What annoys me today in marketing and media that too often today then talking on hi-fi, science is replaced by bizarre belief structures and marketing fluff, leading to a decades-long stagnation of the audiophile domain. Science makes progress, pseudo-science doesn’t. Hi-fi world is filled by pseudoscience, dogma and fruitloopery to the extent that it resembles a fundamentalist religion. Loudspeaker performance hasn’t tangibly improved in forty years and vast sums are spent addressing the wrong problems.
Business for Engineers: Marketers Lie article points tout that marketing tells lies — falsehoods — things that serve to convey a false impression. Marketing’s purpose is to determining how the product will be branded, positioned, and sold. It seems that there too many snake oil rubbish products marketed in the name of hifi. It is irritating to watch the stupid people in the world be fooled.
In EEVblog #29 – Audiophile Audiophoolery video David L. Jones (from EEVBlog) cuts loose on the Golden Ear Audiophiles and all their Audiophoolery snake oil rubbish. The information presented in Dave’s unique non-scripted overly enthusiastic style! He’s an enthusiastic chap, but couldn’t agree more with many of the opinions he expressed: Directional cables, thousand dollar IEC power cables, and all that rubbish. Monster Cable gets mostered. Note what he says right at the end: “If you pay ridiculous money for these cable you will hear a difference, but don’t expect your friends to”. If you want to believe, you will.
My points on hifi-nonsense:
One of the tenets of audiophile systems is that they are assembled from components, allegedly so that the user can “choose” the best combination. This is pretty largely a myth. The main advantage of component systems is that the dealer can sell ridiculously expensive cables, hand-knitted by Peruvian virgins and soaked in snake oil, to connect it all up. Say goodbye to the noughties: Yesterday’s hi-fi biz is BUSTED, bro article asks are the days of floorstanders and separates numbered? If traditional two-channel audio does have a future, then it could be as the preserve of high resolution audio. Sony has taken the industry lead in High-Res Audio.
HIFI Cable Humbug and Snake oil etc. blog posting rightly points out that there is too much emphasis placed on spending huge sums of money on HIFI cables. Most of what is written about this subject is complete tripe. HIFI magazines promote myths about the benefits of all sorts of equipment. I am as amazed as the writer that that so called audiophiles and HIFI journalists can be fooled into thinking that very expensive speaker cables etc. improve performance. I generally agree – most of this expensive interconnect cable stuff is just plain overpriced.
I can agree that in analogue interconnect cables there are few cases where better cables can really result in cleaner sound, but usually getting any noticeable difference needs that the one you compare with was very bad yo start with (clearly too thin speaker wires with resistance, interconnect that picks interference etc..) or the equipment in the systems are so that they are overly-sensitive to cable characteristics (generally bad equipment designs can make for example cable capacitance affect 100 times or more than it should). Definitely too much snake oil. Good solid engineering is all that is required (like keep LCR low, Teflon or other good insulation, shielding if required, proper gauge for application and the distance traveled). Geometry is a factor but not in the same sense these yahoos preach and deceive.
In digital interconnect cables story is different than on those analogue interconnect cables. Generally in digital interconnect cables the communication either works, does not work or sometimes work unreliably. The digital cable either gets the bits to the other end or not, it does not magically alter the sound that goes through the cable. You need to have active electronics like digital signal processor to change the tone of the audio signal traveling on the digital cable, cable will just not do that.
But this digital interconnect cables characteristics has not stopped hifi marketers to make very expensive cable products that are marketed with unbelievable claims. Ethernet has come to audio world, so there are hifi Ethernet cables. How about 500 dollar Ethernet cable? That’s ridiculous. And it’s only 1.5 meters. Then how about $10,000 audiophile ethernet cable? Bias your dielectrics with the Dielectric-Bias ethernet cable from AudioQuest: “When insulation is unbiased, it slows down parts of the signal differently, a big problem for very time-sensitive multi-octave audio.” I see this as complete marketing crap speak. It seems that they’re made for gullible idiots. No professional would EVER waste money on those cables. Audioquest even produces iPhone sync cables in similar price ranges.
