NORDOST TYR 2 Review (Coax Cable)

[uwotm8]

Probably many "snake oil sellers" are really "manufacturing" by buying stuff on the cheap, ready-printed with their BS.
Including, but not limited to, cables

Now that's a statement. But... prove it Show some OEM cables identical to NordOst or AudioQuest or, say, Kimber. Not a fake aliexpress "AQ" or "NordOst" but real OEM these evil "snake oilers" resell (unbranded, rebranded, you name it).

Good luck finding something like these (inb4 that looks audiofoolish - well, we're not discussing do we need solid wires and fancy weaving or don't) product in generic cable makers lists.

However, I expect a lot of frauds from real snake oil masters - NBS, Kubala-Sosna and such.

P.S. "Conductive dielectric" sounds crazy but AQ doesn't lie, I checked my Slate speaker cable when was crimping it. Hundreds of Ohms but it counducts

 

[Katji]

ot a fake aliexpress "AQ" or "NordOst"

Which are better VFM, if properly made. Fancy copper is pointless. So I am generally glad to see those.
Nordost and AudioQuest are fake in the first place.

 

[uwotm8]

Which are better VFM, if properly made

For like a hundred times cheaper VFM definitely can't be worse but that's not what I'm talking about.
My point: AQ and NordOst and some other famous but casual brands do not sell rebranded cables (but surely don't make all their cables in-house, there must be subcontractors who make these exactly as ordered).
Boutique brands - this is where I admit anything is possible

 

[nyxnyxnyx]

I don't think they (boutique brands) would opt to use OEMs because that might hurt their credibility (to their fanbase) and I'm pretty confident that their profit margin is already very nice.
Although, I think it is possible if they decide to use cheaper components to make their products. One audio friend I know had several expensive cables but one time his mom almost threw them out because she misunderstood that they were just 'typical household electrical cables'.

 

[AudioSceptic]

It is so interesting that aliexpress has Nordost cables on sale for a few US $. They must be clones. However, since Amir is already on the Nordost black list, why not plan a contest between legit Nordost cables vs. Nordost clones? Results might surprise us and emphasize even more the emperor-new-clothes psychologic mechanism for the new rich that feeds so much dough to "High-End" electronics and their empty (and deceiving) promises.

Might surprise us? I'd be surprised if there was an audible difference, or even any significant measured difference.

 

[gfx_1]

S/PDIF via coax isn´t that critical, connected my bedroom pc to the living room amplifier via multiple pieces of rca cable to get the 8 to 10 meters it didn't miss a bit. From the looks it is just a standard cable with added shrinkwrap.

 

[AudioSceptic]

Sorry, but why Amir wastes his time with this?

It is as important to measure worthless items as it is to measure the best. Potential buyers need to know what to avoid as much as what to consider.

 

[respice finem]

I don't think they (boutique brands) would opt to use OEMs because that might hurt their credibility (to their fanbase) and I'm pretty confident that their profit margin is already very nice.
Although, I think it is possible if they decide to use cheaper components to make their products. One audio friend I know had several expensive cables but one time his mom almost threw them out because she misunderstood that they were just 'typical household electrical cables'.

And perhaps she wasn't even wrong

 

[Here2Learn]

@amirm It probably doesn't matter to the test results, but how do you know cables supplied by a member/friend and placed under test are genuine and not a counterfeit version from AliExpress?

Literally in the past few days I saw fake Nordost on eBay that were AliExpress counterfeit versions. Ebay don't seem to permit reporting listings that don't involve a transaction, so I reported it to Nordost who then had it pulled. Here in the UK it is illegal to sell counterfeit goods - but it doesn't stop the practice on dealer websites or eBay.

The dealer still has it on his company's website of used items, asking for £9000. I discovered the penalty if our authorities take interest in his offerings could be 10 years in jail if any are fake.

I also realize there's a potential debate here about whether manufacturers of high end cables charging crazy prices should get the same jail time!

On another note, if no high-end cable manufacturer claims have any merit, maybe we should buy the knock-offs if we just want the prettier cables? With the side-topic being, isn't this just jewelry for men? (Look, it works for Mr T and only a fool would dare to argue, but he'll pity that fool)

 

[AudioSceptic]

@amirm It probably doesn't matter to the test results, but how do you know cables supplied by a member/friend and placed under test are genuine and not a counterfeit version from AliExpress?

Literally in the past few days I saw fake Nordost on eBay that were AliExpress counterfeit versions. Ebay don't seem to permit reporting listings that don't involve a transaction, so I reported it to Nordost who then had it pulled. Here in the UK it is illegal to sell counterfeit goods - but it doesn't stop the practice on dealer websites or eBay.

The dealer still has it on his company's website of used items, asking for £9000. I discovered the penalty if our authorities take interest in his offerings could be 10 years in jail if any are fake.

