Want to try new IC's

Serendipity

So - I've experimented with swapping RCA cables but didn't hear much of a difference. I've tried Radio Shack Gold Series, Monster II, and Straight Wire Analog IC's. However, I haven't heard much of a difference between what I tried so far.

What would you guys recommend for me to try? The Straight Wire cables were 3X the price of the Monster and the difference was small. So what would be the next step up?

janmike

Between what devices are you swapping cables?

ajcllc

appadv wrote: »

So - I've experimented with swapping RCA cables but didn't hear much of a difference. I've tried Radio Shack Gold Series, Monster II, and Straight Wire Analog IC's. However, I haven't heard much of a difference between what I tried so far.

What would you guys recommend for me to try? The Straight Wire cables were 3X the price of the Monster and the difference was small. So what would be the next step up?

These are really good for the money:
http://zebracables.com/1505.html

Serendipity

CD Player and AVR.

Kex

Why not go with BW Audio Concepts (ben)? There are some in the Flea Market right now (used), or check ben's Silver IC for sale thread (new). A lot of people use them here.

Serendipity

Kex wrote: »

Why not go with BW Audio Concepts (ben)? There are some in the Flea Market right now (used), or check ben's Silver IC for sale thread (new). A lot of people use them here.

Will I hear a difference? Ben's cables seem to be more expensive than the Monster but lower priced compared to the Straight Wire cables I had.

McLoki

appadv wrote: »

Will I hear a difference? Ben's cables seem to be more expensive than the Monster but lower priced compared to the Straight Wire cables I had.

If it helps with the sound, he is considering raising his prices..... ;)

Serendipity

Seriously, I haven't heard much of a difference between swapping cables.

McLoki

any other Polkies live close to you? Maybe you can make a day of testing out some different cables and or equipment...

Serendipity

Yeah, I should do so.

But why am I *not* hearing much of a difference between cables?

McLoki

appadv wrote: »

Yeah, I should do so.

But why am I *not* hearing much of a difference between cables?

Not sure - could be a number of things - maybe cables are not the weak link in your system. Could also look at source, preamp, amp, speakers, room treatments, etc....

I would try and figure out the weak link and spend the money solving that. Eventually cables will be the weak link, but it does not sound like that is the case right now.

Serendipity

Hmm, I can barely hear the difference between CD players!! A while back I met up with a bunch of Polkies and put my $150 CDP up against a $1k Sony ES and the two sounded similar.

ben62670

OK I really hate to plug my own cables, but you have been here for a while. If you system sounds flat at all, and needs more life my cables will definitely boost it. If you have an overly bright system you will not enjoy my cables. Just read some reviews. This is a rare exception to the rule I have about plugging my cables. Get a set from Dave(I am plugging Dave the trader now:p(just kidding Dave:))), and if you don't like them you will be able to sell them. They are not for every system, but do get along with most. I had Kimber PBJ's and karma-ed them. I had Straight Wire EncoreII's, and karma-ed them. I had a bunch of other stuff like MC, and Rat Shack they are all gone now;) Like I have stated before MIT's, and Goertz are the ones mine lose out to. They cost a lot more, but they beat mine;)
Enjoy
Ben

McLoki

ok, so mark source off your list - whats next in the chain?

Serendipity

McLoki wrote: »

ok, so mark source off your list - whats next in the chain?

Onkyo 702, then Definitive BP10B.

This is odd - I should be able to hear small changes in the sound, as I was a concert pianist for years, competed all over, and even won the Carnegie Hall Young Artists' Showcase piano competition - and performed there.

So its definitely not my hearing.

ben62670

appadv wrote: »

Yeah, I should do so.

But why am I *not* hearing much of a difference between cables?

Sorry to be blunt, but crap IC's, or crap speaker cables will hinder the performance of the other. Good IC's, and ghetto speaker cable equals ghetto sound. Good speaker cables, and cheap IC's equals not so good either. Have decent cables on both, and you are deaf if you don't get goose bumps from the awakening:D Seriously if you are ready to go to the next step get some used AQ type 4's, and a pair of IC's from Dave.
Ben

McLoki

In the tests we were doing over the weekend, with some cables (or some sources) it was very hard to hear other changes in the system. (We did not try changing amps or preamps this go round)

You might shoot Sid a PM as he is very familar with the definitives and might be able to tell you what to change in your system to get maximum bang for the buck.

What are you trying to correct? Does anything sound wrong now? What do you want out of the change (any change that you make)?

(what ben says above is very true - that was one of the things that we changed that made other changes hard to hear - bad interconnects made speaker wires and cd players sound similar. Bad speaker wires made interconnects sound similar....)

Serendipity

ben62670 wrote: »

Sorry to be blunt, but crap IC's, or crap speaker cables will hinder the performance of the other. Good IC's, and ghetto speaker cable equals ghetto sound. Good speaker cables, and cheap IC's equals not so good either. Have decent cables on both, and you are deaf if you don't get goose bumps from the awakening:D Seriously if you are ready to go to the next step get some used AQ type 4's, and a pair of IC's from Dave.
Ben

Changing speaker cables didn't make much of a difference on my system either, even when combined with the Straight Wire Analog IC's (expensive)!

Serendipity

McLoki wrote: »

(what ben says above is very true - that was one of the things that we changed that made other changes hard to hear - bad interconnects made speaker wires and cd players sound similar. Bad speaker wires made interconnects sound similar....)

Wait a second - when I did the CDP comparison ($150 Onkyo vs. $1k Sony ES), the Polkie had Ben's silver IC's in his system AND very expensive speaker cables. Most agreed that the Onkyo sounded better.

McLoki

And that is one reason that many say you cannot compare audio based on price. Trust your ears and if they sound very similar - go with the less expensive option and do not feel guilty about it.

ben62670

I am not an optical player expert:)

Serendipity

Ben - I tried to PM this to you but couldn't figure it out:

McLoki

Where are you located? (state will be close enough....)

Serendipity

Did you not see the pics from above?

Location is right in the first pic

ben62670

I need to start a cable swap program for Polkies that stick around...

McLoki

Sorry, I assumed people travel to play at Carnigie Hall. I was unaware it was a locals only event....

Serendipity

That would be NY.

McLoki

You should have lots of Polkies you could hook up with. I would highly recommend trying it and getting your ears on some different gear and cables. (maybe bring your cables along and compare them to whatever they have)

Serendipity

Yeah, I should.

gdb

Maybe I'm just biased, but I've never thought that even the more expensive AV receivers could "hold a candle" to the sound produced by a good quality 2channel preamp/power amp set-up. For movies,great! You have a Steinway?? I like F.Chopin and Jellyroll Morton and everyone in between. If you haven't seen a flic called-The Legend of 1900, you owe it to yourself to check it out! Geoff

Serendipity

I don't have a Steinway but I'd like to own one one day