Debunking Audio 'Truths' - Cables Don't Make a Difference PLUS the Politics of Audio

To recap, all of the electronic components, which includes the cables used to connect them, are at the bottom of the list. The list I'm referring to is the list of factors that you can change that make the biggest difference in sound quality.
This is about sound quality that you'll get listening in your room.

All competently made components will sound alike, and any differences will be too small to hear. This does not include equipment that has been "voiced" to sound a certain way, as in amps that have been designed to have more harmonic distortion or cables that intentionally degrade the signal. Both of these instances can result in SUBTLE differences, but do so by actually putting out a technically worse result. However, the ear likes what the ear likes, so "worse" in this instance can be a matter of taste and opinion. And remember that the ear is connected to a brain that interprets what it's getting and is therefore heavily influenced by what that brain wants to hear.

What really drives the truly subjectivity based audiophile to buy these products is the reputation of the products and the idea that in order to be in the club, you need to have it. The club I'm talking about is the one where all the coolest audiophiles hang out and brag about the gear they have and talk about how wonderful it sounds, and look down on anyone who isn't in the club.
Of course this "club" isn't (usually) anything official, as in an organized association of members, but you know you are in if you buy the right things.

Next up is the recordings and they can range from terrible to amazing. Even though the quality of the recording is largely out of your control, you can decide to be selective and not listen to the ones that sound bad. Or, and this is what I do, you can try to ignore how bad they are because you love listening to them.

Speakers are where you'll find a lot of variability in how they can sound and the differences can range from subtle (for models in the same price range, typically) to very wide. Speakers that measure the "same" can sound much different, depending on a number of factors. For example I've always preferred the presentation of larger speakers to smaller ones, even when they mostly sound the same. To me, and I'm not completely ruling out a psychological influence, the larger speaker with larger drivers delivers the sound with more authority and presence. Presence being the "it feels more real" - note "feels", not "sounds".
Other factors are how the low end is handled, whether the speaker is sealed or vented or dipole.
This is why any attempt to judge the sound quality of speakers with measurements alone is a fool's game - you have to listen to them to really know how they sound.

Lastly at the very top of the list of factors that impact sound quality is the room you'll be listening in. And it's ironic that even today, it's the one factor that is ranked the least important to most audiophiles. In fact most completely ignore it (and that includes the lab coat objectivity based ones) and will go to great lengths to deny its significance. Instead they'll spend money on things from the bottom of the list thinking the greatest differences can be realized there.

The room is the biggest wild card because there is so much about it that can affect sound quality. From the size of the room to the shape and the makeup of the walls and what's in the room - all will have orders of magnitude more influence on sound quality than all of the electronics put together.
And , also ironically, it's the one that you have the most control over, yet is almost universally ignored.

I spent nearly a full year treating my listening room and I can say without any doubt that the year spent was one of the best investments I've ever made. Since completion I've been using that room every single day. I spend all of my evenings there, from 5 in the afternoon until 10 at night, and sometimes longer.
So I have that to compare - treated to untreated, unlike most audiophiles. They THINK they know what it's like, mainly because they heard (and look for) someone else say that it isn't needed or that it "ruins" the sound, being "too dead".
I will say that a treated room is something you need to get used to, but when you do you'll never want to go back. I know I haven't.

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[IBuildIt]

To recap, all of the electronic components, which includes the cables used to connect them, are at the bottom of the list. The list I'm referring to is the list of factors that you can change that make the biggest difference in sound quality.
This is about sound quality that you'll get listening in your room.

All competently made components will sound alike, and any differences will be too small to hear. This does not include equipment that has been "voiced" to sound a certain way, as in amps that have been designed to have more harmonic distortion or cables that intentionally degrade the signal. Both of these instances can result in SUBTLE differences, but do so by actually putting out a technically worse result. However, the ear likes what the ear likes, so "worse" in this instance can be a matter of taste and opinion. And remember that the ear is connected to a brain that interprets what it's getting and is therefore heavily influenced by what that brain wants to hear.

What really drives the truly subjectivity based audiophile to buy these products is the reputation of the products and the idea that in order to be in the club, you need to have it. The club I'm talking about is the one where all the coolest audiophiles hang out and brag about the gear they have and talk about how wonderful it sounds, and look down on anyone who isn't in the club.
Of course this "club" isn't (usually) anything official, as in an organized association of members, but you know you are in if you buy the right things.

