Are Monster Cables overpriced?

[Ornery]

"--I immediately believed the effect of cabling--and it only got better with burn-in..."

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[spidey07]

Hey, most good recording engineers pay special attention to cables, grounding (after they're got mic and studio setup)

So I figure they guys making the best recordings in the world know what they're talking about (chesky)

 

[Mday]

they shouldnt be "cheap" but they are rediculously overpriced.

 

[Ornery]

I'm still burning in my cables. I figure they'll be fully broke in a couple years from now. Then I'll be able to savor the subtle nuances of highs and lows in my vast hip hop collection.

 

[Viperoni]

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[Ornery]

Hah! Viperoni, may I have permission to use that form in the future?

BTW, this isn't nearly as bad of a repost as quite a few others. 150 replies is quite a bit of interest, too!

 

[sxr7171]

Originally posted by: spidey07
Hey, most good recording engineers pay special attention to cables, grounding (after they're got mic and studio setup) So I figure they guys making the best recordings in the world know what they're talking about (chesky)

Yeah, they do. Especially Chesky, I have a couple of their SACDs and they are excellent even though they were recorded originally in PCM.

I think with regard to audio in general, there are people who 'know' through experience, and those that think they what they're talking about.

 

[Shockwave]

Originally posted by: sxr7171

Originally posted by: spidey07
Hey, most good recording engineers pay special attention to cables, grounding (after they're got mic and studio setup) So I figure they guys making the best recordings in the world know what they're talking about (chesky)

Yeah, they do. Especially Chesky, I have a couple of their SACDs and they are excellent even though they were recorded originally in PCM.

I think with regard to audio in general, there are people who 'know' through experience, and those that think they what they're talking about.

Yeah, and those who know know you aint winnin 10 grand. Like I said, sound quality and noise rejection are two entirely different things. Sound quality isnt changin, interference from noise *can* change thus you may percieve a different sound quality. But, in a noise free environment you could use el cheapo bare copper wire.

 

[wy1550]

(I'm the friend GOSHARKS posted for.)

Yeah, they do. Especially Chesky, I have a couple of their SACDs and they are excellent even though they were recorded originally in PCM.

Chesky's issue of Sibelius' second symphony (Barbirolli, RPO) is one of my all time favorite CDs. It's amazingly detailed and satisfying in spite of the huge amount of tape-hiss--a prime example of the separation of noise and quality. Noise rejection and sound quality ARE two totally different things which are BOTH highly dependent on cable geometry, material, and build quality. In a noise-free environment you will still suffer significant quality degradation from basic factors like cable capacitance when using your "el cheapo bare copper wire"

Check out Mapleshade records. They say a lot and it may be a bit tough to swallow, but they're very musically oriented, and I've gotta say, they're doing something right.

 

[Ornery]

• 

Cables, Interconnects & Other Stuff

• Polk Audio, a well respected manufacturer of loudspeakers in Baltimore, no longer makes cables but declined an invitation to set up a listening test in its laboratories. One reason it gave was that the test could affect relationships with audio stores. "We would be hearing from every retailer in the country," said Paul Dicomo, communications director for Polk Audio. Kerry Moyer, staff director for the Consumer Electronics Association, which represents manufacturers, said accessories were usually the highest markup items, wires included. Sales of high-margin accessories have become critical in the current market, where prices of components like receivers, amplifiers and DVD players, have had profit margins squeezed by competition.
  
  "It becomes a question of where are we going to make a little money?" he said. Mr. Moyer, whose $3,000 sound system uses about $300 worth of cables, said the technological superiority of a cable is not the issue -- it is the
  perceived value to the hobbyist.
  
  "If someone feels good about buying it, whether it works or it doesn't, it makes them feel good," he said. "I don't think we should question."
  
  John Dunlavy, who manufactures audiophile loudspeakers and wire to go with it, does think questioning is valid. A musician and engineer, Mr. Dunlavy said as an academic exercise he used principles of physics relating to transmission line and network theory to produce a high-end cable. "People ask if they will hear a difference, and I tell them no," he said.
  
  Mr. Dunlavy has often gathered audio critics in his Colorado Springs lab for a demonstration.
  
  "What we do is kind of dirty and stinky," he said. "We say we are starting with a 12 AWG zip cord, and we position a technician behind each speaker to change the cables out." The technicians hold up fancy-looking cables before they disappear behind the speakers. The critics debate the sound characteristics of each wire. "They describe huge changes and they say, 'Oh my God, John, tell me you can hear that difference,'" Mr. Dunlavy said. The trick is the technicians never actually change the cables, he said, adding, "It's the placebo effect."