Value of a premium Ethernet cable


In my current setup, digital music from a Roon ROCK NUC server travels through an Uptone Audio EtherRegen and a short link of fiber, thence to a long stretch of ordinary contractor-grade Cat 5a cable, and finally to a dCS Bartók streaming DAC.

 

At substantial effort and expense, I could rearrange things so the final length of Ethernet would be replaced by a single run of something like an Audioquest Vodka Ethernet cable. I'm wondering if anyone has experience of whether this is worth the trouble and expense. Well mostly the expense; the "trouble" is the hobby part of it.

john_g

Showing 3 responses by cleeds

tvrgeek

A shield connected on one end without a bypass cap is called an "antenna."

It's very commonly used in interconnect cables. In fact, with my active crossover and servo woofers, such cables are the only way I can avoid hum. And yes, the direction very much matters. You are simply wrong.

Many single ended cables are in fact, snake oil. 

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tvrgeek

The ONLY cables that are in fact directional are either balanced cables with a isolated shield/cap bypass which can be used as a band aid for ground loop problems, or pure snake oil.

You are mistaken. Many single-ended interconnects use shielding that is connected only on the source end. It's a very effective technique and certainly not "snake oil."

@tvrgeek I think you may be getting too much of your information from those Youtube "experts."

tvrgeek

Extraordinary claims need extraordinary proof ... This is why correctly designed cables have a bypass cap connecting the shield to complete the circuit for RF but not for hum. We learn these things in first semester electronics.

My reporting on the value of using an interconnect that has a shield attached at end only is hardly an "extraordinary claim." As I mentioned, it’s a shielding method used by many manufacturers and users. So it’s rather odd that you demand proof, and then reject it with a wave of the hand.

In any event, no one here owes you anything at all, including scientific "proof." This is a hobbyist’s group, not a science forum.

We learn these things in first semester electronics.

I don’t think you learned everything that you thought you did.