I also realize there's a potential debate here about whether manufacturers of high end cables charging crazy prices should get the same jail time!

On another note, if no high-end cable manufacturer claims have any merit, maybe we should buy the knock-offs if we just want the prettier cables? With the side-topic being, isn't this just jewelry for men? (Look, it works for Mr T and only a fool would dare to argue, but he'll pity that fool)

The problem with the "jewelry for men" idea is that it just doesn't work. Jewelry is something that *others* will see and admire. Who's going to see your fancy cables?

 

[Here2Learn]

The problem with the "jewelry for men" idea is that it just doesn't work. Jewelry is something that *others* will see and admire. Who's going to see your fancy cables?

Well, it is Friday night tomorrow, so who knows! Just throw a Nordost Odin 2 Gold speaker cable around one's neck as a scarf, say "I'm worth it" in the mirror, and strut to the club.

 

[respice finem]

Well, it is Friday night tomorrow, so who knows! Just throw a Nordost Odin 2 Gold speaker cable around one's neck as a scarf, say "I'm worth it" in the mirror, and strut to the club.

The foreseeable outcome was already linked somewhere (in this thread?):
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...ments/attach67820_20220214_115947-png.216781/

 

[Spkrdctr]

Oh, the irony:

Today, they use ridiculous amounts of technobabble and pseudoscience talk to promote cables and all sorts of "harmonizers" (cables are not even the worst part).

As a side note: unsubstantiated claims of Nordost collaboration with NASA and/or involvement in the electromedical industry often appear in reviews (and are constantly repeated as they were true by audiophiles). These claims seem to originate from a statement where Nordost is reported using the same insulation technology that is used also in aerospace and medical applications, but there is no proof whatsoever that they have been a supplier, not to mention a R&D partner, for such sectors. Nevertheless, while hi-fi magazines have been copy-pasting the same stuff without any basic fact-checking, the company never cared to clarify and still keeps PDFs copies of such reviews on their website. So much for the credibility of the high-end circle.

That would be copying the insane Shunyata marketing psycho-babble.

 

[DonR]

They may not be knock-offs but factory seconds or identical cables made in the same factory as the originals. These sorts of things are not unknown.

 

[Spkrdctr]

Absolutely, I read ASR for amusement value but I don't buy into the measurements=sound signature camp at all. I've met too many folks saying red/white cables are all you need on forums but secretely they ran boutique stuff like Siltech in their own rigs and far from "TOTL Topping DAC's"
ASR only helps me skipping gear that is either fundamentally broken(mostly speakers), show good value like the recent iFi Phono or is needlessly overdone like the THX/Benchmark stuff but my final decision is always made by ear...and wallet, to some extent. My gear sounds fine on cheap Mogami cable but I like my AQ and Nordost more.

And no, I did not vote nor I am a dealer of any audio of sorts.

Heretic!

 

[AudioSceptic]

Well, it is Friday night tomorrow, so who knows! Just throw a Nordost Odin 2 Gold speaker cable around one's neck as a scarf, say "I'm worth it" in the mirror, and strut to the club.

Well, maybe, after all some of these audiophool cables are priced as if they are made of solid gold...

 

[AudioSceptic]

They may not be knock-offs but factory seconds or identical cables made in the same factory as the originals. These sorts of things are not unknown.

Not at that tiny fraction of the "real thing" price. I'm even tempted to get one "just for a laugh".

 

[Here2Learn]

Well, maybe, after all some of these audiophool cables are priced as if they are made of solid gold...

You forget a lot of cable is wrapped in PVC or fishnet Nylon braiding, so kinda kinky......

...nobody asked what sort of club I was going to.

 

[Spkrdctr]

Ok. there is a lot of misconceptions on products made in China. Most of all of the high end quack stuff is made cheaply in China. After the American company specs out a cheap but quality item like say a $50 Shunyata cable that will sell for thousands, the Chinese then have a nearby factory make the same product with as many shortcuts as possible, They then sell that $2000 cable for $500. It will look exactly the same name for example as Shunyata or Sunyata depending on how the the Chinese manufacturer wants to market it. Most now and listen guys "most" now use the EXACT same company name. the "nearly" the same name is old school from around 15 to 20 years ago. So, there is a reason a lot of good merchandise comes from China with strict QC control (think like Apple etc.) and also gigantic quantities of fake product that dwarf the legit product also from China. So, it becomes a crap shoot on what you will get. I would not be surprised if they start making fake Topping gear with horrible performance. We as a country have really closed our eyes to being ripped off. Walmart and Amazon are the two largest sellers of Chinese fake products. I know because I was in the Federal Govt for years and you learn a lot about a lot of things. So, always try to be careful when buying!

 

[egellings]

Characteristic impedance of a cable has no meaning when analog audio signals are carried by the cable. It matters when dealing with d1g1t0L and RF signals.