Do Expensive Interconnect Cables Make a Difference

I've watched numerous videos stating that more expensive interconnects make a difference. In this video I compare some super cheap RCA's/Coaxial cables with some Amazon Basics RCA/Coaxial Cable and the more expensive Worlds Best Cables RCA & QED Coaxial, to see if there's any benefit.
Time Stamps
Intro 0:03
Specs 3:06
Sound Test 11:46
Final Thoughts 21:08
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12-Gauge Speaker OFC Wire amzn.to/3bzpym4

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

Yes cables absolutely make a difference. To your bank balance

[@Kami84]

I've heard the scientific reasoning saying that cables don't matter much & I don't think there is any evidence for super expensive cables. Those appear to be snake oil. But, I do think I heard a slight difference in between 10 gauge and 16 gauge speaker cable at 10 feet in terms of detail on my Kef R3 Metas. I did watch a video once about headphone and they did measure a difference in volume on low impedance headphone. I just came from Steve Huff's audio review channel and heard him say that he was using $4000 coaxial cable. I don't know whether he's a shill or just very gullible. I have a more impolite word I could use but I'll keep it to myself.

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

@@Kami84 Steve Huff 🤣 He has another KZbin channel where he claims he's talking to the dead via his old handheld portable radio, that says everything you need to know about that guy. If you haven't seen it, check it out, it's embarrassing. There are some gullible people out there.

[@chrislj2890]

Funny how back in the day we all used those cheap interconnects and zip wire on screw down terminals for speakers and just enjoyed the music.

[@carlosoliveira-rc2xt]

You can enjoy a Corolla even though you'd probably enjoy a BMW Competition more.

[@chrislj2890]

@@carlosoliveira-rc2xt Up until you had to pay for the repairs on a BMW, lol.

[@davidachille7188]

Using QED Performance Audio 40i on main setup to connect CD/DAC and Turntable to Amp. Very satisfied

[@Panslapper]

QED every time for me. Performance graphite range is very good value and sounds detailed airy and far better than most I have tried around the same price. I’ve stuck with QED Performance range right across the spectrum including Optical which I compared and found better the Kabel Direct optical for example and all stock cables, the QED sounding just better with more clarity, detail and a fuller sound. Their speaker wire is also excellent starting with the 79 strand. I stayed at XT25 which runs from my Denon amp and it transports every detail with good separation to the speakers. It’s a good midrange price point overall with superior build quality that will last years, worth doing the extra shift at work for in my opinion.

[@Nirvi1]

Excellent reviews! Thanks mate.

[@terrykemp8131]

You pay for what you get with audio cables. The materials look and feel better on the more expensive ones. I use either QED or AudioQuest for my interconnects., as the soundstage definitely improves. KZbin music has been compressed. Moreover, it's the quality of the original master recording and the shape of the room that makes the biggest difference to the overall sound.

[@Panslapper]

My favoured set up at the moment is my Denon PMA800NE with the Wiim Mini Streamer and connected with the QED optical straight into the amplifier using the Denons inbuilt dac and it sounds just great! Just easy to set up and use, no fussing about with exterior Dacs and so on which I do have but for simple plug and play the Wiim and Denon are surprisingly good. I like the Wiim Mini a lot. The Wiim app is one of the best I have ever used and feature rich with genuine dedication to sound quality and preferences which let’s face it not many do at that price. Cracking stuff! I might sound like a sponsored salesman but I can assure you I am not. I sweat as much as the next man for my pennies in this world and payed for my own gear, finally….there go I but for the grace of God.

[@themastroiannis]

wow! never thought i would say it...but difference is huuuuge! the qued cables sound so much better! so much depth, 3d, bottom end! nice! thanks...just subscribed to your channel.

[@itisjustacomment]

Yeah, I have loads of cheap RCA, £50 qed RCA, and qed £150 RCA, and the £150 sounds better for sure. Lucky I got the Qed £150 cable for £10 off eBay bids and the £50-£70 rca purple Qed for £6. I was lucky, and I've been looking for more but not having luck. But today, I got a QED Silver anniversary speaker cable bi-wire 4 stand around 7 mtrs and another 8 meters of another Qed cable for £5 including 3 postage. I got the score for a lifetime, but then the seller messaged me saying he was sending my money back, and he didn't check the prices right. Now it's £150 for the lot :( Nearly got them, so disappointed.

