The Audiophile Thread

[rcarlberg]

I'm really surprised at the reactions here. Do mean to tell me you are audiophiles and have never cleaned your connectors? I thought that was one of the basics of the hobby. It's one of those free things you can do that vastly improve your systems sound, right up there with proper speaker placement.

Can you explain for us how dirt on the contacts can affect the sound? Not WHAT it does, but how it does it?

[Jerjo]

I'm a little leary of applying anything damp and q-tips tend to snag. I just use a little can of spray air. I can get up into the business of those female outlets and blow the hell out of the male ones. Then I smoke a cigarette and relax.

[rcarlberg]

[BobM]

Wow, even when it costs you nothing you still won't believe it will work and refuse to try it. Any engineer knows clean contacts make a difference in conductivity and all metals oxidize to some extent.

Just do it and listen. Air only gets rid of dust. You need to clean them annually.

[rcarlberg]

Bob, it costs nothing to run a green felt marker around the edge of a CD. Try it, you'll be amazed at the improvement!

P.S. - For LPs they recommend purple markers.

[BobM]

You are truly unbelievable. Does nickel rust - No. Does gold rust - No. Does copper rust - No. Does silver rust - No. But all of them oxidize. This is truly basic stuff. Stop pushing bad information to people. This has nothing to do with pseudo science or make believe green marker stuff, this is real science. Clean contacts are essential to the proper flow of electricity. Just think of a dirty battery terminal and why your car won't start until you clean it. Extreme example but same concept.

Go back to your cave.

http://www.ehow.com/how_5136312_clea...onnectors.html

http://www.gcaudio.com/resources/howtos/howto.html

http://www.whatsbestforum.com/showth...he-Right-Stuff

[WHORG]

I can't understand why oxidation would form on a tight, solid connection that's currently in place, not exposed or stressed at all. Any cable connection that I remove from a component looks brand new & clean (at least to my eyes).

I definitely clean those connections prone to static, repeat handling (such as headphones, etc) - - - but that's it.

[Firth]

The alcohol dries quickly leaving them shiny. You don't really see the dirt or oxidation on the connectors, but you sure do see it on the Q tips and cotton balls after cleaning them.

I'm really surprised at the reactions here. Do mean to tell me you are audiophiles and have never cleaned your connectors? I thought that was one of the basics of the hobby. It's one of those free things you can do that vastly improve your systems sound, right up there with proper speaker placement.

Make the effort, you will certainly be pleasantly surprised.

Not really as good as having a really good gain and phase calibration with microphone. Granted that cleaning could change the impedance ever so slightly to my speakers, the effect is dominated by the multi path effect of room acoustics. If I were to disconnect my speakers I risk having a poorer connection because these are very tight non-oxidized connections. All other connections are digital.

[BobM]

I can't understand why oxidation would form on a tight, solid connection that's currently in place, not exposed or stressed at all. Any cable connection that I remove from a component looks brand new & clean (at least to my eyes).

I definitely clean those connections prone to static, repeat handling (such as headphones, etc) - - - but that's it.

Try it. You may be surprised. It is cheap/free and easy, all it takes is a little effort.

[rcarlberg]

Is your Stereo on a Sailboat on a Saltwater sea? Is that why you have so many problems with corrosion? If I were you Bob I'd address the causes of your problem, not the effects.

http://ethanwiner.com/myths.html

http://www.audioholics.com/audio-vid...-you-snake-oil

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussio...of-connections (scroll down to hifihvn)

[rcarlberg]

Does nickel rust - No. Does gold rust - No. Does copper rust - No. Does silver rust - No. But all of them oxidize.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/oxidize

[BobM]

Please go away, you're polluting peoples minds with incorrect info from an uninformed position.

There's noting in the Ethan Winer article about this. In fact he emphasizes that a clean connection is important.

There's nothing about cleaning connections in the audioholics link either.

And the audiogon thread seems to confirm everything I said.

So where's your proof that cleaning doesn't matter? Lets turn this around on you. Prove it!

