This audio cable business is getting out of hand...

[Cbdb2]

I've read of him. I purchased some used Maggies way back when. The guy had a set of Fulton cables that went with them. First "specialty" speaker cables I owned.

So hes the guy that started the cable BS?

 

[Blumlein 88]

So hes the guy that started the cable BS?

You could say that yes.

 

[Audiofire]

LOL look at this:

In the audio world he was known as the man with the “golden ear.”

From biography (link on previous page)

 

[FrantzM]

I realize I am old… Fulton was active in the 1970s. Does anyone on the Forum recall him?

Tillman

Yes.
Early 80's I had a friend who moved from Monster's original cable, a thick 12 AWG cable, to the Fulton Brown, then to the Gold.
I can not say we heard any differences but ... We believed enough .. and I went on my cables journey with much money spent...

Peace.

 

[egellings]

Cables, once competent as far as R, L, and C goes, are a long ago solved problem. Beliefs act like filters that are listened through. The eardrum vibrates in sympathy with the music, the eardrums' "preamp" preprocesses the signal, after which it gets sent to the brain for post processing though beliefs, and then perceived.

 

[olds1959special]

I got tired of using my long RCA cables to interconnect small DACs and Amps so decided to get a short one. Saw one on Amazon (by "World's Best Cables') that used Canare Star-Quad cable and Amphenol connectors for just $22 shipped. My time was worth much more than that to make one so I ordered it. It came promptly. When I opened though, I was shocked to see this massive sign in there:

View attachment 27076

Are you kidding me? Even a low-cost cable using proper material spreads such a myth?

It is one thing to see this on multi-thousand dollar cables but on a $22 one?

Inside there is an instruction sheet and it says that again. To their credit they acknowledge that such burn-in will take out of Amazon's 30 day return window so they provide instructions on how to still get a return.

The danger here is that such practices will spread to the general public, not just high-end audiophiles.

Yes, it is also "directional" although here, it is due to the way they utilize the shield at one end so that bit is fine.

I think the burn-in thing is about your ears getting used to the sound, although they won't admit that. WBC is now making their own 'lo-cap' cables in house that they claim are superior to Mogami 2964. I bought a couple pairs of these in 4 ft to replace my 6 ft WBC Mogami 2964 cables, because shorter cables are better!

 

[pablolie]

I like directional cables...

I think a best practice is to flip cables and change direction every 3-6 months to replenish electrons in the copper. The sound becomes leaner and leaner if you keep running them in just one direction and start starving the cable of electrons. :-D

 

[MoreWatts]

 

[Daverz]

I think a best practice is to flip cables and change direction every 3-6 months to replenish electrons in the copper. The sound becomes leaner and leaner if you keep running them in just one direction and start starving the cable of electrons.

Wrong! The speaker signal is alternating current. The electrons are just wiggling furiously back and forth. So you should let your speaker cable electrons rest every night.

 

[Petrushka]

Gold plated cables don’t seem to cost extra, so why not?

 

[EJ3]

I think the burn-in thing is about your ears getting used to the sound, although they won't admit that. WBC is now making their own 'lo-cap' cables in house that they claim are superior to Mogami 2964. I bought a couple pairs of these in 4 ft to replace my 6 ft WBC Mogami 2964 cables, because shorter cables are better!

Maybe it's to get purchasers out of the free warranty exchange period before they can return them?

 

[Ropeburn]

Wrong! The speaker signal is alternating current. The electrons are just wiggling furiously back and forth. So you should let your speaker cable electrons rest every night.

I put them in the freezer overnight. Rests them atoms nicely, basically poor man's cryo treatment.

 

[Sal1950]

I think a best practice is to flip cables and change direction every 3-6 months to replenish electrons in the copper. The sound becomes leaner and leaner if you keep running them in just one direction and start starving the cable of electrons. :-D

Sounds like my sex life with the first wife.

 

[MarkS]

The speaker signal is alternating current. The electrons are just wiggling furiously back and forth. So you should let your speaker cable electrons rest every night.

Not good enough. Your cables should not be used more than one day a week, to give those electrons plenty of time to get the rest that they need. So you will need 7 complete sets of cables.

Of course, that's really just the bare minimum. Audiophiles who want the best possible sound will use a duty cycle of one day on 29 days off per month, as the veils lifted by this practice (which are easily heard by true golden ears) are profound. So 30 complete sets of cables are needed.

 

[solderdude]

Gold plated cables don’t seem to cost extra, so why not?

It's not the cables that are (very thinly) gold-plated ... just the connectors.
Gold isn't even a better conductor. It just doesn't oxidate/tarnish (like silver does).
A more robust and better material is nickel plating but it doesn't look as premium which, as we know, is more important for the 'sound experience'.

I think the burn-in thing is about your ears getting used to the sound,

Except ... there is no difference in sound.

 

[dualazmak]

Not good enough. Your cables should not be used more than one day a week, to give those electrons plenty of time to get the rest that they need. So you will need 7 complete sets of cables.

Of course, that's really just the bare minimum. Audiophiles who want the best possible sound will use a duty cycle of one day on 29 days off per month, as the veils lifted by this practice (which are easily heard by true golden ears) are profound. So 30 complete sets of cables are needed.

LOL, LOL!
Should be copy-pasted to the threads "A call For Humor!" and/or "Bad humor - best of"...

 

[Thighsofsteel]

Not good enough. Your cables should not be used more than one day a week, to give those electrons plenty of time to get the rest that they need. So you will need 7 complete sets of cables.

Of course, that's really just the bare minimum. Audiophiles who want the best possible sound will use a duty cycle of one day on 29 days off per month, as the veils lifted by this practice (which are easily heard by true golden ears) are profound. So 30 complete sets of cables are needed.

That is a bad idea. With so much spare time on their hands, they will get fat and flabby. 2 Rest days a week is fine to keep the highs taunt and sweet and that Bass tight as a gnats bum.

 

[egellings]

I think a best practice is to flip cables and change direction every 3-6 months to replenish electrons in the copper. The sound becomes leaner and leaner if you keep running them in just one direction and start starving the cable of electrons. :-D

I s'poze. The AC current goes back & forth in the cables anyway, so cable direction would not make a difference unless only one end of the cable does not have its shield connected to the plug's ground terminal for the purpose of breaking ground loops that cause noise. Otherwise, that 'electric don't care about no steenk-keeng cable direction.

 

[EJ3]

It's not the cables that are (very thinly) gold-plated ... just the connectors.
Gold isn't even a better conductor. It just doesn't oxidate/tarnish (like silver does).
A more robust and better material is nickel plating but it doesn't look as premium which, as we know, is more important for the 'sound experience'.


Except ... there is no difference in sound.

What about rhodium plating?

 

[pablolie]

What about rhodium plating?

While rhodium is more expensive than gold and most certainly doesn't tarnish, it's not as good of a conductor compared to silver (best), copper and gold. Not that it should make a difference with very thin plating.