Hi Brulee. Thanks all. Yes, the story is quite amazing. I will ask him more about it today, at my sister's birthday dinner. My father had a closed mind, even that night. But, I only switched cables on one speaker. Fortunately, the differences in the two are dramatic. Exactly the ideal situation for the most stubborn cablephobe. You just have to move two feet in either direction to hear a world of difference. One cable is flat, uninspired, recessed(bass, midrange, AND treble), and extremely bass/dynamic shy. The other is upfront, forward, alive, detailed, and punchy. It is my opinion that anyone with even below average hearing can hear the difference. Having such disparate cables allowed me to keep my mouth shut. All I asked was that he stand here, then move to here. He moved back and forth on his own. And then said, "I cannot believe how different the sound coming from each speaker is. Why is that? A cable CAN'T make that kind of difference..." My father's hearing is not even that great. He has been around a lot of machinery, gunshots, and helicopters in his past, and his hearing has been receding in the past five years. But, he had no trouble discerning the difference. I only wish I could do the same demo for anyone who strives for good sound in their system, and dismisses cables as nonsense.
A most unlikely cable convert
OK, here is a BIG win for those who know that different speaker wire sounds different! My dad is an electrical engineer of the 60's ilk. In EVERY sense of the word. You know the type, if it measures better, it is better, solid state measures better than tubes, wire is wire, blah, blah, blah. Of course, my collection of cables engenders reactions that range from ridicule to outright disgust. So tonight he was visiting, and he heard a jazz CD I was playing. Down To The Bone, "From Manhattan To Staten". Great CD, if anyone cares. He was mesmerized, thought it to be the best CD he's heard in years. My system has always drove him to disgust, "Tubes?!?". He couldn't get over how great the system sounded. The fact that he even admitted this after all these years was astounding enough. Then, I suggested the new speaker cables I am using to my mids/tweeters are a very poor match in my system(will be soon taking them out). His answer was, "BS!". So I switched the cables used for the woofers(AudioQuest Midnight) and the ones to the mids/tweeters. Instant difference for the better. And not insignificant. He could not only hear it, HE HAD TO ADMIT IT. So now one of the world's biggest cable naysayers has just become a convert. I hope all who still think "wire is wire" just open their ears the same way my father did tonight.