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Hi how is everything.Ok just out of curiosity and I know you feel it doesn't make a difference I went to Best Buy and purchased some Monster THX I500 interconnects to go from the amp to Cd player just to see or I mean hear if it made an improvement in the sound .I was expecting to be returning them the next weekend to prove cables DO NOT make a difference.Well at least in this case they did,significantly.I was using Radio Shack gold plated that were around $12.The sound with the Monsters was more dynamic,detailed and everything about the music improved.I even had someone swap cables from new to old and played the same pieces of music,3 times and each time when I was more pleased with the sound it was the new cables,So I believe there is some truth but still don't know if I would spend over $100 on speaker or interconnect cables these were $40 for a 4 ft pair.I wish I could borrow a more expensive pair from someone Cause there are no high end shops around here except a Tweeters but I don't care much for them.I am very happy with my system and it cost less than $800 with all used components new it would be around $1500 I overpayed$400 for my Dynaco Stereo 70 but they all go for over $300 redone and remodified. But still wonder what a $3000 Cd player or some of the exotic amps by Mark Levinson or Krell sound like paired with speakers that cost over $5000 or even $3000.Or is there clearly diminishing returns after a certain price range? By the way I made my own speaker cables from a plan in one of the Sensible Sound issues several years ago but didn't save the issue it was around 95' or 96'.
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Dear Peter,
If you can hear sonic differences between two sets of interconnects, good for you. That puts you in some pretty heady company.
For the record, when my colleagues have actually measured the loss of dBs over certain lengths of interconnects, the drops have been in the thousandths of one dB range. That's inaudible. Still, there are many who claim that the sonic differences are plain to them. They're not to me, but who am I to argue? To paraphrase the argument, "We have golden ears; you don't." The only way to test this of course is through double blind ABX testing, which they politely decline. Too stressful.
Yes, Bob Bottman wrote an article on DIY speaker cables in '92 or '93 using multiple runs of 18AWG solid core wire. I described something similar, braiding 16, 18, 20, and 22AWG stranded wire (bought in bulk from Radio Shack), some time ago, but I don't recall the exact issue.
BTW, it occurs to me that if you can hear the differences in interconnects, then the next step up is speaker cables. Speaker cable manufacturers, generally the same as the interconnect guys, make similar claims for their speaker cables.
I don't know what the point of diminishing returns is. First, there is no one such "point". It varies from one component to another. I would assert that even a modest, mass market solid state A/V receiver is as solid a purchase as any mega-priced one. Now, can a modest $200 Sony deliver the extra power necessary for critical musical peaks or drive a complex speaker load? Probably not. But if you have a fairly decent pair of speakers, would the Sony perform excellently 99% of the time? Most likely, yes. IMHO, you start with a pair of excellent speakers, ones that deliver the full range of sonic possibilities, and add to them components and wire that most enhances and least compromises their performance.
The real point of diminishing returns is when you listen to the next most expensive component and the improvement you can hear is so minute and so isolated (say, a bit more cleanliness in high frequency production, but only on certain recordings and under certain circumstances) that you have to question whether or not laying out the extra cash is worth that bit of extra sound. For some it is. But if having the biggest, best, and costliest is what floats your boat, go for it. Just make sure that you're enjoying your record and CD collection as much if not more than you did before.
Kindest regards,
Kevin
Thanks,first off it sounds like your article is how I designed the cable,So back then it made a real improvement when I had my Magnaplanars.In all honesty I realize there is bogus stuff out there but there are so many cable manufacturers out there there has to be sonic truth to alot of it,there are so few high end shops compared to mass market stores that if a person bought say a $100 pair of speaker cables and interconnects and it made no difference wouldn't they return it and if it happened most all the time wouldn't the companies be out of business.Still my theory is that no matter how much research goes into designing a cable and no mater how good it sounds it is quite ridicolous that there are 8 foot lengths of speaker cable $100,$500 even $1000! same for interconnects where a 1 meter pair can be over $1000 that is $33 per inch! As far as diminishing returns here is an example I don't remember the exact products but Stereophiles recommended components for power amps list in class A had a $23000 pair of monoblocks,don't remember the brand and a $1500 amp by Bel Canto,Now assuming even at the $1500 price range amps improve over the under $1000 entry level range where brands like Rotel,NAD and Adcom are wouldn't it ridicolous to spend the $23,000 or even $4000 that another amp in the list was if the listening tests showed the $1500 one was almost every bit as good.See I was willing to spend $40 on the interconnect because it improved my sound but over $100 no matter what it does that is not justified for a manufacturer to charge that much,I am not going to get carried away with this cable thing but I anm also going to try the Audioquest Sidewinder.I saw it on Amazon only $34 with shipping for 1 meter $10 less than mine with tax.if that performs just as well I am going to return the other one because remember how I told you when I run the Cd player directly to the amp it sounds cleaner than using the preamp,maybe using the same cables for that hookup will improve the sound .There is no way to test this now because I need 2 cables one from amp to preamp the other from preamp to cd player so if the Audioquest ones work better or just as well as the Monsters
I will be able to get 2 1 meter pairs for $68 compared to if I bought 2 of the Monsters which would run $85 with tax fronm Best Buy,I just wish there were independent stereo stores near me because I would rather buy them closeby then by internet,I mean Audio Advisor is good to deal with and you can return anything you don't like but it is still a hassle,they also make half-meter interconnects but that is like 18 inches not practical for anything I can see way too short.After I wrote you last time I was reading previous questions submitted to you by other people there were a few about headphones and I agree Grados are the best,especially for the money.I own the SR-80s use to have the SR-60s but feel the extra $30 for the $80,s are worth it better sound.Very suprised a better place like Tweeters doesn't cary Grados.In the past I have also owned phones by AKG,Denon and Stax the first 2 were under $100 the Stax $200 returned those,no bass at all.I never listened to any ones by Seneiser though I have read many favorable reviews of certain models,unlike Grado they also make many real low priced models under $50 that you can get at places like Wal Mart intended for the non audiophile.My question if I use my Grados mainly with my portable Cd player and Sangean radio would I benefit with getting a headphone amp and if so any recommendations,I know Grado and Headroom make them,the latter specializing in headphone gear?
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Dear Peter,
I've never had occasion to use a headphone amp, so no recommendations. However, I used my Grado 60s for many years with a Sony portable CD player of course without a headphone amp, and they worked very well.
Kindest regards,
Kevin Ok,I won't bother spending $200 or more,Is there better sound with the SR 125,S OR 225,S ? from what I see on ebay you can get just about what you pay new for the SR 80,s.the 60,s in my opinion are too dark and dull sounding.I mean still good for the price but the 80,s are more open and better defined in the bass.Just my opinion.Cables ,I guess you have your opinion based on what you hear,Ordered the Sidewinders Thursday,if they sound just as good or better I will order another pair and return the Monsters to Best Buy,Even stepping up to a Monster Video Thx cable for my vcr improved the picture over the one that came in the box.Use my vcr as the tuner for my Toshiba TV,better picture quality,(composite) than the sets tuner.
AnswerDear Peter,
I've not auditioned the Grado 125 or 225 models, so no recommendation. Yes, I suppose the 60s will pale in comparison to the 80s and upwards, but I was using the 60s on a noisy commuter train with a portable CD player. In an environment like that, everything after the percussion is a bonus.
Kindest regards,
Kevin
