Do Fancy Audio Cables Make a Difference?
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- Опубликовано: 15 июл 2024
- This is a technical review and evaluation of the high-end, $2,300 AudioQuest DBS Wind RCA audio cable. We examine with detailed measurements whether it can perform better than a generic cable. Listening tests are also performed to evaluate the same.
See text review here: www.audiosciencereview.com/fo... 
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I still cannot believe that amir started a youtube channel. Absolutely fantastic
had exactly the same reaction :D
Yes, this is awesome
I heard from Joel. Love ASR. Subscribed.
what is unbelievable about it?
Malayalees!! 💪
I watched this via my audiophile-grade xDSL router and the facts he stated sounded very crisp and forward.
@@pkdude5334 , lol! Yeah, bought some AQ ethernet stuff a few years ago on clearance. Super cheap. Can't say I noticed a signal dfference and to make things worse, the cable started to get very stiff the way rubber gets when it ages. I will say, their DACs are fantastic but their network cables? Not impressed.
Really enjoyed the enhanced midrange especially when the bass rejoined the discussion.
One of the funniest audiofoolery things i've ever seen that wasn't a straight up troll was an "audiophile grade" ethernet switch someone built. I'm pretty sure they just took a standard HP Procurve switch and slapped a toroid in it and some caps, lmao. You guys know all the network transport protocols we use have error correction, right? And well your files are junk anyway because you downloaded them a from low quality modem and internet connection.
@@s8wc3 no way people actually buy that shit
@@-aexc- No they don't buy it, only plebs buy things. They get it custom commissioned by some guy on a web forum and pay god knows
Thanks again for bringing sense to an industry poisoned by nonsense
My pleasure. Thanks for watching.
@@AudioScienceReview You're the best, you just saved me $2,300
Indeed ... Can't think of another industry with this much BS
@@fredw61 Just get a KabelDirekt cable from Amazon, you will not notice the difference, assuming there even is one!
@@edwardbalboa5528 Try reading about your Govt etc
The irony is that $ million dollar music production studios use affordable XLR cables that anybody can afford and yet audiophiles buy “better” cables.
I know a studio that uses $250.000 worth of Audioquest cables so your irony only works if that was true
@@momchilzanev5861 Well, it's mostly true because most studios don't use 250,000 dollar worth of cables. Although most studios (professional that is) don't use low or medium cost cables. However some really successful recording- and mixing engineers actually do use quite low cost cables.
@@momchilzanev5861 Wow, I'm convinced.
@@momchilzanev5861 One out of how many? x'D Most studios don't use big $$$ on cabling because they know that it doesn't matter past having a proper strain relief and being made from OFC copper.
@@whiskeykilmer1866 I don't want to convince anybody into buying expensive cable, I am just trying to avoid generalizing.
Great to see you on RUclips Amir fighting the good fight. Audioquest is one of the biggest peddlers of cable snake oil. I've been debunking their battery cable for decades 😆
Wait, but you're the same guy that uses cable jewellery (your words) and not the cables you suggest with your affiliated links and expect others to use.
And you're the guy that always makes fun of this reviewer and his website at any opportunity.
Your comments here are little more than self promotion.
Amazing...just no shame.
@@nostro1001 he says he likes hi quality cables because he likes the look not the performance, and on his channel he is always saying ASR does a fantastic job and to check them out.... soon are you confused?
@@JeremyHansenblue2kid3 Lmao - so it's fine for him, but nobody else? Here's a dude that's spent 10+ years 'bagging out' high end cables, uses some himself & doesn't use what he recommends to others!
To coin a phrase: "You've got to be kidding me?" Double standards much!!!
I'm not naive & here's what I think. He'd be embarrassed using cheap looking cables with his high end gear. And because he likes the way they look, he more than likely thinks they sound better; that's merely a matter of how the mind works.
Naturally, he can't convey this to his viewers. However, if he had conviction in the products he recommends, he'd be using them. It's that simple.
