Thelonious Monk
Headphoneus Supremus
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what happens when you add fake transparency to something that's already dead-black?
Cable Cost vs Equipment Cost
- Thread starter TreAdidas
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The Monkey
Monkey See, Monkey DAC
A really sick dud
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Quote:
"It's like, how much more black could this be? and the answer is none. None more black."
-Nigel Tufnel
| Originally Posted by Thelonious Monk /img/forum/go_quote.gif what happens when you add fake transparency to something that's already dead-black? |
"It's like, how much more black could this be? and the answer is none. None more black."
-Nigel Tufnel
rsaavedra
Headphoneus Supremus
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Quote:
Whoever thought of a very famous pop star as an answer to that question is way too politically incorrect a person, shame shame! Mods keep an eye on whoever though about such a politically incorrect answer! Ban material I say!
PS. Gee apologies, this is way inapropriate... Couldn't resist...
| what happens when you add fake transparency to something that's already dead-black? |
Whoever thought of a very famous pop star as an answer to that question is way too politically incorrect a person, shame shame! Mods keep an eye on whoever though about such a politically incorrect answer! Ban material I say!
PS. Gee apologies, this is way inapropriate... Couldn't resist...
tjkurita
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Quote:
Are you serious, or is this "fake transparency" and cable stuff an inside joke?
| Originally Posted by Patrick82 /img/forum/go_quote.gif The future is $1k DAC, $1k amp, and $30k worth of Valhalla cables. |
Are you serious, or is this "fake transparency" and cable stuff an inside joke?
Sound card: 7,73%
DAC: 30,29%
Amplifier: 25,90%
Headphones: 15,86%
RAL headphone cable: 8,65%
Interconnect cables: 4,61%
Power cables: 6,92%
I still don't consider myself as a "source first" -guy.
DAC: 30,29%
Amplifier: 25,90%
Headphones: 15,86%
RAL headphone cable: 8,65%
Interconnect cables: 4,61%
Power cables: 6,92%
I still don't consider myself as a "source first" -guy.
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Let's see, going from what I paid:
Speaker rig:
$700 source > $90 cables > $500 pre > $110 cables > $3800 amp > FREE cables > $2900 speakers + ~ $1000 room treatments
$200/$9100 = 2% of system cost in cables
Hahaha
Headphone Gear:
$700 Source > $270 cables > $1500 amp + $1200 amp > $1700 + $1400 + $1500 + $600 headphones
$270/$8870 = 3% system cost in cables
Though if I still owned an HD650, it would have a Zu Mobius attached for sure.
Speaker rig:
$700 source > $90 cables > $500 pre > $110 cables > $3800 amp > FREE cables > $2900 speakers + ~ $1000 room treatments
$200/$9100 = 2% of system cost in cables
Hahaha
Headphone Gear:
$700 Source > $270 cables > $1500 amp + $1200 amp > $1700 + $1400 + $1500 + $600 headphones
$270/$8870 = 3% system cost in cables
Though if I still owned an HD650, it would have a Zu Mobius attached for sure.
Patrick82
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Quote:
No, not a joke. If I would get better sound with the high-end gear I would use them instead of letting them collecting dust. I get the best sound from Benchmark DAC1 that costs $975. Without any tweaks the DAC1 sounds bright which is why people don't like it. After the problems with it were solved it sounded too dark, the fat Valhalla cables costing 30 times more than the DAC were the weaknesses, I had to modify them thinner to solve the problem.
| Originally Posted by tjkurita /img/forum/go_quote.gif Are you serious, or is this "fake transparency" and cable stuff an inside joke? |
No, not a joke. If I would get better sound with the high-end gear I would use them instead of letting them collecting dust. I get the best sound from Benchmark DAC1 that costs $975. Without any tweaks the DAC1 sounds bright which is why people don't like it. After the problems with it were solved it sounded too dark, the fat Valhalla cables costing 30 times more than the DAC were the weaknesses, I had to modify them thinner to solve the problem.
snowball_rx-7
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im using a $150 dac with 200 interconnects (DIY silvers) into a M3 (cost unknown)
but my new $500 dac is on the way. then i have a $100 DIY cardas cable on the HD-650's
but my new $500 dac is on the way. then i have a $100 DIY cardas cable on the HD-650's
Dimitris
Headphoneus Supremus
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I have a $2000 cd player connected to a $2500 amplifier with a $90 interconnect. I am a believer in good cabling however if you go way over then I think prices are rediculous. As long as a cable is sturdy with good plugs and nice material between the plugs I am happy.
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Quote:
The sad part is, sometimes audiophile cables aren't capable of even that.
