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Best cable for the value?


smbauer2

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There are a lot of very decent cables in the $25 to $40 range. I like Vox cables and Planet Waves myself. Armor Gold, Canere, Death Valley Cable, the list goes on.

 

Past that price point, you reach a point of diminishing returns rather quickly.

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It depends on what you need it to do and what you consider value. I had a $80 Monster cable that decided to quit with no warning in the middle of a set in a 1500-person capacity theater. I'll never use a Monster again. The Live Wires cables are inexpensive. I use them at home, but they're not reliable enough for live use. I exchange them a few times a year because they short out. Is the cheap price worth the inconvenience of frequent trips to the guitar store for an exchange?

 

I've been using a Mogami Gold live since my ill-fated theater show without issue. They're not cheap, but they're still less than the Monster crap and reliability is of utmost importance for me.

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Planet Waves

DiMarzio (my fav)

Pro Co

Etc.

Most average a little over a dollar per foot.

 

And they will easily sound as good as the Monsters price two or more times as much. It's not that the monsters are a bad cable, but they are a bad value.

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I think these are pretty nice:

DV016_Jpg_Large_331650.jpg

21' for $50.. Fantastic plus, heavy duty cable, great construction. Are there cheaper? Yes.. Are there better "for the money"? Yes.. But these are really nice. I actually didn't pay $50 for mine. I got it for 1/2 price and that was paid with a store credit.

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http://www.audiopile.net/products/Mic_Instr_Cables/GBNC/GBNC_CABLE_SELECT.shtml

 

http://www.audiopile.net/products/Mic_Instr_Cables/GBND/GBND_CABLE_SELECT.shtml

 

Blowout (I own one of these as well and it works great)-

 

http://www.audiopile.net/products/Mic_Instr_Cables/GBAC/GBAC_cutsheet.shtml

 

GFS-

 

http://www.guitarfetish.com/BEST-Low-Impedance-Oxygen-Free-Silver-Cable-UK-Made_c_19.html

 

http://www.guitarfetish.com/Studio-Pro-Noiseless-Cable-Amphenol-Gold-Plated-Plugs_c_20.html

 

 

All the cables I listed have the same design cable wise as Canare in terms of proper shielding of the wire. The soldering has been clean and solid on all of the cables I have bought from those companies as well. The only really "different" cable is the clearance one in terms of the jacks and strain relief used, but mine has been sounding great for 3 years without one single issue so far. I've owned Monster, Planet Wave, Mogami, Lava and more and I can tell you there is nothing magic about making a good solid and clear sounding cable. It takes the right kind of design, shielding and materials (which is relatively cheap) as well as strong and clean solder joints. Beyond that, its all BS marketing from what I've heard and observed. These days I usually make my own cables.

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i've had EVERY kind of cable {censored} out on me in every situation from practice, to stationary in the home studio to playing on stage. i use the regular ass pro-co type cables that last entire 2-3 month tours being stommped on in basements and wrapped by drummers(gasp!) last decades. 90% of the time, i get drunk and lose them before they have a chance to take a dump. i've got braided guitar center specials that cost 5 bucks in 85 that still work.

 

there was a comment about the "inconvenience" of going to the shop to replace cables. i've never done it that way but hell, if you gotta get strings, or picks or a mooch, bring your shorted or questionable cables. duh.

 

i can't stand the cables like mogami and monster and the boutique cables like that. sure they sound different to me, they sound like squashed and heavy capacitance. of course people are going to defend anything they've overpaid for.

 

as always when this discussion comes up, open up your cab and take a look at that 20 gauge thing linking your speakers together and then go ahead and tell me your 100 dollar cable is justified.

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I've had good luck with Mogami (even the cheaper ones) but someone stole my last one. Using a George L mostly, but have used Planet Waves a lot too. Have not found much tonal differences between the three. I have AB tested cables - cheap and pricey - and the cheap ones sound DARK. No sparkle. Crazy. On bass they sounded dead too. Surprising.

 

I don't think you have to spending a ton on a nice cable, but when you chose your guitar, pickups, effects, and amp very carefully for their tone, no need to ignore cables. Plus ones that short out, die, don't seat well, or crackle - well, there's really no need to deal with that when you're playing guitar.

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ProCo Excalibur - my first fancy cable, still going five years later and sounds the best to me

 

CBI - your choice of neutrik, switchcraft, or G&H connectors. I like the G&H. I opened them up and the soldering is beautiful.

 

Whirlwind - sealed connectors - seem to survive well at the place I get lessons from

 

All of these are reasonable in price.

 

I only bought one Monster cable. It's a tip-ring-sleeve thing for an effects loop. It failed on me after some light use, but was relatively easy to exchange at GC. I don't like the way they do the connectors in them.

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I use Monster Standard 100s. They're not expensive (around $20 for long ones), and they hold up well. I don't notice any noise or anything sounding bad when using them, so I'd say they're a good value. I've used the same pair for probably 100 gigs, and I haven't had a single issue yet.

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Monster, Mogami, and Livewire, I know the moster and livewires can be taken to any GC and swapped for a new one no questions asked because of the lifetime warrior, and honestly they never break on me but I get them in trades a lot and just go swap them for new ones anyway lol.

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Monster, Mogami, and Livewire, I know the moster and livewires can be taken to any GC and swapped for a new one no questions asked because of the lifetime warrior, and honestly they never break on me but I get them in trades a lot and just go swap them for new ones anyway lol.

 

 

You know what, the Monster warranty is the biggest non-issue. These days everyone offers a similar warranty (and has for years now). It is certainly no excuse to pay twice as much for the same quality you get from other companies.

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interesting article but i didn't see the complete list of manufacturers, i'd be curious to see how well the GFS cables test out...

 

 

The Guitar Player article pre-dates GFS offering cables. They tested 49 cables, so a lot of models were not tested.

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