Never-before-seen SATA 3.0 cable listed on eBay for as high as $500.for your money, list Claim (opens in new tab) We bring you the “Best Computer Hi-Fi Cable Ever”. We’ve seen some pretty dubious crossovers between audiophile and computer hardware, but thought this Audiophile Rocks Superstar Crystal Formula SATA SSD cable deserves a closer look.
Audiophiles will pay big bucks for the ultimate in audio clarity. There are many true audiophile grade products on the market. I can’t say for certain that this is a true audiophile product. So please be a little careful with this product. Remember that “warning people” (buyer beware) apply here. But what does the list tell us?
Looking at this basic component connection accessory, it’s a pretty standard 50cm (about 20 inches) SATA 3.0 cable without any fancy metal, wood or quartz extensions. This typically costs less than $5, so a $500 Superstar Crystal Formula modded cable is easily 100 times more expensive for its advertised audio benefits. However, if there is a real audible/audio advantage, the price premium might be acceptable to some…
How did the Audiophile Rocks brand beef up this SATA cable? The first thing you’ll probably notice is that the cable is threaded through what appears to be a braid of steel. flexible toilet connector (opens in new tab)A reasonable theory might be that this is a “shield”, but the obvious problem is that the SATA cable is 50cm (20 inches) long and the metal hose is about 30cm (12 inches) long. That’s it.
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Inside the woven toilet connector cable are some ingredients called “our classic Superstar Crystal formula” that appear to be optimized for computer components. Audiophile Rocks doesn’t stop optimizing Hi-Fi there either. A wooden stopper encrusted with black crystals is added to the end of the braided metal sheath for the SATA cable “for added strength”. I’m not sure if the manufacturer is referring to the “strength” of optimizing the audio signal or the strength of the physical construction.
Plugging a SATA cable into a drive “doubles the effect”
Last but not least, the listing suggests that this special SATA cable just plugs into your motherboard and works its audiophile optimization magic. To optimize the system, it is not necessary to connect to the SATA SSD/HDD on the other side, but it “doubles the effect”. Flexible steel tubes flapping inside a working PC isn’t comfortable, so why not plug it in and enjoy the enhanced effect?
Without a review sample, it’s impossible to completely dismiss all of the product listing’s claims of Hi-Fi quality for this cable. However, the design omits any mention of using precious metals or oxygen-free conductors, so the manufacturer misses some obvious optimizations.
If you like this audiophile-friendly Superstar Crystal Formula SATA SSD cable, you’ll also love the audiophile-friendly SSD and equally targeted Ethernet switch UEF. Please note that all these products include a substantial audiophile tax.
