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cable Vs. wireless sender?

post #1 of 32
12/1/12 at 2:58pm
Thread Starter 
Im moving my Audioengine A5+ computer speakers into living room but in order to do this i will need a 25ft.3.5 mm minijack cable to keep them connected to my computer.My alternative would be to buy the audioengine wireless W3 transmitter for 150 dollars that only sends a 16 bit signal.Using the cable i can keep the 24 bit signal from my DAC but i fear the long minijack cable may degrade my signal and speaker sound will suffer.any help on which solution would give me best sound quality out of my speakers? thanks
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post #2 of 32
12/1/12 at 9:30pm
radioshack cables exist.
when a gap can be filled .. the question is, are the results uber quality or less?

i've got 16 or 20ft of headphone extension cable that works uber, i havent tried sending a cell phone signal across it to know if it really truly is uber, but i am leaning towards maybe when the only other choice is a no answer.

think about it.
radio shack doesnt sell much.
were do you get military strength?

take one pill and claim the factory doesnt make military strength for the store shelves.
or
take the other pill and claim the factory does and grip a place to pick them up at in your hand (or head).

if they dont make profit from selling things.. they need to get government funds to record people inside the building.
jst what would they do to earn recording value?
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post #3 of 32
12/2/12 at 7:42am
Thread Starter 
Sorry but you lost me
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post #4 of 32
12/2/12 at 7:57am
Quote:
i fear the long minijack cable may degrade my signal and speaker sound will suffer

Why? I don't understand how a short length of conductor could degrade the sound.
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post #5 of 32
12/2/12 at 8:10am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mattg3 View Post

Im moving my Audioengine A5+ computer speakers into living room but in order to do this i will need a 25ft.3.5 mm minijack cable to keep them connected to my computer.

If you can route this cable so that it is inconspicious and safe then it won't have an adverse effect on the fine sound quality of the Audioengine A5+ computer speakers. The speakers have their own power amplfiiers and so this cable has a very very light load on it. The cable is nomally driven from a high quality low impedance source (computer green output jack), so that the cable will plcae a very light load on the source that is driving it.
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My alternative would be to buy the audioengine wireless W3 transmitter for 150 dollars that only sends a 16 bit signal.

This can be a fine but unecessarily complex and costly solution compared to the simple cable solution.

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Using the cable i can keep the 24 bit signal from my DAC but i fear the long minijack cable may degrade my signal and speaker sound will suffer.

I've done measurements of high quality audio gear using very sensitive test equipment using cables like the one you mention without any noticable problems.

My living room is long enough so that back in the day when I used high quality wired headphones, I had to use a cable just like the one you mention. I dare say that my Sennheiser HD 580 headphones had even higher resolution than your fine little speakers.

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any help on which solution would give me best sound quality out of my speakers? thanks

Either solution should provide identical audible results.
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post #6 of 32
12/2/12 at 8:11am
Quote:
Originally Posted by SAM64 View Post

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i fear the long minijack cable may degrade my signal and speaker sound will suffer

Why? I don't understand how a short length of conductor could degrade the sound.

I get the concern - this is a relatively long 25 foot cable, and one that may seem flimsy compared to a regular speaker or interconnect cable. Looks can be deceiving for the reasons I give in my other post.
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post #7 of 32
12/2/12 at 8:13am
Thread Starter 
I guess I felt that perhaps a signal travelling 25 ft might have problems but I have never actually used a cable that long thus if you have experience with this and its no problem it would be nice to buy an 8 dollar cable rather than a 150 dollar wireless device.Im also a bit concerned that a wireless device might cause problems with my wireless internet.
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post #8 of 32
12/2/12 at 8:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mattg3 View Post

I guess I felt that perhaps a signal travelling 25 ft might have problems but I have never actually used a cable that long thus if you have experience with this and its no problem it would be nice to buy an 8 dollar cable rather than a 150 dollar wireless device.Im also a bit concerned that a wireless device might cause problems with my wireless internet.