Next up is the recordings and they can range from terrible to amazing. Even though the quality of the recording is largely out of your control, you can decide to be selective and not listen to the ones that sound bad. Or, and this is what I do, you can try to ignore how bad they are because you love listening to them.

Speakers are where you'll find a lot of variability in how they can sound and the differences can range from subtle (for models in the same price range, typically) to very wide. Speakers that measure the "same" can sound much different, depending on a number of factors. For example I've always preferred the presentation of larger speakers to smaller ones, even when they mostly sound the same. To me, and I'm not completely ruling out a psychological influence, the larger speaker with larger drivers delivers the sound with more authority and presence. Presence being the "it feels more real" - note "feels", not "sounds".
Other factors are how the low end is handled, whether the speaker is sealed or vented or dipole.
This is why any attempt to judge the sound quality of speakers with measurements alone is a fool's game - you have to listen to them to really know how they sound.

Lastly at the very top of the list of factors that impact sound quality is the room you'll be listening in. And it's ironic that even today, it's the one factor that is ranked the least important to most audiophiles. In fact most completely ignore it (and that includes the lab coat objectivity based ones) and will go to great lengths to deny its significance. Instead they'll spend money on things from the bottom of the list thinking the greatest differences can be realized there.

The room is the biggest wild card because there is so much about it that can affect sound quality. From the size of the room to the shape and the makeup of the walls and what's in the room - all will have orders of magnitude more influence on sound quality than all of the electronics put together.
And, also ironically, it's the one that you have the most control over, yet is almost universally ignored.

I spent nearly a full year treating my listening room and I can say without any doubt that the year spent was one of the best investments I've ever made. Since completion I've been using that room every single day. I spend all of my evenings there, from 5 in the afternoon until 10 at night, and sometimes longer.
So I have that to compare - treated to untreated, unlike most audiophiles. They THINK they know what it's like, mainly because they heard (and look for) someone else say that it isn't needed or that it "ruins" the sound, being "too dead".
I will say that a treated room is something you need to get used to, but when you do you'll never want to go back. I know I haven't.

[sean_heisler]

Polarized thinking is a problem in our little audio community and certainly in the world today as a whole and it tends to lead to tribalism. Great video, John. We couldn't be more aligned. Thanks.

[ericksonengineering]

You are a brave soul to enter this fray. I appreciate a voice of reason. Thanks.

[Aswaguespack]

Very true about great equipment in bad rooms = a lackluster experience. Treating a room is usually not cheap (done properly) but is still a better investment than in outrageously expensive gear that disappoints in a poor listening environment. As always, a very honest perspective on “delicate” controversial audio narratives.

[leisure]

I've always loved the notion that "science can't explain everything we hear". I counter "what are you hearing that science can't explain"?

[ssmith]

Spot on... there's lots of caveats in between (like impedance matching between equipment and also speakers, well-designed/made equipment)... Cables can have very subtle differences, and sources/amps do have sonic signatures, but as long as the fundamentals are in place, the big differences are in speakers, speaker placement and the room itself (and also matching a system to your typical listening volume). Like you, I'm a diyer and in the middle.

[bickybickford]

I buy a good cable in bulk length and the connectors and make my own cables. Always haven always will. Great video.

[vinylcabasse]

best take on this subject i've seen yet, seriously.

[mfkhometheater]

High-end expensive cables definitely make a difference... a negative difference to the pocketbooks of the people buying them and a positive difference to the pocketbooks of the people selling them. That pretty much covers all the differences.

[alanm.thornton]

Always appreciate your practical commentary, and also your actual experience and background on things like this. In regard to 'possibly degrading the signal': that is a measurable AND audible function? I use to work in commercial photography, and would tether the digital camera to computer via USB (older days with mini-USB A). We had to use a specific BRAND usb cable to avoid the tether program from dropping out/no longer seeing the camera connected. If we used a generic cable, the program wouldn't see the camera; plug in the special $65 10' cable and the camera/computer worked great-never an issue. This lead me to believe that there 'could' be a difference in audio tonal qualities from at least inter-connects and digital cables. But in audio, the same thing would basically happen (at least with digital cables) things would either 'work' or not, like the camera-computer connection?

