Topic: Your opinion -- how much do cables matter?

[stvgray]

I'm relatively new at this, and I'm using Monster Standard 100s that I bought for PA use, not live recording.

I have an economy rig consisting of Oktava MK012s, Edirol UA-5 w/home digimod, and Tascam DAP-1.

How much difference would it make to upgrade the cables? Would sinking $100-$200 in better cables make a lot of difference? Or would I be better off saving my money to upgrade the mics or the pre/AD?

If you think the cable upgrade would be a good idea, what cables would you recommend, and how much do they cost?

Thanks!

[nickgregory]

upgrade the mics first....pre/AD second and cables last.  In my opinion you can run a set of canare starquad mic cables which are economical and sound damn good for the meantime, and quite honestly until you get the rest of the rig where you want it to be, upgrading cables may not hae an impact.  

[BobW]

It takes a refined ear to hear cables.
Even more during a live recording.

[jpschust]

cables should be the last place you spend your money unless you have total POS Hosa cables- in that case just get a decent set (the BLUE Kiwi's and starquad and such) but dont throw a ton of money into your cables so soon- get new mics first, then new pre/ad combos.

[Mic D]

dont throw a ton of money into your cables so soon- get new mics first, then new pre/ad combos.

Agreed. Cables were the last thing I upgraded in my rig. I just passed the 1k mark, though.  

[stvgray]

Thanks -- that makes sense. Mics, then pre, then cables.

[Sean Gallemore]

I'm using a $2 cable armen bought from ebay, and I doubt I could hear the difference in a $100 cable

[jpschust]

it all depends on the gear, the siutation, etc.

[Sean Gallemore]

is that you jonny? the picture URL is a bit skeptical

[Ed.]

check out the canare starquad cable from markertek along with the neutrik ends.  then bounce over to the archival section and learn how to make your own cables.  For less than $50 i got 15ft of cable and right angle xlr connectors...a little bit of solder and about a half hour and you've got yourself a nice pair of cables.

[John R]

cables matter in the big picture, but you've got to have a rig and playback system to back it up.  a lot of people pay no credence to cables, but they are part of the system that nedds to be addressed, eventually.  spend your money on quality components first.

jr

[F.O.Bean]

cables matter in the big picture, but you've got to have a rig and playback system to back it up.  a lot of people pay no credence to cables, but they are part of the system that nedds to be addressed, eventually.  spend your money on quality components first.

jr

so john, should i even bother w/ canare/starquad cables by myself.........

i have x-streamz like you do, would i hear a difference, cause i LOVE my am's

[thoman8r]

I asked this question on a different forum a few months ago and got answers like, "Expensive cables help because they make your wallet lighter, thus making it easier to carry your stuff in."

So I'm sticking with my canare starquads...

[scb]

>> I'm using a $2 cable armen bought from ebay, and I doubt I could hear the difference in a $100 cable<<

what cable?  you probably could

i started off with some no name mic cables.  I eventually got a 15 foot pair of audiomagic excalibur IIs (for hundreds less than they retail for, thanks marc) and ran those for a few shows.  I noticed a difference in low end detail and "oomph".  sold them after a few shows because I bought the 4022s and no longer needed a set of 15 footers.  excalibur IIs are a bit overkill, but i did notice a difference.  i found a killer deal on a pair of sorcerer 1 meter xlrs and ran those for a while between the pre and a/d and again noticed a difference.

but my home playback system is where i noticed the biggest difference in cables.  i got a 1 meter pair of excalibur IIs (i love the audio magic sound) for my dac > amp and again noticed the low end difference right away.  bass was much tighter and seemed to hit harder.  now that i've upgraded the home playback, i have the excalibur II rcas going from the DAC to the pre, and a pair of spellcasters going from the pre to the power amp.  i have another set of excalibur II rcas I may put in between the dvd-a player and the preamp, but I'm not sure yet.  I need to do some listening to determine what I like best, and also run the test to see if my dvd-a player is putting out a full 24/96 signal.  of course, it has to actually arrive for me to test...hehe

[John R]

wow scott, i hope they gave you a t-shirt