People everywhere put lots of time, energy, passion and money into their hobbies. This is certainly true for audiophiles, for whom sound quality is of utmost importance. They will often take what others might see as extreme measures to have a system that will produce superior audio quality. Naturally the components of such a system will determine how good the sound output is and the better the components, the better the system. For this reason, many use audiophile speaker cable but there is no consensus on whether these have a significant impact on the actual listening experience.
There is general agreement that the single most important aspect of any type of speaker wire is resistance. The lower the resistance, the better the sound quality will be. When the signal can move more freely, the ultimate output will be improved.
There are three methods of reducing the resistance in order to enhance sound quality. One is to decrease the length of the wire while another is to increase the thickness. The third method then is a combination of using a shorter and thicker cable. The type of material that the wire is composed of will also have an effect but this is less agreed upon. The most common material to be used is copper but other, more expensive ones such as silver have lower resistance.
Beyond silver cables in both purported quality and cost are audiophile speaker cables. It can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars to purchase such wires for an audio system. This will not even be a consideration for the vast majority of those purchasing speaker wire, but for a true audiophile it's certainly worth at least considering.
This is where the true debate begins. With little agreement on how much of a difference can be heard in the sound quality and a significant difference in price, these cables are claimed by many to be a waste of money. These people believe that the difference isn't even audible and that one can produce practically the same quality of audio from much less expensive wire. It's not unheard of for this side to say that coat hanger wire can be used nearly as effectively at a small fraction of the cost of the high-end equipment that some prefer.
There are some true audiophiles, however, that swear that the difference is audible. There are claims that, when combined with other top shelf components, these cables can produce sounds rivaling that of live music. They say that they can easily tell a difference between the sounds produced using run-of-the-mill wires and these much more high-tech ones.
Arguments fall on both extremes and everywhere in between. The common ground that is often found is that the opinions are strong and difficult to change. While the quality of the sounds produced can be quantified in some manners, listening is a much more subjective experience and thus it is much more difficult, if not impossible, to measure in scientific terms.
As with most debates, there is no black and white answer as to whether audiophile speaker cables are a wise choice. The answer then lies with each individual who must determine for themselves if this is a worthwhile purchase.
There is general agreement that the single most important aspect of any type of speaker wire is resistance. The lower the resistance, the better the sound quality will be. When the signal can move more freely, the ultimate output will be improved.
There are three methods of reducing the resistance in order to enhance sound quality. One is to decrease the length of the wire while another is to increase the thickness. The third method then is a combination of using a shorter and thicker cable. The type of material that the wire is composed of will also have an effect but this is less agreed upon. The most common material to be used is copper but other, more expensive ones such as silver have lower resistance.
Beyond silver cables in both purported quality and cost are audiophile speaker cables. It can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars to purchase such wires for an audio system. This will not even be a consideration for the vast majority of those purchasing speaker wire, but for a true audiophile it's certainly worth at least considering.
This is where the true debate begins. With little agreement on how much of a difference can be heard in the sound quality and a significant difference in price, these cables are claimed by many to be a waste of money. These people believe that the difference isn't even audible and that one can produce practically the same quality of audio from much less expensive wire. It's not unheard of for this side to say that coat hanger wire can be used nearly as effectively at a small fraction of the cost of the high-end equipment that some prefer.
There are some true audiophiles, however, that swear that the difference is audible. There are claims that, when combined with other top shelf components, these cables can produce sounds rivaling that of live music. They say that they can easily tell a difference between the sounds produced using run-of-the-mill wires and these much more high-tech ones.
Arguments fall on both extremes and everywhere in between. The common ground that is often found is that the opinions are strong and difficult to change. While the quality of the sounds produced can be quantified in some manners, listening is a much more subjective experience and thus it is much more difficult, if not impossible, to measure in scientific terms.
As with most debates, there is no black and white answer as to whether audiophile speaker cables are a wise choice. The answer then lies with each individual who must determine for themselves if this is a worthwhile purchase.
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