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Re: Compare with today's high technology...

This is an oft cited reason that audio cables should not be difficult to deal with, that there are much higher frequencies.

Yet few ever stop to ponder the primary difference in these super high frequencies, and audio signals.
In most case, these super high frequencies are not being used directly, rather they represent a carrier wave, or a data transmission protocol, rather than a direct signal. The transmiission system is deliberately made as robust as possible, to that interference will not damage the data transfer. This means that non-linearities in the cables or conducting medium will have very little effect on simple data transfer, whether it is an FM audio carrier, or a high speed digital link.

Things such as television signals have a very limited dynamic range, the difference between 100IRE units and 7.5 IRE units is only 22 1/2 dB. You physically can not see below approx. 30-40 dB from Max White on a CRT even if the TV signal had more dynamic range.

Distort the TV signal while it is in RF form, and it is hard to see any effect on the visible signal, it just isn't THAT high up.

Similar issues are present for other very high frequency signals, digital or otherwise, seldom is the signal information directly encoded at that frequency.

With audio, the signal information IS encoded in the direct frequencies involved, the signal is literally an analog of the sound wave that was captured. There is no carrier wave to isolate the cable distortions, there is no digital encoding to wash out minor cable signal distortions and abberations.

In point of fact, the dynamic range of audo signals is in excess of 90 dB, this means that signal abberations that are only .00003 or less of full signal are going to be potentially noticed. Some have questioned this very low level of signal distortion as to real world audibility.

I have found an excellent example of a known audio phenomenon that exists at levels below -90 dB, and is clearly audible, and has been heard by many professionals, as well as audiophiles in their homes.

I am talking about the variuos digital audio dither algorithms in use, and the fact that you can hear differences between the various different types. Sony's SBM (Super Bit Mapping) sounds different than Apogee's UV-22 process, which sonds different than the other record company's dither algorithm. Studio recording professionals can tell you this is so, and folks who own CDP's with user selectable dither algorithms have also heard the differences too.

So audio has the requirement that the signal linearity must be maintained dow to VERY low levels, much lower levels than for almost ANY other data transmission paradigm.

This is the fundamental difference bewteen audio and these very high frequency signals. Sheer frequency is not the only factor, and once again, your lack of exprience with these matters is all too apparent.


Jon Risch

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