George L’s 20-Foot Pre-Made Guitar Cable – $58
PROS: great sound, good construction.
CONS: none.
It’s not uncommon to see a player with a really expensive instrument, and a super high-end amplifier. It’s also not uncommon to see all that cool gear connected with junky cables. George L’s have been making high-end guitar cables for decades and are worth the investment for any player.
We were lucky enough to get a prepackaged, 20-foot .225 instrument cable. The cable ends are the George L’s signature solderless jacks, held in place with a small set screw. A vinyl stress jacket keeps the ends from getting kinked and strengthens the ends at the same time. The cable jacket is smooth and non-tacky. If the standard black isn’t your thing, it’s also available in red, purple, blue and orange. Length wise, they are available in 10, 15 and 20-foot versions for longer runs, but with their solderless connections, it can be cut down to shorter lengths, if necessary.
Sound wise, it’s fantastic – plenty of clarity, and no noise even on a longer cable. George L’s have pretty much worked out the kinks on cable systems, and having a pre-packaged version is a great idea (as opposed to trying to cut cable to length and fashion your own). At $58, it’s not cheap, but good tone never is, and it can handle heavy use on stage. There are other cables out there, with all sorts of claims like titanium cables shielded by Unobtanium, made in a hermetically sealed chamber. But there’s a reason George L’s make a simple cable, because once it’s done right, why mess with it?