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Chinese wire?

Blackdog61

Blackdog61

AK Subscriber
Subscriber
I know the subject of wire can be very polarizing (pun intended…..) but I stumbled on a seller on the big auction site offering what looks like pretty high end stuff for pennies on the dollar. I first bought an RCA cable with ground for my TT which is advertised as six 9 (99.9999 pure copper) with silver plating and nice RCAs for about $50 and free shipping. When it arrived I found it to sound better than the cheap stuff I was using so I bought more.
First, he has a green cable that is sometimes labeled as McIntosh (fake, I know) which is advertised as high purity copper, again with silver plating. Again, better than the cheap stuff for about $15 per meter.
Today, the mailman delivered what is advertised as 8 nines silver plated with WBT locking RCAs (fake?) and a nice black nylon webbed jacket. Again, very cheap.
Admittedly, I’ve never delved deeply into high end cables, but have spent up to $300 on Audioquest and Kimber which I believe gave a slightly different sound. I won’t argue whether wire makes much difference and am a bit on the fence, although I hear some difference. The silver plated copper has a bit more on top which works well with tubes.
My point here is that these are very nice interconnects which compare favorably to anything I’ve had. The last AQ I have is an old Ruby with locking RCAs and this new stuff I got seems to be a better product.

Anyone wanting to flame this can save the gas. I use an EAR clone phono stage and Marantz 7 clone preamp and they have served me well for a few years.

Thoughts?
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China is able to produce decent stuff. They just don't always. I've seen a couple approaches that seem to work. One is having a rep from the company who is selling the product at the factory to QC before shipping. Another is a reseller who buys in bulk and QC's after receipt and accepts that some of what they get will be junk. Buying from one of those kinds of companies seems to get better results than buying direct most of the time but YMMV I guess. If the stuff you're getting works well for you and is saving you money, I'd declare victory.
 
I have come to the conclusion that for many commodities, there are just a few factories in the world.
Those plants will contract mfgr to any spec a customer would like (its not likely Mac makes its own wire).
If there are over runs or order cancellations, guys like you can get an aggressive discount.
Sounds like you tripped over a good deal.
Nice.
 
Bob in WI said:
I have come to the conclusion that for many commodities, there are just a few factories in the world.
Those plants will contract mfgr to any spec a customer would like (its not likely Mac makes its own wire).
If there are over runs or order cancellations, guys like you can get an aggressive discount.
Sounds like you tripped over a good deal.
Nice.
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I wouldn’t be surprised to know that this wire is sourced from a manufacturer, or manufacturers that supply the big cable companies. This stuff is stranded wire and certainly different from the high end stuff sold by AQ to use one example. However, that stuff, as is any high purity copper with locking RCAs going to be at least 10x the cost. IF, this stuff is truly silver plated 8N, you might add a zero.
 
Bob in WI said:
I have come to the conclusion that for many commodities, there are just a few factories in the world.
Those plants will contract mfgr to any spec a customer would like (its not likely Mac makes its own wire).
If there are over runs or order cancellations, guys like you can get an aggressive discount.
Sounds like you tripped over a good deal.
Nice.
Click to expand...
When the engine died on my Snapper mower I began researching replacements and settled on a Predator sold at Harbor Freight. You guys outside the US may have an equivalent. Supposedly, the engine is made by the company which originally made Honda engines and either the patent expired or they bought the rights to manufacture under their own name. The factory makes Toro mowers as well. $99 and five years later it starts on the first pull.
 
Did a ton of research prior to purchasing my SKW (Chinese) interconnects. Yes they're OCC, they're cheaply priced, and (can't believe I'm admitting this) they sound better than the standard RCA's I was using. Only complaints is the braided cloth exterior isn't very flexible. I eventually bought the entire gambit for all my systems, look and sound fantastic.
 
Hajidub said:
Did a ton of research prior to purchasing my SKW (Chinese) interconnects. Yes they're OCC, they're cheaply priced, and (can't believe I'm admitting this) they sound better than the standard RCA's I was using. Only complaints is the braided cloth exterior isn't very flexible. I eventually bought the entire gambit for all my systems, look and sound fantastic.
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Yes. I have those and they are very stiff.
 
bkatbamna said:
The Chinese are in the process(or already have done so) of figuring out that audiophools will pay thousands per foot for wire that cost a few dollars per foot to make.
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256803234611623.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.1.53cf47a7joWQyN&algo_pvid=89328aa8-602c-4214-85f0-0ac93caf9663&algo_exp_id=89328aa8-602c-4214-85f0-0ac93caf9663-0&pdp_npi=3@dis!USD!3900.0!3900.0!!!!!@2102169316824515671664443d0750!12000025710211538!sea!US!3178697843&curPageLogUid=KYiDaL9H4Lhb
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Not quite. They sell for a few dollars a foot to the cable company and the cable company then sells it for thousands to the consumer.
 
I just looked at that link. How much would 6N pure silver wire sell for in the US if it were marketed by a cable company with a rave review from an audio rag? Much more than that.
 
bkatbamna said:
The Chinese are in the process(or already have done so) of figuring out that audiophools will pay thousands per foot for wire that cost a few dollars per foot to make.
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256803234611623.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.1.53cf47a7joWQyN&algo_pvid=89328aa8-602c-4214-85f0-0ac93caf9663&algo_exp_id=89328aa8-602c-4214-85f0-0ac93caf9663-0&pdp_npi=3@dis!USD!3900.0!3900.0!!!!!@2102169316824515671664443d0750!12000025710211538!sea!US!3178697843&curPageLogUid=KYiDaL9H4Lhb
Click to expand...