[rcarlberg]

hifihvn
943 posts
09-04-2011 1:15am
I wouldn't use any cleaner/chemicals in an outlet. These are self cleaning. Maybe unplug and plug your component once a month, just a rough guess. It depends on your climate, air leakage through the outlets etc. No cleaner is safer because you don't know if any residue will be left, or contaminant build up you may stir up that is off on the insulator part of the outlet itself. Outlet connections are self cleaning. After unplugging and replugging something back in, look at the plug and you should see a shinny line on the plugs prongs. That is the contact area, and it wiped itself down to the bare clean metal, with no contamination on the connection area. Using any cleaning chemical could leave or stir up something that can turn into a problem. I remember reading an article in Stereophile were he used a Caig cleaner on all of his IC's, and it sounded bad after ward. He had to cleaner the Caig off if memory is correct. I do use Caig myself, but mainly on switch contacts in gear itself. That is a hit or miss fix.Using a cleaner is not a sure thing.

rrog
1,958 posts
09-05-2011 6:23pm
I agree with Hifihvn, There is no need to use chemicals on the AC plug. If you want it to look nice polish it with clean steel wool. I also agree with his comments regarding Caig products. Caig products all leave a film which thickens over time. I prefer a good electrical contact cleaner that leaves no film for speaker cable and IC connections. You can find these cleaners at Radio Shack or any good electronic supply outlet.

From the last link I posted. Sorry you couldn't read it.

[BobM]

So the first one talks about ... cleaning a contact by plugging and unplugging it. Sounds loike cleaning to me, though not a thorough one. More like scratching the plating.

Same for the second one, scratch it to make a clean contact.

Both of these prove my point, not yours. So .. want to try and find something else?

[rcarlberg]

Well I guess there's no pleasing some people. Carry on, I'm done here.

[BobM]

Thank God. Can you leave for good?

[rcarlberg]

I can't understand why oxidation would form on a tight, solid connection that's currently in place, not exposed or stressed at all.

The simple answer is you're 100% correct, it doesn't -- unless you live on a sailboat.

[BobM]

Until you actually clean it and see that your assumptions are wrong

[Firth]

Until you actually clean it and see that your assumptions are wrong

That's what she said[emoji12]

[rcarlberg]

Here is what I hear when I listen to "Church": An expansive soundstage with pinpoint imaging. I hear lots of air. Dynamics galore. I couldn't imagine it sounding better.

I have no desire to rehash the wisdom of washing your RCA cables but I would like to post something positive: an album I downloaded yesterday which turned out to be a revelation in sound.

It is "Live at The New School: The Complete Concert" by the Ruby Braff - George Barnes Quartet. Braff was a cornetist with an unusually clear and pure tone, no vibrato at all. Barnes was an old time guitarist (made the first electric guitar recording in 1931) who plays extremely cleanly and fluidly. Together Braff and Barnes play off each other almost telepathically, trading licks, harmonizing, playing in unison or alternating so fast it makes your head spin. Though taken in 1974 the live recording by Marc Eisner places the instruments in stage left and stage right, each captured in full dynamics and fidelity. If you close your eyes you can imagine the band playing right in front of you. It is not a binaural recording but it has the same sense of three-dimensionality and natural placement that binaural gives you.

Check it out as an example of what Lyle Lovett could have been.

Incidentally I'm listening right now to Dave Brubeck's "Adventures in Time," a collection of recordings from 1959-1965 that is similarly uncannily realistic. Also recommended for audiophiles who want to know what live musicians really sound like.

[rcarlberg]

Another disc that stands out as a good demonstration of the art of recording is the debut by The Roches "recorded in audio vérité by Robert Fripp".

On a good stereo it's stunning.

[Jerjo]

Yup, that's a good one

[strawberrybrick]

Off to Axpona Chicago this Sunday morning. ..

[dregsfan]

^ I'll be there Saturday.

[simon moon]

Off to Axpona Chicago this Sunday morning. ..

Wish I could go.


I'll just have to wait until T.H.E. Show in Newport Beach at the beginning of June.


I sure wish certain members here would attend one of these at some time. Could be enlightening.