[@totalplonker824]

When listening, I prefer not to put up with the faint background signal noise (noise floor) One should try pressing pause or mute, and from main listening position if ones unable to differentiate whether the systems are off or on, that's telling you your cables are crap. When friends or guests come around rather showing them how loud the system goes, I prefer to press pause/mute and show them how quiet it goes. None of them gets it, of course 😂 Silence is golden.

[@Douglas_Blake_579]

Something most people don't realize... RCA connectors are *NOT* intended to be supported by their ground rings. They are made to be held by the centre pin. The ground ring only needs to make light contact. The reason for this is the risk of accidentally yanking on the cable. It is far better that it simply unplugs itself, when yanked, than to have it ripping the ground ring out of the back of your devices.

[@MJLUCEY-sd1mq]

I can say that the WBC cables will move a considerable distance on the threads, about 3/8ths of an inch. So, you/he could tighten the connectors tighter than he may have done. I threaded mine (clockwise) to their full extent and put teflon spray on them. Much better.

[@darrellross8609]

U, WBCables are just peace of mind at a great price. Best, D.

[@dell177]

I feel the same way, cheap cables often result in cheap sound. The amazon basics are a step up but something like the WBC do a better job. I really have no idea how good the thousand dollar cables are and I doubt I ever will.

[@andreassouth1523]

In my set-up i use supra jentech sky speaker cable 13AWG (made in Swedwen) directional.Also interconnect wireworld terra rca directional and wireworld coaxial chroma for the dvd player.I've been using these cables since 2018 to connect the cd player k tuner to the amplifier. The sound is excellent, with highs that don't shave your head. Mid-range with great resolution, where you hear all the details in the quiet passages and deep bass. You give very little and you get a lot!I was thinking about using qed, but customers on various sites complained about harsh treble.

[@gratmatassa5432]

i use QED cables from cd to amp that are directional & a pair of QED sub cables from amp to sub, iv'e heard it said you only need 1 cable for a sub as it's sound is not directional well here's the bombshell play some stuff from the 60's such as the beatles early stereo experiments & production some tracks the bass guitar, drums, vocals etc may be on either channel, 1 cable will not reproduce both channels, 1 channel will lose some depth in the lower registers it is noticeable & effects the sound, using both channels on the sub balances it out plus in my case i also get a 6 db boost win win. great video by the way.

[@calvinnapier9977]

I recently bought rca WBC cables to try against my rca Monster cables. To my ears the WBC ones sounded better to me and they're not even broke in yet. I would buy them again!

[@rosen8757]

Cables does not have burn in time, but your ear does and that is what they are after.

[@DOS-jx9wy]

Convincing people that a pricey cable gets better with use, is a brilliant con, it stops people, sending it straight back when they hear no difference, these aftermarket audio cable companies are shameless!

[@rosen8757]

@@DOS-jx9wy yes, it's especially funny seeing expensive digital cables, it's a godamn digital signal. It wont make a difference.

[@cooper6086]

Make your interconnects DIY. Buy shielded OFC or OCC microphonecables from Mogami (Japan), SommerCables (Germany) or Belden (USA) and some decent RCA-plugs like Amphenol (Australia), Rean or China copies of WBT connectors and you have decent interconnects for about 10 to 15 Pounds a pair which are not worse compared to cables which cost 80 to 200 Pounds. You don't need a special degree for the soldering, its pretty simple. But you can also spend thousends of pounds in an AudioQuest cable. Its your decision. Enjoy your audio devices........

[@MrJustmitch]

I make own with van damme silver series very cheap and good way to get good cables £20 per 2 meters then buy your RCA plugs so overall about £15 per cable

[@Jil8840]

The gauge has nothing to do with the sound. It's the quality of the wire inside , the purity and the overall design.

[@James28R]

hahaha. yeah, its not about the science, its about the magic beans woven into the cable.

