WHY CABLES MATTER!

This is a well-travelled and oft-repeating discussion between opposing camps that has no winner on either side of the trenches .

Simply put, it’s an unbridgeable large divide polarizing the cable believers against the cake naysayers , wherein each cohort has absolutely no chance of EVER convincing the other side to change their mind … full stop.

CANUCKAUDIOMART introduced a forum policy enforced by the moderators warning cable forum OPs to refrain from initiating cable flaming under the threat of escalating punishment progressing to forum expulsion for a repeat performance after a formal warning and sanction .

Even though I am a long-time card-carrying “cables matter big-time” conscript with a high-end CARDAS CLEAR array, , my opinion is never going to sink into a hollow, useless, and thus misguided debate or response to a like misguided “cables don’t matter” discussion, taunt, flaming, or war. Carry on.

Disagreeing with other member’s differing cable opinions ( no matter how much….) is still under the umbrella of a forum conduct of base respect with some base modicum of politeness and tolerance in these forum posts.

Regrettably, there are certain types cowardly hiding behind a central plank of anonymity provided by the forum alias, that DO walk among us, …. that won’t engage in like form. They get ignored and eventually blocked out …EZPZ.

These oft-repeating cable threads have one entirely predictable outcome of a Mexican standoff between two irascible polar opposite cohorts of naysayers versus advocates. Each side has absolutely NIL-chance of every convincing the other party to change their beliefs.

@smurfstain

”… I just want some information. Calvin said you had to have a “high enough resolving system” to appreciate cord upgrades, and I would like to know how to get that sort of system. There has to be some way to go about doing this. Well, some way that doesn’t involve demoing cords from some questionable websites. …”

This is a personal journey and not a fast ‘n dirty fix thinking it’s THE END destination based on this or any other audio forum thread, while embarking on your Yellow Brick Road to audio Oz. Simply put, roll up your sleeves and just go audition and experiment for yourself to stress-test the skepticism or cynicism.

(1) Locally, toddle down to your local bricks and mortar dealer to audition various options inserted on their best system. The differences generally are clear and unambiguous,

(2) next ,,,l Think attending a regional audio expo personally, where you can ask questions as you immerse yourself in the many “high resolution” systems and cables. You will immediately know them in the experience by osmosis .
And keep one key think in mind: ask why there is a clear best performance delivery reason that high-end (and cost) NORDOST ODIN and VALHALLA model cables, along with CARDAS CLEAR BEYOND and CLEAR cable models; collectively form the largest share of audio cables selected by the OEM exhibitors to showcase their units at their best. It would be a helluva marketing tool otherwise for them to to chirp that “ we still sound at our best even with cheap shite build and cheap price cables! “

For example, the major high-end cable exhibitors frequently also have workshop demos wherein they progressively take you up their model lines to show the audio performance upticks available.

I will rehash a prior post going back a few years ago of an annual high-end audio audio expo up here in Toronto that I also attended .

as a vivid example , here is the CANADA HI-FI reporter’s take from the NORDOST cables bake-off exhibit actually performed live . They stopped at the improving model bakeoff summit at the Valhallas (one below the Odins) with the inference that with a progressive move up the cables model line, the audio performance improvements keeps getting better .

http://canadahifi.com/taves-consumer-el ... rge-de-sa/

".....I had a chance to sit in on a couple demonstrations in the Nordost room, giving my feet a well deserved break. I’m very familiar with the benefits of high quality cables and use a full Nordost Heimdall 2 loom with my reference two-channel setup.
That being said, I always find the Nordost demonstrations to be an “ear-opening” experience. Michael Taylor from Nordost demonstrated the significant sonic benefits of replacing an OEM cable with a Nordost model – in particular

1) a swap of a single USB cable, from OEM to Nordost Blue Heaven ($250/2m), to Heimdall 2 ($500/2m) and;

2) a swap of a single RCA interconnect, from OEM, to Blue Heaven, to Heimdall 2, to Tyr 2 and finally Valhalla 2.

Along with convincing the audience in the room that cables DO matter, I’ve now got the bug to upgrade...."

I was in agreement along with the many others attending hobby fans .

choose wisely.

About 8 months past since this oft-repeating thread first started , it has now bottomed out into an entirely predictable opposing binary choice, with no chance of movement on either side.

On both sides, their respective “John the Baptist preaching in the wilderness” posts are mired in an intransigent Mexican standoff, that strongly craves that it’s high time to simply and mercifully shelve this futile thread .

I have no doubt that the naysayers hear no change in THEIR systems (emphasis added) ….. fine.

but the Brits have a bespoke expression in their lexicon to best express the notion that applying the same naysayer opinion to all other audio systems - and especially high-end systems - as gospel : “ Bullocks!”

Choose wisely, and carry on.