• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

bass cables!!!

Status
Not open for further replies.
#22
Modern Growl said:
listen to this kat. he knows what he's talking about.
throw Evidence Audio cables in there as well, specifically the Lyric HG
Click to expand...

Thanks, and yes, I forgot the HG.
I like that cable ( I've always had a soft spot for green... no joke!)

The customer service with evidence has in my experience been outstanding too.
Beware tho, the HG is a stiff cable.
 
#24
I made a lead of very high end RF cable and two very good neutrik jack connectors.
With my basses (all active ones because I feel that depending on your cable for your sound is not a good thing) I can't really detect a change in sound.

The lead is definitely not very practical, being very stiff and only about 2m long. But it is a very low capacitance, silver litze, teflon insulated cable, and hey if the signal quality is good enough for a $2M MRI scanner it should do for a bass guitar, right?

Even though companies as Siltech and Vandenhul do research on cables (instead of other companies which just order interesting looking cable and terminate it with interesting looking connectors), I still think that the importance is minimal with respect to the rest of the chain. The effect of power cables is orders of magnitude lower on the list still.

Best regards,

Jarno.

By the way, I use spectraflex cables, because I like the way they look. And they seem robust enough. I make a habit of resoldering the connectors every couple of years.
 
#26
Cernael said:
Wha...?

Musical signals are alternating current. By its very definition, AC goes both ways. Forbid one direction, and my guess is that you'll introduce some serious signal clipping.
Click to expand...

Hey, I'm only quoting the article - so don't shoot the messenger ;)

From what I understand/remember (I am at work) - the lead has to be plugged into the guitar a certain way, and the signal can only pass down the lead in that direction. Why? I have no idea :D Perhaps someone here on the forum can pitch in who knows more or has experience with such a lead. I'll see if I can dig out the article and get a bit more specific and report back!
 
#28
There really is a lot of marketing hype going on about cables. I think it's mostly a lot of snake oil, at least as far as electric bass in a live gig setting goes. Maybe not quite good enough for solo bass recitals at Carnegie Hall, so if you plan on doing a lot of those, ignore what I say.

I like something with good, reliable strain relief, Switchcraft or Neutric plugs and low capacitance.

I've used planet Waves and still have one I've played almost every gig with for almost 10 years. That's pretty reliable.

If you want to easily make your own, Bill Lawrence sells kits of low capacitance cable and special, no solder plugs. Similar in quality to George L's. You can easily make your own custom length and repair them just as quickly if you ever need to. Guitarists swear by them.
 
#29
Cernael said:
Wha...?

Musical signals are alternating current. By its very definition, AC goes both ways. Forbid one direction, and my guess is that you'll introduce some serious signal clipping.
Click to expand...

It is because they lift the shield on the (sending) bass end - but, it goes to ground on the (receiving ) amp end... helps cut down on buzzes. You can play it either direction, but lose some shielding benefit.
 
#30
derrenleepoole said:
Hey, I'm only quoting the article - so don't shoot the messenger ;)

From what I understand/remember (I am at work) - the lead has to be plugged into the guitar a certain way, and the signal can only pass down the lead in that direction. Why? I have no idea :D Perhaps someone here on the forum can pitch in who knows more or has experience with such a lead. I'll see if I can dig out the article and get a bit more specific and report back!
Click to expand...

The only thing I could think of would be power reflection.

when you have a mismatch in the impedance of your output and the impedance of you input you can get reflected power coming back down the cable. Now this is only really applicable at high frequencies... like MHz and GHz. So I don't know what they are talking about with this cable. and yes the other poster is right.. it is AC which means the current is alternating.

these cables sound like a gimick.
 
#31
ExaltBass said:
It is because they lift the shield on the (sending) bass end - but, it goes to ground on the (receiving ) amp end... helps cut down on buzzes. You can play it either direction, but lose some shielding benefit.
Click to expand...

ah yes...
I have seen those. it does not stop your signal from flowing back, all it is doing is lifting the ground point to a floating point. It can cut down on noise in situations where your amp is at a different ground point than your bass. but what it is also basicaly doing is making your bass hot... which would make you ground.
 
#32
I'm using some ancient Spectraflex "toaster cords" but beggining to see some noise creep into the signal chain. Somebody gave me a really nice Planet Waves cable (one end is marked as shielded) and I've been happy so far.

Riis
 
#37
Vin_MM_Sabre_79 said:
A lead is a lead.
My favorite test is this blind test between boutique monster cables and coat hangers.
No-one could pick the difference:
http://consumerist.com/362926/do-coat-hangers-sound-as-good-monster-cables
Click to expand...

That was for speaker cables, not interconnects (patch cords). And they didn't even use Monster speaker cables, they used shielded interconnects, so the test was flawed anyway, and hardly scientific.

So why not use a coat hanger for your bass then? They make good conductors, though they are magnetic.

I had a regular old instrument Monster cable for about 25 years. It sounded great and lasted a long time. I could have gotten it replaced for free, but when it started getting noisy I got a Spectraflex, which also sounds great.

The thing about capacitance and cables if is has a lot to do with the insulator around the core. Two conductors separated by an insulator is a capacitor! Some of the high end cables are very thick, and have thicker insulators. That decreases the capacitance. The other thing is some of the high end cables have conductive layers between the insulators to cut down on the triboelectric effect. And larger diameter conductors with more strands will be more efficient than thinner ones.

AC currents don't all pass the same depending on frequency. This is what impedance is all about. The resistance of the wire makes a difference too, and lower resistance cables will pass more low frequencies. The other thing is when ever you have current flowing in a conductor you have accompanying magnet fields, which also produce current, which then produces its own magnetic field, which opposes the original current flow. That shunts the high frequencies. This is why some cable makers are experimenting with conductor geometries, like flat conductors.

This is all known stuff and isn't hype, though as the recent tests at several magazines have shown, the cables do sound different, and some worked better for bass, but the differences are small. But there were differences in tone. Read the articles. One is online in Premier Guitar magazine. These are pro musicians trying cables on instruments, not coat hangers on stereo speakers.

On the cables that only work "one way" ... it's the shield that is only connected on one end. The staff at Bass Player tried it both ways, and said depending on which way you plugged it in, it sounded slightly different.

Personally I think it's a good thing that companies are trying new ideas. Even if you don't buy these expensive cables, they will have trickle down effect on the industry.

I think before any of us can say it's hype, we have to actually sit down with few different cables and try them out. If you never tried them, you can't say they all sound the same. :D
 
#39
oh my you use the heavy ones? I use the (.155) or whatever the little one is. I did it for years on the road to save space and years later when Ken Smth built my fretless he gaveme a 12 foot in the little one. They said it puts a lot less stress on the jack itself so they last longer and sound great.
I think I order mine through www.stompin-ground.com



Refonbass said:
I'll second the GeorgeL's recommendation, I've tried most of the "high end" cables out there and find the GeorgeL's (.225) to be some of the clearest sounding cables for sure.
Click to expand...
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back