Possible myth bust? Signal/power cable interactions

[Jas0_0]

Apologies if this has already been done and I've missed it.

Cable manufacturers make much of their insulators, and audio magazines and forums make much of keeping signal and power cables separate - if cables must cross, they should only do so at right angles. On one forum, a guy swore by wrapping tin foil around each cable at every point of intersection with another. Apparently it reduced the noise floor. Presumably he used any leftover to make himself a hat.

I wonder if this could be tested, with various bog standard and extra special audiophile cables, to see whether cable interactions make measurable differences to signal. Would you be up for this @amirm?

 

[Chromatischism]

There is this video:

 

[escksu]

Apologies if this has already been done and I've missed it.

Cable manufacturers make much of their insulators, and audio magazines and forums make much of keeping signal and power cables separate - if cables must cross, they should only do so at right angles. On one forum, a guy swore by wrapping tin foil around each cable at every point of intersection with another. Apparently it reduced the noise floor. Presumably he used any leftover to make himself a hat.

I wonder if this could be tested, with various bog standard and extra special audiophile cables, to see whether cable interactions make measurable differences to signal. Would you be up for this @amirm?

Oh, its not a myth. Thats why some cables have to be shielded and why highly sensitive equipment needs to be shielded. Noise from power plays an important role.

Thats why many of those so-called audiophile power cords have foil/braid shielding. Its not a myth. Shielding is important.

And its not just shielding, even coiling up of cables affect the performance. When you coil it up, it becomes an air core inductor. Your inductance goes up.

Even exposure to light as well. Remember einstein's photo electric effect that won him nobel prize?

 

[Blumlein 88]

Worth noting he is feeding into a microphone preamp probably with 50 or 60 db of gain you won't have if using line level signals. Also notice how with most of the devices the noise audibly disappeared unless he was touching or within an inch of the cable.

Star quad does indeed isolate from noise much better. But unless you get super sloppy with your cabling or will be doing recordings with microphones or dealing with the signal from a phono cartridge all the noise is so low as to be a non-issue.

 

[SIY]

Even exposure to light as well. Remember einstein's photo electric effect that won him nobel prize?

Is that supposed to be a joke?

 

[amirm]

I wonder if this could be tested, with various bog standard and extra special audiophile cables, to see whether cable interactions make measurable differences to signal. Would you be up for this @amirm?

Many times when I see noise or unusual response from gear under test, I mess around with moving cables, turning off my LED light, etc. They have never, ever made a difference. I have also tested short versus long XLR cables and no difference there either.

I am game for testing more but right now I don't think in non-pro (long length) applications they are an issue.

 

[SIY]

Many times when I see noise or unusual response from gear under test, I mess around with moving cables, turning off my LED light, etc. They have never, ever made a difference. I have also tested short versus long XLR cables and no difference there either.

Same. Moving grounds around is the only thing I've seen make a difference.

 

[maxxevv]

As for shielding, anyone tried stuff like "mu-metal" for thin barrier applications ?

 

[SIY]

As for shielding, anyone tried stuff like "mu-metal" for thin barrier applications ?

It's used routinely for shielding input transformers.

 

[RayDunzl]

Here's the electrical signal with an unbalanced cable plugged into a (passive) electric guitar with the strings muted.

60Hz (AC power pollution) and harmonics 120, 180, 240, 300, etc, evident.

Ignore the absolute scale, but observe the relative level of the spikes vs the noise floor:

And unplugged from the guitar:

 

[Eetu]

Well at least with interconnects shielding/insulation matters.

Just yesterday I needed a 'jumper' RCA cable for my amplifier and I only had a thin 1.5 m cable available. It touched speaker cables and possibly the power cable of my DAC. When I turned the amp on there was a low buzz sound from the speakers. I then switched the thin cable between my DAC & preamp where it didn't touch anything and used the thicker 0.5 m Canare cable I had there as the jumper cable. Buzz gone.

 

[escksu]

Is that supposed to be a joke?

Thats a joke to you??

https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/plasma_plume/bullet4

Read this

 

[escksu]

Many times when I see noise or unusual response from gear under test, I mess around with moving cables, turning off my LED light, etc. They have never, ever made a difference. I have also tested short versus long XLR cables and no difference there either.

I am game for testing more but right now I don't think in non-pro (long length) applications they are an issue.

You need extremely sensitive equipment to be able to measure the difference.

 

[SIY]

Thats a joke to you??

Either that or you truly have no clue about basic physics. Or are just trolling.

 

[SIY]

Well at least with interconnects shielding/insulation matters.

Shielding does. Insulation, not so much.

 

[Koeitje]

You need extremely sensitive equipment to be able to measure the difference.

Something like an APx555 perhaps?

 

[egellings]

I don't think coiling up a cable that has 2 conductors increases its inductance. The two wires, carrying current in opposite directions, tend to cancel out inductive effects if the conductors are in close proximity to each other. Laid out straight or coiled, there should be little effect.