20-Mar-2020, 00:07
(This post was last modified: 24-Oct-2020, 13:08 by deviousalet.
Edit Reason: added Diamonds and long Vodka to comparison
)
For my next listening test I compared ethernet cables.
I recently read good reviews of the Cable Matters and Monoprice cat8 cables. They're cheap enough that I ordered a few for non-audiophile networking, but gave them a listen just incase. I had been using two Audioquest Vodka and two Audioquest Cinnamon cables as well as non-audiophile cat7 patch cords. The cat8 cables have better shielding, and the Cable Matters uses high-quality connectors. The Audioquest cables use solid-core instead of stranded metal and the best connectors. I was interested to hear which sounded best, and where in my network. Then I saw a deal on Audioquest Diamond and a long Vodka cable, so added those to the comparison.
The patch cord candidates were
- Monoprice cat8 ($2)
- Cable Matters cat8 ($12)
- Audioquest Cinnamon cat7 ($80 list, $50 street)
- Audioquest Vodka cat7 ($350 list, $150 street)
- Audioquest Diamond cat7 ($1400 list, $400 street)
I tested these cables in three locations: between my Devialet and switch (the last leg), between the switch and wall (the middle leg), and between my modem/router and the wall (the first leg). To picture this another way, my network is: Cable Modem/Router > patch cord 1 > in-wall run of cat6 cable > patch cord 2 > switch > patch cord 3 > Devialet.
The Monoprice sounded like a computer cable, and was quickly relegated to bits-are-bits duties. Compared to the others, the Monoprice sounded harsh (glare), noisy (lack of "black" background), lacked bass, yet also hid detail.
On the other hand, I'm rather impressed with the Cable Matters, which is far more cost effective than either Audioquest, yet sounds better than any other non-audiophile ethernet cable I've heard. It still has some glare, but I'm very sensitive to that so others may not object. The background isn't as quiet (black) as through any Audioquest. That's the biggest difference I hear between audiophile and non-audiophile ethernet cables. The bass is certainly not as good as the Audioquest Vodka, but not bad nor far worse than the Audioquest Cinnamon, and the treble was even closer.
The Audioquest Cinnamon's lack of glare and blacker background were instantly noticeable. This might not matter if you're less sensitive to glare or have a system tending towards smoothness. My B&W 804d3 speakers are not in that camp, being more revealing than smoothing, so I appreciate how the Audioquest cables rid my system of some harshness (glare) compared to the Cable Matters cable. I chose my speaker (and amps) because I enjoy detail. The Cable Matters cable was a big improvement over the Monoprice in not hiding detail, but in direct comparison to the Audioquest cables it becomes clear that some of that apparent detail comes from the Cable Matters removes some bass, thus emphasizing treble detail. It really isn't bad, certainly very enjoyable, but the Cinnamon is comparable (with other benefits).
The Audioquest Vodka is clearly superior in all ways, with more apparent detail yet better bass. I don't notice less glare or blacker backgrounds than the Cinnamon cables, but the Cinnamon has noticeably less detail and bass.
The Audioquest Diamond is a bigger jump up in detail than the Vodka is from the Cinnamon. I can see why some people find the Diamond harsh. It is very revealing. On harsh recordings it conveys that harshness, while the Vodka softens the edges just a little (and the Cinnamon more). On good recordings the Diamond lets the quality shine through. I especially notice the details of transients and treble. While the Cable Matters emphasizes detail by filtering out bass the Diamond conveys both the detail and bass. There may even be more bass, I certainly enjoyed the details of the bass more through the Diamond than any of the other cables. It seems that after listening a while I get used to the sound of the Diamond, no longer hearing any harshness but enjoying the detail. On a bad recording I can enjoy switching to Vodka, but I quickly miss the detail of the Diamond, which is my overall favorite in my system.
All these comparisons between cables were true in all three patch-cord locations, but were slightly more noticeable closer to the Devialet. So I wound up using Audioquest Diamond cables between the Devialet and switch (final leg) and between the switch and wall (middle leg), then Audioquest Vodka between the other end of the wall and the modem/router (first leg). The Cable Matters went down the hierarchy to home-theatre duties.
While I had a search running for the Audioquest patch cords I saw a deal on an Audioquest Vodka long enough for my in-wall run, so I tried that out. I tried it both from the modem/router directly to the Devialet (bypassing the switch and patch cords) and from the modem/router to the switch with a Diamond patch cord from the switch to the Devialet. The Vodka is easily better than the computer-grade cat5e I had in the wall, as I expected it would be given my experiments with the patch cords. I thought that a direct connection might sound best because of fewer connections and no computer-grade switch in the middle. To my surprise, having the Diamond in the chain enhanced the sound even versus a direct run of Vodka. I still can't quite believe this, so keep going back and forth, but I hear more detail when the Diamond is in the mix. What an interesting hobby this is.
The range of differences between these ethernet cables isn't massive. It is not as much as interlink cables between dual-mono Devialet amps, nor as much as speaker cables.
