Hmm, speaker cables, interesting subject. Here is my take. Currently I'm using a twisted pair of high purity single crystal magnet wire (18AWG), the wire cost a whopping $1 per foot, so with two wires its $2 per foot. With my current speakers this is the best wire I have ever heard. I have a bunch of commercial cables ranging from $20 to $900, this magnet wire sounds better than any of them. There is not a huge difference, but its definitely there.
With my previous speakers the $900 ones sounded the best. With these speakers the differences between cables were some what larger. Some cables were dreck with these speakers (usually very expensive cables) (I didn't buy THEM so I don't have them to try on my current speakers). Some overall observations: cables DO make a difference sonically, cost has little to do with how good something will sound, sometimes cheaper stuff sounds better, sometimes expensive stuff sounds better. Complex systems with many drivers and complex crossovers tend to be much more sensitive to differences in cables. This may be why people that tend to buy big complex speaker systems tend to be people who are more adamant about their cable selections. Again some cable models can sound horrible with these types of speakers. There are some middle of the road cables (much better than zip cord, but WAY less expensive than the mega-buck stuff) that tend to sound quite good on just about anything, but may be bettered for a particular amp/speaker combo if you are willing to listen to a lot of contenders. Are really expensive cables worth it? To me no. Even with the previous speakers I had not found a very expensive cable that sounded any better than the $900 one, and most of the very expensive ones sounded worse. Now as to what technical aspect of the cable correlates to perceived sound, I have no idea. There are far too many variables between cables to try and make meaningful correlations. My own personal preference is for simpler construction, the large complex cables being the ones which have a much higher probability of sounding terrible for a particular amp/speaker combo. Metal quality etc does seem to make some difference. For example cheap garden variety 18AWG magnet wire does not sound nearly as good as the high purity single crystal stuff. Is it the single crystal or the high purity or both in combination that makes it special? I don't know, I haven't tried every combination, its hard to find wire recipes that just change one parameter. Again this is just my experience, YMMV. John S. -- JohnSwenson ------------------------------------------------------------------------ JohnSwenson's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=5974 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=86483 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list audiophiles@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/mailman/listinfo/audiophiles