@@JeremyHansenblue2kid3 Oh, and I forgot....no he never says ASR does a fantastic job. He is still bitter from an old feud with Amir and continually tries to belittle him, along with many other reviewers.
He regularly claims that ASR reviews are inferior or can't be trusted due to the equipment being used (they don't use the same high end gear he has).
@@nostro1001 but he has photos of blue jeans cables routing his house. I just think you have him confused with someone else , also there are many times maybe not on his channel but just recently he said to loose change that on the topic of speaker measurement's and why they are important that only his team members and ASR seem to care about that anymore. so im just confused why youre coming up with this stuff and youre so passionate did you buy this 3k cable if so fine you do you me personally I buy my copper from construction companies as its cheap true pure coper like the stuff they put in homes.
Excellent video. Always wanted to know if I was missing out by not spending $1000’s on esoteric cables. Now I know I am not. Measurements don’t lie and shines light and dissolves the snake oil! More reviews like this please!
Give it a try with your own ears, in your room, with your setup, and your favorite music.
When I was young and had a mid-fi, cables made no difference whatsoever. With a higher end setup, they do. Well, not all of them, but some do.
@@DaveJ6515 I got me some good cables and were sure there is a difference, until i made a blind test with my girlfriend unenthusiasticly switching cables (or not) and i could not differentiate. My buddy said it was becauce i did not have a matching good speaker cable and brought his. My girlfirend did never switch any cable this evening, just pluggin in and out, and embarrassing us a bit.
@@DaveJ6515unfortunately without a proper blind test it's probably just the brain making you perceive the change especially since you are expecting to notice positive changes to justify your expenses. So we need proper reviews with proper tests. You can't expect people to spend 2000 dollars for a cable just so they can listen with their own ears. Yeah sure, and 99% of the time they will just be fooled into thinking they heard a difference
@@roccoxxxx1 Uhm.... nope, because I listen to music though my ears, not by reading number and measurements.
If you prefer numbers, go ahead, why should I tell you how to enjoy your hobby?
@@DaveJ6515 your ears can deceive you since your brain also plays a part in it. This could make you believe that an expensive product sounds better while it really doesn't. Psychoacustics is real
fantastic. We need a thousand more people like you in the industry to weed out these charlatans. A huge thank you.
More controversial videos please. We could learn so much from these.
The MAN himself. Great to see you're making video reviews now. can't wait for your review and measurements of the Tone2Pro Amir..
Long has this been a needed channel! Great job, sir!
Thank you Amir, I'm a big fan of your reviews and audiophile work!
This was extremely amusing to watch, thank you. I am still very new to this world of "audiophile grade equipment" and honestly I could not believe that 50cm cable can cost that much (even if it did something for that price).
Wow, so nice to see you on RUclips!! And you have a very friendly and calming voice :)
Finally a channel with proper engineering and information, excellent work Amir.
Thanks so much for putting out videos like this. It’s much appreciated!
Absolutely love this video. Please test more cables!!!
Amir, I run a 3,6k member audio FB forum and I can testify you are making a change in audiophile minds. Always supporting you! 🙏
just discovered your channel (subscribed)... So refreshing to see real measurements !! Well done.... Best
This is a great service to the audiophile community.
Thanks Amir, I hope some audiophiles will be convinced now that some companies in audio business are ripping people off. Nice to see you on RUclips.
Yes, more of these type reviews please. Audioholics agrees with your assertion that fancy cables don't sound better, but when I read advertisements for 'great special cable technology' I still get influenced. I need to be reminded what snake oil smells like!
Yea another poster makes the point … a $30 cable is better than a $1 cable. A $5,000 cable is indistinguishable from a $30 cable.
Always keep your bullsh!t alarm in good working order!
Building your own RCA cables is good fun. Buy good quality cable by the meter, fancy connectors, some silver solder and you can build your own custom cables that look awesome, work perfectly but cost a fracition...
I use fancy cables. They’re not really expensive but I use them because it looks good and a part of the visual theater
That's an excellent scientific analysis. Awesome! Hope you will keep it coming..
