Do Cable Makers Know Their Own Products?

it is impossible to know the sound of a component, because, it is part of a stereo system. you can't listen to a component by itself.

you can't know what a recording sounds like.

my assertions can proven by applying number theory. essentially it is about the nature of a diophantine equation.

regarding cables being colored. all components are colored. they are not perfect. they have flaws. listen to a stereo system long enough and you will observe deviations from neutrality.

the problem with experiments designed to have a listener detect differences, is the tendency for listener fatigue to set in and aural acuity will suffer. the differential threshold will increase making it more difficult to detect differences.

one has to be rigorous in the design of an experiment. there are principles of psychophysics that need to be followed.

the idea of trying to hear differences between too many objects is inadvisable.

why not listen to two cables at a time, and carry the experiment over some period of time. keep the exposure to a musical; signal relatively short, so as not to degrade auditory memory.

what has been proposed is a very complex undertaking.

"it is impossible to know the sound of a component, because, it is part of a stereo system. you can't listen to a component by itself."

Mrtennis, Maybe this statement is true for you. However, it is not true for me.

I don't think you could ever make this experiment happen, but I would love to be there if it did. :)

Rrog,
The recordings in my system vary according to the quality of the production. Great recordings sound great -- not lean or warm.

Mrtennis,
IMO what has been proposed is not complex. We are only talking about testing 2 cables from each of 5 manufacturers in each cable class -- interconnects, speaker cables and power cords. I believe this would be fairly simple to do. IMO if there is a complex part it would be be the manufacturers trying to figure out which cables are theirs.

Furthermore, we have all read that the best cables do nothing -- they just allow the music to come through in all its naturalness. Then how come all of these interconnects, speaker cables and power cords from these 5 top manufacturers sound different?

Which one or which ones are those that are supposed to be doing nothing? And how do we know they are doing nothing? One maker might claim their cables are doing nothing and that the cables from all the other manufacturers are doing something but how can any manufacturer prove to us that their cables are doing nothing?