Cable Recommendations?

FyreFunk

FyreFunk

FyreFunk

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9 Feb 2014
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66
Hi everyone,
new to the forum, so this is my first post. Say hi! :)
I wanted to get peoples oppinions on some decent cables and setup with my current system.
Im looking to connect my source (sound card) to my headphone amp which has 3.5mm or RCA inputs, i figured i would be better using RCA as there are more options with RCA cables than standard 3.5mms.
But my sound card (http://www.creative.com/emu/products/product.aspx?pid=20022) only has left and right phone out for analog, so im guessing i need 2x mono 1/4inch to rca adapters, would this work?
And then find some decent cables. Can anyone recommend any that arnt too expensive?
Thanks
 
This can be a tricky subject.

I've have QED performance phono cables (alledgedly £35) that I got thrown in with my Denon Amp, I use the my headphone amp now, but I've used some cheaper pro-signal phono's from CPC and couldn't notice any difference (as most would expect)..

These work well, and certainly perform identically to anything else I've tried that costs ten+ times as much.
http://cpc.farnell.com/_/b052/lead-2-x-phono-to-2-x-phono-gold/dp/AR70241

Or if you like the slightly more attractive plugs,
http://cpc.farnell.com/techlink/720031/lead-2xphono-to-2xphono-1m/dp/AV23764?in_merch=New Products
 
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I think confidence of build quality is generally what I also pay more for..

I do go through a lot of cables since I am always re-homing my kit or upgrading and give the leads away with my old kit as people like to have the exact setup they've just heard.

I will say that over the years, the build quality and general cable construction on 'cheap' cables such as pro-signal (or other stuff I've had from CPC) has been really good and far outweighed my expectation, to the point I would now feel slightly foolish to part with more then £5-10 on just about any lead type without feeling I was succumbing to the marketing hype.
 
Ah i see, well thats filled me with some confidence, ive never bought proper audio cables before and you see pairs range from £3 to £300+ and you think, well whats the difference, if i by the cheap cables is the sound gonna be bad.
But if you say the build quality is ok and theres no difference in the sound, theres no point in overspending i guess! cheers.
Why cant i work the CPC website /confused lol edit: get it now.
Do they sell adapters? looking for 2x 1/4inch mono to rca adapters
 
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Don't pay for QED cables. They have a real nice quality feel to them, but that's what you're paying over the odds for. I've got a QED cable that would cost £30 to buy, and the sound is no better than one I bought for £5; which is pretty much Demon's experience also. Around £5 or so will get you a well made cable, certainly better quality than the really cheap piddly thin cables you see on ebay.

Your card looks like it has 6.35mm mono out and in for each channel. This cable should work fine going to the RCA inputs on your headphone amp.
 
Yeah those really cheap thin ones your talking about are what i really didnt want, so as long as i avoid them, and as you both say theres no difference in sound quality then i may aswell stick to the ones your both recommending. Its crazy the price difference is just for the look and not actually functional.
Yeah the card is 6.35 mono for each channel, the cable you linked looks good, not flimsy at all. The only reason i thought get two 6.35 to rca adapters not cables, is so that then i have a much bigger choice in rca to rca cables. Is there a difference betwen doing this and just getting a cable like the one you linked?
 
The only thing you could say against using an adaptor and then a cable, is that you are adding another connection. I don't think that is going to make any difference though. It's no different that it would be to put a 6.35mm adaptor on the end of headphones that have 3.5mm jack. Only having a lot of connections would it be a bad idea.
 
ah right yeah so the more connectors/adapters/cable in your chain the more chance there is for sound quality to drop, but yeah like you say one adapter should be ok i hope. Will check out cables both ways.
 
Bit of a thread hijack but it looks like the OP's question has been resolved and it's kind of related. But can any one recommend some decent but reasonably priced speaker cable?

Just moved into a new place and need longer cables. Denon amp to a centre speaker, two floor standers at the front, two book shelf speakers at the rear. Also have an old Yamaha amp that I might pick up another set of book shelf speakers for at some point, so some for that as well.

Thinking my best bet will be to buy a drum? Don't want cheap bell wire but nothing stupid expensive or too thick to make screwing down a pain. White preferable as I may just have to pin it around the top of the skirting board.

Thanks.
 
Should be fine, as long as the cables are built from decent materials and are well put together they will be as good as any other cable.
 
rids57 said:
Should be fine, as long as the cables are built from decent materials and are well put together they will be as good as any other cable.
Click to expand...

Well I received that budget CPC cable today.

I was running back to back with another cable. The sound has lost some warm, and appears to have lost some clarify at the higher frequencies. I'm using a Essence ST into a Edifier 530.

The cable i'm comparing to is an generic OFC cable from the rain forest (silver plugs), the cable is physically thicker then the CPC one.

The reason I changed cable is I wanted 2m (CPC) and my original cable is 1m. Could going from 1m to 2m be making this difference, or is it more likely cable quality?
 
cable.jpg


The silver one is the unknown rain forest one, gold one is CPC. Silver one is sounding better on my equipment.
 
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