Good to see.
These diagrams should be obligatory for every manufacturer in the same way as energy efficiency charts.
Maybe that patented battery powered thingy on the Audioquest cables actually made them more sensitive to interference?
You should reach out to Audioquest to get a comment from them. I'm sure they would try to claim your tests were wrong in some way and then you should ask them to do the same test and make it public.
Thank you so much for this. Much appreciated, much enjoyed and wanting more!
Finally a youtube channel!!!! Subscribed 😁
Looking forward for more reviews 👌
Love the videos! Glad to finally meet the man behind the curtain.
Thanks Amir, this is super helpful and please keep more like this coming.
Thank you. Will do.
Love your work and video's, excellent objective reviews, thanks!
Great video! Keep ‘em coming!
Savage review 😂 you just killed it. Keep it coming.
Amir, thank you for the scientific review. We all understand and some thrive on the placebo effect, possibly myself. I really appreciate the "just the facts" scientific reviews.
Thank you Amir for another great review👍
Please keep them coming love them thank you.
Can't wait for the test on JPS cables
I didn't realise ASR had a YT channel - subbed! :)
Amir, I just saw this video after the one you just did about Danny Richie's video about speaker cables and EMI. I think you should continue making videos like this and help bring some sanity to the audio community. And maybe keep some people with too much disposable income from supporting the audio snake oil industry and encourage them to give it instead to people that can really use that money to stay warm and feed their kids.
100%
That guy is full of BS also
@@edwardbalboa5528 you mean cheese 🧀 ;-)
Once I tried to ask him to explain why something was better/how it was better, and the reply was basically "it just is"
I just watched that video too!
Another must see video for all audiophiles. Great job Amir! About five years ago, I was lent an Audioquest Water balanced interconnect by a local audio shop to try at home. Another battery strapped cable similar to the Wind but a few notches down in the Audioquest hierarchy and much lower in price, about $700. Something was fishy about it and it didn't feel right. I always felt Audioquest was full of snake oil, now I know for a fact. Actually, I've come to realize in the last five years that most audiophile cables are snake oil.
Thanks Jesus.
Correction, all audiophile cables are snake oil.
ALL of them are
@@edwardbalboa5528 some of the cheaper ones are great if you want something that looks cool
I don't like aq, for these reasons. However.... analogue cables do sound different. I.e. i had a vdhul cable cs-122 (about 200 euro), which was nice, but serious bass control issues. And replaced them with inakustik 1602, second hand (new 2500 euros...), and the difference is just breathtaking. I am not talking subtleties here either. Bass issues gone, everything sounded more realistic, better sound stage and so on. (And No it doesn't have batteries;) )
The advice will always be, go listen.
Obviosly their response can't be tested with normal instruments and only "using your ears" can test such cable. If on listening you can't hear a difference, they will respond you don't know how to listen (golden ear syndrome) and or, your system is not resolving enough to hear it. It's good to see someone actually applying objective testing and reality to the audio topic, as i have in my industry, also full of scams/scammers who don't science.
Your my new favorite RUclips channel. SPOT ON !!!
I found your review on H95. then I got interested in your reviews and now your channel! what a legend. Exposing all the nonsense on paper with numbers. Keep it up !!
What a great video, explaining things in layman's terms. You, sir, got yourself a new subscriber!
“Do you want me to do more controversial videos or go back to products tests” please please please do carry on exposing brands like audio quest for their snake oil products and at the same time humble those fools who have more money than sense who claim to ‘hear’ a difference with their ridiculously priced cables.
Honestly Thankyou on behalf of the audio enthusiast community as a whole for this video. I enjoyed reading your reviews on equipment and have only recently come across your YT videos, this one has been amazing.
If you’d have found a discernible difference between a generic cable and this ridiculously priced cable I’d have still laughed at anyone who paid their asking prices and just put it down to having more money than they needed but this is actually satisfying. Keep up the great work!!!!
THANK YOU! The world needs more like this!
You’re on fire Amir!
