Why some speaker cables sound different - in layman's terms

Here's a very good and simple to understand explanation of why some speaker cables sound different to others.

Clicky

I think that most speaker cables sound exactly the same. But I also think that you can sometimes hear a very slight difference between some cables.

The good ones don't add any noticable distortion so they all sound the same because they can't make the original signal any better than it already is. Bad cables that do add distortion can make it worse though and I suspect this is what often gets mistaken for an 'improvement' with some of the overpriced audiophile cables.

I am not going to get drawn into a fruitless argument (which I don't think is your intention), but 2 companies that I have respect for are Cardas (George Cardas) and Atlas (John Carrick). They both have technical explanations on thier websites....whether you think it is marketing BS is down to you.

Cardas (see insights): http://www.cardas.com/content.php?area=insights

Atlas (Go to About us and our Technology): http://www.atlascables.com/

Telurium Q (Colin Wonfer's brainchild) addresses phase distortion.

No amount of me telling you there is a difference, or linking you to possible explanations from manufacturer's websites will end up convincing you to change your mind.

I suggest you go to your nearest TQ dealer and borrow some Ultra Black S/C, Black I/Cs and Blue P/Cs....if your jaw doesn't hit the floor with the improvement, I'll be very surprised. This is the only way to find out for sure....if there isn't a very obvious difference, you have your answer.

I'm not saying you need to buy all this, but at least you will know if it's worth pursuing, and at what level.

Just trying to share some potentially useful information with the forum.

Though this being a cable thread it's safe to assume how it will end up.

The Golden Ears website also looks like a useful reference for anyone interested in headphones. It seems to be written by knowledgeable people who know what they're talking about.

I don't want to open a debate here but this is a short video about MIT cables

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgK87tmRVeY&list=UUEwsFFgCw_kFMvjbWsaUhgQ&index=3

I appreciate what you are trying to do and applaud the fact that, while being sceptical, you are at least open to the possibility.

I think how the signal behaves inside the cable, the relationship between the conductor and the dielectric, and how the material the conductor is made from effects the signal, is far from straightforward.

Cno, at high frequencies, you have a point.  When cables start behaving like waveguides, simple LCR models of cable performance become less useful. At baseband (audio) frequencies, LCR gives you all you need to know about a cable.

What is it about cable performance that is confusing you?

When I start going into some of the technical side that cable manufacturers claim as important (and others say is spin), I get out of my depth very quickly....if you read some of the info on my links, you will see what I mean....especially when looking at the white papers or the details of a patent.

When I get two opposing views, both which sound plausable, I go and listen for myself.....and despite the inherent pitfalls of this, I go with what I hear.

Steve_1979's post and link makes sense to me. To clarify, I would add that the main type of distortion that unusual cables add is not harmonic but a "distortion" - or change to the tonal balance of the system due to capacitance or inductance.

As for the TQ cables, the manufacturer may claim to solve phase issues. I've not seen any evidence of how their cables do this - inparticular what their cables do for phase that say, for instance, £1.08 per metre 742 strand copper figure 8 cable doesn't.

So if there is a noticable diferance in cables at what range of speaker would one hear it....?

Why not try and borrow some TQ Black.....I would be interested in what you think.

Now there's a question.

To some degree it depends on the system and how revealing it is.

IMO. At the cheaper end, the differences are more subtle, but still noticeable......whether they give an improvement is subjective.

If you really want to up the anti, you are looking at TQ Black or Vertere D-Fi / Pulse C ranges...but it is trial and error; and at the end of the day, you might decide that it's not worth the outlay.

I seem to remember an old thread about high end speaker wires,did you purchase some cno?

And yet you deny explanation of why lossless music may sound better than MP3s

Ah, it's 1998 again I see...