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Gear / Technical Help => Cables => Topic started by: nak700s on June 30, 2017, 04:01:09 PM
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Canare vs. Mogami Mic Cables: Does it really matter?
Let's face it, there are a lot of options out there, and some of them even offer a good clean signal that gives us a quiet, noise free recording.
At what level does it make a difference, and at what level does it stop making a difference? Sure there's some crap out there that will be noisy, and other crap that may offer a clean signal, but are poorly made or made with junk that breaks down quickly as opposed to being durable for our needs.
What are your opinions between Canare and Mogami, which in my opinion both offer a quality product?
Discuss...
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They're both great. Just be sure that whoever builds the ends knows how to make proper solder joints, and don't skimp on the connectors.
Also if you're using Star Quad cable, be sure to follow instructions, and terminate opposing pairs together like this diagram:
(http://www.belcom.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/StarQuad-Wiring-2.png)
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Any time I've ever tried to "listen" to cables, I've been able to convince myself that I heard differences, as long as I was looking at the cables when I changed them and listened to them. Which is to say, that expectation bias is, like, a thing.
In blind ABX testing, I could never do better than random guessing. Any kind of cable. And let's not get started on digital cables. USB cable either works or it doesn't. In general, I just don't believe that cables which meet specifications for any given application could possibly sound different from one another. I understand that there are passionate, smart people who swear they can hear a difference- but Occam's razor would suggest that "expectation bias" is the best explanation.
This is not to say that one should skimp on cables completely. Good solid connectors are less likely to fail, etc.
But Canare vs. Mogami? Buy the one you think looks the coolest.
In the end, that's the one that will sound best to you.
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In another life many years ago now, I installed extremely high end car stereos, and home theater. We have done many blind and not so blind tests over the years.
We found speaker cable making one the the biggest differences. Signal cable not so much useless it was over long lengths. Sure higher quality cables helped, but the shielding was more of a important factor we found.
When I switched careers to industrial/military computers cable capacitance was our biggest concern. That would impedance of cause issues due to the frequencies we were transmitting.
Bottom line is use good cables, don't get too crazy unless you are going extremely long lengths (over 100ft), then you should be good to go.
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My new cables will be paid for when I get home tonight, and I should receive them the middle of next week. I went with the Carnare Star Quad with Nuetrik Black Gold XLRs. They will meet my needs just fine. I found a good source, and once tested and I know I'm happy with them, I will post him in this thread in case anyone else needs custom lengths made for them at a fair price. Cheers.