[@c0uchsl0uch]

I hear a slight difference, of course this is from my phone to Bluetooth headphones, I would go middle of the road with Amazon basics or maybe a "like new" return on Amazon of a more expensive cable, but I don't hear a significant improvement on the best cable to spend top dollar. Also, take into consideration what level your equipment is

[@kevinsheppard6085]

I had that exact same Amazon gold coloured basic coaxial cable it seemed to work on some devices and not others, measured it and it's not a true 75ohm cable. Got my self an audio quest Forrest cable worked on everything and I could hear the extra money spent. To be honest on your recordings I could here a small difference between the cheap and the other two, but the other two sounded exactly the same to my lug holes, but as you say it's probably You Tube. Completely agree though spending a bit more does make a difference, but not stupid money. Great video as always thank you

[@geraldcrook9504]

A per usual . I can't fault your videos I love them . The everyday man's man . Say it as it is . Keep them coming great content well explained. Nice kit too.👍

[@michaelvincent8306]

I was at a hifi shop in London and a guy came in to collect a set off cables 7k I should have mugged him but 2 x in a day is taking the p--- great video ❤

[@matthewtaylor7355]

Audioquest copies off Ali Express make me feel better.50GBP for Audioquest Sky Interconnect Which even bigger fools than me have paid 2Grand +for Originals LOL

[@hubert-williams3379]

Sounds good man!!.. what about the burn in time.. you can't judge until you put more milage on each

[@cobar5342]

I do not buy interconnects anymore. The 'good' ones are too expensive for what they are. Now I make mine out of 1mm 99% silver wire wrapped around teflon tubing with teflon tape between and over ('plumber's tape). You can run a ground down the centre from one end to achieve a near balanced state. Finish in simple braid. You can use good to high quality RCA jacks. One of your Pom mates uses furniture piping for the centre with calico wrapping. The look pretty impressive but I am OK with what I have. PS I think cable 'burn in' (or 'cryo' ) makes no physical sense. Luv from Oz

[@louskimming4371]

Enjoyed your video. I used to have a Sansui AU-D9 and TUS7 if memory serves. One suggestion, for these tests electronic instruments, including guitars, are unknown. IME acoustic instruments are a much better known animal. You have a far better idea what an acoustic guitar sounds like. E. guitars use different amps, and identical amps can be made to sound different with different tubes. Just a suggestion. Soundstage and such will of course vary depending upon a number of factors, but different cables will, depending upon quantity, convey that so that you will normally be able to perceive the difference unless the recording is really piss poor. Some people, IME, just don't listen into the music. It's akin to pleasent background noise to them, and they just won't hear a difference. Audio is quite personal, and what one likes and dislikes can vary greatly. I know a guy with serious high frequency losses, so the brigher the mudic, the more he likes it. My ears could be bleading from the highs in his system, but he's loving it. Is he wrong? Not at all. It's subjective but some want to impose their values upon others. I have some very old ICs which you can not longer buy new, and IMO, they are far better than the WBCs, but I was pleasantly surprised at how good the WBC sounded. I don’t care the cost, so far nothing has bettered my old cables. Anyway, don't let the flat earth crowd get to you. Flat is what they like and want, and there's nothing wrong with that. I've heard really expensive systems that sounded somewhat like mine if you tossed a blanket over the tweeters. He loved it, and that's what counts. Thanks for the review.

[@paulk9534]

If youve spent a lot of money on equipment, particularly the source equipment… dont cheap out on the cables; the differences may be small but it would be like putting cheap tyres on an expensive car, just not worth it 😮

[@mcm934ify]

I Heard a différence and qued the best. And all this IS science

[@James28R]

no it isnt. the science says there is no difference (above a certain level i.e. the shitty cheap ones)

[@Squishmallows24]

To me all the cables I’ve used sound the same, I hear absolutely no difference. I still don’t like buying really cheap cables though. I at least want a well built with “better” materials cable. For audio cables I use blue jeans cables.

[@kwokhungleung4623]

I use kimber cable Better than my QED of nearly same price

[@Jil8840]

I would like a serious test comparison with top brands like kimber, atlas, furutech......!!!!!

[@UTILITARIANTVUK]

Me too! 😄

[@James28R]

audio jewellery only. 0 sonic advantage.

[@REBTellis]

sound very close. QED sound balanced

[@chuckmaddison2924]

People test the cables wrong. They should use mono , new and old cables at same time and look for difference.

[@arvidlystnur4827]

Burn in time for cables is snake oil speak!

[@davidfelix3851]

Qed

[@davejones538]

What speaker cables do you use Boss 🥊🥊

[@UTILITARIANTVUK]

I use this chief amzn.to/3Uz1cxs 👍

[@davejones538]

With ya super new speakers you should try some chord shawline x speaker cables just had some made at future shop 👍 I was using amazon cable difference is night and day 🤣

[@totalplonker824]

@davejones538 what kind of setup are you running

[@davejones538]

@totalplonker824 what you mean ? I've got cd ,streamer and integrated amp

[@totalplonker824]

​@davejones538 Oh, I see, so you're running 2-Channel stereo. Are you also using shawline interconnects?