HIFI Cable insulators/supports (expensive blocks that keep cables few centimeters off the floor) are a product category I don’t get. They typically claim to offer incredible performance as well as appealing appearance. Conventional cable isolation theory holds that optimal cable performance can be achieved by elevating cables from the floor in an attempt to control vibrations and manage static fields. Typical cable elevators are made from electrically insulating materials such as wood, glass, plastic or ceramics. Most of these products claim superior performance based upon the materials or methods of elevation. I don’t get those claims.
Along with green magic markers on CDs and audio bricks is another item called the wire conditioner. The claim is that unused wires do not sound the same as wires that have been used for a period of time. I don’t get this product category. And I don’t believe claims in the line like “Natural Quartz crystals along with proprietary materials cause a molecular restructuring of the media, which reduces stress, and significantly improves its mechanical, acoustic, electric, and optical characteristics.” All sounds like just pure marketing with no real benefits.
CD no evil, hear no evil. But the key thing about the CD was that it represented an obvious leap from earlier recording media that simply weren’t good enough for delivery of post-produced material to the consumer to one that was. Once you have made that leap, there is no requirement to go further. The 16 bits of CD were effectively extended to 18 bits by the development of noise shaping, which allows over 100dB signal to noise ratio. That falls a bit short of the 140dB maximum range of human hearing, but that has never been a real goal. If you improve the digital media, the sound quality limiting problem became the transducers; the headphones and the speakers.
We need to talk about SPEAKERS: Soz, ‘audiophiles’, only IT will break the sound barrier article says that today’s loudspeakers are nowhere near as good as they could be, due in no small measure to the presence of “traditional” audiophile products. that today’s loudspeakers are nowhere near as good as they could be, due in no small measure to the presence of “traditional” audiophile products. I can agree with this. Loudspeaker performance hasn’t tangibly improved in forty years and vast sums are spent addressing the wrong problems.
We need to talk about SPEAKERS: Soz, ‘audiophiles’, only IT will break the sound barrier article makes good points on design, DSPs and the debunking of traditional hi-fi. Science makes progress, pseudo-science doesn’t. Legacy loudspeakers are omni-directional at low frequencies, but as frequency rises, the radiation becomes more directional until at the highest frequencies the sound only emerges directly forwards. Thus to enjoy the full frequency range, the listener has to sit in the so-called sweet spot. As a result legacy loudspeakers with sweet spots need extensive room treatment to soak up the deficient off-axis sound. New tools that can change speaker system designs in the future are omni-directional speakers and DSP-based room correction. It’s a scenario ripe for “disruption”.
Computers have become an integrated part of many audio setups. Back in the day integrated audio solutions in PCs had trouble earning respect. Ode To Sound Blaster: Are Discrete Audio Cards Still Worth the Investment? posting tells that it’s been 25 years since the first Sound Blaster card was introduced (a pretty remarkable feat considering the diminished reliance on discrete audio in PCs) and many enthusiasts still consider a sound card an essential piece to the PC building puzzle. It seems that in general onboard sound is finally “Good Enough”, and has been “Good Enough” for a long time now. For most users it is hard to justify the high price of special sound card on PC anymore. There are still some PCs with bad sound hardware on motherboard and buttload of cheap USB adapters with very poor performance. However, what if you want the best sound possible, the lowest noise possible, and don’t really game or use the various audio enhancements? You just want a plain-vanilla sound card, but with the highest quality audio (products typically made for music makers). You can find some really good USB solutions that will blow on-board audio out of the water for about $100 or so.
Although solid-state technology overwhelmingly dominates today’s world of electronics, vacuum tubes are holding out in two small but vibrant areas. Some people like the sound of tubes. The Cool Sound of Tubes article says that a commercially viable number of people find that they prefer the sound produced by tubed equipment in three areas: musical-instrument (MI) amplifiers (mainly guitar amps), some processing devices used in recording studios, and a small but growing percentage of high-fidelity equipment at the high end of the audiophile market. Keep those filaments lit, Design your own Vacuum Tube Audio Equipment article claims that vacuum tubes do sound better than transistors (before you hate in the comments check out this scholarly article on the topic). The difficulty is cost; tube gear is very expensive because it uses lots of copper, iron, often point-to-point wired by hand, and requires a heavy metal chassis to support all of these parts. With this high cost and relative simplicity of circuitry (compared to modern electronics) comes good justification for building your own gear. Maybe this is one of the last frontiers of do-it-yourself that is actually worth doing.
