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How important is a high quality cable for recording?

#21
kyral210 said:
I have a decent Fender short cable, maybe 3’, but should I be buying the high end Mogami et al. Cables for recording?

Here is a DI of a track I recorded the other night using the Fender cable:
Click to expand...

I have never had a problem recording with a functioning cable. I would not, and never have spent money on high end cables. If you really want a great recording sound, I’d suggest a brand new set of strings will provide a much more profound improvement than an expensive cable.
 
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#22
Poorly built and cheaply constructed cables can cause some problems in terms of static, noise rejection, etc.... and you'll notice that more with a long cable run with a passive bass. With a decent mid/upper tier cable, (Planet Waves, D'Addario, Mogami, even -gasp- Monster Cable), you won't notice much if any difference in tone per-se, especially if you're using an active bass. The major differences are reliability and durability over the long haul. I have a lot of different cables in my stash. I've posted before that I bought a few Monster Cables in the late 90s when I started playing because a recording engineer that my band worked with had some, and I liked how they were constructed. I knew nothing of the 'hype' as a young musician. They just worked well and seemed built well. I still have and use those cables to this day. They've never failed me. A different Monster Cable speaker cable I bought years later failed once due to a manufacturing defect in the plug end, and was replaced no questions asked by a local music shop, per the lifetime warranty. To me, that was worth the slightly higher price I paid for the cable(s).

I look at cables the way I look at tires on my car. You get what you pay for in most cases. Reliable, well-built tires made from quality materials will last longer, perform better, feel better, usually have some sort of substantial warranty, and justify their cost long-term more than buying cheap tires will. I've been down that road as well. YMMV (pun intended). A good cable is your only connection to your amp or DI box/console, just like tires are your only connection to the road. Get the best you can afford without going overboard.
 
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#23
very small benefit from the high cost stuff. Reliability/durability are the biggest reasons to get a nicer cable. (Although some of the cheaper ones seem to skimp on the conductor wire - that’s a reason to shoot a bit higher).

I think the best thing you could possibly do is buy a spool of higher quality bulk cable, some good TS connectors and a soldering iron and you’ll be set for life. And then you can repair any cable that develops an issue.
 
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#24
FWIW - The best (as in low noise and most reliable) cables I've had aren't the name brand guitar stuff, but the stuff that has a basic cardboard sleeve and is marketed towards pro-audio.

In general, if the manufacturer is paying the money to use a real Neutrik or Switchcraft end it's probably going to be a good cable.
 
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#26
Cables are low pass filters. A better cable typically has less high freq roll off and is not always desirable.


A cheap cable can have very good signal to noise which is the only thing I care about in home recording.
 
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#29
Any cable is fine as long as it isn’t broken.

As far as expensive cables go, my own anecdotal story, I ordered a six pack of 25’ “mikiz” XLRs from amazon for like $65 (about $11 each) five years ago and every one is still working fine. I had a few Monsters that passed away in much shorter period. - just my two-cents.
 
#31
MVE said:
Any cable is fine as long as it isn’t broken.

As far as expensive cables go, my own anecdotal story, I ordered a six pack of 25’ “mikiz” XLRs from amazon for like $65 (about $11 each) five years ago and every one is still working fine. I had a few Monsters that passed away in much shorter period. - just my two-cents.
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So many unknowns in that scenario. For me, as a recording engineer, I wouldn't run a quality condenser mic needing phantom power through any sort of cut rate cable for a recording I cared about. Maybe it won't make as much difference for a buffered active bass signal... but the devil is in the details. The headphones and studio monitors will reveal all.
 
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#33
JazznFunk said:
So many unknowns in that scenario. For me, as a recording engineer, I wouldn't run a quality condenser mic needing phantom power through any sort of cut rate cable for a recording I cared about. Maybe it won't make as much difference for a buffered active bass signal... but the devil is in the details. The headphones and studio monitors will reveal all.
Click to expand...
My point is, the cheap cables have lasted longer than the expensive cables.
A broken cable is a broken cable. Either it works or its intermittent and therefore doesn’t work.
Not sure how phantom power enters the equation. If the cable isn’t passing ac it isn’t passing dc either.
 
