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Do you consider yourself an audiophile?

Are you an audiophile?

  • Yes

    Votes: 31 13.5%

  • No

    Votes: 83 36.1%

  • Audiophiles are deluded bullshitters

    Votes: 116 50.4%
  • Total voters
    230
pbsmooth said:
“ One wire can truly appear to sound different than the other but for the wrong reasons.”

That’s a good one.

I wonder whether he’s ever listened to any of them or just run them through his machine? Amps can measure incredibly similarly but sound different.
But I appreciate his attention to detail to prove his opinion.
Click to expand...
Any audio device or component where you've thought you can hear a difference - have you tested that with a true blind test?

I myself have experienced hearing a difference between things like cables. I absolutely don't trust that I'd still hear it in a blind test though.
 
teuchter said:
Quite a good summary of wires here


It seems that the only way you can produce an audible difference is by using a wire that's significantly thinner than it should be.
Click to expand...

Have seen real world occurrence of this. We were given bell wire to wire up some wall speakers and the furthest one away sounded terrible until we got some proper 1.5 or 2.5mm cable.
 
I'm happy with my chord company cables. they are well made for sure and probably use half decent materials too.

considering i was just using standard red/white phono leads previoiusly, I will say there is a difference in sound.
 
pbsmooth said:
well, not really worth it when people have made up their minds but this is first google hit.
the guy has clearly made up his mind before he starts. he then measures an audible difference by their definition but then discounts it as being only audible "if you know what to listen for". well, most people with a serious hi-fi would know what to listen for...
www.soundguys.com

Cable myths: reviving the coathanger test

Today, in our speaker cable blind test we're going to try to prove one way or another whether or not high-end speaker cables make a difference for your equipment.
www.soundguys.com
they then seem to have had a poll inviting readers to listen to the audio samples online through their computers using whatever gear they might have and vote on difference? seems so ridiculous a waste of time to rather defeat his experiment.
Click to expand...

In the same way that you are imagining a difference between cables, you are imagining the results of what you have presented.

The one tiny deviation you mention that can be seen in the graph is the difference between an uninsulated coat hanger and a high end cable. The one tiny tiny difference that breaks the 1db mark is clearly minute. Inaudible. Even if it was, it's not even a crap cable . . . it's less . . . it's an uninsulated lump of coat hanger metal.

They were looking for a clear and consistent difference. . .plus that was on the stereo cable where there are far greater possibilities of error. Look at the practically (and actually surprisingly) flat mono read out.

What needs to be stated plainly here is that the only thing this experiment demonstrated was that the use of cables of the correct specifications should not be audibly any different than each other. If you use an appropriate gauge wire, and the proper connectors: you should be golden regardless of how much—or little—you spend on cables.
Click to expand...

Also. Don't forget (as mentioned in the article) there has been a million pounds up for grabs since the 80s for anyone / any company who can prove their ridiculously priced cables are better than basic £20 ones.
Surprise surprise, nobody ever won.
 
danski said:
I reckon that’s run by not an audiophile
Click to expand...
If it's the limited company of the same name, it's a one-man band in Newcastle, whose business is described on Companies House as "Retail sale via mail order houses or via Internet". As opposed to "cutting edge audiological research", or anything. Or, for that matter, "selling bags with rocks in".

AUDIO THERAPY LIMITED overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK

AUDIO THERAPY LIMITED - Free company information from Companies House including registered office address, filing history, accounts, annual return, officers, charges, business activity
find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk
 
moody said:
I'm happy with my chord company cables. they are well made for sure and probably use half decent materials too.
Click to expand...
They don't look 'badly made', they just are not worth the money they are selling them for and the claims are ridiculous.
moody said:
considering i was just using standard red/white phono leads previoiusly,
Click to expand...
Standard red/white phonos are totally fine unless they are broken or not constructed correctly. Definitely zero need whatsoever to spend over £20 on basic phono leads.
moody said:
I will say there is a difference in sound.
Click to expand...
There really isn't. It's not possible for all the reasons previously listed.
If you can prove it there is still that million quid that's been up for grabs since the 80s.
 
wemakeyousoundb said:
Did any of them ever apply?..
Click to expand...
I assume not. From what I gather they would not agree on the terms of the testing. I think the person who put up the money might be dead now though.

With leads / cables / " interconects" (ha) sold at these crazy prices, they only need a very very very small percentage of consumers to buy them to keep the business model going.
I am surprised anyone falls for it, but even this small thread on this small part of the internet proves some people really do buy into the bunkum.
I first came across it in the 90s when I was filming a news feature on some new audio technology (I forget what) and visited an audiophile magazines 'listening room'. We just needed stats, technical details, a quote from an expert to show what this new thing did (a real thing) . The audiophiles had told the producer that they had all this amazing testing equipment and could test / demonstrate the products . . . but they didn't, they just had a room (with cable lifts etc) and their ears. Nothing I could show on telly to prove the products claims. It was infuriating. I remember them saying how much their cables & kit cost (though they got them all for free). I did bring up with them that other than the rooms acoustics (which weren't even 'that' great) I couldn't see how any of this stuff made a difference. We couldn't really use anything other than one talking head of the guy from the mag giving an opinion rather than factually testing a claim. The whole thing looked stupid and pointless (I wasn't in charge btw, just filming). I got a few GVs to paint the item, but it was a long way to go just for that.
 
