Monday, October 8, 2012

Planet Waves Circuit Breaker Instrument Cable

Due to a sudden realization that I had a cable shortage around my home studio, I decided to have a look on the web for some replacements. I didn't want to buy just any cheap cable so I started pricing up some pretty premium stuff. My short list consisted of:

  • Mogami 
  • George L's 
  • Monster 
  • Planet Waves 

As I usually do, I first checked the various musical instrument-specific sites on the web. Then the thought occurred to me.....TRY AMAZON! So I did, and to my surprise there was an excellent selection including some brands I didn't expect to find on offer from the big 'A'. So my first search was for Mogami, which I have been hearing wonderful things about. If you're familiar with this brand you know that you will be shelling out some MAJOR cash for their products. However, for what they deliver and what you're investing in(your sound, which is EVERYTHING!) it's not exactly impractical. Amazon offered a Mogami Gold cable in the length I was looking for(25 ft.) for $59.99, slightly less than what I would have paid at Guitar Center. I felt that if I could avoid paying this much for a cable at this time I would.
Click To Order From Amazon!
Then I decided to check out Planet Waves. I've owned Planet Waves cables in the past and they never disappointed me. I'd been hearing a little buzz about the Circuit Breaker line so I searched for one. Turns out they had one for sale for $25.51; a whopping $15 less than GC's price. Into my Shopping Cart went the Planet Waves cable on a Friday and the following Monday it was at my doorstep. Stellar delivery time on the part of Amazon(and the USPS!) considering it was standard shipping! As I removed the cable from it's packaging, I noticed that it felt like a very high quality piece of gear. The ends are quite sturdy and have a somewhat elegant look about them. I won't get into too many specs, but what I can say is the build quality of this thing is incredible. The cable is a touch on the thin side compared to the Custom series, but other than that no worries. For the moment of truth, I plugged the straight end into my audio interface and the right angle side into my bass. The right angle end houses the switch that terminates signal to the cable and allows you to quickly unplug/replug for instrument changes or to otherwise conserve battery in active instruments. When I fired up the sound, I was greeted with a pure, clean signal for exceeding what I was getting from the cables I had been using previously. Color me happy!

My one gripe is that I did notice this cable tends to coil up around itself a little easily. Not too big a deal, as I'm sure with use this problem will be minimized. Cables are probably not terribly high on the priority list of many musicians. We're too busy worrying about instruments and amps to be concerned with a cable. But truthfully, a good cable can make or break you. The last thing you want is for a cable to fail on you right in the middle of a gig. Trust me, I KNOW!

I give this cable a very solid 4 out of 5. I'll possibly check out some of the other manufacturers I listed at a later date; but for now Planet Waves has given me what I needed and then some. If you're looking to give one of these a whirl then I highly suggest checking out Amazon. They deliver promptly and they have an awesome selection. You can view more information on the Planet Waves Circuit Breaker cable here: http://emerchantxchange.us/goshop/a/B0002GMGUY