2,042 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
Speaker Cables Really Don’t Make Much of a Difference?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kR12Ttuxobs
In this video I actually measure cheap vs expensive cables using very precise test equipment connected to an amplifier and resistive loads as well as a loudspeaker to show the amplitude and distortion differences. The results may surprise you. Have you been sold a placebo when it comes to “high-end” cables? Watch this video to find out.
0:58 Test Equipment
2:31 Speaker Cables Under Test
4:10 DC Resistance of Cables
4:47 AC Resistance of Cables (Rac)
6:22 Inductance of Cables (Ls)
7:12 Capacitance of Cables (Cp)
7:59 Reference Equipment
9:22 Frequency Response & Distortion of Various Cables with 8-ohm load
12:19 Frequency Response & Distortion of Various Cables connected to Loudspeaker
14:30 Placebo Effect and Listening Bias
15:30 Burden of Proof is on the Cable Manufacturer
https://www.audioholics.com/audio-video-cables
Tomi Engdahl says:
Don’t Become a Victim of Audiophile “Wire Fraud”!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIv79_NRASw
Don’t become a victim of audiophile “wire fraud”. Beware of claims that sound too good to be true. Beware of pseudo-scientific language. Beware of any company, reviewer, or salesperson that describes the “sound” of an audio cable. If the “sound” of a cable is described in words such as richness, detail, width, or texture, hang onto your wallet. Beware of any promise that a cable will provide a quick fix for your sound system.
While every cable has some measurable impact on the electrical signal flowing through it, this impact is normally well below the threshold of audibility. Of all of the components in an audio chain, cables contribute the smallest errors. If you want to invest in great sound, cables will yield a very poor return on investment.
In this video we will compare the magnitude of the errors contributed by the cables to those of the electronics, the loudspeakers, the listening room, and the music delivery medium. We will show that wires are orders of magnitude less important than these other system components.
Benchmark’s lead engineer, John Siau, will present an “Audio Investment Strategy” that prioritizes investing in the components that will yield the highest returns. Cables are at the very bottom of his priority list. Find out why.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Audio Cable Quality Testing – How to test? Make Top Quality Cables at Home
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJ88W6-E1Cw
Here is a detailed video on how to test cables for quality. For demonstration, I have taken some RC cables and an XLR cable used in audio, video and other purposes. The same can be applied to any other cable.
I am testing a few cables for resistance, inductance and capacitance to estimate its quality.
I have also built a cable at home and testing the same here for comparison. I am also suggesting some places in Bangalore where we can procure items for making our own cables.
–
Indeed…… Capacitance on RCA interconnects has adverse effect on sound quality…..Upper and lower both frequencies roll off. I am made short custom RCA cables from xlr cables with just 34pf capacitance. Sounds good.
Tomi Engdahl says:
How to use banana plugs and other speaker wire connectors | Crutchfield
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOCAt8zGhv0
There are a number of ways to connect your wired speakers, both at your amp or receiver or on the speakers themselves. We’ll show you the most common ways to connect, from bare wire to banana plugs.
Tomi Engdahl says:
SPEAKER WIRE GAUGE GUIDE: 12 AWG vs 14 AWG vs 16 AWG vs 18 AWG
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atwAOZ6pFqE
Tomi Engdahl says:
How to measure the capacitance from guitar cable – Custom Boards pedalboard builder’s guide (2018)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nzYC8_EZEY
Tomi Engdahl says:
How To Test An Instrument Cable
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-EUpCg2ztY
In this video, I demonstrate how to simply test any type of instrument cable using a digital multimeter. Enjoy!