The fact that these are powered speakers makes all the difference:

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post #9 of 32
12/2/12 at 8:32am
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I guess I felt that perhaps a signal travelling 25 ft might have problems

It won't. We send small signals over long wires all the time.
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post #10 of 32
12/2/12 at 1:00pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by arnyk View Post

If you can route this cable so that it is inconspicious and safe then it won't have an adverse effect on the fine sound quality of the Audioengine A5+ computer speakers. The speakers have their own power amplfiiers and so this cable has a very very light load on it. The cable is nomally driven from a high quality low impedance source (computer green output jack), so that the cable will plcae a very light load on the source that is driving it.
This can be a fine but unecessarily complex and costly solution compared to the simple cable solution.
I've done measurements of high quality audio gear using very sensitive test equipment using cables like the one you mention without any noticable problems.
My living room is long enough so that back in the day when I used high quality wired headphones, I had to use a cable just like the one you mention. I dare say that my Sennheiser HD 580 headphones had even higher resolution than your fine little speakers.
Either solution should provide identical audible results.

thanks for your great reply.Sounds like you have had experience with great audioengine products.I have their DAC1 connected to my computer and A2 speakers as well as the A5+ but they are not in a great place and i need to move them.My issue is that if i use the W3 I can wirelessly send the signal but not at 24 bits like im used to hearing from the DAC1 since it only sends 16 bit.Not sure If this will be a big sonic let down for me?I also have to take into account that my speaker with W3 will be on the same stand as my comcast internet router which might cause some interference.If i use the 25 ft cable it will be coming out of the A2 connected to the Dac1 thus it will be sending a 24 bit signal but it will have to go under rugs and across a room where foot path is present.Lots of money saved if i go with cable but i have to weigh out the safety factor. Nothing is simple in a condo.
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post #11 of 32
12/2/12 at 1:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mattg3 View Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by arnyk View Post

If you can route this cable so that it is inconspicious and safe then it won't have an adverse effect on the fine sound quality of the Audioengine A5+ computer speakers. The speakers have their own power amplfiiers and so this cable has a very very light load on it. The cable is nomally driven from a high quality low impedance source (computer green output jack), so that the cable will plcae a very light load on the source that is driving it.
This can be a fine but unecessarily complex and costly solution compared to the simple cable solution.
I've done measurements of high quality audio gear using very sensitive test equipment using cables like the one you mention without any noticable problems.
My living room is long enough so that back in the day when I used high quality wired headphones, I had to use a cable just like the one you mention. I dare say that my Sennheiser HD 580 headphones had even higher resolution than your fine little speakers.
Either solution should provide identical audible results.

Thanks for your great reply.Sounds like you have had experience with great audioengine products.

Not specifically them, but they are what they are and similar things in audio perform in a similar way. Audioengine speakers have a good reputation.
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I have their DAC1 connected to my computer and A2 speakers as well as the A5+ but they are not in a great place and i need to move them.My issue is that if i use the W3 I can wirelessly send the signal but not at 24 bits like im used to hearing from the DAC1 since it only sends 16 bit.Not sure If this will be a big sonic let down for me?I also have to take into account that my speaker with W3 will be on the same stand as my comcast internet router which might cause some interference.If i use the 25 ft cable it will be coming out of the A2 connected to the Dac1 thus it will be sending a 24 bit signal but it will have to go under rugs and across a room where foot path is present.Lots of money saved if i go with cable but i have to weigh out the safety factor. Nothing is simple in a condo.

I've been doing lsitenign tests of 16 bits versus 24 bits for well over a decade, and so have a number of my friends. This is actually one of those issues in audio that technical people like to spar over.

Not only is 16 bits not a let down, I don't know of anybody who can reliably hear any difference at all with AV and music recordings, no matter how good their ears, how clean the recording, or how high resolution the playback system.

The core reason is that there are no actual recordings that have enough dynamic range to tax the capabilities of 16 bits. Almost all recordings are totally unaffected even if downsampled to 14 bits. Been there, done that.
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post #12 of 32
12/2/12 at 1:45pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks,you have been a great help.Since Audioengine has a 30 day audition set up ill probably take a shot at trying out the W3 and if i experience any dropouts or slowdown of internet ill just return it and go with the 25 ft cable.
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post #13 of 32
12/2/12 at 3:33pm
you are hoping for an engineering match better because they matched it up for you.

otherwise.. microphones use 50ft of cable on a regular basis (just because you see wireless doesnt mean wired wasnt mastered)
all you gotta do is see the electron itself, then you can send it through a wire.
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post #14 of 32
12/2/12 at 5:10pm
Thread Starter 
Once again you have lost me but thanks anyway
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post #15 of 32
12/2/12 at 5:39pm
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Once again you have lost me but thanks anyway
Not to worry. He loses everybody.
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post #16 of 32
12/2/12 at 6:10pm
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Not to worry. He loses everybody

