Perhaps I did use too strong of language by saying "definitely," but afterall the boards were said to be "designed for a 3M extension" so using a cable that is pretty close to that should get similar performance. I'd hate to waste two crimp connectors on a zero length cable at $15+ a set. At this point I would have to guess there is something in the circuitry mixing up the signal in some way, but technically you are right about the zero length cable. After Patrick's filters come in I'll build up another board and see if I get the same results.

Stu