|   DVD Audio to receiver connection | Jack in Wilmington
Nov 27, 2001 4:18 PM | | Want to get all my cables on order and in house before Christmas morning so that I'm all set to go when I get my new DVD-Audio player. Looking at the IXOS 175AV-100 cable at Accessories 4 Less. Will this be a good choice or should I go with 6 individual cables? Thanks. |
| the more expensive the cable, the better the quality | Chris T Joh
Nov 27, 2001 4:37 PM | | you should spend about 10 percent of whatever your components cost on wires. the better cables will give you a better soundstage and clearer imaging. |
| the more expensive the cable, the better the quality | Jack in Wilmington
Nov 27, 2001 5:25 PM | | Thanks Chris,
Looks like I'll be above the 10% line. The DVD Audio player that I'm looking at is the Toshiba SD-5700. It is going for $299 and the cable that I'm asking about is going for $55.00 then you throw in the S-Video also and I'll be up around $100 |
| the more expensive the cable, the better the quality | Warren Warren
Nov 27, 2001 7:22 PM | | Sorry to disagree with you Chris, but... You do reach a point of diminishing returns. While the 10% rule of thumb is usually pretty good for systems ranging between $500 to $5,000, your 2 statements seem to contradict each other- How can you stay within 10%, and yet more expensive is better? I do like IXOS cables, though. Their quality of construction, design, and relatively inexpensive price at AC4L makes them a very good cable. |
| "...the more expensive the cable, the better the quality..." | Resident Loser
Nov 28, 2001 7:50 AM | | ...nothing could be further from the truth. Price alone indicates absolutely nothing other than manufacturers' and middlemans' markup! Let's not even mention advertising costs which are passed along to the consumer.
Any one who makes such a blanket statement has obviously never examined the more "esoteric" bits and pieces of hardware which have been offered to the "audiophile" market over the years, some of which command high prices, but can barely withstand the onslaught of a flea breaking wind.
Insofar as the "10% rule" is concerned, the term "twaddle", comes to mind.
Regarding the statement that "...better cables will give you a better soundstage and clearer imaging...", my response is , as always, if the information is not provided by the source material, no level of expenditure will provide it. While cables may "sound" different(for any number of reasons, real or imagined), there is nothing supportive, other than opinion, that this difference is, in fact, "improvement". As there has yet to be any repeatable, demonstrable and conclusive evidence to the contrary that this position is anything more than an entirely arbitrary and anecdotal one, it should be viewed as such.
jimHJJ(...BTW, wire is wire...generally speaking...) |
| A concession!? | Mwalsdor@cscc.edu
Nov 28, 2001 9:31 AM | | "wire is wire... GENERALLY speaking". Having not read the post which you objected, I must agree that retail cost has little to do with quality. Of course, the worst assembled 50k system would be hard pressed to be supplanted my the "best 1k system", but I follow you. You mention advertizing cost, which is a legitimate issue. I've followed the path of pursing wholesale, cutting out the retailor when possible. That affords a REAL shavings. The new amp I'm working with Moth Audio to build is a direct sale, but less than half the retail cost of the amp it replaced.
I'm assuming the "10% rule" mentioned had to do with cable system allocation. I've NEVER bought into that "rule". For beginnings maybe, but anyone with a functioning ear and ANY experience should be able to decide for themselves where to devy their funds. The DIY speaker cable project I'm working on should cost me under $75 for a 10' bi-wire run of Cardas .99999 solid silver cables. That is hardly 10%. Results matter (imagined or real)!
MikE |
| No, not really... | Resident Loser
Nov 28, 2001 10:35 AM | | ...more of a pre-emptive statement for the nimrod who would counter by comparing jewelers' wire to welding cables...we both know they're out there...