The everyaudiomans hero!!!! Someone donate this Hero a 4K camera! Well done Amir, please keep them coming.
Refreshing to hear the sound of reason in an age when logic and science are under attack! Thank you Amir 🙏
Fantastic Amir !!!!! Keep up your good work in this senseless, mad, audio black magic.
Another important observation here is that Amir's measurements show the calibrated scale. And these are direct printouts from the analyzer. When most audiophile vendors show measurements, you never see the scales that were used and often the images are an artists rendition, not a screen grab or printout from the analyzer.
great to see you posting these videos to educate us! How about a video about determining whether or not something is audible in your set of tests? The underpinning targets you look for and why those are the right targets.
Audibility requires controlled testing and more than just me. With the pandemic, it is just not possible to test other people. Once we are past that, I hope to conduct some tests on speakers with our audiophile society.
Excellent Amir, great job.
Wow, excellent test, thank you so much 👍👍👍
Good to see u also on RUclips 👍🏽
Oh boy, I knew when I saw this cable that we were in for a treat!
The audiophile community needs more of this thing called truth and oh, science.
very informative Amir! nice job
exceptional information as always
Thanks for sharing, You confirmed my guess. my generic cables sound even better that a couple of super expensive that i have. amazing
I’m new to this hobby and the amount of conflicting information is astounding. Finally stumbled across ASR and saw some videos of Amir taking measurements. This video is shocking. I wonder what AudioQuest would have to say in their defense lol. Incredible. Thanks, this is so interesting.
The biggest issue is that scientific measurement do not necessarily work in the audio department. Everything here is based on trial and error as you are unable to predict how the system as a whole will sound to your particular ear.
I'm not convinced to Amirs testing after he mentioned that he did not hear a difference between the generic and Wind cables. This is highly not probable as they should sound DIFFERENT. Each person will hear a different change but it will be there. Also analogue signal is influenced by absolutely EVERYTHING so I do not believe his review strictly from the audiophile point of view. Last week I once again heard that power cables have a huge impact on sound.
@@dariosarti2791 what is sound? Pressure waves. What are pressure waves? Compressions in the air. What causes these compressions? The moving cone on the speaker. What causes the cone to move? The signal going to the speaker. THIS is why measurements matter. They literally tell the speaker how to move. For you to say "measurements don't work in the audio department" depicts your profound lack of understanding of basic science. If the measurements don't change, the sound won't change. If the measurements change, the sound will change. Anything your ear can hear CAN be measured. Otherwise, your brain is tricking itself, ie. the placebo effect.
Great one Amir, loved these fact-based debunking videos!
Thanks, Amir you do the consumer a great service
Definitely sharing this video! Usually a good quality 12 AWG normal speaker wire is sufficient, and inexpensive.
i would like him to test a length of plain old 14/2 AWG Romex or SOOW cable or lamp cord. I bet that would be awesome and funny!
Amir, please continue the “controversial” reviews. This industry is in need of policing and debunking hype. I would like to see reviews of Synergistic Research’s products, including their network switch and other audiophile network switches. Thanks.
Thanks RJ. I get so much pushback on the ASR forum and so many arguments that it is difficult to do too many of them at once. That said, I am anxious to get coverage on Synergistic Research so hope to get access to some of their cables to test.
New subscription today. Enjoyed your review :)
This is starting to become my favorite time of the day. 😁😁😁😁
:) My lab/studio is open to the rest of the house and this is the main quiet time. We have two dogs that love to bark when mail people come to the door earlier in the day.
Amir. You are the man! Subscribed.
Thank you for the objective test results! What a silly world we live in.
Brilliant! Thanks, Amir!
You may call this series "Audio Mythbuster". A lot of misinformation out there and I'm glad we have someone like you to call out the BS. Thank you Sir!!
those noise that the cable picks up makes it sound good
Brilliant video amir. I think you are the most important member of the audiophile community right now. You are saving people a lot of money. Btw what are your thoughts on the dan Clark ether closed and the mass drop version?
