Is MONSTER CABLE that good or a rip off?

[hudster]

In my home system I've got Onkyo receiver & dvd player, Sony cassette deck, and Paradigm speakers (about $2500 total)

For the cables between my receiver<->dvd player, I did use monster cables
To my cassette deck, I just used whatever
From receiver to subwoofer, I used an Acoustic Research cable (monster one was way too much)

For the speaker wire, I said 'screw monster', and ordered some Sound King 12 ga. speaker wire from here (search for Sound King)
This speaker wire works great and is inexpensive. If you search over at
HomeTheaterForum.com you should find some other positive comments about this wire too.

Hope this helps.


-hudster

 

[kami]

I think Monster Cable IS good cable, but you can get equally good cable if you buy Acoustic Research. It's cheaper but well-shielded and high quality IMO.

The only reason that my optical cable is Monster Cable is because I got it for free

As for speaker wire, just about anything 14 guage or better will do. Home Depot wire is good and cheap last time I checked.

 

[Peetoeng]

For analog signal, it depends on the source (movie, music (what kind)).
If you listen to acoustic music and want to ride the audiophile ego, go to your local specialty audio/video stores (not BB or CC) and borrow some cables (many cables are pre-cut with factory welded connectors) for home trial. I've tried speakers, amps, and cables. They'd basically charge your credit card, and when you return the items, you'll get reimbursed.

My A/V system was only about $1500. The only expensive cables I had were 10gage Cardas ($70 used) for my Maggies speakers.

 

[heartsurgeon]

if it ain't broke, don't fix it

hook up with phonecord from home depot

if it doesn't sound right - upgrade

if it sounds good to you (i'm going to bet it sounds just fine) - no need to change.

my pragmatic view to a subjective issue

 

[777joee]

Originally posted by: Macro2
The salespeople at best buy push this stuff as hard as their service plans. And it isn't cheap. What's the story?

Like $70 for an RCA three lead video cable and $45 for a optical cable...Monster must have a heckof a profit margin...

Mac

You answered your own question..........................

 

[Jerboy]

Originally posted by: Peetoeng
For analog signal, it depends on the source (movie, music (what kind)).
If you listen to acoustic music and want to ride the audiophile ego, go to your local specialty audio/video stores (not BB or CC) and borrow some cables (many cables are pre-cut with factory welded connectors) for home trial. I've tried speakers, amps, and cables. They'd basically charge your credit card, and when you return the items, you'll get reimbursed.

My A/V system was only about $1500. The only expensive cables I had were 10gage Cardas ($70 used) for my Maggies speakers.

The sad thing is I can most likely swap those 10AWG hyper-dooper "cords" with standard cords of same gauge and you'll never notice it unless you see me changing it or visually notice the difference. Those speaker wires are all about marketing and last time I checked, they don't have to meet anything.

At least the regular wires I'm talking about are UL certified for 600V, 10AWG copper, gasoline and oil resistant.

 

[Harvey]

MasterHoss

it's kind of like the good ole' "AMD versus Intel debates"

No, it's kind of like discussing electronics, physics and simple arithmetic. As NeuroSynapsis pointed out,

you just need to buy the correct gauge speaker wire

I would add that stranded wire really is better than solid wire, like Romex (house wiring).

Assuming it is not contaminated or corroded, heavy (12 - 14 guage) AC lamp wire is great for connecting several hundred watts of power amplifier to most speakers over a run of 10 - 20 feet.

 

[Howard]

I want to use some twinax that I have laying around as a stereo audio cable, but I can't figure out how to cleanly attach a connector to it.

Get a solder-cup-type RCA connector (unless your speaker takes banana or spade connectors) and solder the wires. PM Viperoni for more details.

A 14-gauge or thicker OFC copper cable will do great. Monster Cable is basically 100.1% BS.

 

[Moonbeam]

I just use copper pipe.