2. cables
  3. 1107366914

I can't taste my beer...or hear my cables

Let me start by saying I *do* believe cables "make a difference" in systems. I learned this early on in my exploration of this hobby when I moved from some crap Monster cable to Kimber 4PR (which I still use, kind of).

I recently had two experiences that bewilder me a little, however. I upgraded the cable between my pre and amp from HGA silver lace to Silver Audio Silver Bullet 6.0's. Nice upgrade. The HGA sounded thin compared to the Silver Bullets. Good deal there.

But then I bought the LAT Internationl SS-1000D speaker cable, thinking it would be an upgrade to my Kimber 4PR. Guess what? I can hear very little, if any, difference between the two cables.

Next: despite being a huge skeptic, I bought a couple of LAT International AC-2 power cables. These upgraded a stock power cable to my preamp and a "Basic Cables" power cable for the amp. I *may* hear a slight difference, but it certainly isn't much.

Other than hearing loss, what reasons are there for my inability to hear the difference in the cables? I have thought maybe the CDP (made by Denon) might be the reason, but that doesn't make sense, given the difference the Silver Audio cable made over the HGA.

Associated equipment:
Denon CDP
McCormack RLD-1 (soon to be platinumized!)
McCormack DNA-0.5 Rev. A
Infinity Overture 2 speakers (to be replaced by nOrh mini 9.0's in 2 weeks)

Thanks for your insight, folks!

HC
aggielaw
elizabeth
6,726 posts
 
Possibly:
1) The different cables you purchased generally "sound" the same as the ones you had.
2) The different cables you purchased are in a part of your system that is NOT where the major restriction in your system lies. (so if that "other" thing got fixed, you might be able to hear the difference.)
3) Your hearing has gone, but you never noticed it.
4) You are too uptight about hearing them, so, of course, you cannot.
My suggestion, chill out. put your old cables back in. See if they sound as good.
plato
1,543 posts
 
I agree with all of Elizabeth's possibilities but doubt that number 3 is the case.

Cable interactions are extremely hard to predict and sometimes the difference you are anticipating is not the difference you actually get...
nrchy's avatar
nrchy
2,111 posts
 
Either that or keep the beer out of your ears! Then you will hear better and taste the beer. Just trying to help.
ridgestreetaudio
221 posts
 
Drink a lot more beer. Something will happen.

Cheers,
Robert
gunbei
2,327 posts
 
Excellent advice. Definitely, drink more beer.

I think you just experienced one of the classic scenarios as to why we audiophiles continue on our endless merry-go-round.
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