[@thehandseesall]

Amazon & QED virtually the same

[@sutteren]

Cant hear any diff. They all sounded the same to me....

[@onesikm3]

You must have not listened with headphones and your loosing your hearing just saying 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@991carreras3]

Amazon sounds the cleanest when using my headphones for this test.

[@onesikm3]

Easily the Mogami cables had the best highs much cleaner

[@dab9742]

The best cable is simply the one with the lowest series resistance, the lowest capacitance and the lowest inductance. The most serious manufacturers indicate these values; others should be avoided. Connections must be of good quality for good contact and a good hold in place. Everything else is just talk !

[@totalplonker824]

Don't forget the shielding. How else is one going to be able to lower ones noise.

[@James28R]

keep telling yourself that. haha@@totalplonker824

[@AlexMitchell-sj4sb]

According to Audio Science Review, Amazon basic cables (RCA) are absolutely fine. Shame it's Amazon selling them though. Have to try find another company now, not using Amazon anymore.

[@DOS-jx9wy]

Did you test the cables scientifically, using a blind test, and having someone else fitting, and swapping over the cables multiple times, to show the consistency in your preferences, if you knew which cable you were testing, while listening, your preconceptions would effect the results, making them unreliable, anecdotal evidence, opinions based on ones perceptions, have little gravitas, without scientific confirmation.

[@Rockin_Kat]

1. Amazon Basics (more detailed sound) 2. Cheap (blurry sound) 3. QED/WBC (didn't like it at all, the sound is very blurry)

[@totalplonker824]

I've changed my cables multiple times, and when I moved up to the 14 gauge Amazon basics, there was a slight improvement in sound quality over the skinny 18 gauge cables (obviously less resistance) However, it didn't get rid of the background noise! It was only when I forked out for proper shielded cabling that the faint background signal noise (RF/EMI) came down to satisfactory levels (noise floor) As well as the expense, do you really think I'd go through all this not once, not twice but third time to get rid of the so-called ambient sound of the room. Here's a short 3 minute video if interested.. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rai4YZdpg8uFh9ksi=3d8xT4j6BWJdhmnB

[@MrsZambezi]

Do Expensive Interconnect Cables Make a Difference? No, of course not.

[@carlosoliveira-rc2xt]

Practically speaking these are all cheap cables. The "mental" cables is where the "magic" happens on a very good system.

[@joc1016]

Do you believe in Santa Claus?

[@carlosoliveira-rc2xt]

@@joc1016 Do you believe in higher education? I am just wondering because statistically, uneducated people tend to ask this question and I want to know whether higher education eluded you due to a financial situation or an intellectual one?

[@joc1016]

@@carlosoliveira-rc2xt Education is one thing. Experience is another. I'm opting for the later.

[@joc1016]

Latter. Typo🤣 dumb ass

[@joc1016]

@carlos oliveira And just forgetting about the cables. What kind of idiot looks down on people that haven't the funds for higher education? Get over yourself, knob jockey.

[@uribar-ner5055]

Only double blind test matters. You didn't do that.

[@louskimming4371]

To you!

[@louskimming4371]

What actually matters is what one enjoys, not what others think about their music or systems, unless violence or such is being pushed, but even then, nothing is likely going to be done about it. Currently, AFAIK, there isn't test equipment powerful enough to take in every detail human ears can, just as we don't hear everything a dog does. Frankly, unless I am the one setting up the parameters for a double blind test, I'm not sure that I would put any faith in the test. This gentleman did it the right way, though. Quick switching back and forth is useless. I can virtually never tell a difference doing that myself. Longer term, at least an entire acoustical instrumental of 5 minutes or so, does give me consistent results even if the person swapping, or not, the cables and I are in separate rooms and just turns on the music, meaning zero ques, I can hear differences. Some cables are pretty indistinguishable, though, as many are physically quite similar. His WBC are a reasonably good sounding cable, but they are not the world's best. I have multiple cables that better them, but I actually wanted them to be better so I could sell off the others and pocket a few dollars. YMMV

[@IcchiNutz]

Explain in scientific terms why this would benefit us in any tangible way. Seriously

[@MichaelBeeny]

NO

[@Niels133]

Waste of material, the red & white cables.

[@trottophone]

The leads and plugs on my Rega RB250 tonearm look just the same as a cheapo interconnect. Oh dear.

[@PurpleDreki]

No difference to my ears.