Audiophile SATA cables

Because there are no research funds or research incentive to put the time into doing, and publishing, that kind of study. By the way, plenty of established electrical engineers involved in audio are well-acquainted with the issue of cables and sound. It’s a complicated area with a lot of individual variables - one reason most don’t want to get into it.

But surely the whole basis of electrical engineering is predicated on developing a sound understanding of electrical theory and practice? It seems odd that there aren’t any funds to pursue something that’s so central to the discipline.

Can you point me at some evidence?

Well, I work in the area and know many of them (both hardware designers and academics). Why is this “so central to the discipline”? It’s just an application area, not central at all to engineering principles, and it’s a rat’s nest of differences from one set-up to another.

I’m not an expert, nor an electrical engineer, but what you seem to be saying is that data cables and power cables can make a profound difference to the sound quality of an audio system. However, received wisdom (in both electrical engineering and computer science) would suggest that this is not the case. That’s why I suggested it’s central to the discipline - because you’re proposing something that contradicts agreed upon understandings of how things work.

received wisdom (in both electrical engineering and computer science) would suggest that this is not the case.

I have no idea why this should be true. You can pass a data signal involving bi-phasic coding or otherwise packetized signals and keep the bitstream fully intact, as computer science requires. At the same time, the cables and equipment involved can pick up and transmit noise of multiple types and sources. Noise can affect an audio processing chain at multiple positions, especially but not uniquely the converter, and it becomes quite audible, all while the data bits are accurate. It doesn’t affect a computer, it does affect sound interpreted by the human auditory system.

There are also people who say that the earth is flat and trying to prove that…. Against all proof.
But hey , why not it is their party :partying_face:

And this also applies to SATA cables?

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This thread is getting more amusing by the minute.
** getting popcorn and a beer **

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Oh god. Did not consider this load of discrepant opinions. Nevertheless exciting!

To go back to ‚analog‘ interconnects and loud speaker cables: never thought to hear differences, however, my transparent audio cables make such an improvement! Really astonishing! But my question related to sata cables. In the meantime I learned that the type of SDD drive obviously make considerable differences, too. The type of sata cable does not have major impact.

It affects cables of all types. Your audio system may or may not be sensitive enough and resolving enough for noise to be audible It depends on the dynamic range. linearity, existence of harmonic and other distortions already present in your system as to whether these other sources matter. If you’re listening on portables with earbuds, be happy and don’t worry about exotic cables.

One more thing. Equipment can be designed so that it is less affected by outside noise sources.

@robbi_burdeck
If i find something that i believe makes your system more audible and better, will you buy it?
In that case i have some crazy ideas…

Just to be 100% sure I’m understanding what you’re saying: noise on a SATA cable can create audible changes if you have an audio system that’s sufficiently sensitive?

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If i find something that i believe makes your system more audible and better, will you buy it?

No. I know what I’m looking for in sound quality and am happy when I have a musical, natural signal from my audio system. It’s easy to show that expensive bases and footers beneath equipment, engineered cables, room acoustic treatment , and digital room correction all affect sound in specific ways. You need to deal with what you’re looking for and can afford. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t ways to improve. Why else would e.g. loudspeaker designers spend decades refining their designs?

OK, so if it’s easy, show me how a SATA cable makes a difference. I’m sceptical, but if you have a good way of demonstrating this I’d be interested to hear it.

Because a speaker’s design has a clear impact on the way in which it produces sound. This is well understood and doesn’t lend any credence to your claim about SATA cables.

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You are really having problems with differentiating the digital and analogue domain.
In the digital domain there is no audio, only data.
So in the digital domain there is no way this is influencing the analogue domain.
There is only analog distortion from the digital domain, but galvanic separation is ruling that out.

There is no way a computers SATA cable is influencing the sound in the analogue domain.
So present proof, your ears are not good enough (pun intended).

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I totally agree on that, BUT, this thread is about audiophile sata cables. I’m convinced about good power cables, and good speaker cables, and obviously I believe a good rig has the better speakers, amplifiers and dac and so on, but there is no way that someone is going to convince me that a 400 USD sata cable isn’t a synonym for “total ripoff”…don’t get me wrong, people, if you can hear the difference, by all means, go spent some money…

This is well understood

Actually, if you discuss this with a loudspeaker designer, you’ll find much of the same thing in loudspeaker design! There are well-known principles and then a host of application-specific ways in which those principles convolve to give unexpected and confounding results. Thus the range of opinion amongst loudspeaker designers about problems and solutions. Including not-well-understood issues about human hearing.

Please discuss digital systems, data and signals influencing the sound in the analogue domain.
Analogue phenomenon influencing the analogue domain aka. audio are well known.

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“Confounding results” with respect to speaker design and “not-well-understood issues about human hearing” don’t add any credence to your claims about SATA cables.

By the way, what claims about human hearing are you referring to?

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Here in Norway we have trolls and we do not feed them.
So i stop feeding the one, who also in other threads was hungry, anymore.

There is no ground for his/here statements, only believe.
Believe, i have to agree with the great Christopher Hitchens on this, is not proof enough.

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