Monster cables for bass

Sav'nBass · #1 07-02-2010, 04:26 PM

I did a search and read some of the posts here from 2008 about these cables .. (after the fact.. when I bought the cables in 08 I had no knowledge of TB.. ) I have 2 actually I only use 2 regularly because one is an L shaped cable for my Schecter and one is a straight cable for my other bass.. my question is... in the years since 2008 when they first came out.. is there more info on them? I don't honestly see any difference. At home I use my standard monster cables and they work fine... If I had it to do all over again I probably wouldn't buy them.. but is there any technical benefit from this cable that has been discovered since they came out?

At the time it sounded good to me .. and I have had no problems since.. I am just curious.

JimmyM · #2 07-02-2010, 04:31 PM

you buy any decent well-made cable and you're fine. i always buy the ones on sale...the last two cables i bought were made by samson and i got two 20 ft'ers for like $25...might have been less, actually. this nonsense that monster puts out makes me really hate them as a company. they sell snake oil to suckers. yes, their cables are good, but they're no better than any other cables costing half or 1/3 as much.

vinxbass · #3 07-02-2010, 04:32 PM

I A/B'd my Monster Bass Cable with an el cheapo and there was a slight difference in the quality and volume of sound. Lot's of TB'ers will tell you it's a waste of money, but I don't think so. I play quite a bit and I've yet had to replace my Monster cables since purchasing them. They work like they are suppose to and that is work.

Rano Bass · #4 07-02-2010, 04:36 PM

I have used lots of different cables over the years and Monsters are the ones that have lasted for a long time, that alone makes me use them.
The no questions asked warranty is another good reason.

NateS · #5 07-02-2010, 04:41 PM

opening the can of worms here again...

i've read a lot of the posts about monster cables. I still use them.

they sound...like a cable. end of story.

they have a lifetime guarantee. so, that 50 dollars is all you need for life. yes, other cables do, too. other cables cannot be obtained in every sam ash, guitar center in the country, as well as a lot of music shops. thusly, you always have a cable, whether you're at home or your gigging on the other side of the country.

some argue that hey are stiff and want to recoil a lot. mine don't.

the company may not have the most ethical business practices (sue-happy), but what company doesn't have something against them?

in my head, 50 dollars for all the cable i will need for the rest of my life - and it's not like monster is going to go out of business - well overwhelms the initial purchase price.

sloasdaylight · #6 07-02-2010, 04:46 PM

I don't use the uber fancy high end monster cables, but I do use their other ones (the ones that come in the green ring thing) and I have to say that they've lasted longer than other cables I've bought for cheaper (I'm not particularly kind to any of my cables), so that plus the no questions asked, just bring in the cable warranty they have is pretty good.

RickenBoogie · #7 07-02-2010, 04:50 PM

I use Monster cables as well, and though it's true that they're nothing particularly special, they are good cables. And the lifetime warranty is about as easy as it gets. Even if you mess up the cable yourself, no questions asked, free replacement. good enough for me.

Sav'nBass · #8 07-02-2010, 05:14 PM

Well I bought the cables over a year ago.. so that part of it is a done deal.. I have the ones for bass.. and I have some of the regular ones.. but I was just curious as to what everyone else thinks.. I have them and I will have them because you can bet that from here on out I'll use that monster guarantee.. I got them because I had gotten some cheapos from GC.. and they didn't really last.. I had to resolder etc..Around the same time I was beginning to take my bass playing more seriously.. I had been totally out of playing for @16 years till 2001 when I started playing for my church .. and my chops (and my wallet) were so lacking that it took me a few years to even get back to the point where the light went on.. Around '04 I was getting more into it again and I got tired of buying cheap cables that I had to replace or repair so I got my first monsters.. (I had a PT job at Best Buy so I was familiar with monster cables from the AV side). I got the Monster Bass cables around 08.. a straight one for my Ibanez.. then when I got my Schecter in August of 09 I got an angled one.. I have had no issues with them.. but again.. I was just curious..

gm2_in_co · #9 07-02-2010, 05:22 PM

I am a believer in good cables, but NOT the esoteric ones...

Bass_Pounder · #10 07-02-2010, 05:28 PM

Other than the snakeoil sales pitches, and bad business practices, my only other problem with Moster is that the 1/4 jacks were slightly bigger than standard (at least they used to be, don't know if they since changed). They would ream out your inputs making other brands not fit anymore.

billfitzmaurice · #11 07-02-2010, 05:28 PM

Monster's so called 'bass' cables have excessively high capacitance, which kills high frequency response. IMO that's a defective cable; Monster instead markets this lemon as lemonade.

