Customer Reviews

Monster Cable 126130 iCable for iPod

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(18)

 

 

Amazon.com also sells this exact same cable for less than half the price of the iCable. Some marketing genius at Monster Cables took their THX-certified RCA-to-mini 8 foot cable, gave it white connectors, called it an iCable to appeal to iPod users, and then doubled the cable's price.

Do an Amazon search for THXIMINI8 and get that cable instead. It's the same high quality as this one, but doesn't have the stylish iPod white connectors though.

I have two, one connected to my home stereo receiver, and one wired into my car's audio system. I am absolutely thrilled with the high quality audio the cable provides, especially for such a low price. I tried the El Cheapo cable from Radio Shack, and there is a noticeable difference on my (admittedly high end) home and car audio systems.

Ok guys, personal disclosure: I'm an audio engineer and a classical musician. My life revolves around fussing over the most minute details of music, whether listening to it or making it.

Now, these cables are STUPID. When I was a kid, I remember buying these from the sales-people at Hi-Fi Buys. They probably are giving you the same line, "You spend how much money on your system, and then you're going to have a weak link with $5 Radio Shack cables?" It's BS! Here's the line profesional musicians and engineers fall back on, "If it sounds good, it is good."

Technical note: if you really wanted high quality cables, you'd have to use 3-pin balanced cables operating at +4dbu. And buy some Tannoy near-field, reference monitors. All consumer audio equipment is 2-pin (red wire, black wire), unbalanced and operates at -10. You can look this information up anywhere.

So you can buy gold cables (hell, why not platinum, or - cables made of out DIAMOND!), dip them in expensive chocolate, and do a rain dance and it's going to sound just the same as the $5 radio shack ones.

If you claim to be a music lover, then indulge your money in good music!

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Update: in fairness, I should say that monster makes decent quality cables. Good materials, sturdy construction. What really irks me is seeing them ridiculously overpriced, and seeing people buy them unwittingly. Radio Shack makes generally cheap crap, everybody knows, but for simple items like RCA cables, they *usually* get the job done.

That being said, for the best quality (2-pin, remember) cables, I usually buy HOSA or a similar brand from music instrument stores. Search this in Amazon:
HOSA STEREO 3.5mm (M) - TWO RCA, 10 ft.

This company makes very high quality cables at a reasonable price. If you don't want to wait for the mail, you can get them at Guitar center, sam ash, etc etc. Hosa is a pro company that makes consumer equipment. I used them when I was throwing raves in my warehouse with linked stereo systems. Monster is a company built around the consumer market. Go look at their websites.

Hosa = Toyota corolla
Monster = Toyota corolla, w/ a bad tint job and loud muffler, (stock engine) and 5X the cost.

So get out there, buy your hosa's and paint them white..

This cable is a complete ripoff thats just trying to take advantage of ipod buyers. Monster offers a top of the line cable in conjunction with THX that has all of the features of this model (shielding, balancing, gold connectors, etc.) for a RETAIL price of 14.99. Amazon offers it for 12.99. The model number is THXIMINI8. Don't waste your money.

If you have a digital camera, it probably came with a cable for connecting the camera to your television. This "Y" cable can also be use to connect your iPod to your computer. The three-connector cable that came with your digital video camera will not work...

I highly recommend the THX cable that is 14.99+ tax. I own a AVR520(harman cardon receiver) I played ipod at about -35 decibels my entire house shook but not a hiss or distortion in the output, I am very particular about the quality of music output and THX won it hands down.

Normally, I find Monster Cables to be extremely overpriced and believe they're products that sell because of hype more than performance. In fact, I actually didn't purchase these cables but received them as a gift. After using them for about a year, I can happily say that these cables proved me wrong. I use these cable to connect my iPod to a stereo in my fitness room and they do their job admirably. Then again, it doesn't take much to make a decent audio cable. The connections are a little too tight initially, but after extended use, they manage to loosen up while still maintaining a good fit.