Tomi Engdahl says:
How To Test Coaxial Cable With a Multimeter – TheSmokinApe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5kEM6bBK9I
How to Test Coaxial Cable: Continuity and Loss Measurement Guide
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vL22mwKBAwk
Tomi Engdahl says:
#379: How to measure coax loss using a NanoVNA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSw9Epu4nu0
#326: How to Measure the impedance of “unknown” coax using a NanoVNA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqKLFbNYRZc
Tomi Engdahl says:
Scientific Proof of Measurable Difference in Audio Cables? Paper Review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0p3D_Gv6IY
Are Dirt Cheap RCA Cables Any Good?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHw_Te6IbUI
Tomi Engdahl says:
Do USB Cables Make an Audible Difference (Kimber Kable Review)?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXuBsdmEOAs
Tomi Engdahl says:
Your speaker cable matters! 32 speaker cables tested – with measurements!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kb5h1XIb-Y
Tomi Engdahl says:
Sample Test – 12 high end speaker cables
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQt1dBKEhzg
Tomi Engdahl says:
What You Need To Know About Silver And Copper In Audio
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSFUQtTI2jE
Continuing from our philosophy about measurements and perceptions, we talk about sound characteristics of Silver and Copper as they are commonly perceived (along with what we have observed over the years). At SW1X Audio Design, we consider the sound character of materials as a “flavour” of sound – giving birth to the different versions in our upper level products.
Chapters:
00:00 Silver & Copper in Conductors & Windings
01:32 Perceptions of Silver
01:57 Perceptions of Copper
02:24 Which is Better?
03:11 Versions in SW1X
Tomi Engdahl says:
Are Silver Audiophile Speaker Cables Really Better?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTuc_hlGD4E
We sometimes see audio cable manufacturers tout the usage of exotic metals for their cables (ie. silver, silver-clad, etc). They often state these metals “sound” better but offer no empirical proof to back their claims. We take a look at the conductivity/resistivity of silver and compare it to regular copper to determine if there is any truth to these claims.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Is Synergy in Audio Cables Real or Snake Oil?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=katmUM-Xelw
Check any audiophile facebook group or forum and you will find dozens of enthusiasts asking “what are the best cables to use with my audio components?” There are never shortages of recommendations from fellow enthusiasts and sometimes even industry experts have their own recommendations too. PS Audio recently announced a partnership with Audioquest citing that their products have a real “synergy” together. Is there any merit to this claim or is it pure marketing BS?
Is Synergy In Audio Cables Real or Snake Oil?
https://www.audioholics.com/audio-video-cables/synergy-audio-cables
An ideal analog audio cable should transmit the audio signal unadulterated. Nobody will argue the ideal cable is NO cable at all or a superconductor with no loss tangents. “Cable synergy” would imply the cable itself is NOT ideal. It’s NOT transparent, it’s not lossless Instead, it’s acting as a tone control to alter the signal between connecting components. Why would any audiophile want this? Most audiophiles cringe at using tone controls on their preamps so why would they use them in the form of connective cabling? The best and most effective frequency shaping in a system is done in the digital domain with room correction below the room transaction frequency (300-500Hz) in concert with multi-sub and positional EQ and with passive room treatments above the room transition frequency to control excessive reflections. With audio interconnects and speaker cables, we are at best looking at 10ths of a dB change out to the frequency extremes between good and super-conductor good cabling which is below the threshold of audibility for anyone but Kryptonian hearing.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Final SKW cables analysis: NOT MADE with OCC copper!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVLR9EuCkgo
In an earlier video on the Chinese SKW cables case (link below) we have discovered that they are made of very high purity copper (6N)…one question remained unanswered: are the cables MONOCRYSTAL copper? Only cables with a single grain are truly obtained with the Ohno Continuous Cast (OCC) method. With the aid of Prof. Adrian Gerlich of Waterloo University (Canada) we finally answered this question.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Truth about RCA signal cables
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOagVDZLQnA
Here we discuss the circumstances of when it is appropriate to use a twisted pair RCA cable vs a Coaxial RCA cable.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Proposal to End the Audiophile Cable Snake Oil Forever