This test was educational for me. I hope it was of interest to you.
I recently read good reviews of the Cable Matters and Monoprice cat8 cables. They're cheap enough that I ordered a few for non-audiophile networking, but gave them a listen just incase. I had been using two Audioquest Vodka and two Audioquest Cinnamon cables as well as non-audiophile cat7 patch cords. The cat8 cables have better shielding, and the Cable Matters uses high-quality connectors. The Audioquest cables use solid-core instead of stranded metal and the best connectors. I was interested to hear which sounded best, and where in my network. Then I saw a deal on Audioquest Diamond and a long Vodka cable, so added those to the comparison.
The patch cord candidates were
- Monoprice cat8 ($2)
- Cable Matters cat8 ($12)
- Audioquest Cinnamon cat7 ($80 list, $50 street)
- Audioquest Vodka cat7 ($350 list, $150 street)
- Audioquest Diamond cat7 ($1400 list, $400 street)
I tested these cables in three locations: between my Devialet and switch (the last leg), between the switch and wall (the middle leg), and between my modem/router and the wall (the first leg). To picture this another way, my network is: Cable Modem/Router > patch cord 1 > in-wall run of cat6 cable > patch cord 2 > switch > patch cord 3 > Devialet.
The Monoprice sounded like a computer cable, and was quickly relegated to bits-are-bits duties. Compared to the others, the Monoprice sounded harsh (glare), noisy (lack of "black" background), lacked bass, yet also hid detail.
On the other hand, I'm rather impressed with the Cable Matters, which is far more cost effective than either Audioquest, yet sounds better than any other non-audiophile ethernet cable I've heard. It still has some glare, but I'm very sensitive to that so others may not object. The background isn't as quiet (black) as through any Audioquest. That's the biggest difference I hear between audiophile and non-audiophile ethernet cables. The bass is certainly not as good as the Audioquest Vodka, but not bad nor far worse than the Audioquest Cinnamon, and the treble was even closer.
The Audioquest Cinnamon's lack of glare and blacker background were instantly noticeable. This might not matter if you're less sensitive to glare or have a system tending towards smoothness. My B&W 804d3 speakers are not in that camp, being more revealing than smoothing, so I appreciate how the Audioquest cables rid my system of some harshness (glare) compared to the Cable Matters cable. I chose my speaker (and amps) because I enjoy detail. The Cable Matters cable was a big improvement over the Monoprice in not hiding detail, but in direct comparison to the Audioquest cables it becomes clear that some of that apparent detail comes from the Cable Matters removes some bass, thus emphasizing treble detail. It really isn't bad, certainly very enjoyable, but the Cinnamon is comparable (with other benefits).
The Audioquest Vodka is clearly superior in all ways, with more apparent detail yet better bass. I don't notice less glare or blacker backgrounds than the Cinnamon cables, but the Cinnamon has noticeably less detail and bass.
The Audioquest Diamond is a bigger jump up in detail than the Vodka is from the Cinnamon. I can see why some people find the Diamond harsh. It is very revealing. On harsh recordings it conveys that harshness, while the Vodka softens the edges just a little (and the Cinnamon more). On good recordings the Diamond lets the quality shine through. I especially notice the details of transients and treble. While the Cable Matters emphasizes detail by filtering out bass the Diamond conveys both the detail and bass. There may even be more bass, I certainly enjoyed the details of the bass more through the Diamond than any of the other cables. It seems that after listening a while I get used to the sound of the Diamond, no longer hearing any harshness but enjoying the detail. On a bad recording I can enjoy switching to Vodka, but I quickly miss the detail of the Diamond, which is my overall favorite in my system.
All these comparisons between cables were true in all three patch-cord locations, but were slightly more noticeable closer to the Devialet. So I wound up using Audioquest Diamond cables between the Devialet and switch (final leg) and between the switch and wall (middle leg), then Audioquest Vodka between the other end of the wall and the modem/router (first leg). The Cable Matters went down the hierarchy to home-theatre duties.
While I had a search running for the Audioquest patch cords I saw a deal on an Audioquest Vodka long enough for my in-wall run, so I tried that out. I tried it both from the modem/router directly to the Devialet (bypassing the switch and patch cords) and from the modem/router to the switch with a Diamond patch cord from the switch to the Devialet. The Vodka is easily better than the computer-grade cat5e I had in the wall, as I expected it would be given my experiments with the patch cords. I thought that a direct connection might sound best because of fewer connections and no computer-grade switch in the middle. To my surprise, having the Diamond in the chain enhanced the sound even versus a direct run of Vodka. I still can't quite believe this, so keep going back and forth, but I hear more detail when the Diamond is in the mix. What an interesting hobby this is.
The range of differences between these ethernet cables isn't massive. It is not as much as interlink cables between dual-mono Devialet amps, nor as much as speaker cables.
This test was educational for me. I hope it was of interest to you.
