1. Home
  2. cables
  3. 1160344405

cable dielectric cause of artificial sound

Hi folks, I would like to know what your opinion is about the following issue. About 90% of high-end cable manufacturers use PTFE as dielectric. Many of their cables sound much alike and they have a few of these characteristics in common: clean, relaxed and laid back sound but at the same time very dynamic (though a bit artificially), very quiet ("black background"), very good (also artificially) left/right separation. But I think albeit these traits, they tend to sound "technicolored", "sterile" and unengaging (lacking PRaT also). Some cable manufacturers are using bleached cotton as dielectric. These cables sound different: they have more natural dynamics, a mellower sound, more intimate soundstage, more tonal colors and so on. Are these differences mainly due to the dielectric material used? Why is for so many manufacturers PTFE still the ultimate dielectric for the use in audio cables?

Chris
dazzdax
electroid
283 posts
 
I saw the chart online that shows values of various materials verifying 5.1 for enamel. I wonder why they work so well for me and make the HF so much better. As I said HF is not only better but there is more of it which helped my overly warm system. Again thanks for the info.

ET
jadem6's avatar
jadem6
1,071 posts
 
Hi ET,

I think what you are experiencing is how most interconnects made actually suppress the signal. In most cables they have the conductors very close together and wound in some fashion. The industry has gone deep into this philosophy deciding certain wire twists or weaves or braids reduce the RFI, EMI interference. Beyond this most cables have elaborate shielding for the same purpose.

Sometimes I wonder if these guys listen to their cables as they seem to get darker, thicker and slower with each twist. Over a year long period I researched and built almost 200 mock ups based on every design I could find. I then posted those findings on a review thread "DIY Interconnect Review". I discovered a lot of surprising things. In that thread I lay out a formula that you may want to try following to build your own cables. I assure you the interconnects your so happy with will be gone from your system for ever, at least that was true in the two friends who replaced magnet wire cables.

At any rate, it is a fascinating issue, and I believe if we all continue discussing what we are finding, we all will evolve in our knowledge and ultimately enjoyment of music!

jd
rhyno's avatar
rhyno
642 posts
 
my audio junky friends & i have found that dielectrics, teflon included, invariably screw things up.

downside is the availability of cotton-dielectric (the VHAudio wire is a good gauge, but poor quality), and the difficulties of construction / durability of bare wires. cleaning terminals w/ progold is all the confirmation i need of the negative impacts of oxidation.

the ideal strikes me as high purity wire in a vacuum. tough to come by though..
rhyno
gregm
3,021 posts
 
high purity wire in a vacuum
Snag is, the contacts are still exposed and need cleaning periodically... not to mention the difficulty of the implementation (which you do mention).

At the end of the day, JD's use of gold wire -- despite the cost -- seems like the most practicable solution.

After all, paladium would be text-book ideal -- but at a more than textbook price.
rch102a97
162 posts
 
Kapton sounds better than Teflon. Cotton absorbs moisture. How 'bout paper, used about 50 years ago.
More to discover