But the adventure of trying to follow the train of his thought to its derailment...or when the trail of his thoughts vanishes in the dark woods of obscurity..
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post #17 of 32
12/2/12 at 6:28pm
Thread Starter 
All i wanted was some feedback on my topic,not a wild chase down the rabbit hole
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post #18 of 32
12/2/12 at 6:42pm
perhaps the struggle is simply dying compared to dieing.
(that typically happens with low age and the subject of 'end' in the conversation)

those metal strands dont need to be much resistance to get the electricity across.
and all you gotta do is clean the metal .. filtering has been around for centuries.
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post #19 of 32
12/4/12 at 7:44am
Thread Starter 
Where is he going with this??
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post #20 of 32
12/4/12 at 7:58am
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Where is he going with this??
Better question: Why are you following??
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post #21 of 32
12/4/12 at 10:55am
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Originally Posted by mcnarus View Post

Better question: Why are you following??

Why do people look at car crashes?
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post #22 of 32
12/4/12 at 11:02am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mattg3 View Post

thanks for your great reply.Sounds like you have had experience with great audioengine products.I have their DAC1 connected to my computer and A2 speakers as well as the A5+ but they are not in a great place and i need to move them.
How are you using the D1? With USB? If so, then another option might be to get a 25 foot USB cable. You will be exceeding the spec for USB 2.0 but there is a good chance it might work anyway. Buy the cable locally and that way you can return it if it doesn't work. While you are at it, buy a couple of different brands just in case one works better than the other. If the device connects and there are no audio glitches, you are golden smile.gif. It would work as is today.
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I also have to take into account that my speaker with W3 will be on the same stand as my comcast internet router which might cause some interference.
Wired options are always preferable to wireless. They don't say whose technology they are using in W3. But do mention that it has an internal DAC. This means that it is a digital transmission scheme where you will be going through an Analog to Digital conversion at the sender and back to analog. So to the extent you are using an external DAC, I would think you want to avoid these transformations.
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post #23 of 32
12/4/12 at 5:13pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the idea but actually the A2 speakers are connected to the DAC1 and they have an open minijack port that is always carrying the signal even if A2 speakers are turned off.Im using the 3.5 mm minijack cable to connect the A5+ to the A2 and it fires up the A5+ with DAC1 sound.That is reason Im looking at 25 ft minijack cable to just carry that sound to the A5+ in another room away from the computer.If i go with the W3 wireless I will not be connected to dac1 but only through what the W3 has to offer which also has a dac and 16 bit sound.
Edited by mattg3 - 12/4/12 at 5:55pm
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post #24 of 32
12/15/12 at 1:40pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by arnyk View Post

I get the concern - this is a relatively long 25 foot cable, and one that may seem flimsy compared to a regular speaker or interconnect cable. Looks can be deceiving for the reasons I give in my other post.

You were so right.I took a shot in the dark and for under 5 bucks I bought a 50 ft 3.5 mm cable and went all around two rooms behind furniture and under a rug from my Dac1 connected to my Imac into living room where my A5+ are set up.i was shocked to find the sound was as rich and deep through my 50 ft cable as it was through my 3 ft cable connected to my A2.I was able to do direct comparisons and no difference in sound.Thanks again.
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post #25 of 32
12/22/12 at 12:07am
I know its' been 6 days from the last post, but in case you come back sometime
I love the 5+ with the wireless because it matches perfectly with 99% of my normal listening.
I like the freedom of placement and I can use MOG on an Ipad or I use a laptop because it's only $5 a month for good (320) quality music.
Too many things have to be perfect to hear the 24 bit.
Good choice on the 5+
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post #26 of 32
12/22/12 at 8:11am
Thread Starter 
Well for me the wire was an eye opener since a 50 ft cable cost about 4.50 and the sound is as good as the 3 ft cable.I did find that owning the DAC1 I plugged the 50 ft cable into the D1 headphone jack and got a better,more robust sound from the A5+.I was doing this as an experiment,preparing to buy the wireless W3 if sound was bad with cable but i was pleasantly surprised.Managing a 50 ft cable was easy in my condo.
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post #27 of 32
12/22/12 at 7:39pm
I just like the freedom part---Ipad ---speaker easily placed.
Have you tried Spotify or MOG ---both good, but MOG has better sound for less money.
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post #28 of 32
12/24/12 at 8:17am
Thread Starter 
Thanks,Will try MOG today
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post #29 of 32
12/27/12 at 3:13am
Thread Starter 
Sound quality and selection on MOG is excellent but to get it free is really a pain.
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post #30 of 32
12/27/12 at 8:24pm
Do the $4.99
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