I'm considering this amp: WiiM Amp (Silver)

I currently play music from my computer via a USB cable to a NAD D3020 which I have some passive speakers for. The NAD seems to be on its way out but I've noticed amps now do not include a USB input unless it for a USB flash drive.

Am I right in thinking an optical cable would work just as well? Amps like the one linked have kept optical ins but its not something I have ever used. The Wiim amp also had a HDMI input which means I could improve the sound coming out of my TV.
 
MBV said:
I'm considering this amp: WiiM Amp (Silver)

I currently play music from my computer via a USB cable to a NAD D3020 which I have some passive speakers for. The NAD seems to be on its way out but I've noticed amps now do not include a USB input unless it for a USB flash drive.

Am I right in thinking an optical cable would work just as well? Amps like the one linked have kept optical ins but its not something I have ever used. The Wiim amp also had a HDMI input which means I could improve the sound coming out of my TV.
Click to expand...
how about an amp with a built in dac?

that would surely have a usb input
 
Bahnhof Strasse said:
nintronics.co.uk

AudioQuest Dragon Zero Speaker Cable (Pair)

AudioQuest Dragon Zero Speaker Cable (Pair)| On Demonstration | Free Delivery | Trade in Available | Interest Free Credit | Authorised AudioQuest Dealer + Stockist
nintronics.co.uk nintronics.co.uk

4m for just £46,700 - you know you want to!
Click to expand...

Makes you think.

"When possible, running separate cables to the treble and bass “halves” of a speaker significantly reduces distortion. Bi-Wiring keeps the large magnetic fields associated with bass energy out of the treble cable, allowing the delicate upper frequencies to travel a less magnetically disturbed path, like taking the waves out of the water when you swim. "
 
spitfire said:
Makes you think.

"When possible, running separate cables to the treble and bass “halves” of a speaker significantly reduces distortion. Bi-Wiring keeps the large magnetic fields associated with bass energy out of the treble cable, allowing the delicate upper frequencies to travel a less magnetically disturbed path, like taking the waves out of the water when you swim. "
Click to expand...
Jesus wept.
 
spitfire said:
Makes you think.

"When possible, running separate cables to the treble and bass “halves” of a speaker significantly reduces distortion. Bi-Wiring keeps the large magnetic fields associated with bass energy out of the treble cable, allowing the delicate upper frequencies to travel a less magnetically disturbed path, like taking the waves out of the water when you swim. "
Click to expand...
This… this isn’t how it works :facepalm::D
 
pbsmooth said:
So you think companies like Chord Company are just a scam?
Click to expand...
Yes, they're 100% scamming snake-oil salesmen, preying on gullible idiots who don't understand expectation/confirmation bias.
It was understandable how these snake-oil salesmen got away with it in the 80s, when nobody had access to the mine of information that is the internet, but anybody buying into this shit today is so obscenely gullible that they shouldn't be allowed to leave home unsupervised.
 
Sweet FA said:
Oi oi Saul, where've you been? Good to see you.
Click to expand...
Life got in the way of abusing gullible audiophools. :D

I was just lurking for the past few days, and didn't know whether to post or not, then this thread reared its wonderful head, and I couldn't help myself :D

What amazes me is that despite the mountains of proof to the contrary, these audiophools still have the gall to openly support these ridiculous claims from their favourite snake-oil salesmen. What's even more shocking is that they do know it's utter bullshit... Directional cables, FFS 🤣
This shit makes Apple look like rank amateurs.
Audiophoolery is nothing more than Top Trumps for overgrown children with no mates.
 
Saul Goodman said:
What amazes me is that despite the mountains of proof to the contrary, these audiophools still have the gall to openly support these ridiculous claims from their favourite snake-oil salesmen.
Click to expand...

I think this stuff is actually quite interesting as a sort of entry-level, low stakes illustration of the sort of mindset that gets people into things like conspiracy theories, or at least keeps them there once they're in. It's that level of buy-in isn't it, that once you're in you can't back out because you'll lose face so you have to double down instead.
 
Monkeygrinder's Organ said:
I think this stuff is actually quite interesting as a sort of entry-level, low stakes illustration of the sort of mindset that gets people into things like conspiracy theories, or at least keeps them there once they're in. It's that level of buy-in isn't it, that once you're in you can't back out because you'll lose face so you have to double down instead.
Click to expand...
AKA "sunk cost fallacy"
 
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