Throwing the cable cat amongst the pigeons!

Right - serious question and intended just to see what people think and have experienced - if possible I'd prefer it if people didn't feel the need to put the boot into each others' opinions - I realise that this might be a forlorn hope :) Italics for important emphasis to the statements.

I don't think there's any way of inserting a poll here, but just wonder whether people feel they best fit into these four cat-and-pigeonholes:

1) Cables make no difference whatsoever. As long as the material is a good conductor that's all there is to it - bell wire and freebies are all you need.

2) Cables can sometimes make a difference, sometimes subtle, sometimes less so - but you are highly sceptical of very big price tags.

3) There's always something to be gained from 'better cabling', though the law of diminishing returns applies.

4) Cables are more important than any other aspect of hifi - Russ Andrews/Kimber is a bargain.

FWIW, I am a 2. Not a number 2, mind...
 
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2 - i have noted subtle differences with both interconnect and speaker cable but the prices charged for high end cables are silly.

as for cable "burn in" never noticed any differences after hours of use - just an initial difference that has been at best subtle.

overall ask the manufacturers what they use when tuning / testing their products and use them.
 

Mike Hunt

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Given the poll options, I have to go with 2, but that doesn't mean bell wire can't be as good or better than a cable costing 1000X the price.

as for cable "burn in" never noticed any differences after hours of use - just an initial difference that has been at best subtle.

Cable burn-in is utter nonsense.
 
Back in the day there was a chap called Robbie, iirc, who posted many long posts about the burn-in process. I asked if he was a retired gentleman, but don't think he ever replied.

I did try to word my poll options in such a way as to avoid misunderstandings as to exact meaning - I appreciate that they are restrictive but I think they cut to the chase as to what people actually think.
 
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i'd like to add if you are going to experiment by comparing cables choose some that appear to have a very different design principle.

for example the flat ribbon nordost vs the kimber woven vs something more "normal" like the standard 500 strand ofc.

such designs should measure and sound different although the differences, if there, will be subtle...
 

Mike Hunt

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I'm meaning cabling in general - I think differences are more apparent in some than others, but that's another barney in the making!
I believe the question is far too vague. I think we need to be more specific.
Let's take this review as an example:

From the outset, it was patently clear we were auditioning a very ‘mature’ sounding cable, possessed of great control – delivering energy and passion when required as slickly as it revealed subtle details.

Sounds wonderful, right? That's a review of an £800 Chord USB!!!!! Cable! :ROFLMAO:
 
Oh, let me be the first to throw a cat into the virtual pigeons.
I don’t actually use stereo interconnects in my system.
I actually use repurposed separate RGB component cables.
QED Qunex. And have done for several years now.
 

Mike Hunt

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Oh, let me be the first to throw a cat into the virtual pigeons.
I don’t actually use stereo interconnects in my system.
I actually use repurposed separate RGB component cables.
QED Qunex. And have done for several years now.
Before I started making my own, I used to use component video cables for all of my HiFi interconnects. By their very nature they're guaranteed to be more than adequate, and better than many audio interconnects.
 
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Put me in #1 apart from the caveat that both bell wire and freebies are not of sufficient gauge. I'm not in#2 so don't argue this point with me :)
 

Mike Hunt

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I was thinking more of the very thin single core bell wire.
Even 20 gauge is good for >20 foot into an 8 ohm load.

I have some quite expensive speaker cable here, which I purchased many moons ago, when I was, shall we say, more easily convinced. I do still use it, but I performed sweep tests on different speakers using different cables, and it turned out it was no better than a length of flex, cut from an old electric lawnmower.
 

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