Where does this information come from?

[jneutron]

? Or, maybe , his goal, in 1991, when this paper was published, was not to test audibility of differences directly, but rather to provide some much-needed hard data about cable/system interactions

I am confident you are correct in that.

Do you believe there's a parameter yet unknown or unmeasured in speaker cables, that would account for 'soundstage development thingy' differences heard between cables?

Yes. The generation of a soundstage requires ITD and IID information. IID is what Davis speaks on. Nowhere is there anything about ITD. ITD is probably the most important parameter for localization of sound..and yet, it isn't covered.

And hovering above all this is, if cables really do tend to *sound* obviously different the way audiophiles, high-end magazines, and certain manufacterers claim, why has it proven so difficult to verify in bias-controlled tests?

If a different set of cables truly changed the ITD content, then how long does it take for the human mind to re-aquire the imaging construct? If it takes several days for the mind to re-adjust to the different ITD configuration, then fast switching, consistent with standart DBT protocols, is useless.

Btw, I think Davis is still around....might be contactable for answering questions.

I would be more inclined to discuss this with him after I have developed an ITD/IID sensitivity model...otherwise, I'd be just handwaving...

Cheers, John