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YIGLnbc12I
We’ve spent 20+ years debunking the snake oil claims in audiophile/esoteric cables. In this video I make a proposal to the audio industry to STOP abusing fully understood engineering claims to justify the sales of their products and I will stop calling them snake oil. I further offer audiophile cable companies to submit their products to Audioholics for 3rd party verification testing which they can then publish on their website to help consumers make more educated purchasing decisions.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Audiophile or Audio-Fooled? How Good Are Your Ears?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgEjI5PZa78
Tomi Engdahl says:
How To Test and Measure Audio Amplifiers
Audioholics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nokHMIDeVlM&list=PLvfTZmvZzNmDEfeTsqL_fb0fmQUMDFEei
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://community.element14.com/technologies/test-and-measurement/b/blog/posts/building-and-testing-audio-cables
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/understanding-audio-measurements.2351/
Tomi Engdahl says:
12 better, simple and cheap ways to fix noise, hum, buzz, ground loops and USB whine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3asGhHUVO0o
6 simple and cheap ways to fix hum, buzz and ground loop noise
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2c6fKOu-vo
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.guitarcenter.com/riffs/gear-tips/live-sound/how-to-fix-hum-buzz-other-noise-in-audio-cables
Tomi Engdahl says:
QA403 Audio Analyzer Tutorial (Noise, SNR, THD+N, …) – Phil’s Lab #130
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5oqL3dJ-G8
Tomi Engdahl says:
How to get rid of hum and other noises from your audio, video systems
Don’t let buzz, hum, or hiss ruin your A/V experience. We’ll show you how to solve common electrical faults so you can ditch the noise.
https://www.techhive.com/article/582313/how-to-get-rid-of-hum-and-eliminate-other-noises-from-your-audio-and-video-systems.html
UNDERSTANDING, FINDING,
& ELIMINATING GROUND LOOPS
IN AUDIO & VIDEO SYSTEMS
https://www.jensen-transformers.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/generic-seminar.pdf
Tomi Engdahl says:
MEASUREMENTS: Computer USB port noise, USB hubs and the 8kHz PHY Microframe Packet Noise
https://archimago.blogspot.com/2015/05/measurements-usb-hubs-and-8khz-phy.html
One could see the “glass half full” when we run into imperfections in the audio system. For example, it was serendipitous that the Emotiva XSP-1 pre-amp had such a noise-sensitive unbalanced “HT Bypass” input that I was able to detect noise and measure it previously. If it were not for this issue, I probably would never have thought about using the Corning USB 3 optical cable or consider how to isolate the noise originating from the computer USB connection to the DAC simply because in my system using balanced interconnects throughout, I had never had a problem (subjectively audible or objectively verifiable).
As a quick recap, I was able to hear and measure the 8kHz “microframe packet noise” (125us) originating from the computer’s USB port. The HTPC is based on the ASUS B85M-E/CSM motherboard running the Intel Pentium G3220 CPU. I use one of the USB 3 connectors although I have tried the USB 2 ones as well and they’re just as noisy. So, step-by-step, I can show you how I brought that noise down:
Tomi Engdahl says:
Capacitance and Speaker Cables…
Discussion
I am looking into speaker cables for an upcoming system purchase. I lean toward using Mogami cabling, either W3103 or W3082. Both cables get good reviews, some great reviews as well. My question is about capacitance, which is quite different between these two cables – 32 vs 77pf/ft respectively.
In my experience buying and building cables for use with guitars, effects and amps, I can clearly hear the difference between cables at these ratings. I prefer low capacitance (22pf/ft or lower), as it’s more full range – especially on the higher end. A higher capacitance cable sounds like throwing the proverbial wet blanket on my guitar rig – it’s awful to my ears. Of course, many famous guitarists have used higher capacitance cables as a tone control for their rig, intentionally rolling off the highs.
Does capacitance in cables work the same way in speaker wire applications?
https://www.reddit.com/r/audiophile/comments/rv3olr/capacitance_and_speaker_cables/
Tomi Engdahl says:
When audio cables matter – source impedance and cable capacitance
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQPAoSfLwSs
When connecting the phono preamp to my computer to digitize some vinyl, I was concerned about the cable length affecting the sound, so I ran some tests with the audio analyzer.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Output impedance + cable capacitance makes low pass filter
F(-3dB) = 1/(2*3.14*Rout*Ccable)
Yes at some not unreasonable lengths and the wrong gear it can cause a mildly audible roll off.