Oric · #12 07-02-2010, 05:32 PM

MONSTER USB CABLES
BIGGER INTERWEBS FOR YOUR GOOGLEBERRY

$75

MarTONEbass · #13 07-02-2010, 05:48 PM

In my experience, the Monster bass cables sound muddy. Planet Waves sound more well-defined to me. Cables do make slight difference IME.

hwystar · #14 07-02-2010, 06:53 PM

All I can say is Bayou cables from Butch Ammons, pick your cable, color and ends and he makes them for you, might have to wait a bit, but worth it, Bayoucables.com-on the bottom right of his homepage you'll see " why should I buy bayou cables" click on that, he'll tell you why.

**B-string** · #15 07-02-2010, 07:25 PM

My 25 year old Plant Waves is doing just fine. Can't count how many gigs it has been on. Have a couple Bayou's that the guitard is abusing, I bought them when I realized the PW was 20 years old, they are very good cables as well. Never bought the Monster waste of money's.

Jazzman · #16 07-02-2010, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rano Bass

I have used lots of different cables over the years and Monsters are the ones that have lasted for a long time, that alone makes me use them.

+1. I very much dislike everything about the monster brand - their marketing, their snake oil approach to cables, the way the sue every one who uses the monster name, etc. I really wish I could hate their product, but I have one I foolishly purchased back in ~1994 that has never failed. I use it for rehearsal many times per week; I beat the snot out of it hoping it will fail. It doesn't. I have no clue why because I am anything but careful with it. I would never buy another, but this one was well worth the price I paid. The gold plating seems to have worn off on the tip of the jacks but I haven't noticed any change in sound or anything. I also had a falling cymbal stand slice the jacket (but not the conductors) many years ago.

For gigging I use cables I make myself...Canare or Mogami wire and Neutrik ends. (My gig rigs are much bigger than what I use for practice and consist of more than one cable. Nor do I want to be seen playing that Monster cable or have any association with the brand.)

FWIW, I did A/B testing of cables using my Cafe Walter HA-1 & AKG K271 headphones. I used cheap cables, Monster, Rapco, Planet Waves, Proco, home-made, Ernie Ball, etc. The only ones that sounded "different" to my ears were George L's. YMMV.

Bob Lee (QSC) · #17 07-02-2010, 11:40 PM

A spare cable or two > an expensive cable with lifetime warranty. IMHO.

JimmyM · #18 07-03-2010, 12:25 AM

i once had a terrific exchange at best buy with a salesman pushing monster speaker cables hard for a stereo i was buying. he shows me two identical stereo systems...one with regular cables, one with monsters. he plays music through the regulars and says, "listen to how muddy and without definition it is." then he plays the monsters and says, "see how much more treble it's got and how much more definition? i don't make any extra for selling you monster cables...i just think they're way better than any others."

i replied, "hmmm, very interesting. can i see the receivers you're using?"

"um, what was that?"

"can i see the receivers you're using?"

"um, they're the exact same receivers. this is set up that way for the purpose of showing you the difference between monsters and the cheap stuff."

"can i see them, please?"

"what are you looking for?"

"the tone settings."

"um, ok..."

he pulls down the panel, and i see two identical receivers, except the one with the monsters had a treble knob that was in a higher position than the other. so i turn the knob to match, then i switch back and forth, and sure enough they sound identical. i show it to him and say, "listen, if you're going to try this tired old tactic, make sure that the person you're trying it on isn't a professional musician whose job it is to hear subtle differences."

i kid you not, he says to me, "you're a professional musician and you can't hear the difference? boy, i can!"

i said to him, "well whether you can or can't, i can't, so if you don't stop with the monster cables, i'm not buying the stereo and i'm leaving."

he says, "ok, let's ring it up...now this stereo comes with a 1-year warranty, but if you want a REAL warranty..."

ARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!

CDweller · #19 07-03-2010, 12:30 AM

I had a Monster Pro Studio 1000 cable that I bought in '99. It definitely did sound better than any other cable I had. It broke, so I got another from Sam Ash, no questions asked. Is it worth the $100 it cost? Who knows. Sounds good, though, and I don't need to spend dime one on another cable.

JimmyM · #20 07-03-2010, 12:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDweller

I had a Monster Pro Studio 1000 cable that I bought in '99. It definitely did sound better than any other cable I had. It broke, so I got another from Sam Ash, no questions asked. Is it worth the $100 it cost? Who knows. Sounds good, though, and I don't need to spend dime one on another cable.

does it have the directional arrows for plugging it in the so the electrons line up the proper way every time?

BWAHAHAHA! that's a good one, eh?

see, if monster wasn't so dishonest, they would only be overpriced cables. but being overpriced + being liars = jimbo never spending a dime on monster cables. besides, i'll lose them before i'll break them