OT: RE: copper

[Buck Buchanan]

At 02:21 PM 6/10/99 -0400, KA4HJH wrote:
>>To me it seems the only explanation is: most audiophiles (and writers of
>>those mags) have NO clue about electronics. They don't open up their boxes.
>>And the manufacturers make you pay $$$ for everything they left out.
>
>Ignorance is bliss...

Ok, hating to add to an off-the-topic thread, I had to tell this TRUE story.  I will not release the person or company name in question since they are a "friend."

I had this buddy who was a guitar gearhead.  Every third month he'd have all new equipment because it was the best (for various reasons) and his previous gear sounded "horrible" (but it was the best months ago though...).  The guy was really an absurd gear snob know-it-all who was basically clueless!  I think he just liked to spend money.

Joking around one time I said, "Hey man, you ought to get into HI-FI.  There you can REALLY spend some money!  You can blow ten grand on a turntable alone!"

Well I was joking but he didn't get it.  He got into HI-FI and within months he was THE EXPERT (sarcasm) and spending/trading up a storm.  He learned all the jargon and practiced using it a lot.

Year or so later the guy spends big bucks on some cables (~$500USD).  He decides he can make them himself.  So he buys a bunch of silver wire, teflon tubing, and fancy gold connectors and copies his big-dollar cables.  Shrink wrap hides the crappy soldering job.  The cables looked pretty good but they SOUNDED great! (more sarcasm)  

Year after that he buys a book on Japanese weaving (like baskets and stuff) and "weaves" several types of cables.  Creates a fancy Audiophile company name and starts marketing the cables.  His brouchures explain all about the science of how/why these cables are the best!  Funny, Japanese basket weaving is never mentioned anywhere!  Now with a professional photographer and webmaster, custom printed shrink wrap, and expensive gold connectors, his "high-end" cables are getting rave reviews in some magazines and his web site is all pro!  The cables are made in his living room though - dog eared Japanese weaving book open to page 56.  His test equipment is a crappy import DMM and his Golden Ear.  But to read his web site techno jargon, you'd think a team of white-coated scientists work round the clock.  The guy's making BANK!

Silly me, trying to design ACTUAL REAL high quality products to sell to poor musicians.  Properly packaged snake oil is really where the money is!

Ignorance is bliss!

Buck