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/any-technical-minds-know-about-cable-capacitance.18550/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Cable Transfer Impedance – Part 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUJyEPkYd0g
Tomi Engdahl says:
A Power Cable Reality Check
https://www.realhd-audio.com/?p=6431
That’s what I did with a very expensive power cord that a gentleman sent me some years ago. I used the regular IEC power cord recommended by my friends at Benchmark with their DAC 2 HGC and then swapped it out for the $3000 cord, which did come in a velvet bag inside a wooden box. I captured the analog output when using both cables and did a null comparison. To the utter amazement of the vendor in Atlanta, they both produced exactly the same output. Now some high-end audio manufacturers would have you believe that if two signals are identical that they could produce different sonic signatures — but that’s also utter nonsense!
I guess if you’ve got an extra $3000 dollars that’s burning whole in your pocket then throwing it away on a single 6-foot power cord is up to you. But if improving the fidelity of your system is among your priorities, then save your money and ignore the recommendations of people like Bob H. Levi and websites like Positive Feedback.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/basic-question-about-power-cables-snake-oil-or-not.966740/
To make my question a bit less blunt, I will rephrase tough :
Does an expensive power chord:
– only keep the a clean current clean (then it should not make sense without power regenerator, I guess).
– or does it also clean dirty current ? (and if so, how long should it be for a neat cleaning ?)
There are some power cords with filtering built in–one example is the iFi SupaNova.
But generally, a cord is just a cord. When you go up in price (generally), they construct them of better materials, in different strand configurations, with better shielding, etc.
But whitout a clean power regenerator, does it make sense to buy an expensive power chord for the last four feet when the current has already travelled miles through standard urban cables.
No, it doesn’t, unless you buy it for it’s visual/aesthetic appearance.
I am asking this as I am about to buy an expensive new DAC …
Even a cheap DAC will have its own internal power supply that will condition its mains/input power. If you’re buying an expensive DAC which isn’t able to do that adequately, then obviously you’ve been had. In commercial recording studios they just use standard cables because it doesn’t make any difference.
I’ve got a fancy power cable with Furutech IEC, silver plated / fused MK plug, shielded core etc etc and it’s been sat gathering dust for years, it provides zero sonic improvement over a stock cord to my ears, when on the other hand changing out speaker cable or maybe less so, an IC, can make a huge difference.
The simple answer is yes it does make a difference. A big difference. Theres a reason why people with high end systems have expensive power conditioning and cables.
Again, the highest end systems (million+ dollar studio systems) do NOT have expensive power conditioning and cables. Only (some of) those with cheaper, lower end audiophile systems use expensive power conditioning and cables, because they believe the audiophile marketing snake oil. That audiophile marketing doesn’t exist in the pro-audio/commercial studio world because it wouldn’t work/fool the engineers.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Cables don’t add. They only take away.
That’s the big myth we audiophiles often wrestle with—this idea that a cable has a sonic personality, a character it imparts onto the music. Bloated bass, tipped-up highs, midrange magic. I’ve heard those descriptions more times than I can count. And while it’s tempting to say a cable “adds” warmth or “boosts” sparkle, that’s not how passive devices work.
A cable isn’t an active component. It doesn’t amplify, it doesn’t process, it doesn’t inject energy into the signal. What it can do—and often does—is lose information. That’s the whole story. If a cable sounds thin and screechy, it’s not because it’s adding treble. It’s because it’s losing bass or smearing transients. A cable that sounds bloated? Probably rolling off the top end and masking detail.
