[edstrelow]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roam /img/forum/go_quote.gif While there's undoubtedly a whole load of hooey in the cable market, cables do become more & more important as the performance level of the system goes up. We can use the analogy of cars and sparkplugs. In a run of the mill car such as a Honda Accord, any half-decent sparkplug will do and there's practically no difference between a $5 plug and a $30 iridium plug other than longevity. Now take a high performance car such as a Ferrari, now you start seeing some differences in the horsepower curves, and with cheap plugs the engine may even stumble a bit at times. Move it up another notch to an F1 engine and the sparkplug becomes absolutely critical. If it's not the best plug which man can make, the engine will sputter horribly and possibly grenade itself. It's much the same in audio, the higher up one goes on the performance ladder, the more everything matters.

I couldn't have said it better myself.

 

[BIG POPPA]

The rule of thumb with cables is you want to spend around 20% of the cost of the source. No sense spending 150 bucks on a cable for an Ipod but, many do. Starting price for Hi-FI is around 50-100 bucks IMO

 

[Spareribs]

Please keep the Benchmark comments out of this thread. Plenty of discussions of it elswhere like at the source forum and the Audiogon general forum as well. Lot's of internet discussions have been done already on this product. Thanks.

Back to the topic:

I usually try to find a good value cable that's considered to compete with the much more expensive cables. Then I try to buy that value cable used, so in the end, I end up saving some money. For example, I really like the sound of Cardas Sennheiser cable and waited and finally got it used for $100 and I don't feel ripped off or financially frustrated from the cable maddness.

Used is the way to go. I love all my cables and have been very happy with them and got them for a fraction of the price or even half price.


I will say this: If there is a cable that you really like and it costs $300, then go ahead and get it. It's only money, what the heck ( I once paid over $200 for a sushi dinner--insanity!). But be patient and you may be able to find it for much less used. A great interconnect for $150 could be found for $80-$90 used so be a little patient.


Or you could get a similar cable for even less and still fully appreciate the sound like the more expensive cable.

 

[meat01]

Quote:

The rule of thumb with cables is you want to spend around 20% of the cost of the source.

There is no rule of thumb with cables, because spending more money on cables does not equal better sound quality. A $30 cable or DIY cable can beat out a $500 cable. There is a lot of marketing in cables and you do not always get what you pay for.

 

[BIG POPPA]

Quote:

Originally Posted by meat01 /img/forum/go_quote.gif There is no rule of thumb with cables, because spending more money on cables does not equal better sound quality. A $30 cable or DIY cable can beat out a $500 cable. There is a lot of marketing in cables and you do not always get what you pay for.

I worked in Stereo stores in the 80's in Central Cali. This was the norm. Things may have changed through the years but not that much.

 

[PhilS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by meat01 /img/forum/go_quote.gif There is no rule of thumb with cables, because spending more money on cables does not equal better sound quality. A $30 cable or DIY cable can beat out a $500 cable. There is a lot of marketing in cables and you do not always get what you pay for.

Certainly there's no rule of thumb for people who don't believe in cables. On the other hand, for those who do, there probably are some general guidelines or "rules of thumb" that people generally apply, in terms of the overall amount spent on cables vs. system cost -- Patrick82 notwithstanding.

 

[BIG POPPA]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tnmike1 /img/forum/go_quote.gif "multiple choice cables?" ALO cryodock & ALO cotton dock & Moon Auido Silver Dragon so total cable costs about $400--SR-71 amp about same money and Portaphile maxxed about $265. Connected to Ipod 5g, whatever that cost, encased in Vaja case retailed for $100 but got on ebay for under $50. Go figure. Time to stop spending money and enjoy the music O forgot to add: Moon Audio's Blue Dragon 1 meter recabling on Beyer 880s--about another $100.

You READ my mind.

 

[CRESCENDOPOWER]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spareribs /img/forum/go_quote.gif Please keep the Benchmark comments out of this thread. Plenty of discussions of it elswhere like at the source forum and the Audiogon general forum as well. Lot's of internet discussions have been done already on this product. Thanks.

Yes, Mr. Moderator.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Black Stuart /img/forum/go_quote.gif Sticking with Nordost, they have a reputation for producing neutral sounding cables.

They also have a reputation for producing cables that sound as bright as the sun.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Black Stuart /img/forum/go_quote.gif Cables don't make a difference? no of course not - hey did you see that flying pig WOW.

Of course cables have an impact on your system, but after some of the comments in this thread, I can actually now understand why some people are skeptics.

 

[tourmaline]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRESCENDOPOWER /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yes, Mr. Moderator. They also have a reputation for producing cables that sound as bright as the sun. Of course cables have an impact on your system, but after some of the comments in this thread, I can actually now understand why some people are skeptics.

I can see you never heard any of the reference series of Nordost cables; they are FAR from bright. They are neutral and never get harsh in the extreem highs, not even with their extension!

I had some pure silver IC's before, now, those were bright in the extreem highs, so much it would hurt your ears. On some sets it even was way to sharp in the highs and lows, very unbalanced, as all the early pure silver IC's had.

