Speaker Wire Cont'd

[Tony T]

Furthermore, why is side by side strand speaker wire (12/2, 14/2 or whatever) either copper/copper, copper/silver or silver/silver? I've never understood this. It seems to me copper/copper, side by side, dual strand would be the logical choice. Copper is in fact, a great conductor.

 

Upon close observation, my 78' Khorns internal wires are seemingly a 14 gauge or perhaps 16 gauge. The smaller gauge makes sense due to the short distance. What's even more interesting to me is the pairing of wires coming off the AA Board going to the 3 different destinations are;

Woofer = silver/silver

K-55-V = silver/silver

K-77 = silver/silver

All speaker destinations (entering the individual speakers) are obviously coated with a slick silver metallic type material. Looks as if they may have been dipped into a silver solder?

 

The same can be said for my 89' LaScala's. The AL-3 boards have the same gauge wires and again, all internal crossover boards & internal speaker destinations are silver/silver wire. 

This would leave a person to guess that silver/silver paired speaker wire is in fact, the logical choice. Still, I technically do not know what the correct answer would be.

 

Anyone???

 

Thanks again, Tony

[pzannucci]

Is it silver or is it tinned?  That's the key.  Silver or Silver plated wire is not cheap and would doubt it is factory.

 

Many people think silver / silver plated wire is too peaky in the highs though silver is a much better conductor than copper.

[Deang]

It’s not silver, it’s tin annealed stranded copper. 

 

Didn’t we just cover all of this?

[pzannucci]

So I suppose these are stock?

[Tony T]

Well no, I don't think we've covered this yet. After reading my post again, I'm thinking I didn't make myself clear enough. My fault.

 

When looking closely at speaker wires, there are 3 distinct variations. The two wires (paired together) are both copper or, the two wires are copper and silver OR, the wires are both (once again paired together) silver in color. I've always been curious why there are 3 separate variations. There's bound to be a logical reason behind this. No matter where I look for an answer, I cannot find one. I was hoping someone with greater understanding could shed light on the subject.

 

Thank you

[pzannucci]

3 hours ago, Tony T said:

Well no, I don't think we've covered this yet. After reading my post again, I'm thinking I didn't make myself clear enough. My fault.

 

When looking closely at speaker wires, there are 3 distinct variations. The two wires (paired together) are both copper or, the two wires are copper and silver OR, the wires are both (once again paired together) silver in color. I've always been curious why there are 3 separate variations. There's bound to be a logical reason behind this. No matter where I look for an answer, I cannot find one. I was hoping someone with greater understanding could shed light on the subject.

 

Thank you

Are these stock?

 

[Tony T]

Not sure what you're asking Peter.

My speakers (78' Khorns/89' Lascala's) are stock, yes. Regarding wire well, I haven't gotten that far yet. Anxious to hook them up properly but wanting to feel certain of which wire to purchase. There're many brands of 12 G wire out there! I already know it's going to be 12 gauge. Just don't feel educated enough to make a wise choice yet. I want the best long term speaker wire.

 

[JohnA]

Some wire makers will tin one copper conductor to make phasing the speakers easier.  Others will mold a ridge into the insulation of one side, for the same reason.  I think that is what you are asking. 

[pzannucci]

2 hours ago, Tony T said:

Not sure what you're asking Peter.

My speakers (78' Khorns/89' Lascala's) are stock, yes. Regarding wire well, I haven't gotten that far yet. Anxious to hook them up properly but wanting to feel certain of which wire to purchase. There're many brands of 12 G wire out there! I already know it's going to be 12 gauge. Just don't feel educated enough to make a wise choice yet. I want the best long term speaker wire.

 

The reason I asked about stock (if you owned them since new to be sure) was I had not see multiples of wire on Khorns or LaScalas, unless I didn't look that hard and I've had 6 pairs.

[Tony T]

No, I'm not referring to the actual speakers as much as speaker wires to facilitate the speakers themselves. From the amps to the speakers.

[Tony T]

2 hours ago, JohnA said:

Some wire makers will tin one copper conductor to make phasing the speakers easier.  Others will mold a ridge into the insulation of one side, for the same reason.  I think that is what you are asking. 

Not quite. I'm wondering why the variations in 12 gauge strand wires themselves. Looking at speaker wires (staring at the end of a speaker wire) they're copper copper, copper silver, or silver silver in their given pairs. Still wondering why this is the case. There must be a logical reason behind this.

[Deang]

No, it’s just some manufacturer’s preferred method of construction. I’m sure there is some marketing b.s. that explains why they do it. 

 

It reduces the effect of magnetism from electrical discharges in the ionosphere. 

[DizRotus]

Would it be possible to post some photos of the three variations of wire you reference?  Also, photos of the networks, if the wires you’re referencing are connected to the networks, would be useful.  From your posts, it’s not clear to me whether you’re talking about wires going to individual drivers, or something else.

 

Furthermore, why does this thread begin with “Furthermore?”  Is this thread a continuation of another thread?  If so, please point me to that thread.

[pzannucci]

2 hours ago, DizRotus said:

Would it be possible to post some photos of the three variations of wire you reference?  Also, photos of the networks, if the wires you’re referencing are connected to the networks, would be useful.  From your posts, it’s not clear to me whether you’re talking about wires going to individual drivers, or something else.

 

Furthermore, why does this thread begin with “furthermore?”  Is this thread a continuation of another thread?  If so, please point me to that thread.

Very true unless you just want an understanding of what the different wire types are for wiring a speaker to the amp.  Not very clear

 

17 hours ago, Tony T said:

Well no, I don't think we've covered this yet. After reading my post again, I'm thinking I didn't make myself clear enough. My fault.

 

When looking closely at speaker wires, there are 3 distinct variations. The two wires (paired together) are both copper or, the two wires are copper and silver OR, the wires are both (once again paired together) silver in color. I've always been curious why there are 3 separate variations. There's bound to be a logical reason behind this. No matter where I look for an answer, I cannot find one. I was hoping someone with greater understanding could shed light on the subject.

 

Thank you

It may come down to what was on the shelf at the time.  Likely nothing more for internal wiring.  For wires to the actual speakers, the amp connections, all manufacturer's have their own recipe with different colors, tinned, silver coated, different twists, etc.