In general, luxury & non essential items command higher prices than necessities.
You can buy clothes at one price point at Wal Mart or another price point in an exclusive make to order house.
Same w cars, TVs, bicycles, pretty much everything.

Thats a consumer behavior issue, not a country of origin issue.

And to @Blackdog61 s point, don't assume the mark up is going to the mfgr.
We see plenty of exclusive & high priced products being knocked off at competitive prices.
Likely the 'original' & the copy are coming off the same assy line from the same factory.

Funny how the prices plummet when the middleman is eliminated.
 
I’m using the black stuff with WBT RCAs from the phono stage to preamp and preamp to amp. Kimber PBJ were after the phono stage and I noticed these had more top end extension and a lot more ‘air’ for lack of a better term in the mids and upper frequencies. The PBJ has always been an open sounding and slightly forward cable in my systems but they can add some noise. This change lowered the noise floor a bit. After several hours either my ears are adjusting or they are sounding even better with a bit more bass extension and a very balanced presentation. Soundstage width and depth is really good.
@Hajidub I bought a few SKW cables from amazon and initially liked them but gradually noticed a prominent upper midrange which sounded harsh to my ears. It may sound more detailed but in the end, I found it not to my liking. If they work for you, great but they didn’t stay in my system long.
I happen to believe that cables matter to a significant extent but would never spend thousands on a short piece of wire. Like anything, there is a a point of diminishing returns.
 
Anyone making and/or selling knock-offs are off limits to me. Their specification claims, quality control and customer service don't deserve to be trusted.
 
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Bob in WI said:
In general, luxury & non essential items command higher prices than necessities.
You can buy clothes at one price point at Wal Mart or another price point in an exclusive make to order house.
Same w cars, TVs, bicycles, pretty much everything.

Thats a consumer behavior issue, not a country of origin issue.

And to @Blackdog61 s point, don't assume the mark up is going to the mfgr.
We see plenty of exclusive & high priced products being knocked off at competitive prices.
Likely the 'original' & the copy are coming off the same assy line from the same factory.

Funny how the prices plummet when the middleman is eliminated.
Click to expand...
Some cable "manufacturers" are charging more for their cables than 30kg of silver.
 
I confess , I bought some Aliexpress cables.
Wasn’t really expecting much but am very pleased with the audio quality sound.
I bought some 8tc and 4tc speaker cable and I am really ashamed but I bought a cardas interconnect. The cardas interconnect sounds noticeably better than most of the lower mid grade name brand cables I have. I have some real kimber 4tc and I cannot tell the difference between it and the Aliexpress stuff.

I don’t like silver plated anything , too much top end for me. But to each their own . I do like pure silver or 999.
 
I won’t argue that the top stuff doesn’t get out of the way and allow reproduced music to sound more like the real thing but I simply don’t know.
It’s probably not dissimilar to luxury goods in other areas. Is a BMW 7 series a great car? A Rolex (really seen among watch people as an entry piece into luxury watches)…? Are these products objectively better than those the masses can afford? Yes and no, but those who can afford them get the value of being one up on their neighbor or possibly fitting in with people in their circle.

I’ve thought about the issue of fakery and it is something I’m very firm on with certain things and less so on others. Going back to Rolex, I can’t afford to spend $10k on a watch but would never buy a fake. That really smells bad to me for several reasons.
However, the Swiss watch industry is complicated and probably most of the components (cases, dials etc) are made in China. I would lay money that close to 50% of the parts for Omega, Tag, Hamilton etc are sourced from suppliers in China. From what I know, Rolex is entirely in house….. The fakes are now so good that many insiders can’t tell the difference without high magnification and claim that fakes are rugged and accurate.

Another example. My day job is repairing instruments of the violin family, mostly basses and cellos. It’s been known for many decades that labels and provenance are often faked. 19th century English basses have been relabeled and sold as older Italian basses because they command twice the price. Good makers in Hungary and other East European countries are making new basses, distressing them to look old and labeling them as older instruments. If they sold them honestly they would still command good prices so I don’t really understand that one.

Point? This is nothing new. Back to cables. One of the green ones is printed with McIntosh and another bears ‘Audiocrast’. What does that even mean? The one labeled McIntosh has locking ‘Audiocrast’ RCAs. These two were only about $25 including shipping and are nice interconnects. The others with the fake WBT bother me a bit but I’m not fooled. I’d prefer they bear no brand at all. The RCAs are still very well made and I’d put the finished interconnects up against anything I’ve had. I spent $300 on some AQ Jade or Emerald once and quickly got my $300 back. Nothing special. Is the wire as pure as advertised? If it were priced at $500/meter there might be a bigger issue. At the bargain price I like the stuff and will sleep well.
 
billyz said:
I confess , I bought some Aliexpress cables.
Wasn’t really expecting much but am very pleased with the audio quality sound.
I bought some 8tc and 4tc speaker cable and I am really ashamed but I bought a cardas interconnect. The cardas interconnect sounds noticeably better than most of the lower mid grade name brand cables I have. I have some real kimber 4tc and I cannot tell the difference between it and the Aliexpress stuff.

I don’t like silver plated anything , too much top end for me. But to each their own . I do like pure silver or 999.
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The top end is definitely there but my system is all tube into Vandersteens. There is synergy.
I’m just using 16g zip for speaker cable now because the AQ I was using is too short after moving things around. Speaker cable is on the list.
 
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