Magnet Wire as Speaker Cable and Interconnects

[jnorv]

Actually the CB is part of the dielectric, since it separates the wire. However, the density is so low (about 5% of the solid value) that it is mostly air. I only used the 24 Ga. I did buy some 24 Ga silver but never got around to putting it together. Maybe this winter. There are lenghty threads at the AA web site (cables). There is also Chris's web site .

JIm N

[Deang]

Could I please have the link the Chris' site? I see him referenced often at the Asylum, but don't know the link.

[jnorv]

I tried sticking it in with "" tags but it did not work. One of his sites is http://www.venhaus1.com/diysilverinterconnects.html

Jim N

[mike stehr]

You can take Teflon packing tape, and run each strand of mag wire distanced equal running parallel down the length of the tape, then carefully put another strip of tape over the top of that, then terminate with jacks.

It's a cheesy and quick cheap way to check out mag wire interconnects.

They are delicate and flimsy.

[cornwaller]

Dean,

Just look what you started!! Before this thread got so long I was going to float the notion that "wire is wire as long as it's copper". Just for the controversy, you understand.

"thats my story and I'm stickin' to it"

Cornwaller

[Deang]

Hey, I know you...you're in the choir!

[cornwaller]

Dean,

Yes, I was in the choir--lead tenor; and I was never violated then...but I feel as though I'm beeing violated now.

Please stop it sommore...it hurts so good!

"thats my story and I'm stickin' to it"

Cornwaller

[Effster]

I agree with kelly,,those monster IC are garbage.And yes,,solid core still seems to sound the best so far.Try some Tice-Audio cables like I did.You will never go back to monsters again.

[Pland]

Gents,

Bottlehead interconnect kits are twisted long crystal cast magnet wire,and are very good.Detailed,and slightly on the warm side.

I'm using single strand .015 99.9 litz silver from Myron Taback,insulated with tool handle dip,enclosed in flexible tubing,Cardas RCA's.This seems waaaay too thin,but sounds incredible(cheap,too).

At one of our Bottlehead meetings a couple of years ago,this combo was a clear winner over Nordost,Bottlehead,AN red,and a bunch of others I don't remember.One meter is optimal,and assuming no weird capacitance issues with your preamp,a real winner.Airy,sparkling,but not overly bright like some silver.

Best,

Pat

[Deang]

Pat, is there a link for these somewhere?

[mobile homeless]

Bottlehead cable

[cornwaller]

As I understand, the perfect combination for IC's is maximum conductivity (lowest resistance) and ample band-width. But there are trade-offs, anything that does this also makes a good anntena--subject to all of those unwanted electro magnetic fields caused by wiring in the walls, computers, TV's, etc. This is where the dialectric comes in, right? Well if this is the case; what is the best shielding material?

Cornwaller

[Deang]

An inch of lead and 4 inches of concrete

The dielectric doesnt serve as "shielding" per se --- but is simply a non-conductive material surrounding the conductor as an insulator. The 'best' dielectric is supposed to be Teflon foam (according to Jon Risch), but there are others which serve up just as well according to others. Shielding is typically accomplished using foil and/or copper braid.

"A dielectric is material that does not conduct electricity readily, i.e., an insulator (see insulation). A good dielectric should also have other properties: It must resist breakdown under high voltages; it should not itself draw appreciable power from the circuit; it must have reasonable physical stability; and none of its characteristics should vary much over a fairly wide temperature range. One important application of dielectrics is as the material separating the plates of a capacitor. A capacitor with plates of a given area will vary in its ability to store electric charge depending on the material separating the plates. On the basis of this variation each insulating material can be assigned a dielectric constant. Generally, the dielectric constant of air is defined as 1 and other dielectric constants are determined with reference to it. Other properties of interest in a dielectric are dielectric strength, a measure of the maximum voltage it can sustain without significant conduction, and the degree to which it is free from power losses."