#34
True hi-fi sound starts with the AC outlet:

1739828361697.png


:laugh:
 
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#35
MVE said:
My point is, the cheap cables have lasted longer than the expensive cables.
A broken cable is a broken cable. Either it works or its intermittent and therefore doesn’t work.
Not sure how phantom power enters the equation. If the cable isn’t passing ac it isn’t passing dc either.
Click to expand...

Personal experience matters, but isn't always a guarantee of a qualitative absolute. It sucks that your 'expensive' cables failed and I'd be pissed too. Did you take advantage of the lifetime replacement policy? To my knowledge, there are very few disqualifying factors which might negate or void that warranty.

My point was - I've beaten the crap out of my aforementioned 28-year-old Monster Cables and they're still kicking. I also have a Conquest 'Wrapper' cable I bought around the same time that is also still kicking. I've had cheaper bargain bin cables fall apart on me, or have seen it happen to my bandmates. The 'handmade' and highly reputed George L's cables I had one time gave me nothing but problems and cut out/shorted and fell apart. I couldn't get rid of them fast enough.

I will offer this up - I have purchased several of the 'MediaBridge' brand cables off of Amazon and have been pleasantly surprised by them. They kind of have a 'Monster Cable' look, but the gauge is not as thick, and the cable ends are certainly different, but are well constructed. They've been dependable for me and haven't given me any problems in the studio or live either.

The difference, again, between a 'basic' cable and a high end cable will be realized most clearly in a discerning studio environment. I wouldn't run a TLM 103 through a $5 XLR cable. YMMV, and application matters.
 
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#36
I don’t know about recording but live I use an Analysis Plus Yellow Oval cable and holy crab can I tell a difference between it and my old Monster Cable. It is louder and the frequency range and spectrum is much wider with noticeably more low end and harmonic richness. I thought it was BS until a guy I know who masters records for a living and who uses Anlysis Plus cables forced me to try one.

Instrument Cables Archives - Analysis Plus

analysis.plus analysis.plus
 
#37
I've had a really cheap and terrible cable that impacted the sound. Which even my untrained 16 year old ears immediately picked up, playing my cheap passive Vantage bass through my cheap crappy Samick (I believe) combo. Less volume and high end roll off. The cable it got upgraded to was also cheap, but better. Haven't really been able to discern much difference since.

So yeah, it's there's a difference, even at shorter lengths, but only if it's truly atrocious quality will it really be noticeable.

That said, good cable is nice, just one less worry and you can buy the nice Mogami, Belden, Canare or Gepco cable in bulk and solder it together yourself for a fraction of the readymade price. That's what I do and at that point the price difference between cheaper and more expensive actually isn't that big.
 
#38
The free cable that came with my $85 Glarry thin line telecaster is pure magic.

Beautifully molded ends, thin wire, and even a right angle plug on one end.

There is just something otherworldly going with this cable.

You should see the pick and strap that came with it!
 
#40
faulknersj said:
I don’t know about recording but live I use an Analysis Plus Yellow Oval cable and holy crab can I tell a difference between it and my old Monster Cable. It is louder and the frequency range and spectrum is much wider with noticeably more low end and harmonic richness. I thought it was BS until a guy I know who masters records for a living and who uses Anlysis Plus cables forced me to try one.

Instrument Cables Archives - Analysis Plus

analysis.plus analysis.plus
Click to expand...
I don't doubt that these are quality cables, but THIS kinda strains credulity:
analysis.plus

Gold Oval Instrument Cable - Analysis Plus

Our Gold Oval Instrument Cable, uses our Hollow Oval design with pure gold over Oxygen Free Copper to create a LITZ wire absolutely without equal.
analysis.plus analysis.plus
 

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