evolution of audio recordings

[GC]

I buy my digital cables through Amazon. I've paid as little as $0.99 for a 6-foot HDMI cable and under $3 for an optical cable, and they both work beautifully.

[Michael Woods]

GC-

There was some earlier equipment that sent digital signals over RCA cables. As long as the digital signal arrives intact, it does not matter if it is somewhat more attenuated by being run through RCA cables. Digital is not like analog; you don't lose treble or harmonics by your choice of cables. If the signal makes it through, it has the same quality as with HDMI or alternatives, and you can't tell the difference in the sound. If it's too attenuated or has dropouts, the sound just quits or stutters. If you can tell a difference in the sound, the DAC is probably the culprit.

Of course, if you're running analog through the RCA cables, you do get attenuation and change in the signal. Most people can't tell that much difference, though.

And in the long run, cheap digital cables function pretty much the same as high end cables for average length runs in normal environments. The only real need for expensive cables is for very long runs or in environments with a lot of RF interference.

The RCA cables that send digital signals are called coaxial cables and are 75ohm, you can use regular ol RCA's but you may loose some data. Coaxial cables are fairly common and most dvd/cd players have coaxial outputs.

I think the only way to decode Dolby True HD or DTS HD master audio is through a capable Bluray player or an AV receiver via the hdmi cable.

[GC]

If the signal is digital, you lose none of it or all of it. Signal strength doesn't really matter, since there are no delicate waveforms to lose. It's all either 1's or 0's, and it's either all picked up, or there are interruptions. High-quality cables are not really necessary.

If you're running high-bitrate BD, 3D, or 4K source material, a high-speed HDMI cable may be needed, but you can still get them cheap.

But as always, high quality cables for analog material definitely do make a difference. It's a matter of balance between your ears and the price point.

[Michael Woods]

If the signal is digital, you lose none of it or all of it. Signal strength doesn't really matter, since there are no delicate waveforms to lose. It's all either 1's or 0's, and it's either all picked up, or there are interruptions.

That is actually incorrect. Hdmi cables, which are digital cables, can not stand long runs and will start loosing information the longer the wire, the "snow" effect. The same thing goes with USB audio cables, shorter is better in digital cable land. Just read cable reviews and experiment at home.

I will say that depending on how high end of a system you have cables may or may not matter.

I have found that on my home system cables do matter. I have found a difference in sound quality between some solid core RCA's and stranded/braided RCA's. I have also found a difference in the sound of a long run of usb cable and a short run of usb cable from my computer to the dac.


http://www.amazon.com/NuForce-uDAC-2-Bl ... ds=nuforce" target="_blank" target="_blank

[GC]

Actually, no, in return. With the earlier standards, 15' or so used to be the practical limit. With HTML 1.3 and above, the signal processing technology has improved to allow considerably longer distances. It's not hard to find 50-75 ft. cables, but they get expensive quickly since the construction and materials have to be much, much better.

In a recent test with the best cables available, 1080p was run up to 125' and 480p to 175'. If you need really long distances, you can find HDMI bridges and repeaters that use cat6 ethernet cable or fiber optic cable.

And yes, braided vs solid core RCA cables make a huge difference, but again, only for analog signals.

[taylorbeaty]

I remember when i switched from rca cables to hdmi on my playstation 3 and the big difference it made. That made me interested in cables. That has to do more with the type of cable than quality though. I was talking to a guy who installed home theatre systems said he got a custom hdmi cable made for around $700 and all his friends can notice the difference. Not sure if he was speaking the truth or not.

[GC]

I think that when it comes to audio, the tendency to feel improvement is proportional to the amount of money spent. Much of it is wishful thinking, some is real.