Does Cables Matter for a Bass

[penguineman]

not sure if this is actually the right spot for this or not but what cables is everyone using?? I've got several Monster cables I use but none of them are specific for Bass Guitars a few are guitar cables and a few are insturment cables. does it really matter if it is Bass specific unless your in the studio or something like that recording?

[ksandvik]

Maybe some marketing type will tell you that they matter.... The electrons don't care.

[grendle]

A good cable with good connectors is a good cable with good connectors. The connector and how its soldered is the most important in any cable. I like VF cables. Their reasonable, custom cables (you can custom order the end style, color, and heat shrink color ) lifetime guarantee, and their all handmade, hand soldered here in the us. About the price of a monster cable. My friend turned me on to them, been using them for a few years with no issues.

[patlozrox]

In most cases, yeah, cables DOES matter. But in stuff like practicing, no. I would try to get one with a gold or steel tip. Best reception and life span.

[Phalex]

Are you talking about a good expensive cable, or a cable that will get the job done? Typically the good expensive cables have a high amount of capacitance and little flexibility.

IMHO if they want $2.00 per foot or more for a cable, you're getting screwed.

[MNAirHead]

I have a monster "bass" cable .... An oscilloscope or recording engineer can't tell the difference

[iiipopes]

Good cable with good connectors, as stated above, do matter. To thin a cable, and you get reliability problems, conductivity problems, etc. To cheap connectors, and you get, well, connector problems, especially from the tip not being the proper geometry to properly interface the jack, which could actually damage the instrument jack.

You can never go wrong with Belden cable and Switchcraft jacks, properly assembled.

[Roy Vogt]

I can tell the difference between a cheap Peavey cable, Planet Waves, Monster or Taralabs. A lot of people will disagree-we've opened up several cans of worms on TB with this one.
I use the cheap Peavey cables for teaching and General Business gigs, the Planet Waves for upright and Monster or Taralabs for sessions only. The people who give me money to play bass like my tone on sessions. I don't care about graphs, I care about getting called for the next one. YMMV

[TheDude007]

Ah, this argument again. Haven't seen this one in a while. Good to have you back my old friend.

[tdub0199]

You don't have to spend more than $20 - $25 to get a decent cable..... a $50 Monster or Mogami is not needed to get a good signal.....

[Roy Vogt]

Originally Posted by TheDude007

Ah, this argument again. Haven't seen this one in a while. Good to have you back my old friend.

And the nail has been hit on the head!

[Nev375]

I would say that it matters slightly more than the expensive power cables you can buy.

For a more precise answer, consult your own imagination.

[BeTheLowEnd]

I've never noticed a difference between brands however I have found that my tone is slightly better if I use cables under 15ft. I had to use 30ft cable once and it was horrid

[gjbassist]

Cables matter about as much as proper grammar in a forum thread!

[abemo]

Your cable will absolutely affect your tone. That said, a cable will absolutely not define your tone. Too thin of a cable will still carry the signal to the amp, but not as well, you lose some of the depth and punch, then again, some massive monstrosity (no reference to monster cable intended) of a cable could be too stiff and cause issues onstage, particularely if you move around a lot.

I used to use the cheapest cable that was available at the time of purchase. Then about six months ago I went to buy a new cable. As I like to move around onstage I needed a fairly long cable, and the only instument cables that the retailer had in stock were 15' or less. So I ignored the clerks warning that I had to use an instrument cable for an instrument and bought a 25' heavy duty, highly flexible speaker cable. Honestly, I was shocked to find out that my lows got punchier, my highs got clearer, and my overall volume jumped. Its all minor improvements, probably not noticable to anyone else but me, but it is a difference.

[stedtale]

I only use cables made by Exaltbass here on TB. Excellent quality and long lasting. Fairly priced too.

[MNAirHead]

Originally Posted by stedtale

I only use cables made by Exaltbass here on TB. Excellent quality and long lasting. Fairly priced too.

Ditto ^^^ exalt rocks^^^ exactly the way I like/want and coaching where to spend money

My 35" is by him.... So are my x2 cables

[cnltb]

Originally Posted by penguineman

not sure if this is actually the right spot for this or not but what cables is everyone using?? I've got several Monster cables I use but none of them are specific for Bass Guitars a few are guitar cables and a few are insturment cables. does it really matter if it is Bass specific unless your in the studio or something like that recording?

Different cables will "sound " different. I have no doubt about that after trying and comparing plenty.

[Barca_bass]

Originally Posted by tdub0199

You don't have to spend more then $20 - $25 to get a decent cable..... a $50 Monster or Mogami is not needed to get a good signal.....

This is not my experience, but perhaps I had the wrong $20-$25 cable. I have A/B my gold Mogami with several cables my friends and bandmates have had, and they could all tell a huge difference. Of course, the cables we were comparing against could have simply been the poorest of the poor.

[applerocks]

Your cable will absolutely affect your tone. That said, a cable will absolutely not define your tone. Too thin of a cable will still carry the signal to the amp, but not as well, you lose some of the depth and punch, then again, some massive monstrosity (no reference to monster cable intended) of a cable could be too stiff and cause issues onstage, particularely if you move around a lot.

I used to use the cheapest cable that was available at the time of purchase. Then about six months ago I went to buy a new cable. As I like to move around onstage I needed a fairly long cable, and the only instument cables that the retailer had in stock were 15' or less. So I ignored the clerks warning that I had to use an instrument cable for an instrument and bought a 25' heavy duty, highly flexible speaker cable. Honestly, I was shocked to find out that my lows got punchier, my highs got clearer, and my overall volume jumped. Its all minor improvements, probably not noticable to anyone else but me, but it is a difference.

?! Speaker cables have different wiring than instrument cables and from my experience, because they're not shielded, sound awful plugged in to an instrument. That is not advice to ignore.

See here:

http://www.fender.com/news/index.php...ay_article=458