Here's a tale from the old school/used side of the tracks. Few weeks back I bought a Wadia 170i (10 yrs old) to use with a few ipods I own. Hooked it up to an 18 yr old dac I had in the 'spares' closet. I used a set of DH Labs IC from the dac to the pre. VERY pleased with the sound but the highs were a bit 'tizzy'. I've read this can be an effect of high jitter so I'm looking into a new dac but I decided in the meanwhile to attempt to 'calm down' the highs by switching out the copper encased in silver IC with a (really) old set of Audioquest FMS Blues. Problem solved! Almost too much so, I'll be getting a new IC from Blue Jean shortly. But the cables clearly sound different from one another, I basically used the blues as a tone controll
DO CABLES REALLY MATTER?
Yes they do. I’m not here to advocate for any particular brand but I’ve heard a lot and they do matter. High Fidelity reveal cables, Kubala Sosna Elation and Clarity Cable Natural. I’m having a listening session where all of them is doing a great job. I’ve had cables that were cheaper in my system but a nicely priced cable that matches your system is a must. I’m not here to argue what I’m not hearing because I have a pretty good ear. I’m enjoying these three brands today and each is presenting the music differently but very nicely. Those who say cables don’t matter. Get your ears checked. I have a system that’s worth about 30 to 35k retail. Now all of these brands are above 1k and up but they really are performing! What are your thoughts.