Which type of cable has the most impact: Power, IC (Interconnect), or Speaker?

[jenson]

i reckon IC has the most impact...what's the view of believers?

 

[reignofchaos]

So far the biggest sound change for the better I have ever heard in my system was when my mogami digital cable between the cd transport and dac was changed with an Audionote Black Pallas cable.

Things just popped out of blackness. The difference was so massive - it was audible on phone recordings. It was almost like upgrading to a new DAC.

I couldn't buy the cable as it costs around 5000 GBP. But if I had the funds to spare, it was a no brainer.

 

[Yelamanchili manohar]

i reckon IC has the most impact...what's the view of believers?

Every cable is equally important to hear the system at its potential. Which ever cable is the present weakest link in your system, the upgrade of that cable will give you the biggest noticeable gains

 

[jenson]

Every cable is equally important to hear the system at its potential. Which ever cable is the present weakest link in your system, the upgrade of that cable will give you the biggest noticeable gains

diplomacy ki bhi koi seema hoti hain

 

[amit11]

i reckon IC has the most impact...what's the view of believers?

Cable impact. Time to realize this fact

IC. High. Soon
Speaker cable. Medium. Lesser soon
Power cable. Low. Least soon

 

[Yelamanchili manohar]

diplomacy ki bhi koi seema hoti hain

haha...okay then

Iam upgrading my cabling starting at the wall. So obviously inter connects next, followed by speaker cables at the last for me.

 

[arj]

There are 2 dimensions ie 1. where is it placed and 2 what cable is it

for 1. the Higher the cable nearer to the source, the most important then the amplification and then the speaker..of course not all cables are needed for alll but the idea is anything before the amplification makes the most impact

For 2 Digital cable > IC>power cable > Speaker cable as a general rule but except for the digital cable theya re all very component dependent ie what works for one may not work for the other

IC between a cdp and pre is more important than between pre and power, Power cable at source is more important etc etc..as long as your equipment is sensitive to one.

These are all guidelines but the factors of A. what is right and B. What you individually like will make every combination unique especially with powercables.

 

[sunder]

IC between a cdp and pre is more important than between pre and power, Power cable at source is more important etc etc..as long as your equipment is sensitive to one

Well said Arj.

 

[Kannan]

In my experience: Studio grade cables offer the best value for money.
Power cable: Zilch if you use a decent quality one that matches the power rating requirement
Digital cables and interconnects: Low voltage transfer cable like digital cables and interconnects: Any well shielded cable will be good enough. Depending on cable material there maybe some audible changes in frequency response. Pricey cables that claim some abracadabra pseudo science do not make any difference irrespective of the cost of your chain. Most important, a cable should be as neutral as possible and should not act like a tone control.
Speaker Cables: Go with well shielded 12 or 14 awg cables with strong termination.

Spend more money on other components and do not get trapped into the labyrinth world of cables as it will become a land of no return (both mentally and economically).

 

[Yelamanchili manohar]

There are 2 dimensions ie 1. where is it placed and 2 what cable is it

for 1. the Higher the cable nearer to the source, the most important then the amplification and then the speaker..of course not all cables are needed for alll but the idea is anything before the amplification makes the most impact

For 2 Digital cable > IC>power cable > Speaker cable as a general rule but except for the digital cable theya re all very component dependent ie what works for one may not work for the other

IC between a cdp and pre is more important than between pre and power, Power cable at source is more important etc etc..as long as your equipment is sensitive to one.

These are all guidelines but the factors of A. what is right and B. What you individually like will make every combination unique especially with powercables.

Excellent @arj

Thanks for sharing

 

[sachinchavan 15865]

The audio cables, especially the analog, but even the digital. I didn’t find much impact from changing power cables, surely not commensurate with their prices. I stick to the stock cables that came with each component. The conclusion I’ve drawn is, if the power cables indeed made a big difference, then the manufacturers of components running into lacs of Rs wouldn’t have minded spending 5000 or even 10000 on including a custom power cable, instead of providing the commoditised black cable.

It’s a different story with the audio cables. I thought I had finally settled on my speaker cables (a Belden 8471/8477 combo), when recently out of a whim I cut the extra half metre on each and was surprised by the clarity improvement that resulted. But to be more correct, I won’t say any cable ‘improves’ the sound… they just ‘degrade’ it less than others.

 

[Nagaraj S]

For me, there was most certainly was an easily recognisable difference when I upgraded my L and R speaker wires from Amazon basics to Mogami Neglex. Not surprising you would say give the jump in cable quality (and price). Interestingly, while the Mogami gave great separation, its bass was much leaner than the one I was used to on Amazon Basics (bloated bass perhaps). I eq-ed the bass and I am used to the Mogami sound now. You may or may not like the new cable characteristics when you upgrade.

I don’t recall such a stark difference when I changed the ICs to Mogami. But, when I upgraded the power cable from stock to Murthy’s (solidly built) along with the Sound Foundation’s Barracuda distribution box, I thought there was an improved bass definition, but not as striking as stated earlier.

 

[heliumflight]

I have ASI Live line power cable and ASI Live line Reference IC which I am not using and if anyone would like to try.