So far I've experienced the following issues in various audiophile cables in the $100-$300 range:
* The RCA pin is too short to make any contact in certain RCA jacks
* The RCA pin is too narrow to make good contact in certain RCA jacks
* Cable loses internal integrity and signal breaks up when wiggled
* Big RCA plugs that don't fit when the RCA jacks are close together (all too common even with high end sources)
The connection should be the SIMPLEST part of the chain to implement correctly, yet I've had far MORE trouble there than with any actual components! Somebody needs to get their act together with better thought out parts here - though honestly almost all of these issues would disappear if components and cables all used nice XLR jacks/plugs (never had problems with a Neutrik XLR) instead of those awful RCAs. Also, it's amusing that I've never had a problem yet with cheaper RCA cables ala Monster & Radio shack. Sorry for the rant. I'm just sick of flaky RCA cables
I'll also no longer buy cables with Homegrown Audio RCA plugs since I've had more issues with their plugs.
| Originally Posted by Dimitris /img/forum/go_quote.gif As long as a cable is sturdy with good plugs and nice material between the plugs I am happy. |
The sad part is, sometimes audiophile cables aren't capable of even that.
So far I've experienced the following issues in various audiophile cables in the $100-$300 range:
* The RCA pin is too short to make any contact in certain RCA jacks
* The RCA pin is too narrow to make good contact in certain RCA jacks
* Cable loses internal integrity and signal breaks up when wiggled
* Big RCA plugs that don't fit when the RCA jacks are close together (all too common even with high end sources)
The connection should be the SIMPLEST part of the chain to implement correctly, yet I've had far MORE trouble there than with any actual components! Somebody needs to get their act together with better thought out parts here - though honestly almost all of these issues would disappear if components and cables all used nice XLR jacks/plugs (never had problems with a Neutrik XLR) instead of those awful RCAs. Also, it's amusing that I've never had a problem yet with cheaper RCA cables ala Monster & Radio shack. Sorry for the rant. I'm just sick of flaky RCA cables
I'll also no longer buy cables with Homegrown Audio RCA plugs since I've had more issues with their plugs.
rsaavedra
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Quote:
Once I also came across and RCA pin that was a bit too long, so the ground cylinder didn´t fully cover the RCA jack. It wasn´t a high end cable by any means though.
There are also RCA plugs that are incredibly hard to push in or later on remove from any RCA jacks. They make you think you´ll damage your equipment with so much force needed.
| Originally Posted by mulveling /img/forum/go_quote.gif * The RCA pin is too short to make any contact in certain RCA jacks * The RCA pin is too narrow to make good contact in certain RCA jacks * Cable loses internal integrity and signal breaks up when wiggled * Big RCA plugs that don't fit when the RCA jacks are close together (all too common even with high end sources) |
Once I also came across and RCA pin that was a bit too long, so the ground cylinder didn´t fully cover the RCA jack. It wasn´t a high end cable by any means though.
There are also RCA plugs that are incredibly hard to push in or later on remove from any RCA jacks. They make you think you´ll damage your equipment with so much force needed.
Duggeh
Indeed
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Quote:
Every QED cable I've ever touched had that. Stupefyingly irritating.
| Originally Posted by rsaavedra /img/forum/go_quote.gif There are also RCA plugs that are incredibly hard to push in or later on remove from any RCA jacks. They make you think you´ll damage your equipment with so much force needed. |
Every QED cable I've ever touched had that. Stupefyingly irritating.
lowmagnet
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I'm using my DAC1 USB with the USB cable it came with. I have a few more expensive ones (in the $20 range for RCA) but I'm never going to buy something from Cardas or Moon or especially Nordost. Not because I can't afford it, but because I understand electronics well enough to know they are made out of $5 of materials and much bovine excrement.
lowmagnet
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Quote:
The DAC1 has one of the best sounds around because of a faithful adherence to sound engineering instead of following the latest trends of audiophilia. People don't like the DAC1 because it's not made by Brand X and doesn't cost 4 times what it's selling for. If it was, it'd be the second coming of Mark Levinson or something.
| Originally Posted by Patrick82 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Without any tweaks the DAC1 sounds bright which is why people don't like it. |
The DAC1 has one of the best sounds around because of a faithful adherence to sound engineering instead of following the latest trends of audiophilia. People don't like the DAC1 because it's not made by Brand X and doesn't cost 4 times what it's selling for. If it was, it'd be the second coming of Mark Levinson or something.
Patrick82
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Quote:
Food in restaurants are made from cheap materials too. The chef just puts them on a plate and boosts up the price 20x times. The good thing with cables is that once you buy it you can keep it a lifetime.
Quote:
Yes, some people think that just because something costs more it is automatically better.
| Originally Posted by lowmagnet /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm using my DAC1 USB with the USB cable it came with. I have a few more expensive ones (in the $20 range for RCA) but I'm never going to buy something from Cardas or Moon or especially Nordost. Not because I can't afford it, but because I understand electronics well enough to know they are made out of $5 of materials and much bovine excrement. |
Food in restaurants are made from cheap materials too. The chef just puts them on a plate and boosts up the price 20x times. The good thing with cables is that once you buy it you can keep it a lifetime.
Quote:
| Originally Posted by lowmagnet /img/forum/go_quote.gif The DAC1 has one of the best sounds around because of a faithful adherence to sound engineering instead of following the latest trends of audiophilia. People don't like the DAC1 because it's not made by Brand X and doesn't cost 4 times what it's selling for. If it was, it'd be the second coming of Mark Levinson or something. |
Yes, some people think that just because something costs more it is automatically better.
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