low capacitance phono lead at a budget – input wanted

[mimoser]

… to give our Stanton ST-100 a fair chance against our Heybrook TT2 I am looking for 1.5m phono interconnect RCA–RCA.
This should be low capacitance as it will be fed mainly by Stanton carts (500, 681) and their Pickering siblings wanting 275pf.
And it should come at a budget price.
I am new to differences in cable-sound and still a little sceptic.
;-))
Michael

[Ammonite Audio]

You can't really go far wrong with Van Damme Pro Grade Classic XKE Pro-patch cable (http://www.van-damme.com/14.html), which is what my Audio Origami tonearm cable is made from. The capacitance is quoted as: Core to core 50 pF/m nominal; and Core to screen 95pF/m nominal.

There are sellers on eBay like this one (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Van-Damme-Gold-Neutrik-Rean-RCA-Phono-to-RCA-Phono-Lead-OFC-Silver-Plated-Cable-/261325495471?pt=UK_Musical_Cables_Leads_Connectors&var=&hash=item3cd8369caf) who will sell you a 1.5m long pair, fitted with decent quality Rean (budget Neutrik) plugs for £17 (that's for two single cables).

[Reffc]

You can't really go far wrong with Van Damme Pro Grade Classic XKE Pro-patch cable (http://www.van-damme.com/14.html), which is what my Audio Origami tonearm cable is made from. The capacitance is quoted as: Core to core 50 pF/m nominal; and Core to screen 95pF/m nominal.

There are sellers on eBay like this one (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Van-Damme-Gold-Neutrik-Rean-RCA-Phono-to-RCA-Phono-Lead-OFC-Silver-Plated-Cable-/261325495471?pt=UK_Musical_Cables_Leads_Connectors&var=&hash=item3cd8369caf) who will sell you a 1.5m long pair, fitted with decent quality Rean (budget Neutrik) plugs for £17 (that's for two single cables).

Trouble is, that's a total of 145pF/m which is closer to 200pF at 1.5m and could be too high for some MM cartridges depending on phonostage loading (they tend to be close to 150pF which could give a total of 350pF with that cable so too high which will cause frequency roll-off). Rule of thumb for MM cartridges is to limit cable capacitance to a maximum of 100pF if possible and total loading to about 250pF. A standard 6.5mm coax with a low dielectric constant and 0.4mm core plus braided shield should be more like 65 to 80 pF per metre depending on the cable chosen.

[NRG]

Depends on the MM cart. Most likely it will cause a large hump in the upper frequency response leaving a midrange suck out. The 2M black is a an example.

[Reffc]

Depends on the MM cart. Most likely it will cause a large hump in the upper frequency response leaving a midrange suck out. The 2M black is a an example. True. It highlights the importance though of getting capacitive loading right for MM cartridges to hear them at their best. Not quite such an issue with MC carts though.

[mimoser]

sorry, but now I know what not, but not what …
:doh:
:scratch:
Michael

[twotone]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/221312289806?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649&clk_rvr_id=577712736506&afsrc=1

[mimoser]

as i got that one (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Canare-starquad-tonearm-cable-for-Linn-SME-Roksan-24AWG-120cm-long-/221357975362?pt=UK_Sound_Vision_Other&hash=item3389f6a742) on my TT2, I already know that seller,
but as already stated above, I am looking for an RCA-RCA cable and perhaps some new ideas …
;-)
Michael

[Fulci]

Mogami 2549. Core to core 11pF core to shielding 76pF. Great cable, under £3 per meter.

[DSJR]

To be honest, PLEASE don't get anal over this.. The Van Damme Pro Patch twin core (screen connected at far end) or their tour grade screened cable will be absolutely fine. The difference in response will be at very high frequencies and unless your cartridges have a massive problem up there (highly unlikely these days and not with Stantons anyway), a hundred or so pF extra won't make a substantial difference if at all. I had a play with the loading options on an i-Phono not that long ago and couldn't really detect any meaningful change on this unit...

[mimoser]

getting anal is no issue, I simply need some slack to change preamps (RIAA stereo vs Shellac mono) and ordered 1,5m NVA sound cord for a start. Will report back as soon as it has arrived …
thx for the inputs
Michael

[The Mighty Quinn]

… to give our Stanton ST-100 a fair chance against our Heybrook TT2 I am looking for 1.5m phono interconnect RCA–RCA.
This should be low capacitance as it will be fed mainly by Stanton carts (500, 681) and their Pickering siblings wanting 275pf.
And it should come at a budget price.
I am new to differences in cable-sound and still a little sceptic.
;-))
Michael

Hi Michael,

I went with LC-1 low capacitance audio cable from Blue Jeans Cable (http://www.bluejeanscable.com/store/audio/index.htm) when I needed to reduce the capacitance loading on my Ortofon 2M Black. The LC-1 is rated at 12.2 pF/foot, which should put you at around 60 pF for a 1.5 meter run.

A 1.5 meter (5 foot) LC-1 cable will run you 36 USD, but you should check with BJC to find out if they will ship to the EU and what the shipping charges look like. I have ordered several audio and speaker cables from BJC and I have been extremely happy with their quality.

Cheers,
Quinn

[mimoser]

In the meantime I got 1.5m of NVA Soundcord – sounds ok with my mono preamp, but as I am still waiting for delivery of a "man-phono-amp" with different capacitance settings, I can not really give a detailed report.
:-)
Michael