How Do You Feel about The Cable Game?
Hifimaniac, You stated, "If audiophiles would try some of his room treatments they might avoid the upgrade urge and mistake." I agree. Actually, I still have the SR ART system in my room and I like it very much. It is part of my extensive room treatments that you can view with my system. SR's room treatments are being well received by many audiophiles lately. Their cables less so these days. They don't make the Big Splash that they used to. I think the reason is obvious. |
Jmcgrogan2, It is unfortunate that so many posters are so serious here. A few have appreciated the humor in my OP -- but some seem to prefer to live in the past, digging into the Audiogon Archives to try to discredit the messenger rather than appreciate the humor of the OP. As we know, this sort of thing is very typical of the way some OPs are handled by some seasoned posters on the Forum -- sling a little mud and try to sully the thread and get the original poster to give up and disappear. Fortunately, I am too old to care about what others think about me or what I write. Anyway, each to his own -- Different Strokes for Different Folks -- as the song goes. I actually saw Sly and the Familty Stone back in the 60s. They were great! |
When John Dunlavy was alive, he had some very strong opinions about the 'cable game'. He would do extensive blindfold tests with a variety of high end cables to see if differences could be consistently detected and then compared that to much lower cost cables. You probably can guess the results. I had a relative that would drink nothing but RC Cola. After years of insisting on having it at every family function I set up a blindfold test with Coca Cola, Pepsi, RC etc. You can probably guess the results of that as well. |
Sabai, yes, I do still have my Powercell 10SE and like it very much. I wish I had the model with the tuning bullets on the cable as friends do. It is amazing what the tuning bullets can do. I agree with the acknowledgment of Synergistic Research's focus on room treatments. I have heard them all at shows, but more importantly in real world systems in friend's houses and I can easily hear the improvement to sound when used versus when taken out. The ART system was the first, then the Tranquility bases, the ECTs (I think that's the name)and last weekend the PHT Purple Haze and Blue Velvet. Soon I will hear the new Atmosphere. One of my more memorable rooms of Ted's was at the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest the year before last when he treated the room with his different treatments and played a Bose Wave radio as the source. You'd have thought you were listening to a tube system over Sasha's or YG's. It was the most amazing thing I have ever heard. If audiophiles would try some of his room treatments they might avoid the upgrade urge and mistake. His treatments can transform a sound stage and make it sound like you upgraded your electronics. I applaud the work Ted is doing and if others can't hear it, that is okay. At least demo some of his stuff and get recommendations on what might be the best first choice to try before purchasing anything. The support team at Synergistic Research are great and accommodating so audiophiles make a good decisions on Synergistic Research products. |
TIme to play The game |
Mofimadness, The OP was about having some fun with cable companies and how they market their products. It seems like you want to change that into a new OP called "Sabai's Love-Hate Relationship with Cable Companies". LOL. I have gone through a lot more cable companies than that. Depending on the level of my system at the time, they may sound good for a while. Until another element in the system changes and then the cabling needs to go to a higher level, as well. This is easy to understand. Cable god? I am flattered. I'm sorry to disappoint you but I cannot claim such a lofty position. I only have my own system and my own experience to fall back on. There's a ton of components and cables I have never heard. So, with all due respect, elevating me to the mountain top is clearly inappropriate. And, with all due respect, I am not looking for "credibility". I have nothing to sell. And frankly, at my age, I really am not concerned about what others say or think about me. I am looking to have a bit of fun with cable companies and their marketing. That's all. With all due respect, if this does not suit your fancy no one is forcing you to participate. I am surprised that so many posters are taking this discussion so seriously -- like they owned stock in the company. Sabai said such-and-such in 2012 and such-and-such in 2010 about such-and-such a cable company. I mean it is flattering that people either have such a long memory or are going to the trouble to look this up. Am I such an important fellow here? Not in my opinion. It would be great if some folks would lighten up and enjoy a few laughs. Life is too short. IMO. |
