My wife made me do taxes yesterday, I am totally with you!
We did our taxes Sunday. Won’t be buying anything for a while. 
Before I did my taxes though I did order an HDMI cable to try between the DMP and DSD to compare to my PS Audio silver AC-12 cable (the winner of all I’ve tried before). This one is the Harmonic Technologies designed for audio only. Reviews are very positive, even against the PS Audio. Should have it in a few days.
Not having a stab at you in any way here but just a response to your thoughts. Despite the idea that digital cables are just "0"s and “1"s, a digital signal is passed as a series of DC pulses. The rise and fall of the square wave is not infinite in speed and so there is an angled leading and trailing edge. The precision of the shape of the edges is graphed as an “eye” pattern. The transmitter can contribute to errors in the timing and shape of the pulses, the cable can as well and of course the quality of the receiver and its ability to collect and/or read the data will all affect the amount of errors (jitter).
So there is plenty of scope to argue that digital cables CAN sound different IMHO. If someone seeks to discredit these sorts of discussions (digital cables sound different) by trundling out the zeros and ones” or “bits are bits” catchphrase, point them towards the wealth of literature by respected engineers that suggests otherwise!
Thanks for sharing this. I love the conversation, please accept this in the spirit of sharing different view
points. I completely appreciate your perspective.
To be honest I don’t think there was any difference between the ones and zeros that entered any of the four cables that I compared from the the ones and zeros that emerged. The HDMI spec is mature, robust and has been updated continuously to accommodate increased data rates. Any properly constructed HDMI cable can pass the bits accurately. That is why I was dubious about there being an audible difference between these cables. In the interest of brevity I’ll leave out why (right or wrong) this is my opinion. Suffice it to say it’s related to what I do for a living.
Having said the above there was a difference I could hear. I’ve been thinking a lot about why over the last week or so. When I wasn’t doing my taxes that is… I believe the difference is entirely related to the analog output and not the digital input. I think of it much like a record. The exact same record can sound entirely different based on the equipment (including cables) used to play it back. And yet we know the record didn’t physically change. Just like a record, a digital file is a set of musical data stored using a specific technology. The means we use to retrieve the data and convert it to sound is where the differences emerge.
I think the real difference between the cables was how each design manages interference and noise. That is why the generic cable sounded ok until I compared it directly to the better cables. The music was all there but so was other non-musical sounds and interference. I also believe it is why the two WW cables sounded almost identical to me. They are the same design and construction, the main difference being the conductor material (silver clad vs. solid silver). The WW cables didn’t sound more detailed and musical because they pass the bits better. They sounded better because they didn’t pass or contribute to the noise.
This is driven home for me by the implementation of the new TSS. Two boxes with no electrical connection. No path for noise. The bits will be passed using very mature and stable optical technology. No fancy connection needed, just a reliable path.
Guy
post is now removed
With regard to the thoughts / theory that perceived better cables sound better because they block/reduce noise and earth loops etc is, I suspect, only half the story. If this was the case then the toslink output from the matrix would sound the best every time as that blocks all noise and earth loops, but it doesn’t (in my view) sound the best, it sound a bit dull and lifeless. This may be due to optical jitter but Ted implies not as he says the dac is more or less impervious to this.
Presumably the good sounding cables is letting certain frequencies of noise through or even adding some which has the effect of emphasising or colouring certain frequencies that either add excitement that isn’t there in the recording or rectifies omissions in frequency from other components in the system.
I will have to try the toslink via the Matrix vs the I2S on the matrix offers. I really haven’t used toslink at all so I have no experience to base an opinion on. I’ll have to confirm what bit rates are supported by the toslink connection. Thanks
Lon,
Did you get that HDMI cable you ordered from HT?
No, not yet. It’s en route, should have it by next week. I’m going to put it into TV duty for a spell and break it in a week or so before I squirm around and use it between DMP and DSD.
Sounds good Lon. Keep me posted as that is one of the cables I am considering trying. Was thinking of the Cable Co. lending library but not sure if that cable is offered.
I did order it FROM thecableco.com. . . . So it may be part of their library.
Fantastic! Thanks for the info.
This past 2-3 days I’ve been toying with one from WW (Chroma 7) and one from DH Labs (Silversonic HDMI 2.0). Both work brilliantly with my DMP/DSJr combo but I still would chose the modest, unassuming The Chord Company C-View (US$ 40). While both the WW and the TCC seem to somehow give me a tad ‘more bass’, the Chord sounds the cleanest and the most bass defined. This might have to do only with my current configuration, or being bi-wired, or the room treatment, I don’t know. But so far out of the 8-9 I’ve been trying I think I’m keeping the one from The Chord Company. Will borrow one from Purist next week and make my final decision.
In any case this is fun!
I’m also currently auditioning the WW Chroma 7. Jury is still out. But I do have to say this is a well built cable.
Just ordered a Shunyata Venom HDMI cable from Music Direct.
2 meter HDMI cable for $75. I have a one meter version of the Venom HDMI cable and a Venom USB cable. Good quality, good price.
Just installed Wireworld Platinum Starlight HDMI and Ethernet cables on my system. Holy cow, right out of the box, dynamics and detail (air around percussion) is enhanced without any harshness. I had a similar experience with their Platinum Starlight USB cable, and coaxial cables in the past. Well worth the $1300 price!
Thanks for that!
What is the HDMI connecting? And what cable did it replace?
DMP to DSD. The stock cable.
I really had no expectation the ethernet cable change would be noticeable , damn, was I wrong. Has anyone else noticed improved SQ from an ethernet cable upgrade?
Yes, I covet the ww plat hdmi, but I’m not spending £950 on it