[gregtank]

Thank you John for your tips, tricks, and perspectives. The elephant in the room of each and ever audiophile is the variability in their biological system compared to the standard of a person with perfect pitch and perfect 20 -20000 Hz hearing. Add to this the structure of the outer ear audio collection into the brain circuitry the yields the audio perception we all call music. I believe that to achieve audio file quality in today's level of engineering and available tools makes the difference between budget and uber high cost systems quite narrow. It is a great time to be alive as an music lover!

[rcpmac]

Your honesty and directness are much appreciated. I have a budget system leveraging used equipment values and located in a vaulted 19 foot ceiling 25 foot square room. Very happy with the results. I can experience 3 dimensionality and can hear a good recording from an inferior one. This from a 70 yo carpenter. Denon AVR 125 watt pc running in stereo from the goodwill for $25. Energy Connoisseur C8 $500 Craigslist. JBL 12” Sub. $100. Substantial cables and wires from Amazon $40. Spotify streaming. No, I haven’t upgraded my electrical service from aluminum to copper as seen in some audio nutter’s YouTube.

[martinlindberg]

Spot ON!!! I believe in everything you say in this video. I like your philosophy regarding audio and I have seen a lot of content from you. I try to stay in the middle as well, but there are difficulties to stay sober when you start to watch raving reviews on YT... As you put it and to my ears: No1 = Speakers/room and listening position. No2 = Decent electronics and cables Done! Most sadly is that I cannot listen to badly recorded music anymore regardless of how "good" the actual song is. Bad recording techniques suits the car or radio in the kitchen, but not in my main rig where I listen carefully :) Keep up your good work in bringing balance in this crazy Audio industry.

[Shuksanaudio]

Been loving these explainer videos, John. Your way of explaining things is really lovely and that treated room of yours...so amazing!

[danielduesentriebjunior]

I fully agree - cables don't matter, loudspeakers matter a lot. However there are many cable quacks out there.

[paulhirst]

You actually "went there" on cables! When I first set up my system I used 18 gauge "alarm wire" as I had a lot left over from my CNC build. When I was ready to start tuning my system and room I made up "proper" cables with Canare 4S11 cable and "Speakon" connectors. The sound was slightly different and to my ears, better. Cost per cable ( about 1 m long ) including connectors was under $15. I think that this was a good balance between the two camps. BTW I came across a gem that I was not aware of, "Where Hides Sleep" by Alison Moyet. I really enjoyed her stuff while she was with Vincent Clarke as Yazoo ( Yaz on this side of the pond ).

[whome]

When I was first getting in to audio 30 years ago, I thought I could make a better cable for cheaper. I heard from work the benefits of twisted pair, so I made some twisted pair cable out of industrial shielded twisted pair cable with RCA cable ends. What I did not understand was that the audio I was connecting was single ended and twisted pair is better when driven differentially. Boy was I surprised, it sounded awful, the sound was choked down. I threw that all away and bought some nice cables, and heard no difference than what was in the box. Then got a better cd player and heard so much more faint audio than I could hear with my run of the mill Sony. That was the only time I heard a difference in cables going from good to bad with homemade cables.

[stephenschmitt]

You are right on John! The great thing about Audio today is, you can audition a piece of gear or a cable from a reputable dealer and if it doesn’t work for your room send it back. I just auditioned a pair of Maggie’s LRS + and they did not sound even closely as good as my GR Reseach DIY NX Studios. So I sent them back and got a refund. No matter the hype or the measurements just try stuff in your room! Room treatment is half of the battle for good sound. I have a 10 by 12 small listening room and I played around with diffusers, absorbers and combinations of both and now my little room sounds like I am in a castle! Treatment costs less than gear. Thanks John

[ChuckBronson]

Hi John, I was wondering when are we going to hear your new equipment? Regardless of how you think it sounds it would be great to still hear it. Thanks and keep up the great job

[Joew]

Two other components (no pun intended) of audiophoolery: 1) “my senses and hearing are so advanced that I can hear things that are too subtle to be detected with plebeian hearing abilities like yours” and 2) a straightforward ego/testosterone male competition over who has the most fancy crap or more money.