 

[jenson]

I have ASI Live line power cable and ASI Live line Reference IC which I am not using and if anyone would like to try.

to all non-believers....try this IC...if your system doesn't take a giant leap in terms of overall clarity and depth, mera non existent mooch uda dena

As for power cables, if not the expensive ones, definitely not the ones provided with every laptop or PC. Instead, source the best cable available on the market, either stranded or core, and add the best plug/pin, etc. At least that.

Cerelac may come packed to the greatest standard, but what's the point if the spoon is dirty?

 

[arj]

..The conclusion I’ve drawn is, if the power cables indeed made a big difference, then the manufacturers of components running into lacs of Rs wouldn’t have minded spending 5000 or even 10000 on including a custom power cable, instead of providing the commoditised black cable.
..

This is where "violent" disputes on power cables come up.. but everyone can have a view but what works for you is what one should go for !

I do have ASI Livelines on my Digital ie CDP and DAC and that too after a pure sinewave regenerator and PC difference can be heard. on Turntable, phono,pre and power amp i have very regular cheap cables..off a relatively cheap power distribution box by Legrand but recommended by Naim for their equipment.

ICs are pro level for most of the chain except Digital where ASI Livelines have been the best I have ever heard.

 

[Hari Iyer]

I have tried various kind of wires and configuration for my IC cables and till last week was using a single core pure silver cable for all equipment connection. The sound was hallow with that and did not know the reason. I measured my speakers and I noticed that there was a severe group delay in mid bass till 2khz of around 50msec which was huge. Below 100hz the group delay was even higher than 250msec. I then realized something was wrong somewhere and I suspected the IC cable.

Since I had scrapped all my previous wires to remove clutter, I started fresh with my time tested polycab telephone wire which is a 24awg single core with PE dielectric. As the intention was to check the group delay, I made a 2 + 2 core twisted cable of 1.5 meter length. They had an internal capacitance of 155pF ( measured). I again measured my speakers and the group delay fell from 50msec to 8msec in the midbass and midrange region. To confirm this I restored back to silver cable and again measured and the group delay was again 50msec. Wow, this was a discovery for me - TBH. I then went ahead and replaced all my silver wires with the telephone cables. As the telephone cables were high capacitance ( around 155pF), I needed to work on the cable geometry to reduce that. Yesterday I purchased a 10mm hallow PVC tube ( the one you use for water filter etc), inserted a 2 core wire for the hot, and spiraled another 2 core wire across the length of the tube for the cold wire. Due to the isolation the internal capacitance dropped from 155pF to 44pF for the same length of wire.

In my setup, somehow a high capacitance IC cable just don't work. It makes my setup sound bright, fatigued and distorted in the HF. The change of IC cable wire from silver to copper and using an unique DIY cable geometry had a significant impact in group delay, bandwidth and subjectively the tonality and soundstage. I mostly will be settling with this cable as final because I have already tried Belden 2 core shielded cables on my rig and they too sound very horrible/bad in my setup. I have measured a 250pF cable capacitance for the Belden wire btw.

PS: Any FM using low capacitance IC cable - please share your experience.

Thanks for looking at this longish post.

 

[heliumflight]

Then, did you melt your silver IC

 

[vinothkumar]

While every cable is important in a chain, the most impactful area is the power cable especially to the distribution box, and the second important one is the speaker cables.

 

[Hari Iyer]

Then, did you melt your silver IC

No, it can't be melted as it's teflon dielectrics

 

[Hari Iyer]

I have tried various kind of wires and configuration for my IC cables and till last week was using a single core pure silver cable for all equipment connection. The sound was hallow with that and did not know the reason. I measured my speakers and I noticed that there was a severe group delay in mid bass till 2khz of around 50msec which was huge. Below 100hz the group delay was even higher than 250msec. I then realized something was wrong somewhere and I suspected the IC cable.

Since I had scrapped all my previous wires to remove clutter, I started fresh with my time tested polycab telephone wire which is a 24awg single core with PE dielectric. As the intention was to check the group delay, I made a 2 + 2 core twisted cable of 1.5 meter length. They had an internal capacitance of 155pF ( measured). I again measured my speakers and the group delay fell from 50msec to 8msec in the midbass and midrange region. To confirm this I restored back to silver cable and again measured and the group delay was again 50msec. Wow, this was a discovery for me - TBH. I then went ahead and replaced all my silver wires with the telephone cables. As the telephone cables were high capacitance ( around 155pF), I needed to work on the cable geometry to reduce that. Yesterday I purchased a 10mm hallow PVC tube ( the one you use for water filter etc), inserted a 2 core wire for the hot, and spiraled another 2 core wire across the length of the tube for the cold wire. Due to the isolation the internal capacitance dropped from 155pF to 44pF for the same length of wire.

In my setup, somehow a high capacitance IC cable just don't work. It makes my setup sound bright, fatigued and distorted in the HF. The change of IC cable wire from silver to copper and using an unique DIY cable geometry had a significant impact in group delay, bandwidth and subjectively the tonality and soundstage. I mostly will be settling with this cable as final because I have already tried Belden 2 core shielded cables on my rig and they too sound very horrible/bad in my setup. I have measured a 250pF cable capacitance for the Belden wire btw.

PS: Any FM using low capacitance IC cable - please share your experience.

Thanks for looking at this longish post.

To give some perspective to this post, sharing group delay measurements with silver and copper IC cable for my setup and room,





Thanks for looking.