A problem not usually addressed by the majority of interconnects is the following:

"The impedance of a coaxial cable is, in large part, determined by the cable's geometry and the material from which the center insulator is made. The dimension between the center conductor and the shield of the cable, as well as the diameter of the center conductor, all influence the cable's capabilities. During installation, as interconnect cables are bent, the internal segments (conductors, shields, insulators, etc.) must shift independently to allow easy movement. If the various layers of the cable do not slide easily over each other the dimensions between the layers can be altered which changes the impedance. Impedance changes affect the cable's ability to accurately conduct signals and cause negative effects on the cable/component interface."

I did some research on this, and also talked to a friend at work who used to work for a cable company in Maryland. Gene has an engineering backround, and told me this is true, but that solutions to the problem are expensive to implement.

[mobile homeless]

Hey Dean-O, is that your mop over there to the left? I can barely make it out on my 21" screen at 1280x1024 - It looks like a combination of a 90s version of Jim Morrison mated with a midwest rocker! You almost look handsome! I was getting ready to ask you on a date but remembered I was married...

kh

ps- cable is another thing that must be auditioned and tried in your system. Sometimes simple is better...sometimes the complex can do nice things. Blanket statements will be your downfall in this area, as something you say will more than likely be contradicted at a later date. Then again, Dean-O knows a bit about this, too! heh...

[cornwaller]

...and the 1 inch of lead and 4 inches of concrete could be poured into 6 inch pvc with a half inch of air space all around?? Cool. Termination could be accomplished with jumper cable ends or would this be overkill??

cornwaller

[Deang]

Kelly,

No doubt -- that's why I emphasized in one of the other posts that results are completely system dependant. I do think the more resolving the system is, the more sensitive to the small electrical variations in the cables it will be.

Good cables should be based on solid engineering principles and science however -- and not the tripe most cable manufacturers throw at us.

[cornwaller]

Dean,

That "exploded" view looks like quite the deal and is right on for answereing my question--thanks. Not only outside shielding but inner as well--plus the aluminum/mylar wrap??

Man, the only ingredients I don't see are teflon and the kitchen sink! What the h-e-double-hockey-sticks does this stuff cost?

Cornwaller

[mobile homeless]

Indeed. BTW, one of my favorite cable I heard years ago was the Purist Audio Designs (PAD) water cable, more specifically the Maximus (both IC and speaker). This was some of the most harmonically correct, natural sounding cable I had ever heard based on pathetic memory and the feeling/experience at the time. It used an oil subtance inbetween the sealed copper and the outer jacket. At the time, it was way over my head price wise but it sounded amazing with the first SET amps I ever heard, this back in 89-90. I always wondered how the PAD water cable would do over time, however. I'd like to hear some of their options again compared to the cables I have had on hand since.

For those interested in trying a plethora of cable to compare, head over the The Cable Company/UltraSystems (fatwyre.com). You can audition cables to your hearts content and send them back, with 15% of the cable price going to your final order. I have used it several times in the past and they are EXCELLENT to deal with. If feeling under cable woes, it's a great option to see what works and what doesnt. Price is not an indicator either, btw.

kh

ps- Having a high resolution system, set up optimally makes a HUGE deal in uncovering subtle differences in cable. Still, I have had cable make HUGE differences as we talked about in the past. The Risch inspired Twisted Cross Connect using the Belden worked VERY nicely with my SET displacing all the others at the time handily. It was akin to changing a major component compared to the Homebrew 18awg Solid Core RS/and or Magnet 22.

[Chris Robinson]

So Dean, is that REALLY you there? I kind of did the Jim Morrison double-take as well.

Envy and jealousy are dark emotions ... I wish I had the hair

[cornwaller]

Plethora is an understatement!! I wonder what the boys at NASA use in their systems? They seem to be on the leading edge of just about everything. Speaking of NASA they have developed a substance called "Airgel" that is almost all air. A 4 inch cube can be seen through. They use it to capture (slow down) 5 micron particles of space dust traveling thousands of mph. Just think someday we'll be exhalting the great insulating properties of this stuff!

Cornwaller