There's More "There" There!

[cliveb]

Any CAT 5 or 6 ethernet cable is super shielded...

CAT5 cable is NOT shielded. My entire house is wired up with CAT5e, and I ran the cable and made all the RJ45 connections myself, so I think I would have noticed if there had been a shield. (I've never used CAT6, but I would imagine that it too is unshielded).

NB: My statement above does not mean that I support the idea that RFI from ethernet cables could interfere with analogue circuitry. I think it is unlikely in the extreme.

[Phil Leigh]

)
I know - I work for a very large bank...
And we use Rubidium master clocks to ensure accurate timestamping...I can feel a mod coming on...

[GuyDebord]

CAT5 cable is NOT shielded. My entire house is wired up with CAT5e, and I ran the cable and made all the RJ45 connections myself, so I think I would have noticed if there had been a shield. (I've never used CAT6, but I would imagine that it too is unshielded).

NB: My statement above does not mean that I support the idea that RFI from ethernet cables could interfere with analogue circuitry. I think it is unlikely in the extreme.

From Wiki: "Category 5 cable, commonly known as Cat 5 or "Cable and Telephone", is a twisted pair cable type designed for high signal integrity. Many such cables are unshielded but some are shielded. Category 5 has been superseded by the Category 5e specification. This type of cable is often used in structured cabling for computer networks such as Ethernet, and is also used to carry many other signals such as basic voice services, token ring, and ATM (at up to 155 Mbit/s, over short distances)."

Category 6 cable, commonly referred to as Cat 6, is a cable standard for Gigabit Ethernet and other network protocols that is backward compatible with the Category 5/5e and Category 3 cable standards. Cat-6 features more stringent specifications for crosstalk and system noise. The cable standard provides performance of up to 250 MHz and is suitable for 10BASE-T / 100BASE-TX and 1000BASE-T (Gigabit Ethernet). It is expected to suit the 10GBASE-T (10Gigabit Ethernet) standard, although with limitations on length if unshielded Cat 6 cable is used.

SO I GUESS YOU ARE RIGHT BUT ALSO WRONG: NOT ALL CAT 5 OR CAT 6 CABLES ARE SHIELDED, BUT IM SURE THE CAT 6 I RECENTLY INSTALLED IS, SORRY FOR THE GENERALIZATION. BUT ANYWAY, THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH BETTER SOUND. SO THIS TOPIC IS A BIT OUTSIDE THE POST.

[seanadams]

SO I GUESS YOU ARE RIGHT BUT ALSO WRONG: NOT ALL CAT 5 OR CAT 6 CABLES ARE SHIELDED, BUT IM SURE THE CAT 6 I RECENTLY INSTALLED IS, SORRY FOR THE GENERALIZATION.

Actually, the overwhelming majority of CAT6 is unshielded too.

[Ralph 411]

Dear Friends,

Each modification I outlined has been tried and retained for only one reason: it sounds better!

Some would say many things we take for granted in high-end audio don't work, can't work, or may even be harmful (for example, interconnect, power cords, and isolation). In the last analysis the only test is: does a change make an audible improvement in your system?

I encourage those who have made comments to try any or all of my recommended changes (see original post) and report observations.

[seanadams]

Dear Friends,

Each modification I outlined has been tried and retained for only one reason: I am imagining it sounds better!

Some would say many things we take for granted in high-end audio don't work, can't work, or may even be harmful (for example, interconnect, power cords, and isolation). In the last analysis the only test is: does a change cause you to believe that there is an audible improvement in your system?

There you go... fixed that for ya.

[wr420]

There you go... fixed that for ya.

Can I get an Amen?!

[funkstar]

Can I get an Amen?!

Amen!!

[Eric Seaberg]

Preach it, Preacha!!

[haunyack]

Preach it, Preacha!!

Is it time to speak in tongues?

Courtesy SatCure - http://www.satcure-focus.com/

The valves do have some remoteness.
The immediacy and presence
The highs are a bit sweeter
The lows are incredibly lush and defined
The midrange has lost most of its focus
Hateful tizzyness in the top end.
... wire sounds "sweeter" but perhaps "sloppier" than...
There was an absence of a sweet midrange colouration
Transients increased at the expense of midrange texture and air.
Lovely, spacious, coherent music.
..give you a much larger sonic picture, but less focus and low-level subtlety.
The deep fundamentals leave you gasping for breath.
Telefunkens are very rolled off in the highs.
Lots of air around instruments
Amazing sonic character
..will impart a "warm" sound to the system
A lack of "atmosphere" and "quietness"
Great tube harmonic depth and slam.
Quick, smooth, dynamic, musical, not fatiguing on highs and crescendos
... tends to thicken up instruments and voices quite a bit
... got enough solid state zing and lots of palpability, presence, air ..
... gave a nice sense of space around the individual instruments
... to get more atmosphere and "quietness" around instruments
A little less musical down low and up high.
An occasional honk on a horn during arias
Russian tubes are pretty neutral.
A bit of sibilance in them
...wire of exceptional musicality.
The lack of multiple crystals should prevent inter-crystal diode effects.
The former sounds better in the midrange, the latter sounds "muffled" overall
The ear is oblivious to phase shifts above 20K.
Valves and transistors possessing different sonic signatures....
Smoother more natural sound
More realistic harmonics
... with the hand-wound capacitors imparting an unbelievable smoothness
Like a monkey hitting a dustbin lid with a dog's bone..
Devoid of the hardness which afflicts most transistorised amps
Uneven tonal balance
Bass is slightly loose and emphasised
Bright and pure treble
Upper registers were cleaner and less fizzy
... imparting a new plumminess to the sound
Bass was faster and meatier
..gaining in speed and impact
Image precision and soundstaging of the warehouse variety
Tizzyness in the top end
These cables have a pinched sound that goes away over time
The whole experience can become quite hollographic
The ears need time to adjust to any system or setup
A whiteness during intertransient silences

.