.

 

[josh05]

Agreed with RS i have a $20 interconnect that sounds nearly as good as my $100 interconnects. Also think about what type of sound you want aswell, Hopefully someone will correct me if i'm wrong but i'm pretty sure copper will sound deeper and more neutral, where as silver will give you a brighter sound that reveals more detail.

 

[idc]

I am very happy with the build quality of http://www.thatcable.com/ products.

However the highly exclusive Out Of This World Audio make the best cables in the whole wide world, ever. They have been scientifically proven to have been breathed on by angels.

 

[scene]

idc:
I am very happy with the build quality of http://www.thatcable.com/ products.

However the highly exclusive Out Of This World Audio make the best cables in the whole wide world, ever. They have been scientifically proven to have been breathed on by angels.

You are truly without shame idc

 

[ESP2009]

scene:idc:

I am very happy with the build quality of http://www.thatcable.com/ products.

However the highly exclusive Out Of This World Audio make the best cables in the whole wide world, ever. They have been scientifically proven to have been breathed on by angels.

You are truly without shame idc

And there was I thinking you'd given up on that, er, angle. But "breathed on by angels"? Are you sure it was 'breathed'?

 

[dave_k]

storsvante:

+1 on that. There is absolutely no reason why audio RCA phono cables need to be expensive (but tireless marketing by QED, Nordost etc to keep the fire burning).

Buy a pair of these and be happy.

Edit: that was a comment to the record spot , not scene!

Excellent, just bought 2 for my set up: one for my (soon to arrive) Rotel RCD 965BX, one for the Sony BDP, and my current Thatcable can be retired to TV duties.

Sorted

 

[the record spot]

I'll be keen to hear how the Rotel goes Dave given we have a similar setup.

 

[dave_k]

the record spot:I'll be keen to hear how the Rotel goes Dave given we have a similar setup.

I'll post up next week probably TRS, player ought to arrive tomorrow or Monday, i hope.

Manage to get it for a reasonable price with a last second bid on the 'bay. If I don't like it, or rather if it's not quite what i'm looking for, i'll just look for something else...

 

[the record spot]

Cheers, I'll look forward to it.

 

[dave_k]

Cables arrived today, excellent speedy delivery. Also they look and feel really well made...

Sadly no Rotel yet, maybe monday...