Patch cables!? What do you like...George L's,LAVA...?

So I just got a George L's patch cable and Its pretty sweet, It actually did brighten my tone. Its still weird cause its such a thin cable.
Anyway, like them but very expensive. What do you use and how much?
Monster cables are to rigid for patch cables IMO BTW.

I'm using bulk pack stuff I got from Radio Shack. they're low noise too!! And they remove the ice pick.

I find the really good ones let too much electricity through.

Julia said:

I'm using bulk pack stuff I got from Radio Shack. they're low noise too!! And they remove the ice pick.

Click to expand...

heheh

Well I figured why spend a lot of money on patchcables while in the end as a guitarist you're actually trying to achieve the most 'low-Fi' sound possible

I've been using Dimarzios for long cables and Mogamis for patches up until recently. No complaints. Then about a month ago I took the plunge and went for a solderless Lava cable setup. I love it. Sound is great and the cabling is solid. The board looks a lot cleaner with everything cut to size.

So ive gotten some George L's now and they really do seem to add a touch of brightness which is welcome. Got some custom made Mogami's too and they are working fine. I guess its coming down to which ones fit better between pedals. Ive become a cord ***** :wink:

I like George L because of their incredible capacitance. I also use Gepco cable for most of my longer runs since it is really low capacitance. Only problem is that you can only buy Gepco in bulk so you better know how to solder or find a custom maker for the job.

I am using monster cables for everything, I used to make my own thought...

george ls

I had George L's for a long time, I switched last year to Evidence Audio cables through my entire rig, got more of everything sound wise, took my tone to a whole 'nother level. especially the monrail patch cables that can be used with George L plugs, and the Siren II speaker cable. simply outstanding stuff, but pricey :shock:

Going to try those George L's , can't go wrong it seems.

I bought a bunch of Lava cables for $200+. Now I've used a ton of cables because I went though "my tone must be best, expensive = better!!!1!" phase. I tried Lynches, Mogami, Monster, Colossal and Lava Cable.

The Lava and Colossal are defiantly the best I've tried. Coming down to it though, the Lava Soar is THE best cable I bought. It has the best clarity along with a balanced bright/darkness. I got the 18ft cable for $80 which really isn't THAT bad but comparing it to say a 20ft monster cable it is a complete noticeable difference.

I like George Ls..and they do sound a bit better..but the jacks dont hold up to abuse..sorry but its the truth. Solderless jacks just arent ready for prime time.
I'll take and good belden cable with a good switchcraft jack on it anyday.
When a drunk steps on it..and a fool pulls on your pedalboard by its audio cables..you'll be glad you did!!
GtrGeorge
(in the trenches)

After getting intimate with about 25 different cables... Cardas reigns supreme!

I still like Monster SP1000's but the Cardas Golden Chord and Golden Chord Clear sound awsome and are built on a higher spec than anything I've seen.

cheers!

If you've got to worry about drunks tripping over cables go wireless.

For guitar cables I'm now using Paul Reed Smith cables (Van Damme) because they don't tangle. Seriously. They don't tangle. A 25' run and they don't tangle. You're paying for the connectors mostly because there is very little difference in price between the 10' and 25' runs -- like $10 difference. The only objection I've had is that they're brighter than I like meaning lower capacitance or in technical terms they let too much electricity through.

Others I've had will be in knots within a 15 minutes. Monster cables are the worst at tangling and getting caught on stuff. Planet waves run a close second on tangles.

Still on the short jumpers, those Radio Shack patch cables are made by Hosa and available in stores that sell Hosa products. Moulded one piece cables. They have never failed. But if they ever do, they're so cheap that you don't get pissed. I've got more cables than you can shake a stick at. I was in shock when I rearranged my studio and cleaned up stuff. ****.

GEorge Ls for the pedal board & for the connections in the rack. Rapco or MyStarSound for the longer runs.

"If you've got to worry about drunks tripping over cables go wireless. "
Julia, you have an answer for everything.


But even if wireless...George L's jacks are prone to easily losing contact to their wires. Essenrially, its a screw that tightens and makes contact with your wire...well,sadly crews can un-tighten over time. And things do get pulled on etc over time.
Not just my opinion but a noted pedalboard maker wont use George L's ,either...but yeah they sound great ..and they are a great company.. and they stand behind what they sell..and hey its just the opinion of 2 sources...
YMMV.

GtrGeorge! said:

"If you've got to worry about drunks tripping over cables go wireless. "
Julia, you have an answer for everything.


But even if wireless...George L's jacks are prone to easily losing contact to their wires. Essenrially, its a screw that tightens and makes contact with your wire...well,sadly crews can un-tighten over time. And things do get pulled on etc over time.
Not just my opinion but a noted pedalboard maker wont use George L's ,either...but yeah they sound great ..and they are a great company.. and they stand behind what they sell..and hey its just the opinion of 2 sources...
YMMV.

Click to expand...

If your worried about drunks get more duct tape. :lol: However going wireless will not eliminate the cable going from the receiver to the board (unless the recieve is on your board) & then the other cable going from the board to the amp. I guess you could have another wireless from the board to the amp. I wonder how much that would decimate your tone?

Anyway getting abck to the GLs screws can be tightened again. If for some reason it gets lost it can be replaced. In truth solder joints can fail as well. Lesson to be learned is always go to a gig with spares or spare parts.

Stupid question probably, but here it goes.
I am looking to finally finish my pedal board & get it wired up. Here is what I want to do:
I have two 1/4" cable jacks on the side of the board. One will be for guitar in, the other out to the amp. I plan to use George Ls & am wondering if the side of the George L cable that will connect to the prongs of the 1/4" jacks can be soldered?
The other side would be the standard GL 1/4" plug.

Guitar cable-----1/4" plug > 1/4" jack}soldered joint of GL cable---------GL 1/4" plug > 1st pedal in the chain. Then just the reverse for the other jack out to the amp.

I use Zaolla Silverline cables for passive pickups. They are the ones with the solid silver conductor. With active pickups it really doesn't matter because the electronics convert the signal to low impedance. This eliminates degradation caused by capacitance in the cable. If I'm using passive pickups I use a Zaolla as the first cable inline to whatever pedal I'm using to buffer and convert the signal to low impedance. After that, it really doesn't matter what you use. Really...Here is a really cool demo of the Redeemer Circuit by Creation Audio Labs. It is a device that you install in your guitar to buffer the signal and send out a low impedance one. It works great. Check out this clip and you will see how a low impedance signal is unaffected by the quality of cable being used. Even an extension cord sounded great!!! This is really a cool demo to watch. I was impressed the first time I saw it.
Here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5tbkwXX054

I'm shocked no one has mentioned Evidence Audio cables, I use the Melody and Monorail cables for my rig, totally blew my George L's out of the watter in natural clarity and more tone. GL's seem to have a bump in the upper midrange similar to Tube Screamer.