How do YOU demo cables

[two dot]

Ok, let me be a little more clear.

I have a bunch of cables that I would like to demo and am having a very hard time.

Ie: Do you change them all at once? Just speaker cables? How long before you switch back?



So, any suggestions would be welcome.

I sure wish that there was an easier way...

[Still-One]

Stephen
I usually only compare one set of cables at a time to whatever I have been using in my system. I have found most cables take some time to break in so you need to take that into consideration when you want to compare them to what you have been using. (Even my new Transparent Power Cords took about 2 weeks of steady use to open up)

When it is time to compare I listen for specific sounds in certain passages. For example, how does the snare sound, can I define a certain instrument on both cables, what does the bass sound like. etc. I make notes, then swap back.
Jim

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by Stillone

Stephen
I usually only compare one set of cables at a time to whatever I have been using in my system. I have found most cables take some time to break in so you need to take that into consideration when you want to compare them to what you have been using. (Even my new Transparent Power Cords took about 2 weeks of steady use to open up)

When it is time to compare I listen for specific sounds in certain passages. For example, how does the snare sound, can I define a certain instrument on both cables, what does the bass sound like. etc. I make notes, then swap back.
Jim

Jim.......Making notes is a good thing. Try as I might, trying to remember exactly how a particular instrument or passage sounded is difficult. The mind is such a fleeting thing, and is so easily misdirected and forgetful. During the time it takes to swap interconnects, you have probably had a hundred other thoughts cross your mind, all of them reducing and clouding the aural memory you are trying to preserve. Accurately comparing cables is not an easy task.

[two dot]

Originally Posted by jdandy

jim.......making notes is a good thing. Try as i might, trying to remember exactly how a particular instrument or passage sounded is difficult. The mind is such a fleeting thing, and is so easily misdirected and forgetful. During the time it takes to swap interconnects, you have probably had a hundred other thoughts cross your mind, all of them reducing and clouding the aural memory you are trying to preserve. Accurately comparing cables is not an easy task.

amen brother!!!!

[ompid]

FWIW, I put a new cable in my system, and live with it, give it daily play, for about two weeks, playing music with which I am intimately familiar. When I switch back to the original, that's when I look for what may be missing, or added. Maybe it's just me, but when the system is returned to the original cable, I am better able to notice any differences.

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by ompid

when the system is returned to the original cable, I am better able to notice any differences.

ompid.......I agree with your process. I use the same technique when auditioning different tubes.

[ompid]

Thanks. Actually, I always do that, not just for cables or tubes.A friend of mine recommended I try that, when I expressed to him how difficult I found auditioning new elements in my system. It worked for me.

[two dot]

Thanks Omid, I will try the two week method.

I know that trying the 30 minuet thing IS NOT working for me..

[f1 fan]

Auditioning cables is a nghtmare. The advice given above is excellent. My advice is listen to music you are familiar with and most of all be patient.


Dave

[PHC1]

I agree with some points made above. New cables have to be burned in, whether you believe in that or not. Be it the dielectric charging, molecular structure changing, or whatever, I don't really care. I've heard a drastic difference once cables burned in that I have stopped being a skeptic a long time ago.

Used cables should be allowed to play in your system for a few days to stabilize then auditioned critically and seriously. There is a problem with this approach for the not so experienced audiophiles as they tend to swap the cables back and forth to try and catch the "fresh difference" but many cables loose their dielectric charge and don't sound 100%. It is not as drastic of a difference though, not to the degree of brand new cables.

Unless you have really junky ICs, never swap more than one pair of IC's at a time in your system right away. I tend to leave the preamp to amp ICs alone for a reference point and audition the new IC's upstream. Therefore, I always tend to have as best of preamp to amp IC as I can so they don't bottleneck the whole system and not allow you to hear the improvement upstream.

Even more important is to have a good "reference" recording be it a CD or LP or whatever. Try to find something that combines a few different elements together but breaks them down into sections that can be easy to follow and not clumped together. This way you can evaluate the bass depth, articulation and speed followed by purity of tone in the mids and the extension, smoothness and airyness of the highs. Some ICs/cables will also have superior imaging qualities, enhancing the depth and separation of instruments as well as the width of the soundstage but this is rare. Transparent and Purist Audio are the two that clearly do it better than others.

One particular CD I like for this purpose is "Yamamoto Tsuyoshi Trio" "Midnight Sugar". It is a very well recorded CD that tells me 95% of the story on the new cables/ICs right away. It combines those elements I mentioned above in an easy to follow manner.

It starts out with an acoustic bass that will weed out the stinkers right away, if you can't follow each individual note of that bass instrument, forget it. It should have speed, articulation and depth of bass that will energize your whole room. The plucked strings should sound well defined, have attack and decay that sounds natural and harmonically complete. The bass musician's playing style should also be very evident as he often makes the bass sound flabby and then reverts to having aggressive style that makes it sound tight and powerful. Many ICs and cables will turn this whole section into jello.

The well recorded piano will have a broad range of attack/stroke of piano keys, going from soft, quiet and mushy to icy crisp and forceful, bringing out the transient speed, attack and the following decay into play in your system. This section is very helpful to evaluate the purity of tone across a very broad range.

The drum work allows you to evaluate the shimmer of the cymbals, they should glow and have brassy overtones going from delicate to splashy but never glassy or harsh sounding. The drum head should have a deep and powerful sound but never dry. It should resonate in your system allowing you to experience and feel the "skin' of the drum as well as feel the presence of that instrument in your room.

This CD is one of those rare really well recorded CDs and it sounds very different every time you change something in your system. Highly recommend it. Get used to it and keep it as a "reference". In a short amount of time, you'll be able to pick out things that stand out right away when you swap cables/ICs. I have other CDs that I use for vocals/midrange both male and female as well as some I use strictly for imaging/depth/width of soundstage.

Have fun!