Anyone try Monoprice.com for cable making?

[ksrigg]

I just ordered some stuff to make some cable and things from monoprice.com. They have excellent prices on cable, connectors, etc. along with some good instructional videos for making cables. I am going to make some XLR to RCA and some RCA to RCA interconnects just to try. They sell 18 buage microphone cable with sheilding for 22 bucks for 100 feet. They have the same banana plugs I use from Parts Express for $1.38. PE is now charging over $7.00 for the same connector. It takes a little digging to find some of the things they have, but looks to be well worth it. They have the stuff to make Digital cables and Toslink cables as well..

Does anyone else have any experience using Monoprice? An 18 guage IC sounds (in concept) awesome to me...compared to the industry standard 22 guage premium cableing....and the plugs appear to be very nice as well. Anyone have any listening experience with their DIY cables? Comparisons?

 

[laatsch55]

No, but looking forward to your review. You have some nice IC's to compare them with.

 

[ksrigg]

Yes I do, and I've not opened them yet. I have the Tara Labs as well as some Monster Cable, AR, Dayton Audio, and a few others. I really like the idea of the 18 Guage with sheilding. I'm going to make them up in the same lengths as the Taras, and make some comparisons (try to get some resistance readings) and attempt ot listen and see if I can hear the difference. Maybe I can send some to you for testing on your new audio analyzer...I'm sure you can run tests I can't even contemplate..

Ever run any tests on IC's?

 

[laatsch55]

No, I haven't. Gotta be something I can do. I wonder if distortion measurements down to .001 % could reveal any difference in cables??

 

[Gepetto]

If you do measure a difference Lee, it will be a first. This topic is like the holy grail for audio guys as you well know.

 

[laatsch55]

Ah, so it's been tried before!!

 

[Gepetto]

Lot's of times Lee. And it is the source of endless debates.
There are a lot of measureable characteristics of cables at very high frequencies (high MHz and GHz range) and there are notable differences that this instrumentation can bring out.

But at the low Hz to low Khz range we are talking about for audio, basically not much shows up as differences amongst the cable offerings.

If they sound different, there are differences. We just do not have the right equipment "yet" to measure whatever "that" is.

 

[jbeckva]

We just do not have the right equipment "yet" to measure whatever "that" is.

Need one of these guys here, I suspect.. But yeah, I'm on the fence about it myself. You're right.. when all the mumbo-jumbo starts about skin-effect and other terms like that, what is usually not disclosed are those "effects" are synonymous with waveguides.. antenna coupling.. etc (i.e. WAY above the 20K AF limit). But still... I've heard differences in IC's myself.

It's also noteworthy (I think... I can see a "pattern" emerging) that while I was adding a pair of outputs at a time to my PL 700 (I'm still "relaxing".. I'll get back to THAT in a few), what I found interesting was the power bandwidth started very low - I couldn't get much power at higher frequencies - then began to normalize as I added more pairs back in. Point being... if higher frequencies can cause more "stress" on semiconductors, then perhaps they can with "straight wires" too? That ole relationship between inductance, conductance, and reluctance... hmmm

Just thinking out loud again... heheh.

 

[laatsch55]

I guess when they can measure soundstage we might have something. But yeah, I hear differences, maybe Pure_Brew's tag line says it all.

 

[ksrigg]

So Joe, what do you think? Any real discernable difference in QUALITY IC's? I have read discussions til my head hurts, but I can find no definative answers...only that some cables roll the top end off,,,and that resistance is a big difference in the different cables..

I would like to see the results of a real "double blind" test where the participants could choose one set of cables over another in a statistically consistant way. There appears to be a $5,000.00 award out there for anyone who can do this, but there has never been anyone attempting to claim that prize..

 

[Rex Everything]

So Joe, what do you think? Any real discernable difference in QUALITY IC's? I have read discussions til my head hurts, but I can find no definative answers...only that some cables roll the top end off,,,and that resistance is a big difference in the different cables..

I would like to see the results of a real "double blind" test where the participants could choose one set of cables over another in a statistically consistant way. There appears to be a $5,000.00 award out there for anyone who can do this, but there has never been anyone attempting to claim that prize..

I believe capacitance comes into the equation also.

I'll say this, I was of the mind that ic's and speaker wires were all the same until I heard different units in a revealing system.

The quality of your system will have a lot to do with if you notice the cables/wires or not.

As I climbed up the ranks of consumer offered electronics to the more "hi end" stuff it was easy to notice slight avantages/dis-advantages in ic's and speaker cables.

In summary, I went from disbelief to actually hearing the difference in blind testing.

 

[speakerman1]

I have deleted a few responses to this thread. There is so much I want to say ; but I won't. People may get their feelings hurt. So I will sit here shaking my head. LOL Better that way.

Larry

 

[laatsch55]

You----hurt feelings?? NEVER!!! Let's hear it!!!

I'm of the same mind of Rex on this. I couldn't notice much of a diference until my system got more revealing.

Don't hold back now Larrt.....

 

[speakerman1]

Trying to lose the MM moniker. LOL To me it is like driving a Lexus and using recycled oil because it is cheaper. Cables are a way to tune your system. I'm not saying to go out and buy 400.00 ICs. LOL they do make a difference. Just like rolling tubes. It is a big gamble to put out 400.00 for a sound you may not like. To me if you want to go high I would loan you a pair. LOL I do have some spendy ICs and speaker cables. I do not pay full price. Audio isn't a cheap hobby. Any more I don't look at it if I'm going to get my money back. I think I would on the Carys. I'm always looking for ways to improve my system. It is up to you how far you are willing to go. Wire is wire. Just different kinds of wire. LOL

Larry

 

[laatsch55]

SEe---that wasn't so bad. Didn't hurt my feelings. BTW, you're not the MM anymore, you're Larrt.

 

[nakdoc]

Slew rate increases with current gain. Adding outputs in parallel also increases B-E capacitance, which rolls off the highs, so there is a point at which you stop adding transistors.
The mono price cables are extremely stiff. Pure 100% chinese crap. The problem is, too many companies are buying from them and rebranding as "high end". Gimme Cardas any day.

 

[Rex Everything]

Slew rate increases with current gain. Adding outputs in parallel also increases B-E capacitance, which rolls off the highs, so there is a point at which you stop adding transistors.
The mono price cables are extremely stiff. Pure 100% chinese crap. The problem is, too many companies are buying from them and rebranding as "high end". Gimme Cardas any day.

I like my Kimber's and SoundString's also. Mogami was (and probably still is to some extent) the industry standard for studio recording so it's never a bad choice either.

 

[laatsch55]

There was a DIY thread on AK about someone building scratch Mogami cables---Qboneus i believe it was.