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Post subject: Are expensive cables worth the money in the pursuit of TONE?
Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 3:56 am
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Hi everyone.
I recently have been dismantling my rig in order to find my 'true' guitar tone.
You know that kind of 'mid lifre crisis' thing for guitar players where they realise that all the 'boutique' effects and goodies they buy and run in their rigs don't add charactor at all but in fact de-personalise the sound more and more till they start to sound generic?
Sorry if I'm rambling but any way, I have just sold off a lot of my gear and effects.
I am stipping down to the best quality necessities -
52 Thin Skinned Telecaster
59 Re- Issue Bassman.

I may run a TS808 for a little more beef at lower volumes, but at gigs I'm gonna drive the Bassman to breakup and then clean up with the Tele's Vol.

I may also run a Lee Jackson 'Mr Springgy' reverb pedal. AND THAT'S IT!!!

I'm done with gimmicks, I'm gonna let my guitar and fingers do the work, not some magic box!

So if i'm searching for the Holy Grail of pure tone and am gonna keep it simple, should I spend big money on a Zaolla (or the like) cable. And if so do I need to fork out the dough for two (to run from the TS808 to the amp)?

Are they worth the extra money. I'm not rich or anything and I can't really afford it but will I notice a difference?
I have a blues / rock style and use little overdrive. I am a Fender devote...

Please help.

Thanks,


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Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 5:34 am
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I have heard many people say that they can notice a difference (whether or not the difference equals improvement is another matter) when they use cables such as George L and Monster. Than many others will say that as long as you have decent quality cable and plugs, that it doesn't really matter...

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Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 7:49 am
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IMO, Any good quality cable in shorter lengths would be hard to "hear" a difference. I think that I hear a diffrence between a quality cable and a budget cable in say 20 - 30 foot length

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Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 9:18 am
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Think back to what they used for cables in the 60s and 70s...the old switchcraft/belden combo works just as good these days as it did back then in my opinion.

Hendrix, Clapton, Beatles, Bloomfield, Bishop, etc..

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Posted: Sun Mar 01, 2009 11:45 am
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It's funny this topic should come up. Just the other day I was perusing the MF catalog online. Up until recently my only guitar was a customized G&L with a non-recessed plug so I used a lot of right angle cables. With a new addition of a Tele, with a recessed plug I was interested in a couple of straight ended cables.
So anyway......I had never put much thought into cable quality other than wanting something moderately heavy duty that would not break down.
Well when I saw the huge variety being offered with such a price differential, I started reading the reviews.
There are many who claim to have noticed a HUGE difference in sound when they upgraded their cables.
One brand--Pro Co Lifelines--seemed to have the best reviews for a moderate price increase. Surprisingly enough, there were many negative reviews for Monster brand.
Check it out..............


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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2009 4:02 am
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From an electronics point of view it's hard to believe that there would be a lot of value added in sound in going to the very expensive cables. A guitar cord is a two conductor cord with a center wire and outer mesh conductor. All insulated. I would think that once you reach some basic level of quality in the conductors, then it's all about the quality of the other materials. I have used Monsters for years, not because of any noticeable difference in sound but because they are sturdy and stand up to rough use. I use 12' max.

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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2009 9:25 am
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There are huge differences between cables.
I went from Fender's best; then switched to Elixir cables: a real improvement in sound transparency and strength.
Then I switched to Audio Evidence cables: it 's the pinnacle of cables: silence, no distortion, an even bandwidth.. an unheard before quality and transparency of sound. This has a price. But well worth the investment.
Cables are usually the poo' boy of the music chain; it's time to change.
BTW the rest of your equipment must be at the same level of quality otherwise, it's a waste of money...


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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2009 11:51 am
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alainlafrance wrote:
There are huge differences between cables.
I went from Fender's best; then switched to Elixir cables: a real improvement in sound transparency and strength.
Then I switched to Audio Evidence cables: it 's the pinnacle of cables: silence, no distortion, an even bandwidth.. an unheard before quality and transparency of sound. This has a price. But well worth the investment.
Cables are usually the poo' boy of the music chain; it's time to change.
BTW the rest of your equipment must be at the same level of quality otherwise, it's a waste of money...

Agreed your tone is only as good as your weakest link. Don't go cheap on your cables. I use Audio Evidence too. Perfect!! :!:


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Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2009 1:48 pm
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From my experience playing local rock gigs in cleveland it doesn't matter. There are so many things that go into how you sound, like the sound guy :roll:

But I can attest to this... for home recording a good cable MEANS A TON!!! I use monster cables and I can tell the difference when recording. Using cheap practice cables make it sound flat using the nice monsters make the sound big and alive. There are a ton of "high end" cable companies and I have heard good things about almost all of them.


