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Snake Oil Department, Top This

ahem.
Speaking of things like Techflex...
presentation is everything.

One of my go-to practices in adding that extra je ne sais quoi when 'selling' an idea comes straight from Calvin & Hobbes.
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Mart68 said:
Where's your blind testing results then Graham?

Good to see the article points out that there are none.

Straddling the line between delusion and fraud?
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Not sure it has been done with cables, but with wine, expectation bias linked to cost has been shown. The more expensive the wine the better it tastes. Even when the only thing that changes is the price. So it isn’t really wrong to say more expensive cables sound better. It just has nothing to do with the cables. Or the sound.
 
IPunchCholla said:
Not sure it has been done with cables, but with wine, expectation bias linked to cost has been shown. The more expensive the wine the better it tastes. Even when the only thing that changes is the price. So it isn’t really wrong to say more expensive cables sound better. It just has nothing to do with the cables. Or the sound.
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That is what the salesman/conman has shown with cables, but he tried to use physics to prove that.
 
If there's anything we know about physics, it's that it predicts that a material's audio (but not electrical, of course) properties and its monetary value are inextricably linked. If there was a sudden steel shortage and steel prices went through the roof, then steel would become the best material for making cables.

In fact, audiophiles should be tracking the market value of different metals and swap out their cables as prices rise and fall.
 
kyuu said:
If there's anything we know about physics, it's that it predicts that a material's audio (but not electrical, of course) properties and its monetary value are inextricably linked. If there was a sudden steel shortage and steel prices went through the roof, then steel would become the best material for making cables.

In fact, audiophiles should be tracking the market value of different metals and swap out their cables as prices rise and fall.
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You do not think that is economics apparently. Well, I do and the physical properties of copper are technically still better.
 
One thing that has always amazed me about the HI-FI world in my fifty years in the hobby is how much appearance matters in products whose purpose is to produce sound.
 
Cables; it's about R, L and C and nothing else, performance wise. Appearance can be important if the cables are in full view when using the system but usually, cables are behind the equipment and out of sight when in use, so that benny disappears.
 
Audiofire said:
You do not think that is economics apparently. Well, I do and the physical properties of copper are technically still better.
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I'm unsure what you're saying here. For clarity, my post was entirely facetious.
 
egellings said:
Cables; it's about R, L and C and nothing else, performance wise. Appearance can be important if the cables are in full view when using the system but usually, cables are behind the equipment and out of sight when in use, so that benny disappears.
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For RCA line level interconnects, it's all about the shielding.
For XLR line level interconnects, it's all about the shielding and the symmetry of the 2 inner wires.
 
egellings said:
Cables; it's about R, L and C and nothing else, performance wise. Appearance can be important if the cables are in full view when using the system but usually, cables are behind the equipment and out of sight when in use, so that benny disappears.
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Attractive cable braiding and custom heat shrink tubing are what keeps the "high-end" cable market alive.
 
JayGilb said:
Attractive cable braiding and custom heat shrink tubing are what keeps the "high-end" cable market alive.
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When I make a cable, which isn’t that often these days, I like to put braiding on and heat shrink tubing. All in a suitable colour to match our decor of course.
 
‘Brave Heart’ honestly … are there individuals that gullible.
Keith
 
Ahmonge said:
One thing that has always amazed me about the HI-FI world in my fifty years in the hobby is how much appearance matters in products whose purpose is to produce sound.
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What's the purpose of producing sound? to bring pleasure and enjoyment. In other words, the real purpose of hi-fi gear is to bring pleasure and enjoyment, and if the way something looks makes it more pleasurable and more enjoyable then it's better (for its owner) than something whose appearance doesn't add that emotional value.

(This is not to condone ripoffs, false marketing claims, snake oil, etc., of course!)
 
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