Almost everything you do in this hobby results in a tradeoff of some sort or another. I believe this is one the reasons that relying on equipment and cable, etc. reviews and moving forward based on those reviews doesn't always produce results that are pleasing to us. Suggesting that buying only things that can be returned is one answer but that doesn't deal with the circumstance where you don't fully realize what the tradeoff was and whether you are pleased with that tradeoff for a period of time. Return policies always have limits and you may not realize what the tradeoff was until it is too later to return the item(s), Often I will seek what I think will be an improvement only to discover that the only thing I did was change the sound but that the change is only that and actually not an improvement at all. Can keep you on your toes.
Are cable “upgrades” just as likely to make your system sound worse?
Many of us with highly resolving systems have found that speakers cables and interconnect cables can improve the sound quality of our systems. But are they also just as likely to do the opposite?
A few months ago, I “upgraded” to a renowned speaker cable, and immediately noticed more detail and resolution. I was so pleased I also “upgraded” the interconnects. But with more time I realized that the trade-off for more detail was a thinner sound with diminished tonal richness. Thus began a maddening series of attempts to fix the problem – different speaker cables, different DAC, different streamer, and now even a 30 trial of a new amplifier to try to overcome the thinness and find a more natural tone. It finally occurred to me to replace the out-of-sight-out-of-mind interconnects (with my original interconnects), and immediately the problem was blessedly solved.
Have others experienced this frustration? What recommendations do you have to avoid such fiascos?