Are cables created equal?

[Shortfinger]

I’m totally new to amplification. A brand new acoustic amp arrived today and I’ll buy a cord.

Only needing a 10-footer, is there anything I should know?

[rogthefrog]

1) no, different wires and gauges will have different capacitance characteristics and sound different

2) "different" doesn't mean better or worse, unless you're talking about objectively undesirable characteristics like hiss

3) you don't need to pay a ton for better cables

4) monster cables are not worth the premium

5) Monoprice makes very good cables, with no hiss and no detectable sound signature (i.e. neutral sounding). Spectraflex is also very good. DiMarzio are good. Cables with Neutrik connectors and Mogami wire are about as good as it gets and not very expensive

6) speaker cables and instrument cables are not interchangeable

7) paying more than $6/ft for 6+ ft long cables is a waste of money

8) planet waves have a slightly oversized jack and sleeve so you probably want to avoid them

[YamahaGuy]

I've never had trouble with any cable with Neutrik connectors. In my experience, the ones with the heat shrink tubing over metal connectors break after a few months. Livewire Elite are excellent. I have a plain Livewire cable I've had since 2010 and it's still working like a champ.

[atticus1019]

Make your own cables. You can make a 10 ft cable with the nicest wire and connectors money can buy for around $16.

[varmonter]

I am a big proponent of buying cables from a local.
Store that have lifetime guarantees .
Livewire at guitar center . Monster at my other LGS. I have
Brought 3 guitar cords back( monster) in 15 years. No questions
Asked brand new cable exchanged. Comes down to 10 bucks
A cable and I am not done. Lifetime is lifetime. I have yet
To exchange an xlr cable. Not as much abuse I guess.
No cables are not created equal. Wire gauge and shielding vary from
brand to brand. Mogami with neutrik ends is good stuff.
If you can solder you can save a lot of $$ by DIY your own.
But no guarantee.so you fix it if it breaks.

[Kip Carter]

Originally Posted by rogthefrog

1)

8) planet waves have a slightly oversized jack and sleeve so you probably want to avoid them

I’ve been told monster cable are also over sized and can cause damage.

[David MacNeill]

No. Most brands are somewhat noisy, fragile, and made by wage slaves. Mogami and PRS cables are made of the best material, work perfectly every time, and hold up under constant use. You get what you pay for, with the exception of Monster cables, which are of good quality but WAY overpriced — and the people who run the company are bullies: why innovate when you can litigate?

[varmonter]

Originally Posted by David MacNeill

No. Most brands are somewhat noisy, fragile, and made by wage slaves. Mogami and PRS cables are made of the best material, work perfectly every time, and hold up under constant use. You get what you pay for, with the exception of Monster cables, which are of good quality but WAY overpriced — and the people who run the company are bullies: why innovate when you can litigate?

Wow I've never heard anything bad before
About this comp.. but I don't get out much..

[David Eastwood]

Originally Posted by rogthefrog

8) planet waves have a slightly oversized jack and sleeve so you probably want to avoid them

I'm curious about this assertion - I've used Planet Waves cables for years with no issues. I just took a caliper to several I have lying around here - Planet Waves, Monoprice, Live Wire and some generic moulded patch cables - and found no significant difference between the plugs on any of them, for either diameter or length.

[varmonter]

Originally Posted by eatswodo

I'm curious about this assertion - I've used Planet Waves cables for years with no issues. I just took a caliper to several I have lying around here - Planet Waves, Monoprice, Live Wire and some generic moulded patch cables - and found no significant difference between the plugs on any of them, for either diameter or length.

Define "no significant difference" please..
If a 1/4 connector is "slightly"fatter than spec
Using it all the time in your guitar will "slightly"
Open up the tolerance. Which is no big deal
If you use it forever. But when you change
Cords down the road the new 1/4 connecter may be
slightly smaller and not make a good connection
In your now "reamed out" endpin jack.
As I can't define what that tolerance is..I can say
that I don't think it would take much to create a go/no-go situation.

[David Eastwood]

Originally Posted by varmonter

Define "no significant difference" please..
If a 1/4 connector is "slightly"fatter than spec
Using it all the time in your guitar will "slightly"
Open up the tolerance. Which is no big deal
If you use it forever. But when you change
Cords down the road the 1/4 connecter may be
slightly smaller and not make a good connection
In your now "reamed out" endpin jack.
As I can't define what that tolerance is..I can say
that I don't think it would take much to create a go/no-go situation.

I measured 5 or 6 plugs. Diameters varied from 0.248"-0.250".

[steelvibe]

Originally Posted by David MacNeill

No. Most brands are somewhat noisy, fragile, and made by wage slaves. Mogami and PRS cables are made of the best material, work perfectly every time, and hold up under constant use. You get what you pay for, with the exception of Monster cables, which are of good quality but WAY overpriced — and the people who run the company are bullies: why innovate when you can litigate?

Monster cables are replaced via a lifetime warranty and you don't even need a receipt- maybe that is why they are WAY overpriced?

[Ed-in-Ohio]

I really like the GLS Audio Brown Yellow Tweed Cloth Jacket cables. They work great, look great, and are relatively inexpensive. Never had one fail, and they seem to keep my signal chain dead quiet.

[varmonter]

Originally Posted by steelvibe

Monster cables are replaced via a lifetime warranty and you don't even need a receipt- maybe that is why they are WAY overpriced?

The first one I bought was 39 dollars. Voiced "acoustic".
One day it went microphonic on me. I brought it back to my
LGS And they gave me a brand new one. NQA. That new one
Lasted about 5 years and quit. Again NQA The 3rd one about
The same. So now I am on my 4th in 15-20 years ..39 divided by 4.??
Yes now they cost more. But you never have to buy another.
My thought would be that this would motivate a company
To constantly improve design and durability.
Your customer returns you improve ..raise your price..
Eventually you get it down and profits increase. Sure now
An "acoustic cable" is 80 bucks. My bet would be it lasts longer
Then my first 39 dollar cable. And I had to swallow hard to
Pay that 39 bucks almost 20 years ago.. lol..

[Chriscom]

Originally Posted by Ed-in-Ohio

I really like the GLS Audio Brown Yellow Tweed Cloth Jacket cables. They work great, look great, and are relatively inexpensive. Never had one fail, and they seem to keep my signal chain dead quiet.

I have two of these and like them, but I find them a little stiff. Nothing that makes them unusable, but they don't flop around as easily as some others. Up on a cramped stage I have to manipulate them a little more than I'd like sometimes.