Monster Cables: boooooo. All of mine have subsisted on a year-long lifespan and then went unreliable or dead. Sure there's a warranty, but it's a matter of principal for me that I shouldn't have to replace my cables annually.

Problem with Monster is that you need a receipt to exchange one.

I can hear a difference between cables, but not when the whole band is playing.

I use Planet Waves cables.

...not because I think I can hear the difference or anything like that, but simply because if I ever cut one up or break one, they'll give me a brand new one for free - unconditionally.

Can't argue with that.



Unless I lose one or they go out of business I should never have to buy another cable.

...Long and short, though, get a reinforced cable unless you like being able to access the tips and fix the wiring yourself.

Regardless of the cable, you can avoid damaging them by learning how to properly wrap it when not in use. Don't wrap it between your hand and elbow (a surefire way to fatigue the metal and get a short over time). Wrap it like you would a garden hose. Hold one end in one hand and then flip the rest of the cable over it one wrap at a time with your other hand. This way you avoid any undue stress. Trust me on this. I went to a university to learn this technique.

I use whatever cheap piece of crap cable is hanging on the shelf.. I have about 6 I use constantly, and have been using them for about 8 years now with no failures. They all sound just fine..

I think I need to see the video. I'm not quite picturing in my head what you're describing. Of course, with a short garden hose I will sometimes wrap it between my hand and elbow.

I think your point is that a garden hose is less likely to twist than a patch cord, and it's the twisting that fatigues the cord.

Shouldn't we use something like those things that roll up garden hoses then? I have one for my really long extension (power) cord.

I've seen people use the hand/elbow technique but insist on using a figure 8 pattern instead of just going round and round in a circle. I think the claim is that the figure 8 eliminates twists.

Either way, sometimes one end is used to form tight coils perpendicular to the loops along the shorter dimension, and then the loose end is stuffed under one of these coils. Like you may find rope packaged at the store.

I've also watched people form large loops by holding a piece of cord at arm's length and then bringing it together. The large, flattened loops are then treated as one strand and tied into a single knot.

It seems to me that the techniques that leave you with nice, easy to manage bundles also put extra stress on the cables. Do they not?

But, I found--in a not so nice way--that Monster used slightly oversized barrels on the connectors which made it impossible to use anything but a MC once the jack connectors had been stretched. I have heard they no longer do this (anyone else have this exp. with MC?)

... a $2000 inst. cable...