henninggodske
Active member
Let me quote some of the conclusions from an 25 year old research from MIT "Audio Interconnect Performance":
The measurements conducted on the (RCA) cables, aside from the noise and THD+N tests, failed to conclude anything as to why some cables allegedly sound better than others. The THD+N and noise tests gave one remotely possible explanation as to why some cables might sound better, but it failed to give any correlation between price and performance or construction and performance. Therefore, it is the basic conclusion of this research that cable quality is of very little consequence in audio systems.
During my search for interconnects to test, I talked to a salesman at two different stores, and both gave me about the same advice/information regarding cables. In effect, what they said was that different cables sound better in different systems - that some cables may make one system sound bright and "airy" while making another sound flat and dull. They recommended trying different cables to see which sounded better in my system. This was about the same information that was written in Butterworth and Griffin's article in Home Theatre.
Upon hearing this advice, it lead me to wonder what about a cable could make
one system sound good and another sound not as good. A big issue in all of this is pyschoacoustics and the perception of sound. What sounds good to one person may not sound good to another. Furthermore, if someone knows that they purchased the supposedly best cable on the market, it may lead them to believe it is making his audio system sound better - the "paying more must lead to better performance" thought. In reality, a listener who was unaware of the change may never notice the difference.
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