Insofar as the 1k to 50k comparison is concerned there obviously is none...I mean lookee all the extra music that could be bought with that left over 49k!!! Not to mention car and a dishwasher and a microwave and a coupla' pounds of beef jerky...the mind reels...I mean once you get past a good pair of speakers and the amplification to happily power them, it's all just incremental in nature and gilding the lily, ain't it?
jimHJJ(...as I sit here listening to some Boccherini thru my faithful GE portable e/w its' stunning 2.5in driver, I cant help but wish I was home, feeling the underpinnings of the bass line I know is there...feeling groggy...toooo much turkey...high levels of
L-tryptophan...snort...snore...ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz........) |
| re: DVD Audio to receiver connection | FLZapped
Nov 28, 2001 5:22 AM | | You could do either, just don't let anyone tell you that there is a 10% rule, because that is totally without merit.
-Bruce |
| re: DVD Audio to receiver connection | Spiky
Nov 28, 2001 7:03 AM | | Ignoring all the other comments for or against cables in this thread, let me say something new.
For a DVD-A player, the 10% rule is totally out the window, whether you agree with it or not, it just can't apply. Since you need triple the cables just to hook up the audio, ignore standard assumptions. If it's to be used as a DVD-Video player as well, just keep adding up the cost! Anyway, just get 3 pair of your favorite audio cables, it's just like any other analog cable need. |
| re: DVD Audio to receiver connection | Jack in Wilmington
Nov 28, 2001 9:27 AM | | So what you're saying is that I'm better off with 6 separate audio cables, rather than one cable that has 6 connections at each end like the cable I mentioned in my original post? |
| re: DVD Audio to receiver connection | FLZapped
Nov 29, 2001 5:37 AM | | Having everything in one bundle is certainly convienient. However, you give up the flexibility of "borrowing" a cable now and then for trouble shooting purposes.
It's going to come down to your personal preference. However, if you do decide on a pre-bundled approach, don't pay an overly high premium for it.
-Bruce |
| re: DVD Audio to receiver connection | Warren Warren
Nov 28, 2001 6:59 PM | | Why do you need triple the cables? Where do you prefer to do your Digital to Analog conversion- at the DVD player or at the receiver? Why can't you just buy 1 coaxial digital cable, and one component video cable? And, if a DVD player costs $200, couldn't you buy these 2 cables for roughly $20? Again, 10% is not written in stone, just a rough figure for systems between $500 and $5000, that seems to work fairly well, and even the anti-cable people that fall into this price range system have probably spent about that much on their cables. After all, even Radio Shack, Canare, and Home Depot wires are not free. You have to spend something on them. Or, do you just use the cables that come with your components? Does anyone here use them? Just curious. |
| re: Why do you need triple the cables? | woodman
Nov 28, 2001 11:56 PM | | You obviously don't know about a very basic fact surrounding these new digital audio technologies. They MUST be converted in the DVD-Audio (or the SACD) player and coupled to the amplifying system via 6 analog connections ... there is no digital output for those signals. There often is a digital output on these players, but it can only be used when playing standard Redbook CDs - not when playing DVD-Audio or SACD discs.
woodman |
| Ooops... My bad! | Warren Warren
Nov 29, 2001 8:17 AM | | So these new formats will require us to upgrade not only our player, but our receiver/pre-amp as well? What a pain in the tush! I guess I won't be buying one anytime soon. |
| Ooops... My bad! | Spiky
Nov 29, 2001 11:08 AM | | There will be a digital output, someday. Most likely it will be using Firewire, so yes, plan on major upgrades if you wish to incorporate SACD or DVD-A into your future. Otherwise, today, you need a 6 channel input on the receiver. Neat, huh? |
| re: DVD Audio to receiver connection | djdinkel
Nov 29, 2001 12:37 PM | | Keep in mind the DAC's being used in the DVD-A Player. Some players have higher quality DAC's (192k/24 bit) for the two main front channels and lower quality (96K/24 bit) for the other channels. Therefore it would make sense to buy the higher quality cables for the front mains and lesser quality for the other channels. This is more true if you are going to be doing more stereo listening than surround listening. |
| |
