"A charge builds up in the insulation"

[Modmark]

Re: "A charge builds up in the insulation"

I never thought Crutchfeild would shovel these piles.

I think the answer is clear, high profit margins for Crutchfield. BestBuy may make more money selling a $80 Monster HDMI cable than a $100 Bluray player.

A relative got suckered into this, from Best Buy he bought an rather unimpressive set of in-wall speakers and $800 worth of Monster wiring. Just for the cost of wires, I could have put together a better 5.1 system.

What truly baffle's me. ultra expensive digital cables. It is digital, it will ether work or not work but a $3.99 cable from Amazon will work just as well as a $100 Monster cable.

[lunchmoney]

Re: "A charge builds up in the insulation"

Maybe the naive consumer experiencing the placebo effect ACTUALLY DOES notice a night-and-day difference from these nonsensical cables.

And if so, is it money well spent? Tough to argue that it isn't, if it really does work for them and puts a smile on their face.

Maybe WE are the ones who lose out, because we know too much.

The placebo effect is a fascinating topic... it can be argued (very difficult to prove) that people have actually recovered from terminal illnesses because they BELIEVED that the sugar pills were working.

(I'm the most secular atheist you'll ever meet, by the way... "faith" and "belief" are words that mean very little to me)

[MGrant1957]

Re: "A charge builds up in the insulation"

How about some 'Cosmic Ferris Wheel Cable':

It has been exposed to cosmic rays to De-ionize the oxygen Free Copper, and then passed through a Ferric ring to De-Gauss any remaining ions.

just $89.95/Ft.


I.E. zip cord that has been left out in the sun and passed through a iron-oxide choke.

[doctorbad]

Re: "A charge builds up in the insulation"

My background is in the Electrical Utility field. There is some truth to electrical cables building up a charge in the inslation, but only in high voltage - high current cables. An electric cable insulated with cross linked polyethelyne has microscopic impurities and voids that, when energized at 1,000 volts or more, build up what is reffered to as "space charges". These charges have a tendency to break down the insulation by a process called "electrical treeing" Eventally, the insulation will fail. Again, this is generally a problem with high voltage cables. There may be a correlation to audio, but it's effect would have to be minimal.

[billfitzmaurice]

Re: "A charge builds up in the insulation"

BestBuy may make more money selling a $80 Monster HDMI cable than a $100 Bluray player.

More than they do on a $300 TV, actually. Cables are to electronics as ink cartridges are to printers. Now, would you like to get the extended warranty with that? :D

[wg_ski]

Re: "A charge builds up in the insulation"

"A charge builds up in the insulation through continual use"

The problem is that statement is actually true. But of course, it is taken entirely out of context to support their claims. Charge does become trapped in the dielectric with continued AC or DC bias - but the amount is ridiculously small on something of that scale with only 48 volts (or a hundred coming out of a really big amplifier). It does become important when the dielectric is a fraction of a micron thick - trapped charge eventually causes a capacitor to fail. There's equations that tell you how many volts per meter and how long. But that's with electric field strengths that would be fatal to someone using a stereo.

[Whitneyville1]

Re: "A charge builds up in the insulation"

"ski" I can still quote some Guass densities at 60 KV for synthetic aperture RADAR for an F4 Phantom II Dog. Yeah, the mega-buck fiber optic cables get me too. Either it works or it doesn't. The one's I got for .98 each from P-E on close-out work perfectly. I'm sorry, but why should I pay $20-35 for a 1 meter FO if I don't plan on tugging on it or even touching it again for the next 20 years? I've had S-video cables that have been connected longer than that...(April 1984 to be more exact)

[johnastockman]

Re: "A charge builds up in the insulation"

I think you mean an 'Emperors New Coths' thread.

There is a very good reason why you don't know to what "charge" or what "efficiency" they are referring.

They are lying, plain and simple.

They simply make a vague statement that sounds technical in nature and show slick looking product.

Anyone with the requisite wallet size and dim wit will not dwell upon it any further or do anymore reasearch except to find out where they can buy them.

Hey, just like a lot of manufacturers do when they're trying to sell/market their speakers. Use many tech-words or marketing-speak and tart up the front a bit with multiple/too-many drivers or a cool looking baffle and drivers. No one will ever look inside to see how the construction and components have been so compromised. The biggest profit margin in our store: wire & interconnects and phono catridges. And we never sold or told folks that a certain wire/interconnect would "lift the veil", or offered boutique wire BS and prices. Just something simple that worked well and was affordable.


John A.

[awwnuts]

Re: "A charge builds up in the insulation"

(I'm the most secular atheist you'll ever meet, by the way... "faith" and "belief" are words that mean very little to me)

Do you believe that to be the case? Or you do have faith that it's true? :rolleyes:

[johnastockman]

Re: "A charge builds up in the insulation"

The placebo effect is a fascinating topic... it can be argued (very difficult to prove) that people have actually recovered from terminal illnesses because they BELIEVED that the sugar pills were working.

(I'm the most secular atheist you'll ever meet, by the way... "faith" and "belief" are words that mean very little to me)

+1!


John A.