Sabai has done this many times. He loved, then hated Grover Huffman. He loved then hated HiDiamond. He loved, then hated Synergistic Research. He seems to think he is the cable god and everything he says should be taken as such. I've pretty much quit reading anything authored by him and any of his responses. He's lost all credibility, (with me anyway). |
Hifimaniac, You stated, "Whatever Ted Denny is doing works and while it may not make sense scientifically, it does in listening tests." I think it is clear that SR is heading more in the direction of room treatments because their room treatments have more of a positive impact than their cables do. And the profit margin is much more favorable with room treatments. $60 for an HFT pimple -- imagine how much they cost to produce. My own DIY HFTs cost about a buck a piece to make. SR cables are mid-performance cables, IMO. They are not the best bang for your hard-earned cable buck. I think Shunyata make far better performing cables at a fraction of the price of SR cables. But that's only for my ears in my system. YMMV. |
Jon2020, I sold off all my SR gear a long time ago. I am not ventilating. I am just trying to have some audio fun. Did you miss the humor? a blacker shade of black -- harkening back to Los Bravos' Black is Black and Procol Harum's A Whiter Shade of Pale -- name poaching -- souped up Schumanns -- everything is a transducer nowadays -- the good old days when SR superlatives were in their infancy -- new game-changers will follow on the heels of old game-changers. I love the 2 Peters in their YouTube with Peter B. staring at the camera, his head bobbing up and down like the doggy thing on your dashboard. I mean ya gotta laugh at that HFT for Dummies video with the 2 Peters teaching arithmetic, counting out their HFTs one by one while staring into the camera. This is as good as stand-up comedy except, in this case, they both have a straight face. Responses need not be so serious. Let's lighten up here and enjoy the humor of cable companies doing their thing. |
Jmcgrogan2, I'm not mad at SR at all. I am having some fun with this. Did you miss the humor? -- a blacker shade of black, harkening back to Procol Harum's A Whiter Shade of Pale? I saw Procol Harum live in 1968 -- simply great. I use SR as an example. They are so easy to have fun with since their marketing is so transparent, excuse the audio pun. But, as you rightly point out, they are no different from so many other cable makers. Jon2020, That's 5 years ago -- that 5 lifetimes in Audioland. "Something must have happened"? 5 lifetimes of "something" have happened to my system since then. I imagine most everyone who is as active as I am developing their system would be able to say the something similar. After all, that's what we are here for on Audiogon, to develop our systems and to share what we are doing with others. |
Who's paying you to slam Synergistic Research? So a designer continues to refine what he is doing; isn't that what Transparent does with it's network boxes? Seems like the old Reference line becomes the new Ultra line and everything moves down a series when something new is introduced at the top. At least Ted Denny's designs aren't as absurdly priced as many other cables. I listened with skepticism to the PHT cartridge tweek last weekend. First no PHT was applied to the cartridge,then the Purple Haze. I was dumbfounded by the obvious improvement to all aspects of the sound presented. Then off went the Purple Haze and on went the Blue Velvet. Again, obvious improvement easy to detect! No convincing yourself you're hearing something, just clearly audible improvements. What's more head scratching is each of the PHTs are shaped the same and weigh the same, yet the sound difference is clear. The Blue Velvet elicits what you'd like; a luxuriously, dense musical presentation as smooth as velvet. The Purple Haze is anything but a haze; it is musical with pinpoint imaging, instrument body and weigh, and without sounding analytical or Hi-Fi sounding. Whatever Ted Denny is doing works and while it may not make sense scientifically, it does in listening tests. If you don't like his products, go elsewhere. If enthusiasts listen to his new products and choose to purchase them because they sound better than earlier models, what's it to you? |
Sabai, In another thread on GG cables, you stated :- "12-22-10: Sabai ..........I just installed a Synergistic Research PowerCell 10SE power conditioner with Galileo MPC in my system. I have mostly Gabriel Gold cables in my system -- ICs, PC and SCs. The synergy between the SR PowerCell 10SE -- right out of the box -- and the Gabriel Gold cables is perfect. Wide and deep sound stage, wonderful resolution -- very detailed and warm, at the same time -- and superb dynamics. ......" Something must have happened along the way for you to turn away from SR. Do share with us. It's good to ventilate, and at the same time, keep fellow forumers informed. :) J. |
Somehow I was expecting more substance to this thread from the title. It seems that it is only a long rant against one cable company. I am not defending SR, but why single them out? They are simply playing the same game as the rest of the industry. Perhaps you should simply have titled the thread "I'm mad as hell at SR". |
