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Battle of RCA Cables: Mogami, Amazon, Monoprice

If you get the .25 meter flexibility might be a concern. I ordered a pair a number of years ago 1ft (.30 meter) and the connections were bulky and wire stiff which made it difficult. Hard to tell sometimes looking at photos on a website.
 
The seller said 1m is the minimum length sufficient to isolate EMI/RFI interference
That's even more nonsense and completely absurd.
Sensitivity to EMI/RFI increases with cable length, not the other way around; it's lowest with short cables.

This happens to be one of my professional areas of expertise. I've had to deal with EMI/RFI interference that has caused entire production lines to crash, as well as a server cluster in an operating room (through 2 x 50cm walls), and even entire server racks/server rooms.

But that doesn't happen in living spaces. A shielded small-signal cable would have to be really bad if you actually had a problem with standard cable runs. Otherwise, you'll have to switch to XLR cables and the corresponding devices.
 
I'm torn between two cables, the NEOTECH NEI-3002 MKIII and the MPS M-12 MKII, they're about the same price, around $65 for a 0.5m pair, and both look really good, both are said to be made from OCC copper, but the Neotech has silver-plated copper strands while the MPS doesn't...

Both are OEM brands for major wire manufacturers from Europe and the US, and the prices are very affordable.


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Is the wire connecting from DAC to preamp and Power Amplifier Analog or Digital?
Analog.

Increasing the length will increase, not decrease, noise susceptibility. It does not matter for such short lengths, but technically shorter is better.
 
I'm torn between two cables, the NEOTECH NEI-3002 MKIII and the MPS M-12 MKII, they're about the same price, around $65 for a 0.5m pair, and both look really good, both are said to be made from OCC copper, but the Neotech has silver-plated copper strands while the MPS doesn't...

Both are OEM brands for major wire manufacturers from Europe and the US, and the prices are very affordable.


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For RCA cables you don't want two core wire. You use single core which goes to pin. Shield goes to ring.

Don't waste money on cable that expensive. Silver plating makes no difference. OCC copper makes no difference. OFC makes no difference - though you normally get the latter at no extra cost.
 
For RCA cables you don't want two core wire. You use single core which goes to pin. Shield goes to ring.

Don't waste money on cable that expensive. Silver plating makes no difference. OCC copper makes no difference. OFC makes no difference - though you normally get the latter at no extra cost.

i think they build better than the mogami cables that armirm introduced for the same price.

with XLR cables should we need 2 cores?
 
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I'm torn between two cables, the NEOTECH NEI-3002 MKIII and the MPS M-12 MKII, they're about the same price, around $65 for a 0.5m pair, and both look really good, both are said to be made from OCC copper, but the Neotech has silver-plated copper strands while the MPS doesn't...

Both are OEM brands for major wire manufacturers from Europe and the US, and the prices are very affordable.


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The next fairy tale.
OCC is a standard manufacturing process and has been the standard for copper cable production for decades, regardless of whether the cable costs €3, €60, or €6,000 per meter. This means that all cables are OFC, even DIY store cables.

As a customer, I would feel ripped off if a supposedly premium manufacturer tried to sell me such expensive cables with the cheapest, environmentally harmful, and health-threatening PVC insulation, while reputable manufacturers offer cables with advanced, sustainable, and environmentally friendly TPE and PE insulation for just €2-3.
 
The next fairy tale.
OCC is a standard manufacturing process and has been the standard for copper cable production for decades, regardless of whether the cable costs €3, €60, or €6,000 per meter. This means that all cables are OFC, even DIY store cables.

As a customer, I would feel ripped off if a supposedly premium manufacturer tried to sell me such expensive cables with the cheapest, environmentally harmful, and health-threatening PVC insulation, while reputable manufacturers offer cables with advanced, sustainable, and environmentally friendly TPE and PE insulation for just €2-3.
I see neotech advertises that they are 1 of the 3 manufacturers with the license to produce OCC copper, and their OCC copper cables are very well priced, starting at just $12 a meter like the NEI-3004, and they are from Taiwan instead of China so I have a little more confidence. Is that true ??
 
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OCC is more marketing BS and snake oil. The difference between OFC and OCC isn't measurable, let alone audible.

OCC is only discussed in relation to "high-end" audio which should tell you everything you need to know.
 
I see neotech advertises that they are 1 of the 3 manufacturers with the license to produce OCC copper, and their OCC copper cables are very well priced, starting at just $12 a meter like the NEI-3004, and they are from Taiwan instead of China so I have a little more confidence. Is that true ??
This is also total nonsense, find out more.
The Ohno Continuous Casting (OCC) process is a general industrial process for various materials and has absolutely nothing to do with audio or hi-fi.
The patent for it expired long ago, and the process has always been available to any manufacturer who purchased production machines for the OCC process.
Licenses for this are simply ridiculous.
Furthermore, the OCC process has long been outdated in the industry and has been replaced by advanced and newer processes at high-end manufacturers. But not for the audio sector.

We once conducted various tests with OCC copper cables and other cables. Including copper strands from a German copper smelter that also supplies aviation and other critical areas. We also source material for our high-energy products from there.
The excellent OCC cables (from official sources) were mediocre at best in both resistance tests and high-energy frequency tests (PWM 200-500 kHz). The best results were achieved by the German manufacturer and various cables from the industrial manufacturer LAPP.
 
OCC is more marketing BS and snake oil. The difference between OFC and OCC isn't measurable, let alone audible.