https://www.psaudio.com/blogs/pauls-posts/the-cable-myth?srsltid=AfmBOornO8SctJLisfIzYRFjfadbqOrVOu6QAdSMnMHVltc0T2DxfDuP
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://benchmarkmedia.com/blogs/application_notes/audiophile-snake-oil?srsltid=AfmBOorgBMrp2QOmkK7YE7zXAkWUSpEIm3zedTH3SKqW1cdeSA_nwb4K
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.gcaudio.com/tips-tricks/why-power-cables-make-a-difference/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://tmraudio.com/blog/2025-guide-to-understanding-audio-cables-myths-materials-choosing-the-right-ones/?srsltid=AfmBOoraUb_ZQKwg09q5crqZd5vzLtLQR0ebJPRQF0-Ssnp2K6JOmoEY
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/possible-myth-bust-signal-power-cable-interactions.14803/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://avstyle.com/myths-about-audio-cables/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AUgwhNTg6/
“The Journey that Never Ends
One audiophile fuse company releases an improved model every year or two. Obviously you will want to upgrade your fuses whenever their “latest research” delivers “new technology”. Remarkably, we are being told that mundane passive components, such as fuses and cables, hold the keys to great sound.
One reviewer writes; “I’ve realized how a single cable could make or break a HiFi system … it made the difference between enjoying a system – and being annoyed with it.”. This reviewer goes on to say that “blind tests are pointless” and then says that “a cable could measure the same – but sound different.” The reviewer claims to “have an obsession with audiophile cables”. This is demonstrated by the fact that he has “spent the past five years auditioning and experimenting with over 1,000 audiophile cables”. Clearly, he believes that he hears a difference, it is hard to doubt his sincerity. Has it taken him five years to strike gold, or has he been deceived by fool’s gold at the bottom of a deep money pit?
The Market Craves a Cure-All
The wild west brought us the gold rush, the railroads, snake oil, and the traveling snake oil salesman.
Look at Clark Stanley’s Snake Oil claims:
“Instant relief”
“The strongest and best for pain and lameness”
“For rheumatism, lame back, toothache, sprains, swellings, etc.”
“Good for man and beast”
The Clark Stanley Snake Oil Liniment Co. was a success because people wanted to believe that these cure-all claims were true. His liniment was sold throughout the USA and Canada until it was tested by the US Bureau of Chemistry in 1916. He was fined $20 for peddling mineral oil as snake oil.
Compare Clark Stanley’s claims to those of an audiophile fuse company:
“Dramatic new levels of sonic realism”
“Wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling soundstaging”
“Unparalleled resolution, dynamics, and frequency extension”
“Guaranteed results”
These $595 fuses seem to be a commercial success. Audiophiles crave a quick and easy cure-all. Curiously, miracle cures seem to gain more credibility when they have very high prices.
I Have Some Questions about Audiophile Fuses:
Why are audiophile fuses directional when they are protecting AC circuits? Why do these fuses require a break-in period? Why does the break-in period exceed the length of the free trial? Are these fuses custom built from exotic materials, or are they just $1 fuses that have been painted with fancy colors and graphics? I could break one open to find out, but my money-back guarantee would be void. If these fuses are custom built, do they meet applicable safety standards? Will I get “wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling soundstaging” at the risk of wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling smoke?”
Tomi Engdahl says:
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Written by John Siau of Benchmark Audio
The Audiophile Wild West
Audiophiles live in the wild west. $495 will buy an “audiophile fuse” to replace the $1 generic fuse that came in your audio amplifier. $10,000 will buy a set of “audiophile speaker cables” to replace the $20 wires you purchased at the local hardware store. We are told that these $10,000 cables can be improved if we add a set of $300 “cable elevators” to dampen vibrations. You didn’t even know that you needed elevators! And let’s not forget to budget at least $200 for each of the “isolation platforms” we will need under our electronic components. Furthermore, it seems that any so-called “audiophile power cord” that costs less than $100, does not belong in a high-end system. And, if cost is no object, there are premium versions of each that can be purchased by the most discerning customers. A top-of-the line power cord could run $5000. One magazine claims that “the majority of listeners were able to hear the difference between a $5 power cable and a $5,000 power cord”. Can you hear the difference? If not, are you really an audiophile?
The Audiophile Trail
If we browse through the top audiophile magazines, or search the internet for “audiophile accessories”, it seems clear that great sound requires a significant investment in esoteric components. You will find many articles, reviews, videos and advertisements describing the remarkable improvements in sound quality that can be achieved when upgrading fuses, cables, and other passive components. The audiophile trail could be long and expensive, are you prepared? There may be gold in those hills, will you find it? What trails or maps will you follow? From whom will you take advice? Who will you trust?