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Originally Posted by mdabb
There is a link below where I found part of the info about OFC cable it is about copper wire. Scroll down to: "What about oxygen free wire?". The resistance is increased after the process. There is I think two other websites where I read info about "speaker cables" and do comparisons. Some of the info was also about untreated connectors. I didn't bookmark them and will have to back through and find those articles.
http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm |
That explains a lot. I've had a look at that site in the past, and there's a lot on there that goes against established audio credo (not to mention, my own experience). For this reason, I don't give a lot of credibility to it...
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I am just trying to make sense of "speaker cables" in general and sift through all the info. Cables costing $250 each and cables costing more are where it gets frustrating. What makes that cable so great and is it just a claim? Before I make a purchase I want to make sure why that cable is great or better. After all I want to do what is best for my system now and in the future. I will find the other articles soon and hopefully they will be of use to others.
For people who already own expensive cables- what lead you to buy that particular cable? If I'm going to spend a couple thousand dollars on cables I have to know "why" those cables are the ones to get.
Also sorry if I'm trying to get too technical but after all wouldn't we want to sort through the hype and get down to what is a great speaker cable and why? It's not like you can borrow speaker cables to test out.
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Last point first: any good dealer will let you borrow cables. It's one of the privileges one can expect for shopping at a specialist dealer as opposed to Best Buy et al.
As for your other questions, one way to keep up with this stuff is to read reviews in high end audio magazines like The Absolute Sound, HiFi+, and Stereophile (I especially like The Absolute Sound).
What makes a cable great? The sound quality! The better the cable, the less effect it'll have on the sound--the more it'll let through. I'm no reviewer, but when I upgraded from a generic no name cable to Nordost Frey, I noticed all sorts of little details I hadn't noticed before. And, stereo imaging improved.
I have a fairly expensive system, so spending serious $$$ on cables is OK. Cables can and do make a difference, but it only makes sense to spend a lot of $$$ on cables when the rest of your system is (or will be after any planned upgrades) up to par. The best cables in the world won't improve the sound of a flawed system; if anything they'll just make those flaws more obvious.