The Science of Cables


It seems to me that there is too little scientific, objective evidence for why cables sound the way they do. When I see discussions on cables, physical attributes are discussed; things like shielding, gauge, material, geometry, etc. and rarely are things like resistance, impedance, inductance, capacitance, etc. Why is this? Why aren’t cables discussed in terms of physical measurements very often?

Seems to me like that would increase the customer base. I know several “objectivist” that won’t accept any of your claims unless you have measurements and blind tests. If there were measurements that correlated to what you hear, I think more people would be interested in cables. 

I know cables are often system dependent but there are still many generalizations that can be made.
128x128mkgus
I would dd the type of thinking each contributor does is how some posts have that religious fervor,and some are dry as dust. Some ramble on repeating the same drivel. Some folks rely on the physical senses to make meaning of the World. Some think logical thinking is the only way to make sense of the World. Some believe whatever emotionally strikes them as 'meaningful' (with no hard thinking or checking reality is how to see the truth of the World.Good luck.
taras22,

I have no team, but I also have not seen participants in disagreement with you being trashed wholesale at all.

My remark about jhills being in the lead was about his statement that no other industry uses $1000/foot cables. NASA was implied at some point and it turns out that even those are cheaper.

douglas_schroeder,

I do not really consider myself anything when it comes to cables. I am not an agnostic, I am aware they exist and they need to exist. I do not belong to either side in this thread and leave it open that there may be something to it, but am not religiously accepting it without suspicion. That position makes me a bit more credible than anyone who has any investment in cables. No conflict of interest, minimal bias.

I read this thread as something informational, a window to others' views and emotions about cables. I stay away from commenting about actual differences between cables here, or theories about them. I have not tried many and am not planning to. It would take a lots of time and effort and it is not my thing. As this thread is not only about cable technicalities, but touched marketing, pricing, etc., I mentioned a few things that I noticed. Price of NASA cables and praises that make claims less believable than they may deserve to be. Once changes are "spectacular" and "dramatic", not many will convert or seriously consider it. They will think it is a joke. Less dramatic descriptions or agitated responses may yield better responses and more fruitful discussion.