Difference in sound between copper and silver digital cables?

Your system’s current sound and what you want more or less of determines the type of cable you should buy. Yes cables can be used like seasoning in the hands of a chef. You’re a sound chef. While design, solid vs. stranded, cotton vs Teflon and on and on all impact sound, silver does have a sound personality that always comes through. It is marked by sharp, crisp, and clear leading edges, slightly leaner overall presentation and the perception of increased speed and inner details. Place silver in cotton and silver becomes more open, natural and not quite as lean. However, it still exhibits the general silver sound in relation to pure copper.

Copper tends to deliver more mid-bass body and weight and is not as well defined in terms of leading edge detail. Bass is a tad more rounded and yes this can vary, but in general is accurate.

So you have sonic must haves and preferences. Your system does or does not meet these preference as well as you like so start cooking!

Caps and resistors, well most parts, also have a sound. One can dial in a system by seasoning with these parts and cables. This is my particular area of interest and one that I have many thousands of hours of experience in. Many Aphiles don’t believe this to be true or possible, but if one spends enough time, effort and due diligence on this area of study, then they would learn first hand just how real it is.

Take a simple tube dac with an output cap right before the RCA outputs. Try placing a Vcap Odam cap vs. say a Jensen copper foil cap in paper and oil and I can assure you this same dac will sound quite different depending on your choice. No ear straining is needed to hear the difference. My point is that materials matter and do indeed have a sound. Same is true for cabling.  

Yes you are right Doug! Always outlier experiences and who knows why? System? Ears? Break in? Bad pizza? 

I have built and sold USB cables for years trying all manner of conductors. Easy to hear the sonic character of pure silver vs. pure copper conductors in identical designs. One can also easily hear synthetic vs natural conductor coverings. My customers could easily tell when sending them two different USB cables to try and report back. Same general differences as found in analog cables. Materials have a sound regardless of design. They just do.

Is it possible some are less able to hear these differences? Yes indeed.

My mom used to tell me you just can’t help some people. Seems she was spot on.  Still a great place this Agon! What can one possibly do after spending years and thousands of hours building, testing, listening then building again with various conductors just to have someone say all I have leaned is not true and a result of my flawed person and weak mind. What I do is smile and forge on. It’s what we all have to do.

I am sure you like it and that’s wonderful.  Please try and be a tad more civilized here on the Gon.  Enjoy. 

Bill