There is, however, one feature that many may overlook and that's the one aspect of this cable that makes it so great. The cable is sheathed in a plastic mesh that helps prevent knots and tangles. Since I often travel, I have a bag where I place all the cables I use for my laptop and other electronics that I use on trips. The sheath allows me to simply throw it in my bag and not worry about finding a tangled mess of cables when I later want to use them.

So to sum it all up, if you need cables and hate how easily they tangle, this is what you've been waiting for. A little pricey, but worth it in the long run. Also, check out the Monster iTV Link cables. Same design, but it includes an s-video connection along with the audio. Perfect for connecting a laptop to a TV or projector.

The other cables of this type from Monster have a huge connector which is square and bulky on the minijack end. They put alot of strain on the headphone port of the iPod. So I've always went with a lighter, cheaper cable. Until I found this 'iCable' as Monster calls it. This cable is a much better design and all the connections fit very snug. The black nylon "snakeskin" covering is very resistant to wear and tear, and very flexible and relaxed. I prefer it over the traditional poly/rubber coverings of the other models. A black nylon pouch with a velcro enclosure is also included. I can even fit my iPod (with case) in that pouch along with the cable, which comes in handy for bringing all your music over to a friends place. And the 7 foot length is more than enough, and quite a value for a cable of this quality and design, considering the relatively low price. Monster also makes a car charger (iCharger) for the iPod now, which is very well-designed and also highly recommended.

EDIT: After a few weeks, I'll add some comments. Mainly, these connectors are TIGHT. And the small size makes them sometimes difficult to remove. In several cases I've had to pull on the cable itself. Monster Cable does have a lifetime warranty, so you can go into any store that carries it and swap it out. Something to keep in mind, nevertheless.

It's an f-ing stereo-1/8"-to-2-RCA-jacks cable, for gosh sakes! Just like the ones you get for free along with the purchase of any portable CD or minidisc player, except this one costs $30! Wow, what a great deal! Now everyone will know that I'm a serious audiophile because I can justify spending $30 on a $5 cable!

Monster Cables are good, but not *that* good. They've proved the theory that if you charge an outrageous price for a product, people will automatically assume that it's worth it. Don't believe the hype. Save your money. If you've got a need to spend, do something worthwile like sponsoring a starving African child.

the first is that analog audio quality is not going to diminish over 7 feet of cable so there's no reason to buy premium quality cable. the second and more frustrating reason is that using the headphone line out to connect to a home stereo will result in terrible sound no matter what freakin cable you use. that is high level audio (amplified to drive headphone speakers) that then gets amplified again by your stereo. the result is clipped high-end and muddy bass. the reviewers that clain "pristine sound" and the like are either half deaf or monster employees. get an ipod dock connector to rca. it will send low level audio to your receiver and give much better sound.Cables To Go 35507 - iPod Dock Connector To 2 RCA Cable

Regarding all the reviews that state you can buy the same thing for $5.99, yes.. you can buy an RCA to mini adaptor for that price, but you WILL NOT get the same sound. If you need this sort of adaptor purely to make your portable device play throught your stereo, and don't care about a bit of degraded sound quality, then do look around for the cheaper cables. You can get them just about anywhere. But...

I was skeptical about whether the Monster cables really made a difference, so I made sure to buy this somewhere where I could return it once the package was already open. I already had a cheap cable, so I tested the two with the same song on my iPod. It made a very distinct difference: less hiss and buzz, bigger bass, cripser, clearer high notes. I kept the cable. There was no question about it.

It all depends on if better sound is worth the money to you. I wouldn't bother if you haven't invested in higher quality speakers and stereos, but if this is for your mid to high end stereo, you should have these cables.

Monster also offers other cables in their "Interlink" line that serve the same purpose-- two grades. I haven't heard them, so I really can't say, but I imagine the sound quality is just as good if not better. You can get a 10' for about five bucks less than this cable, and a 20' for about 10 bucks more. I believe this is for the lower grade cable of the two. But the iCable is more attractive, and is only 7' -- these others were too long for me.