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Cable advice


Cleese74

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On 11/15/2019 at 3:56 PM, wuzzzer said:

Speaker wire?  Paul Klipsch used lamp cord.  If you don't want to use that, any 12 to 18 AWG wire that's 100% OFC. 

 

RCA interconnect?  Get something shielded. 

 

Lamp cord was being used when cars came with 78 series tires.  Nowadays, cars come with 50 or 60 series tires and they handle better.  People have also learned about speaker cables, and I'd recommend at least 14 gauge, with 12 gauge preferred, which will sound better.  This is better than the smaller 16-18 gauge lamp cord, which tends to weaken the dynamics of the music.  12 or 14 gauge speaker cable will allow the speakers to communicate better with the amplifier, and will minimize the reduction in the amp's damping factor.  Twisted pair configuration is helpful, but not essential.  Speaker cables can't improve the sound of speakers, but we can try to minimize how much they cut into the speakers' performance.

 

This 12 gauge cable by Knukonceptz is inexpensive, easy to work with, and will not corrode and turn green over time, due to the individual strands all being tinned.  It's in a twisted pair configuration, which rejects interference.  The SS in the description refers to the colours, Smoke and Silver.

 

http://www.knukonceptz.com/home-theater/speaker-wire/karma-ss-speaker-kable/sp/karma-ss-12-gauge-speaker-wire/

 

The smaller 14 gauge cable is nearly as good, and costs a little less:

 

http://www.knukonceptz.com/home-theater/speaker-wire/karma-ss-speaker-kable/sp/karma-ss-14-gauge-speaker-wire/

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Wow! 

 

I've used a few different speaker wires.  Currently running 11 ga equivalent braided Cat 5e across the front 3.  Not worth the trouble, but braided computer cable measures nearly perfect. 

 

Roger Russel of McIntosh has a web site that addresses speaker cable, among other things.  McIntosh makes amps and speakers, once.  Look up his site and follow his recommendations.  I would go up one wire size for a little overkill.

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I run my 12g zip cord supported by concrete floor stands from my amps to the Super MWM's or whatever is playing on any given day. I try not to allow them to loop over each other to much and have resisted the almost irresistable urge to cook them with an Audiogon Cable Cooker. I also find embedded floor grunge on the zip cord insulation reduces the propensity for magnetic field generation  and have proven to my satisfaction dirty zip cord produces better audio. I prefer to use my TIG torch for soldering and believe if a little solder is good more is better.

 

  On a serious note here I find cables to be fraught with all kinds of snake oil. Simple zip cord works fine for the engineer types I know and does so without severe money loss. I buy 12g Monoprice zip cord made for speakers by the 100' roll when on sale and eliminate any potential for to small a conductor over runs of up to 30'.

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On 11/18/2019 at 6:38 AM, Islander said:

 

Lamp cord was being used when cars came with 78 series tires.  Nowadays, cars come with 50 or 60 series tires and they handle better.  People have also learned about speaker cables, and I'd recommend at least 14 gauge, with 12 gauge preferred, which will sound better.  This is better than the smaller 16-18 gauge lamp cord, which tends to weaken the dynamics of the music.  12 or 14 gauge speaker cable will allow the speakers to communicate better with the amplifier, and will minimize the reduction in the amp's damping factor.  Twisted pair configuration is helpful, but not essential.  Speaker cables can't improve the sound of speakers, but we can try to minimize how much they cut into the speakers' performance.

 

This 12 gauge cable by Knukonceptz is inexpensive, easy to work with, and will not corrode and turn green over time, due to the individual strands all being tinned.  It's in a twisted pair configuration, which rejects interference.  The SS in the description refers to the colours, Smoke and Silver.

 

http://www.knukonceptz.com/home-theater/speaker-wire/karma-ss-speaker-kable/sp/karma-ss-12-gauge-speaker-wire/

 

The smaller 14 gauge cable is nearly as good, and costs a little less:

 

http://www.knukonceptz.com/home-theater/speaker-wire/karma-ss-speaker-kable/sp/karma-ss-14-gauge-speaker-wire/

 

Companies just lose me when they put things like this in their copy...

 

Notes – The black polarity stripe is also on the same side of the cable as the printed text. For the Kord speaker wire, this should be used as the negative connection.

 

It's in a side by side configuration... wtf...

 

Their prices aren't bad, though.

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On 11/18/2019 at 5:38 AM, Islander said:

 

Lamp cord was being used when cars came with 78 series tires.  Nowadays, cars come with 50 or 60 series tires and they handle better.  People have also learned about speaker cables, and I'd recommend at least 14 gauge, with 12 gauge preferred, which will sound better.  This is better than the smaller 16-18 gauge lamp cord, which tends to weaken the dynamics of the music.  12 or 14 gauge speaker cable will allow the speakers to communicate better with the amplifier, and will minimize the reduction in the amp's damping factor.  Twisted pair configuration is helpful, but not essential.  Speaker cables can't improve the sound of speakers, but we can try to minimize how much they cut into the speakers' performance.

 

Yes, but has copper changed since cars came with 78 series tires?  Copper is copper.  It's been around for a little longer than you and I.

 

 

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7 hours ago, Kreg said:

I suggest a double run of Audio Note Lexus. It is great sounding copper litz speaker cable. A bit pricey and worth it. Just like putting quality wheels and tires on your ride.

 

No.  Not at all like wheels and tires.  Speaker wire has no air pressure, don't spin and have NONE of the components a wheel and tire set have.  You made a nonsense statement right out of Jabberwocky!

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15 hours ago, Dave A said:

On a serious note here I find cables to be fraught with all kinds of snake oil. Simple zip cord works fine for the engineer types I know and does so without severe money loss. I buy 12g Monoprice zip cord made for speakers by the 100' roll when on sale and eliminate any potential for to small a conductor over runs of up to 30'.

 

Amen.

 

By far the biggest contributor to whatever negative effects cables have is not the wire itself, but the connections at the ends of the wire. A poor connection has nonlinear resistance and, in some cases, even a little bit of diode effect.

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13 minutes ago, Edgar said:

 

Amen.

 

By far the biggest contributor to whatever negative effects cables have is not the wire itself, but the connections at the ends of the wire. A poor connection has nonlinear resistance and, in some cases, even a little bit of diode effect.

@Edgar agree 100% would be curious what folks are using for termination? Specifically for banana plugs  and spades.

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Everything what said above.

😁

I have been using as pure coper wire as I could find in my 2-way listening rig.

To this point, I have Knukonzeptz thicker wire as I could get. And they run fine.

On my other system I run VanDenHull cheepest cabel I could buy locally. It is just fine.

If I could advice anything beside that, it would be to experiment with your speakers placement and soundproofing of your listening room.

Those things might surprise you more tha speaker wires. 

Just my  2 cents.

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