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Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2009 3:19 pm
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Hey Bluz,
I'm not sure about how much difference the cable makes, but I'm with you on tossing out all my effects and processors. If I do have issue with cables, it's usually the ones that are longer than 15'.

I bought one of those 5E3 D-lux clones and just fell in love with the basic purity of it. I just got tired of carrying all the cords, batteries and extra cables for stuff that was not really necessary for my style of play (clean rhythm, funk and of course Blues). Now all I have is my MIM Std Tele and a short 12' Monster Cable into the amp....... Simple, simple simple. All I do is show up, warm up the tubes and start playing. No level setting, no futzing with knobs, no humming or buzzing, no dead batteries, just crank the amp and between the volume knob and pick attack I can keep it clean or push it over the edge for my nasty blues licks.

It's probably like what most guys did in the old days. Cranked their amps and plugged in their Teles....

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Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2009 3:46 pm
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darkstr0ke wrote:
Hey Bluz,
I'm not sure about how much difference the cable makes, but I'm with you on tossing out all my effects and processors. If I do have issue with cables, it's usually the ones that are longer than 15'.

I bought one of those 5E3 D-lux clones and just fell in love with the basic purity of it. I just got tired of carrying all the cords, batteries and extra cables for stuff that was not really necessary for my style of play (clean rhythm, funk and of course Blues). Now all I have is my MIM Std Tele and a short 12' Monster Cable into the amp....... Simple, simple simple. All I do is show up, warm up the tubes and start playing. No level setting, no futzing with knobs, no humming or buzzing, no dead batteries, just crank the amp and between the volume knob and pick attack I can keep it clean or push it over the edge for my nasty blues licks.

It's probably like what most guys did in the old days. Cranked their amps


and plugged in their Teles....





Man, I'm so with you on this one.
I listen to a lot of Jimmie Vaughan and man that tone!
The cat is too cool to even add reverb at the desk!
Old Strat, Fender Bassman. Done.
Early B.B. The same. Listen to 3 O'Clock Blues. Man that's dry tone. It takes a confident player to go for it and plug straight in.

I guess we all get lost sometimes as players and yes it is 'fun' for a while to mess about with new gear and 'overuse' it.
But we gotta get back to the playing, first and foremost.


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2009 4:30 pm
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My opinions -

1. Cable length (or lack thereof) is more important than cable brand.

I'm learning this right now in my little low-tech home studio. The several 25-foot cables I have from my gigging days in the last two decades are giving me lots of hum and two of them pick up a local AM radio signal. I have just one 10-foot cable and it's dead quiet, plugged into everything. And, it's the same brand (Whirlwind) as most of my 25-footers. All my one-foot patch cables seem equally good, whether Monster or the bunch of multi-colored cheapies I got at a MARS store way back when for almost nothing.

2. Pure opinion here, not necessarily fact -

Why use a high-dollar cable from your instrument to your amp when, most likely, the wires going from the amp to the speaker are the skinniest, cheapest ones the manufacturer could find? [that's assuming you have a combo amp, not a separate head and speakers cabinet(s) hooked up with good cables]


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Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2009 5:24 pm
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Here is an recent article in Guitar Player magazine where they rated cables on several criteria. On the right are different charts comparing similarly priced cables.

http://www.guitarplayer.com/article/49-guitar-cables/apr-08/34729


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 2:56 pm
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Finaly ordered a George L 225 15ft Cable.

I'll A/B it with my Planet Waves and try and hear the difference.

I'll report back.

Thanks to everyone who offered their advice!

Cheers.


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Post subject: Finaly A /B 'd the George L 225 15ft cable with P Waves
Posted: Sat Mar 07, 2009 3:26 pm
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He guys, thanks for all the input.
I decided on a 15 ft (no longer as so many of you all said) George L 225 cable.
When it arrived today I have to say I was a little disapointed how unflexable it is. I don't know if it will loosen up but at the moment it tends to have a mind of it's own and doesn't seem to fall the way a 'Loose' if that's the word cable would.
I don't know what it's going to be like live. We shall see, I have a gig in 3 weeks but it's a small venue so I wont be moving about much!
Soundwise...
There is a difference after all. This is the first time I A/B'd a guitar cord and I was amazed at the difference. Even my wife noted how much warmer the George L was. It seemed to have much more bass response than the Planet Waves (20ft). I swear it was slightly louder too.
I ran both cables direct into a 59 Bassman LTD by way of my 52 Thin Skin Telecaster.
I am now converted.
Only thing is now I'm going to have to buy another one to run from my tubescreamer on stage back to the amp!!!
They are not cheep either.


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