An embarrassingly posh one?
I’ve tried several of the ethernet cables mentioned here (BJC, Catsnake, Chord C-stream and Chord Epic). I have a run of BJC to the switch but found that the Chord C-stream (from the switch to the streamer) seems to gives me the most balanced soundstage. The Epic and Catsnake just had too much bass energy for me and the BJC was just a bit bland. As many on here have said, it’s a ‘fine tuning’ thing and one size does not necessarily fit all.
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You don’t want the screening connected at both ends because you could get earth loop problems. I’ve always gone for floating but some reckon connected at one end can give better screening and experiment with which way round sounds better. Ghent Cables (a Chinese company with a good reputation) offer a variant where both ends are connected by a wire to each other, as suggested by John Swenson.
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No, I tried a variety ranging from a regular tested and certified Cat5e from a commercial supplier, to a BlueJeans what was ‘only’ about 10 times the price, and some low and mid range Chord cables up to around 500 times the price.
To my ears there were sometimes clear but very subtle differences to sound quality which did not in any way correlate to the price of the cable. So I concluded that for me there was no need to spend big money on what I found to be the most spectacularly overpriced items I have ever considered buying.
If other people post different findings here I cannot help being a little suspicious that some subconscious bias could be influencing their claims (or perhaps even mine!) but I am not going to challenge them. As long as they are made in a different room using a different system heard with different ears, I cannot rule anything out.
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Agreed.
I think when someone has pushed their main system components to the end of what they can achieve and got an amazing system carefully set up and tuned in to the room, then it seems possible that they might be able to hear a significant improvement from a ‘bonkers’ ethernet cable - and in that case it might even make sense to buy one.
(I use BJC6a from wall plate to streamer.)
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I used about 14m / 45ft in the final setup. I could have saved 10 meters of AQ cable but then the switch + the Farad PSU + the AC & DC cables would be in my living room. I want to have as little messy audio stuff & cables in my room as possible. The Ms. appreciates that too. 
I always liked the look of 1M of AQ Carbon into my streamer as a punt to see what effect, if any, it might have.
I use Belden Cat 6a for the long distance between my Cisco first switch and EE8 then Chord Music between EE8 and ND555.
Using such an expensive Ethernet like Chord Music for the “ last leg” will be scoffed at by some but the uplift in sound quality over Chord Sig or the Cat 6 was very big. Jason Gould also uses it in that position. That’s not conjecture he told me himself!
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They (AQ Vodka) apparently need a soooper long run in…months…may be by that time the brain gives up or they just get better and better…ha ha…
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Interesting you mention this. I have the same experience with my AQ Carbon but I kind of doubted myself.
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I had the vodka during months. I found it a bit in your face. But may please if someone like a “ rock “ sound.
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Hi did it ever ‘calm down’?
Not really. But still better vs all the other I could test, like Catsnake or Blue Jeans, even Meicord .
Did your Carbon take months to run in?
How the sound change by the end?
One problem with that is it makes trying and returning impossible.
A looonnggg time, yes. But the sound/sonic signature of a cable is pretty clear when you hook it up or after a few hours. During burn in / settling in, whatever it is (trying to dance around that can of worms), the sound usually refines and improves. I don’t think I’ve ever had a cable or component change from good to bad or from green to red during the ‘in’ period. 
So, audioning for few days should give you a pretty good 80% + idea imo.
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Yes, the Meicord was the best….for MONEY.
For sound, first the diamond, then vodka, then Meicord, then Blue Jeans, then Catsnake, then generic Cat 5 , then Forrest.
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In my system the MeiCord beats the Vodka, but that’s in it’s ‘full loom’ guise. Yet to try the Vodka in the same ‘fully clothed’ way - ££?
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I now make my own Ethernet cables - the quality of the RJ45 termination (I use Telegartner Cat6A or Cat 8 - as do Shunyata and Sablon) is key, as is the shielding (single ended, or double ended, or unshielded).
Good quality Ethernet cable (Belden Catsnake or Viablue) is relatively cheap to purchase.
This approach means different cable materials and shielding approaches can be tried at low financial outlay.
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Hi T-elmi, if you’re assembling your own or modifying existing cables, take a look at Flexo’s carbon infused nylon braiding. Improved noise rejection, protection and relatively inexpensive.
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