[beez]

arriving this week will be my new grado RS-1 and a keces 151 dac and most likely a head direct ef1. so i need some interconnects to connect all this stuff together. i've never been a big fan of spending a lot of money on cables, but i do want to make sure i'm not losing significant sound quality on crappy cables. can anyone recommend the cheapest decent rca cables and also maybe an rca -> mini headphone cable? i wouldnt mind going used but i don't have enough posts to post a wtb in the FS forum. will i even notice a significant difference between "good" cables and generic ones i can pick up from best buy or something?

thanks

 

[Chu]

The BJC rca->mini I had made for me sounded, well, like any other high end cable (put me in the cable skeptics column, not really wanting to start a debate here) however the build quality was absolutely superb, and the shielding was excellent -- it went a long way to solving a radio pickup problem I was having with an amp, which was connected with a Monster RCA->mini that was supposedly shielded as well.

 

[blast8180]

Quote:

Originally Posted by beez /img/forum/go_quote.gif arriving this week will be my new grado RS-1 and a keces 151 dac and most likely a head direct ef1. so i need some interconnects to connect all this stuff together. i've never been a big fan of spending a lot of money on cables, but i do want to make sure i'm not losing significant sound quality on crappy cables. can anyone recommend the cheapest decent rca cables and also maybe an rca -> mini headphone cable? i wouldnt mind going used but i don't have enough posts to post a wtb in the FS forum. will i even notice a significant difference between "good" cables and generic ones i can pick up from best buy or something? thanks

Monoprice is usually my first stop, my second stop is blue-jeans cable. Both have great construction, but I like BJC because they can custom orders that meet my needs exactly.

 

[Chu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by beez /img/forum/go_quote.gif will i even notice a significant difference between "good" cables and generic ones i can pick up from best buy or something?

If you want the skeptic's answer, you want:

1. 99.x% OFC.
2. Gold plated connectors.
3. Solid mechanical connection.
4. If needed, shielding.

with #3 and #1 being much more important than #2.

When radio shack was clearing out their gold line and went with Monster (ugh) I picked up a lot of cables meeting this criteria that I'm still working through, so I honestly don't know what the default choice is that meets #1-#3 these days. Monoprice might have a nice line for cheap that meets #1-#3 and possibly #4, but their cheapest cables are the standard nickle plated low purity copper stuff you find everywhere (albeit significantly cheaper).

I personally like BJC just because, I too am a sucker for looks, and I think considering how well they meet #1-#4 I'll shell out a bit more money to get a nicer looking cable. They certainly aren't the only game in town at their pricerange but their marketing is dead on and they got there first.

 

[apatN]

Get a well known brand and you should be all fine. I use a DIY Mogami myself.

 

[linuxworks]

you won't lose sound quality on cables.

please don't start believing this hype now.

any rca cable will be fine. they do NOT change the sound in ways that really affect things. position your headphones just 1mm differently and you'll hear more difference than any cable will bring.

save your money. use it on stuff that really matters.

 

[beez]

ok, sounds good. i might as well go with blue jeans, they seem pretty nicely recommended and arent too expensive.

edit: thanks, linuxworks. i think i just wanted someone to tell me that. i'd much rather spend 4 dollars than 40. think i'll just get some generic ones and if they don't sound like crap i'll just stick with em.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Another recommendation for Blue Jeans here - I don't hear differences between cables, but Blue Jeans are well made and look good. Also, Vampire Cable's least expensive line is about the same price and also has good build quality.

 

[compuryan]

Blue Jeans Cable. I have recommended them more times than I can count. If you desire silver, go with signal cable.

 

[linuxworks]

Quote:

Originally Posted by beez /img/forum/go_quote.gif edit: thanks, linuxworks. i think i just wanted someone to tell me that. i'd much rather spend 4 dollars than 40. think i'll just get some generic ones and if they don't sound like crap i'll just stick with em.

I'm not shy about calling marketing 'wallet theft' what it is.

this does offend those that insist they have to spend on boutique items. and it offends those in the REVENUE STREAM who make their living selling inflated audio items.

MUCH of audio is snake oil. been around long enough to know that for a fact.

if you can't hear a diff, then let your ears be the real judge. you are not buying gear to impress test equipment

 

[breakfastchef]

Several folks on another forum I visit recommend these inexpensive RCA cables...Audio Cables - RCA / 3.5mm.

 

[nick_charles]

Quote:

Originally Posted by linuxworks /img/forum/go_quote.gif any rca cable will be fine. they do NOT change the sound in ways that really affect things. position your headphones just 1mm differently and you'll hear more difference than any cable will bring.

So far with the 7 cables I have tested I have not found any cable that alters the frequency balance in any significant way or that has significantly more attenuation than any other at any frequency. I have more expensive cables lined up to test but to date the differences have been miniscule.

Tantalisingly I have found a phase shift of 0.05% in a 500hz[1] square wave when recording 16/44.1 samples from the analog output of a CD, but this is for one cable so far and I have not compared others on this yet.

1 - By which I mean the reference signal is a 500hz square wave but the recorded signal shifts by 1 cycle per 2000 cycles so the recorded frequency is actually 499.75hz.

 

[milkweg]

Not the cheapest but half the price of Monster cables and better quality IMO are Rocketfish cables that they sell at Bestbuy and Futureshop.

Their RCA cables have a nice grey cloth jacket, 99% copper with silver soldering, aluminum mylar foil shielding, and zero insertion force socket with twist lock.

 

[oqvist]

when you say you aren´t hearing difference between cables do you mean difference between high end cables or the absolute lowest possible rca cables you could possibly buy? If so I find it so strange people can´t tell a difference? I am thinking maybe if you pair it with a superb DAC and headphones you get decent resolution anyway since I can tell the difference with cheap 30$ headphones and the poor 16-bit audio out of an xbox 360 or a wii even

The difference is so substantial and with less noise as well it just can´t be placebo

 

[lyricalmoments]

Anyone heard or tried Silver Foil cables? It's done by a DIYer in UK and available on Ebay...