Now the pure silver cables are much more balanced but i still feel the copper/silverplating is the best way to go, the natural copper sound with the extended highs of silver.

 

[CRESCENDOPOWER]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tourmaline /img/forum/go_quote.gif I can see you never heard any of the reference series of Nordost cables; they are FAR from bright. They are neutral and never get harsh in the extreem highs, not even with their extension! I had some pure silver IC's before, now, those were bright in the extreem highs, so much it would hurt your ears. On some sets it even was way to sharp in the highs and lows, very unbalanced, as all the early pure silver IC's had. Now the pure silver cables are much more balanced but i still feel the copper/silverplating is the best way to go, the natural copper sound with the extended highs of silver.

I auditioned a Musical Fidelity CD player with Nordost Vahalla interconnects, and it sounded so bad that it was unacceptable. The sound was so forward, aggressive, and lean I actually had to turn the volume down, because I couldn’t take it.
I also know someone with Wilson Audio loudspeakers that absolutely hates Nordost.
But, I’m sure that the both of us are wrong, and have no idea how to put together a system that obtains synergy; probably because we didn’t build our systems around Nordost Vahalla cables first instead of the components.

 

[Patrick82]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRESCENDOPOWER /img/forum/go_quote.gif I auditioned a Musical Fidelity CD player with Nordost Vahalla interconnects, and it sounded so bad that it was unacceptable. The sound was so forward, aggressive, and lean I actually had to turn the volume down, because I couldn’t take it. I also know someone with Wilson Audio loudspeakers that absolutely hates Nordost. But, I’m sure that the both of us are wrong, and have no idea how to put together a system that obtains synergy; probably because we didn’t build our systems around Nordost Vahalla cables first instead of the equipment.

Nordost Valhalla reveals problems in the system...

I found that Magix levitation feet and ERS Paper are great matches for Valhalla. It didn't sound bright even when I removed the power conditioning!

 

[CRESCENDOPOWER]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patrick82 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Nordost Valhalla reveals problems in the system...

That's right! Any system that obtains synergy with a different cable than Nordost has problems.

 

[Patrick82]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRESCENDOPOWER /img/forum/go_quote.gif That's right! Any system that obtains synergy with a different cable than Nordost has problems.

Yes, instead of covering up the brightness with tubes it's better to fix the problems instead. Two years ago the brightness was so bad that I didn't have a choice, I needed to cover it up with Mullard tubes. Valhalla + tubes still sounded more detailed than muddy cable + solid-state. After I tried vibration isolation I didn't need to use tubes anymore because after the vibrations were reduced everything sounded heavy and warm. People who complain Valhalla sounds too thin, now you know why.

 

[Patrick82]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRESCENDOPOWER /img/forum/go_quote.gif I don't care what cable you use on the DAC-1 it still isn't as good as a $3000 CD player, and anyone who thinks otherwise is delusional. Go over to Audio Asylum, and spread your ignorance, and see what they have to say. The quality of digital does not stop at $975.00, and anyone who thinks that hasn’t listened to anything better, but I sure bet they found time to read glorious reviews of the products they own.

It depends on what flavor you like.

I have a $4000 CD player (Cary 303/300), in Sweden it cost me much more. I tried to justify the purchase but not anymore. Benchmark DAC1 is better! I have used the DAC1 for a year now. A few days ago I listened to the CD player again and it had less detail than DAC1, but the 768 kHz flavor was very nice, it was easy to get lost inside the music. Most people will like the sound of the CD player more, because they don't like detail, they like muddy "romantic" sound that isn't fatiguing.

The high-end is for those who want to sacrifice detail for smoother sound. But if you fix the problems in the system then the high-end starts to sound muddy because of a longer signal path.

IMO the gear that is the best is the one that has the most detail. Even if you don't like it you can always cover it up.

 

[tourmaline]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRESCENDOPOWER /img/forum/go_quote.gif I auditioned a Musical Fidelity CD player with Nordost Vahalla interconnects, and it sounded so bad that it was unacceptable. The sound was so forward, aggressive, and lean I actually had to turn the volume down, because I couldn’t take it. I also know someone with Wilson Audio loudspeakers that absolutely hates Nordost. But, I’m sure that the both of us are wrong, and have no idea how to put together a system that obtains synergy; probably because we didn’t build our systems around Nordost Vahalla cables first instead of the components.

As i said earlier, nordost isn't everybodies cup of tea because it doesn't cover up anything in the path. if the cdplayer has a weakness, you'll hear it.

Nordost are one of the most neutral and most revealing cables around. You cannot hide anything with these cables.
This also goes for the reference series or high end series of other brands, the higher you go up the scale, the more things matter!

I auditioned a great deal of the Nordost line and never found any harshness in the cables and IC's. Also on different equipment!

Alot of people like muddy and dark sounding cables, so they cover up the weaknesses of the system.

Try old pure silver ic's or a grado rs-1, now those have harsh highs!(and even some people like the highs of the grado).