OCC is only discussed in relation to "high-end" audio which should tell you everything you need to know.
Please don't say things like that. OCC is a standard manufacturing process used worldwide for many metals.
The marketing is that dubious manufacturers are promoting a 40-year-old, and now outdated, process as something great, even though it's standard even in the cheapest segment.

And it's never had anything to do with audio. At least not more than the worldwide steel plate production, which, among other things, is used to make cases for hi-fi equipment.
 
Please don't say things like that. OCC is a standard manufacturing process used worldwide for many metals.
The marketing is that dubious manufacturers are promoting a 40-year-old, and now outdated, process as something great, even though it's standard even in the cheapest segment.

And it's never had anything to do with audio. At least not more than the worldwide steel plate production, which, among other things, is used to make cases for hi-fi equipment.
Sorry, I should have expressed it better. I appreciate that OCC is a widespread manufacturing technique, but claims of superiority with regard to audio copper cabling are nonsense.

If you search OCC or Ohno Continuos Casting, a substantial portion of the references that turn up are in relation to audio and have no bearing on the reasons the technique was originally developed. That's the BS and Snake Oil I was referring to, not the process itself.
 
Sorry, I should have expressed it better. I appreciate that OCC is a widespread manufacturing technique, but claims of superiority with regard to audio copper cabling are nonsense.

If you search OCC or Ohno Continuos Casting, a substantial portion of the references that turn up are in relation to audio and have no bearing on the reasons the technique was originally developed. That's the BS and Snake Oil I was referring to, not the process itself.
OCC is used in many metals, primarily because of its better processability and the low oxygen content in the process.
But no industrial manufacturer would advertise such an old, and now outdated, and partially obsolete process.

When I once asked one of the senior engineers at our German manufacturer about the special OCC copper used in audio, he almost burst out laughing.

Another addendum for all OCC and OFC fans:
OCC and OFC have nothing to do with each other. OCC is a manufacturing process, and OFC stands for Oxygen Free Copper, which basically applies to every DIY cable these days. However, the term OFC, Oxygen Free Copper, is worthless without a percentage specification and a reputable laboratory test report.

Every manufacturer of high-quality OFC copper has ongoing laboratory reports from their production processes with very reliable values. Otherwise, these manufacturing processes could not be reliably controlled.
If a reputable cable supplier (I deliberately use these two terms) states that their cables come from an OCC process and contain a certain percentage of OFC, they can prove this for each individual batch with the laboratory reports from their copper manufacturer (or their own production).
Otherwise, they simply have not purchased material with this specification. Then the information is not verifiable, just marketing fluff and not worth the paper it's printed on.
In industry, only verifiable and provable facts count; in the hi-fi sector, only marketing fluff counts.
 
i think they build better than the mogami cables that armirm introduced for the same price.

with XLR cables should we need 2 cores?
I don't know of anything better than Mogami or Canare cabling for your purposes. $65 sounds high, but I don't know what country you are in. These two brands are also very flexible which is a plus for such a short length.
 
OCC is used in many metals, primarily because of its better processability and the low oxygen content in the process.
But no industrial manufacturer would advertise such an old, and now outdated, and partially obsolete process.

When I once asked one of the senior engineers at our German manufacturer about the special OCC copper used in audio, he almost burst out laughing.

Another addendum for all OCC and OFC fans:
OCC and OFC have nothing to do with each other. OCC is a manufacturing process, and OFC stands for Oxygen Free Copper, which basically applies to every DIY cable these days. However, the term OFC, Oxygen Free Copper, is worthless without a percentage specification and a reputable laboratory test report.

Every manufacturer of high-quality OFC copper has ongoing laboratory reports from their production processes with very reliable values. Otherwise, these manufacturing processes could not be reliably controlled.
If a reputable cable supplier (I deliberately use these two terms) states that their cables come from an OCC process and contain a certain percentage of OFC, they can prove this for each individual batch with the laboratory reports from their copper manufacturer (or their own production).
Otherwise, they simply have not purchased material with this specification. Then the information is not verifiable, just marketing fluff and not worth the paper it's printed on.
In industry, only verifiable and provable facts count; in the hi-fi sector, only marketing fluff counts.
Very helpful, can you tell me more about 6N 7N 8N copper, i hear audio cable companies advertise quite a lot, thank you.
 
I have tons of monster RCA cables because I can get them all the time at thrift stores or garage sales over the years for maybe a $1 a cable regardless of length. Besides issues with the company ethically that anyone may have, and that their non-THX labeled RCA cable connectors bind on way too tight and can actually rip out your RCA female connection on your gear if you are not careful removing them, is there any reason to avoid them for sound quality or interference resistance?

Again, price is no issue as they are not new and are dirt cheap and readily available.

(Personally sometimes I have thought I heard a difference with a cable, but then I go back and not so sure. Not so sure to me says it was in my head and I move on. So in the end I have been using my audioquest and monster cables since I have/get them for cheap. i don't expect them to add anything, nor that they would be any worse.)
 
Very helpful, can you tell me more about 6N 7N 8N copper, i hear audio cable companies advertise quite a lot, thank you.
The best thing is to forget about what the cable is made of. It isn't a big deal. There is nothing to be gained. Literally nothing other than learning you cannot trust most audio cable companies. They are peddling myths to take more of your money.

It was my understanding you need an RCA to XLR cable. If you are only in need of RCA to RCA, then any coax cable made of RG59 or RG6 will be as good as anything you can buy. If you need one end in XLR then Mogami or Canare are good if you just want the confidence of knowing. Anyone who tells you they have something better than those are lying or simply don't really know what they are talking about. That is it. You can approach this from any angle you want, but there is nothing more to be gained.
 
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