Location: South East Cornwall
Posts: 322
I'm Dominic.
I can only speak for myself of course. My take on placebo (or placebo effect) is that it needs another party to impose/inflict/whatever the condition upon me - I cannot generate or have the placebo effect on my own.
If people place their trust in magazine reviews and dealers then that is their individual choice. Both of these parties stand to gain from their recommendations to you the reader and you must use some wisdom in your dealings.
Paying £120 for a fancy upgrade mains cable that is a freebie dressed up to look the part is duping people, not triggering a placebo event.
CD player = Marantz CD6006
DAC/pre = Rotel RC 1572
Power amp = ADA PF201
Speaks = Quadral Chromium Style 6
Location: South East Cornwall
Posts: 322
I'm Dominic.
CD player = Marantz CD6006
DAC/pre = Rotel RC 1572
Power amp = ADA PF201
Speaks = Quadral Chromium Style 6
Location: South East Cornwall
Posts: 322
I'm Dominic.
I am going to agree with you on that point. I sometimes forget that there are folks who have no experience in these matters and can be fooled quite easily. I still cling to the hope that one day they start asking questions and pay close attention to what they are hearing in the cold light of day.
CD player = Marantz CD6006
DAC/pre = Rotel RC 1572
Power amp = ADA PF201
Speaks = Quadral Chromium Style 6
Main System
Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.
Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.
Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.
CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.
Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.
Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.
Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.
Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.
Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.
Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!
Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!
...or have the gumption to trust their OWN ears, and make their hi-fi decisions on that basis, rather than blindly obeying the 'rules of electrical theory'/physics, accepted wisdom, text books written by 'respected scientists' (or academics), or being told what to do by a supposed 'expert' in a white lab coat
Marco.
Main System
Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.
Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.
Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.
CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.
Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.
Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.
Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.
Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.
Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.
Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!
Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!
Ok, let's cut to the chase...
Please may I/we have list of mains cables that people think make a 'sound' improvement over the so-called 'kettle' leads?
(All less than , say, £80 per metre, terminated at both ends.)
I hasten to add that I have made up 3 of the cheaper end of MCRU's offerings. Any improvement has been 'subtle', but I like the idea of the extra screening.
Thanks.
Last edited by Bonky; 16-05-2018 at 15:47.
My Gear:
Source component/s:
Cambridge CXC Cd player; Inspire Apollo deck + Roksan Nima arm + Ortofon 2M Black; Denon TU-580RD tuner; Logitech Squeezebox Touch. Rpi with Volumio. RME DAC.
Amplification: WD KEL84+ valve amp; Rega Brio, Quad 306 (DADA modded, - in reserve)). Trichord Dino2 & Dino+ PS;
Wiim mini, Wiim Pro, Wiim ProPlus streamers
Loudspeakers:
Living Voice Auditorium IBX-R2.
Q Acoustics 2010 in the 'study'.
Cables/stands: Chords; Van Dammes 4mm
Any other hi-fi bits:
Apple MacMini Pro; Senn HD598, 467,
Linear PSs for Rpi and DAC. Pure mains conditioning.
Location: South East Cornwall
Posts: 322
I'm Dominic.
CD player = Marantz CD6006
DAC/pre = Rotel RC 1572
Power amp = ADA PF201
Speaks = Quadral Chromium Style 6
Location: South East Cornwall
Posts: 322
I'm Dominic.
I have found that anything with a switch mode power supply seems to have much less improvement from an upgrade cable. I would say pretty much immune.
CD player = Marantz CD6006
DAC/pre = Rotel RC 1572
Power amp = ADA PF201
Speaks = Quadral Chromium Style 6
Good stuff, but that leap wasn't necessary (and also unlikely to have been the case, as such cables are known to be both equipment and mains dependent); the important thing was, you heard a difference.
It's just a pity you didn't have more time to test (via whatever means YOU believed was sufficient) whether you considered the difference as being real or imagined.
Marco.
Main System
Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.
Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.
Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.
CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.
Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.
Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.
Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.
Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.
Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.
Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!
Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!