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7500 for USED cables? Are they joking?

I've been out of high-end audio for about 8 years, and the thing I am most struck by on my return is the apparent acceptance of power cables, interconnects and speaker cables that cost as much or more than heavy-duty high-end components.

As a now-outsider of sorts, this really looks like the Emperor's New Clothes big-time. Especially power cords, considering the Romex that delivers the A/C to the outlet isn't exactly audiophile quality.

Are people really paying $500 and up for wire? Is this foolishness of the highest order, or is this what people now believe it takes to extract the last percent or two of definition from their components?

What happened? Even buyers of what are now considered "modestly priced" cables would be laughed out of the professional audio world, so why do audiophiles think they need something better than was used to make the original recording? MOST professional recording engineers scoff at the difference between microphone cables that cost $19.95 vs. those that cost $49.95 -- most anything higher is rarely considered at all (the most expensive microphone cable might be $125 for a 20 foot run, and it's laughed at by most of the pros).

I'm not criticizing -- I'm too stunned to draw any conclusions -- I just wondered if anyone has given this much thought.

(At least I understand the home theater revolution -- thank heavens something came along to save the high end manufacturers, although it makes me chuckle to think of someone spending $30,000 to watch the Terminator. It's OK with me.)

Thank you for your consideration,

Mark Hubbard
Eureka, CA
mark_hubbard
blackie
221 posts
 
As far as pros go fewer and fewer are scoffing at quality cables because once you hear how much better your U67 sounds with even a $130 monster cable, you can't help but hear the improvement over a $20 pos cable. If the doubters stopped their chuckling and actually listened maybe they would churn out better sounding records.

P.S. Many major mastering facilities use high quality "audiophile" cables (Audioquest/MIT/Monster/AlphaCore/etc.) in their studios.
stealth93es
64 posts
 
QUESTION, Ever given any thought to the poor guy who puts out $ 25,000 for a Bass Boat, & another 2 or 3 thousand for all that gear he needs. Then has to buy the latest 4 wheel drive truck to get it to the water. mmmmmmmmmmm Sounds like a $ 60,000.00 plus investment to me. Then if he is lucky he gets to go fishing 2 , 3 if he is single, times a month. Point is, we have hobbies. What ever makes it fun & pleasurable to you is what is important. Having fun can be expensive!!! Whew, now pass the day old bread & the can of beans while I wait for my New Nordost Valhalla cables to arrive!!!

Good Thread,

Good listening to all,
bomarc
501 posts
 
Well, Mark, as you can see from the many responses you got, there are a sizeable number of audiophiles who believe in the value of high-end cables. They believe because they have listened to different cables, and those cables have sounded different to them. And if you listened to the various brands of cables out there, they might sound different to you, too. That doesn't mean they are different. It just means that you're as susceptible as other humans to the brain's proven tendency to hear things that are not there.

So welcome back to the hobby. Keep on the lookout for snake oil. There's a lot of it about these days.
lmb
29 posts
 
Examine any hobby and you will see extremes. Some of the Pros are starting to come around. While they're not about to install the mega-buck wire, some are considering the mid-stream stuff, from a very recent TAS or Stereophile issue. My rule is, if you can't hear a positive difference, not just a difference, don't buy it. All wires act as a band-pass filter to some degree, change the impedance of the link to some degree, and many contain RFI/EMI sensitive designs to reduce noise. I have an EE background and I too scoffed, but I was sensible enough to test the claim, borrow some I/Cs from my local shop and compare. I have also had others who really don't care, listen, don't know what I am doing back there, listen and hear a difference. System resolution and noise are notable factors. Again, if you can't hear it, don't buy it.
docwarnock
63 posts
 
Stealth:

The bass boat analogy is a bit off. Mark did not question the logic of high dollar gear (speakers, amps, etc.), just the merit of high priced cables. Thus, expensive boats and trucks to haul them with may be extravagances, but necessary extravangances if one wants to catch bass.

Now if we're talking about some moron paying $3,000 for $8.95 worth of fishing line, then I think that the analogy works
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