You are very kind. I have not tested my Ether CX in a while. I mainly got it as a tough load for headphone amps. I will review it formally soon.
Great analysis.
Keep them coming.
Love your reviews and like this video. I would love to see you compare several sub $30 interconnects.
Content like this will flatten nonsense audio companies given enough time. Thank you.
Salute! Subscribed. Please do more of these, power cables next to be exposed.
Great stuff!
Amir, this is a wonderful video. Thanks for taking the time to do it and lending your expertise to those of us who don't have the testing equipment... we're all just human after all, and it's easy to fall victim to such things in our desire to get a little better sound quality (well, to be honest, I wouldn't spend even $100 on a cable... but it's the principle that I appreciate). Greeting from Renton, WA.
But the added noise makes it sound analog lol.
Unless you lay down that cable next to a laptop, then it makes it digital.
Brilliant🤣
Terrific video!
I bought an cheap after market power cable because I wanted the red black colors to accent my setup.
Love the HONESTY.
You are the best. I have not laughed so much in a long time :D Thanks.
The best of the best. Amir along with Audioholics & Erin's Audio Corner are their fathers in knowledge. Thanks for enlightening us novices. Consumers get justice from these reviews.
Love these ‘bursting the bs bubble’ videos but would love more what’s great bang for buck in audio videos. Also videos on your expertise in how to set up a system would be great!
Please do more cable evaluations if possible, thank you.
Great video!!
Very nice video!
Thank you great video!
Thank you mr majidi for your honest review, the cable can't increase audio tonality or quality it just has a prophet to save the audio characteristic from amp to speaker with lower distortion
Oh man. AQ is so f'd! Great video. Thanks for making it...
Practical application which I just got from this: absolutely separate any NF cables from power supplies in the rack / shelf.
It is funny when you talk about the placebo effect. Years ago I invested in SACD. The first time I listened to Fleetwood Mac Rumours, I know I could hear music in the songs that I have never heard before. The disk was a hybrid, and not paying attention to my player settings I switched to the CD layer, and I could still hear the same differences, what a shame for some who fall into the trap, and are not smart enough to escape...
Folks who continually try to think I have no idea about what I hear etc. Thank you Amir to proving to them what we have said.
Thank you Amirm.
Amir started a YT channel?? Awesome! Have not been on the site regularly since covid hit, this is a nice surprise
PS, I dont know why, but you remind me of Rick Beato, maybe its the hair :P
Another interesting topping would be about blind\double blind and ABX tests to see if people can distinguish "high end" components from "regular" budget ones (ex. Amps). Also, between hires files from regular res files with the same mastering.
"topic"
Yes, 100% agreed. Back when we still had the annual Rocky Mountain Audiofest here in the Denver area, I would often encourage companies exhibiting there to set up a blind-test room where they had a $500 system, a $5,000 system and a $50,000 system in the room, all set up behind curtains so that no one could tell which setup was which. The idea would be to have show attendees come and listen to each system playing the exact same source content at the exact same volume level and then vote as to which one they liked the best and which one they thought was at each of the three price points. It would be VERY interesting to do such a blind test with the general public and then see the results of hundreds or even thousands of listeners. Of course, no one ever wanted to take me up on that offer and set up such an experiment - and I'm sure you can probably imagine why.
@@michaelbeckerman7532 Of course they wouldn't take you up on that. But the issue has two sides and, I believe, a lot of consumers prefer to cater to their belief system rather than their auditory one :-P
An excellent and pragmatic approach to the pseudo science of audio tomfoolery dude. These outrageously priced cables belong in the same bin as gold audiophile fuses, audiophile mains cables, audiophile solid silver speaker cables and shiny heavy wooden boxes placed on top of audio gear to magically improve things...
Love this type of video.
Love this stuff. I'm from the Materials Science lamp cord school.
Brilliant, again. Please make a video with some "real world" scenarios like what you did with the power source wand-example here. Claimed shielding protection vs just keeping things tidy. Scientific proven results. Thank you!
Nice channel Amir! subbed