Posted: 5/7/2010 5:12:54 PM EDT
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Search the web for the blind listener test where "Audiophiles" couldn't tell the difference between Monster Cables and ordinary wire coathangers. Just remember this, the folks that spend money on stuff like VERY overpriced Monster Cables are not interested in listening to music, they listen to their system. The correct term for them is "Tweaks" in the industry. Also, try and find on a Monster Cable package where they are manufactured. I cannot, so I would bet even money it's China, like most everything else. They just won't put it on the pack. Might ruin the illusion, I suppose. |
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There's nothing actually "wrong" with the cables - they are just over-hyped and over-priced for what you get. Chances are that 99%+ of the people on this board (or on the planet) don't have systems that would justify anything else. If your idea of "high-end" is a Yamaha/Denon/Sony receiver with some Bestbuy speakers then they will certainly get the job done. You would probably be better off either making your own or going the Monoprice route.
Some of the higher-end Monster series are actually pretty decent quality and can be picked up for pennies on the dollar on the used gear market. Monster is generally a very litigious company - suing pretty much anyone, anywhere, for anything to raise some revenue. Not a big fan of their corporate business practices... |
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you want good cables? then buy some pure silver wire and encase it in teflon tubing, attach solid silver/rhodium plated terminals. Done, you now have the absolute lowest ohm cable and lowest capacitance cable one can get, which equals amazing sound. just make sure you get the right size wire for the application |
| I bought some Monster Cables many years ago. I regret it now, as they are too pricey for what you get. I needed an HDMI cable a few months ago for a new plasma TV. I went on Amazon.com and bought a 6 foot cable made by Media Bridge for $9.99. It was cheaper than Monster, and when it arrived, it was a well built, heavy cable. It will do all anyone needs one to do, and seems better than the super skinny el cheapo cable I have seen. |
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Quoted:
For half the price of monster cables I"ll send you super soybomb cables which sound twice as good with 53% more dynamic range and 88% more harmonic balance across all listening spectrums. Buy today. 'Super Soybomb"? Sounds like they're eco-friendly and biodegradable to boot! 
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Monster Cable is 100% marketing hype, pure and simple. The cables are functional but in no way worth even 1/2 what they charge for them. I build multi hundred thousand dollar home A/V distribution systems and theaters for a living. You will never find a monster cable in any of my equipment racks. |
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i am generally opposed to monster cables as being overhyped overpriced trash, however...
when i set up my 46" tv, i got a 1080p dvd player to go with it, and bought one of the cheap HDMI cables, i could not get it to send a 1080p signal through that cable no matter what i tried, tried several more replacements, none of em worked. went to circuit city or best buy or whatever it was and saw a monster cable hdmi that said 1080p guaranteed or something on the package. told the guy the problem i was having, he gave me a break on the price and told me i could bring it back if it didnt work. it did. so yeah, i paid more than i probably should have, but the shit worked where the other cheaper cables wouldn't. |
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There's nothing really wrong with Monster cables except for the price tag.
Thick copper wire and gold-plated terminals soldered on is about as picky as you need to be. Ideally making your own speaker cables is best, because that way you can cut them to length. You want them as short as possible for the speaker arrangement desired. ~ |
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Quoted:
i am generally opposed to monster cables as being overhyped overpriced trash, however... when i set up my 46" tv, i got a 1080p dvd player to go with it, and bought one of the cheap HDMI cables, i could not get it to send a 1080p signal through that cable no matter what i tried, tried several more replacements, none of em worked. went to circuit city or best buy or whatever it was and saw a monster cable hdmi that said 1080p guaranteed or something on the package. told the guy the problem i was having, he gave me a break on the price and told me i could bring it back if it didnt work. it did. so yeah, i paid more than i probably should have, but the shit worked where the other cheaper cables wouldn't. I am posting on a 1080P monitor right now... using a cheap HDMI cable (~$5) and it works completely fine. With digital it doesn't really matter at all anymore. |
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Quoted: Quoted: i am generally opposed to monster cables as being overhyped overpriced trash, however... when i set up my 46" tv, i got a 1080p dvd player to go with it, and bought one of the cheap HDMI cables, i could not get it to send a 1080p signal through that cable no matter what i tried, tried several more replacements, none of em worked. went to circuit city or best buy or whatever it was and saw a monster cable hdmi that said 1080p guaranteed or something on the package. told the guy the problem i was having, he gave me a break on the price and told me i could bring it back if it didnt work. it did. so yeah, i paid more than i probably should have, but the shit worked where the other cheaper cables wouldn't. I am posting on a 1080P monitor right now... using a cheap HDMI cable (~$5) and it works completely fine. With digital it doesn't really matter at all anymore. exactly this. maybe you just had a bad cable to start with. theoretically with a digital signal, the human eye won't be able to tell the difference between the cheap cable and the expensive one. we're talking extremely minimal quality gain. |
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If you are dealing with analog video (composite, S-video, etc) then they are good cables. I once worked for a company that manufactured waveform monitors and vectorscopes used to monitor signals for TV production and broadcasting. We tested their cables in comparison with many others, and they came out on top.
With digital video, if the signal is getting there without interference, then it doesn't matter. Any good HDMI cable will work. The cables from monoprice.com are just as good as Monster in this case, and they cost a lot less. |