I posted this in the Accessories forum as well, but this is the section that I most frequently visit, so I'll post it here too...
In all of my past experiences, RCA cables didn't really care which way the signal was travelling, but now it seems like every cable is a "directional" cable. Will someone please shed some light on what really makes this a one-way cable?
To get to the real point...I need to cut a 6-foot rca cable in half and hard-wire each piece to their respective output sources. Am I really going to loose a noticeable amount of sound quality on the section sending a "wrong-way" signal?
Any input would be greatly appreciated.
Derek
Posted on
Directional cables are a marketting gimmick. The electrons of an AC audio signal do not "flow" into a compnent, they are pushed and pulled into each other and the preamp "detects" and amplifies that.
What do the cables manufactures think will happen if we connect the cable "backwards" - there will be some type of resistance? That's called a diode.
We are not talking about changing the polarity of a signal, just the end of the cable. Try swapping the ends of the coax going to your cable box/satelite receiver. Deos it still work?
Steve
Posted on
Thanks. Thought so, just needed some confirmation.
Derek is exactly correct. Frankly, I've never seen this, but considering the fact that cables are probably the least likely thing in your system to actually result in any sonic difference, I suppose it makes sense that cable manufacturers invent fake things to sell their products. Unbelievable.
Oh wait... come to think of it, I don't think the arrows indicate the direction of the signal. I think it means you should align the cables with a compass so they face true magnetic North, thus allowing electron flow to be parallel with Earth's internal magnetics. The difference in sound quality is like night and day.
(Whaddya think? Could I be a marketing guy for a cable manufacturer? I'm anxiously awaiting the first person to take the preceding paragraph seriously and flame the hell out of me. It WILL happen. Guaranteed.)