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1/4 jack to 1/8 quality issues

post #1 of 11
6/26/05 at 2:05pm
Thread Starter 
I'm hopefully getting a pair of SR 225's soon and i was wondering whether getting an adapter so I can run it off my iriver H320 (1/8 input) and eventually a PA2V2. I was just wondering whether the adapter would change the sound at all...or whether its 1/4 because thats the standard for home systems?

Any help would be great. Cheers
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post #2 of 11
6/26/05 at 3:52pm
I had a similar question - but it's about the quality of adapters. I run my MS1's with my h120 - but am wondering if one of the grado adapters is better sound wise than a radio shack adapter w/out a cable attached - just a straight adapter.
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post #3 of 11
6/26/05 at 4:20pm
As long as the adapter is nice and sturdy,it will work.I use only ISO 9002 certified cables and adapter.

Unnecessary thread crapping sarcasm edited by moderator.
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post #4 of 11
6/26/05 at 4:49pm
I use the Grado adaptor and you will not notice any difference at all. The reason I use the Grado isn't just because it's Grado - it has a short piece of wire between the mini jack plug and the Female Jack plug, so the strain is taken away from the item that you plug it in to.

Those solid connectors come with quite a lot of leverage.
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post #5 of 11
6/26/05 at 7:45pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ]|[ GorE
As long as the adapter is nice and sturdy,it will work.I use only ISO 9002 certified cables and adapter.

Unnecessary thread crapping sarcasm edited by moderator
Someone needs to take a chill pill and a reality check.

To the OP : I've used a 1/4 => 1/8" for the last few weeks and it doesn't seem to alter the sound. As the guy above me stated, you do NOT want to use an inline 'short block' 1/4 => 1/8" for fear of putting too much strain on the headphone jack.
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post #6 of 11
6/26/05 at 8:43pm
I would throw in my 2 cents regarding 1/4 to 1/8 adapters and adapters in general. If at all possible, I've always found sturdy metal one-piece gold-plated adapters to have the least sonic degradation. Any wire between the metal plugs, even if it's only few inches, regardless of copper, silver, whatever, seems to degrade the sound further. I prefer to use the metal adapters and figure out ways to prop them up to relieve stress on jacks..
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post #7 of 11
6/27/05 at 7:48am
Thread Starter 
Hmmm conflicting views here. I can understand the reasoning behind both points, but i think i'd be more concerned by the adapter staping off in its source than a slight degrading of sound, as long as theres not too much difference. Thanks to all who've helped
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post #8 of 11
6/27/05 at 8:28am
The same can be said, with 100's of feet of standard electrical wire coming from the street into your home, and then a $500 aftermarket powercord, from the wall to your component. You have what you have, and you want to make sure that the extra connection, doesn't impeded what you already have. A good quality connector shouldn't show any audible signs of deterioration.
I have the same question when it comes to using quality speaker wire with a spade or banana plug. The whole idea is to use a wire which will allow the signal to flow free and uninterrupted, and then it is terminated with a block of solid metal (same with IC's). That is why I like the EICHMANN BULLET PLUGS. They have a minimalist approach to connectivity.
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post #9 of 11
6/27/05 at 1:33pm
Quote:
I would throw in my 2 cents regarding 1/4 to 1/8 adapters and adapters in general. If at all possible, I've always found sturdy metal one-piece gold-plated adapters to have the least sonic degradation. Any wire between the metal plugs, even if it's only few inches, regardless of copper, silver, whatever, seems to degrade the sound further. I prefer to use the metal adapters and figure out ways to prop them up to relieve stress on jacks..
sounds good in theory but most one piece designs are of very questionable quality and usually generic in origin so who knows what the metal coating thinckness,the internal connection material and method and what dielectric material is used for the insulation ?

they are also mostly huge suckers and have much more mass than any jack they are inserted to so will be usually far stronger than the actual jack making any stress go right to the jack and not the easier to fix external part.
99.9% of portable repairs are the output jacks.the other .1% usually the battery clips (unless the player fell off a cliff )

So I usually like to whip up some simple plug to small lead wire to plug adapters and also like my connections on a diet,little metal as possible buy quality jacks and plugs plus some low end el cheapo ones and take the plastic barrel of the cheap ones to replace the metal ones on the better jack/plug.

Light,low metal,cheap..........cheap..........did I say it is cheap ?
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post #10 of 11
6/27/05 at 5:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rickcr42
sounds good in theory but most one piece designs are of very questionable quality and usually generic in origin so who knows what the metal coating thinckness,the internal connection material and method and what dielectric material is used for the insulation ?

they are also mostly huge suckers and have much more mass than any jack they are inserted to so will be usually far stronger than the actual jack making any stress go right to the jack and not the easier to fix external part.
99.9% of portable repairs are the output jacks.the other .1% usually the battery clips (unless the player fell off a cliff )

So I usually like to whip up some simple plug to small lead wire to plug adapters and also like my connections on a diet,little metal as possible buy quality jacks and plugs plus some low end el cheapo ones and take the plastic barrel of the cheap ones to replace the metal ones on the better jack/plug.

Light,low metal,cheap..........cheap..........did I say it is cheap ?
Sure, it's all true, but consider this. When you say "quality" female and male plugs, the vast majority use the low-copper content alloy with gold-plating like any other consumer plugs out there. Some even use nickel (bad sound), and Rhodium is a poor conductor as well. A similar quality one-piece adapter has similarly sub-par alloy/plating, but at least it avoids the additional degradation from extra wire/dielectric and Solder! Yes, even those silver solders sound bad compared to stamped metal piece or crimping IMO.

What we really need is 1/4 or 1/8 plugs made with Eichmann type of principles with crimping connections. A few inches of good wire crimped to these purist connectors with high-content copper would be the best all-around way to go, but no one cares to make such a thing..
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post #11 of 11
6/27/05 at 6:46pm
Quote:
Sure, it's all true, but consider this. When you say "quality" female and male plugs, the vast majority use the low-copper content alloy with gold-plating like any other consumer plugs out there.
which is why i never buy generics.I only use what I know for what it is and if i do not have the print or CDROM specs right here or on the way then out of contention.

With the one pice plug/jack there is a wire inside and usually very thick and of questionable heritage.the actual connectors have this same questionable origin so off my list.

Even the high-end (expensive) one pice RCA Jack splitters are off my list and they DO have full specs and a known origin but that simply due to all that metal and a ground connection that may as well be a chassis floor for all the metal involved.

I think it a rare person that would even consider using non-insulated RCA jacks for all in/out connections with the chassis being the entire circuit ground connection yet that same person would use a plug/jack/splitter with damn near the same type of overall ground connection ? A "heavy metal" part in the path eliminates any gains from going to a superior wire because it will be the dominant part of the signal path.

It could not be any other way when the plugs have more overall metal in series than the entire interconnection.

Just my personal opinion.Means nothing
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