Should I Ditch the Radio Shack Interconnects? Also, Methods of Wire Management/Clean Up.

[meagain]

I have a 6.5 foot Radio Shack gold something interconnect running from my one VRD mono to the Peach. The other VRD has a 2 ?? foot. I realize uneven lengths might not be a good thing, but should I be thinking about upgrading sooner rather than later? I've no clue if I'm missing out on something. I replaced the Radio shack ICs between Jolida CDP and Peach with AudioQuest Ruby that I got along with a speaker purchase. These are 4 feet?

Am I correct in assuming the preamp to amp ICs might be more critical than CDP to pre? And, I have video gear in this area. Don't all audio IC's have protection against interference? I do have a tad bit of hum and need to clean everything up so I'm curious as to what people are doing to deal with their mass of wireing - at least to make it look better?

[Allan Songer]

Here you go:

http://www.upscaleaudio.com/Nordost-Valhalla_p_70-355.html

[meagain]

For that price, I'd expect something other than battleship grey!

[Parrot]

Meagain,

Allan's recommendation is spot on. If you use interconnects less than $1900 each, you're not getting the best out of your equipment.

[Coytee]

And the battleship gray will go very nicely with the plug ugly black, should you later, get some Jubilees!

[Parrot]

If Lisa ever bought Jubilees, they'd be white before you could say Sherwin-Williams.

[BigBadBabyBoomer]

Are ya'll really still using those old-tech (lotek[8-)]) $1900 ICs?

[smilin]

I use the Nanotec 201 wire from poon, on audiogon......he will deal too. I really like this wire, Steve, from SOS audio, who sold his Kondo cable, and is also the importer for Kondo, Mactone, et....sold me on these.[]

[Gilbert]

Meagain,

Allan's recommendation is spot on. If you use interconnects less than $1900 each, you're not getting the best out of your equipment.

[:|]

[Coytee]

I think the Beldon wire I'm using cost me something under $3.00/foot?

I guess I need to go to the back of the class.

[BigBadBabyBoomer]

The first day home I wired up the ol'Klipsch Belles with a couple of extension cords....which I aim to replace one day when I find a friendly sort to help me move them out so I can access the wiring board.

Is there any chance of those old extension cords (brown two-strand from Ace Hardware) damaging either the speakers or the amp? Not really worried about the amp so much as it is an old Onyko 508 that came with the speakers but the speakers themselves have become like children....I've even named them... "Abra" and "Kadabra"....is that wrong?

[Mallette]

One of the things that peeves many of our hornhead brethren of a more esoteric bent is that PWK pretty much felt wires is wires. From the little bit of time I spent with him and all of the works of his that I've read, I must conclude he was mostly scientist. I rather suspect he'd have suggested your interconnects were just fine as long as they conducted electricity. Nonetheless, it may be that some sacrifice of coppers until you feel pain may in some way enhance your listening experience and decrease guilt.

Granted, it's a good thing that PWK was a scientist on the speaker side, where it really counts. Scientists on the other side brought us amps with unmeasurable everything, including listening satisfaction.

Dave

[Guest " "]

folks, interconnects and speaker wire are not interchangable.....in response to the interconnect question....there's seems to be a lot of opinions about speaker wire....you can't use speaker wire as an interconnecting cable.

meagain

"Don't all audio IC's have protection against interference?"

Cables have different grades of shielding.

The common free interconnects that are red and white have shielding that you can see thru.

Middle of the road cables will have tighter wound shielding, often with multiple layers.

Upper end cables will have the tighter wound shielding, multiple layers, as well as foil wrap in between.

Another twist to all this is the source.....hum from adjacent power cords.....there are power cords that are shielded and have varying layers of foil.

Keep in mind that cable needs for video, line level audio, ditigal audio are different.  Both the conductors are different (solid vs stranded), the insulators are different (simple plastic jacket to special low capacitance polymers), and the complexity of shielding needs (loose braid, multi-layer tight braids, foil wraps).

Now the above is not even touching the subject of cooper vs silver coated, gold plated connections vs standard ones, etc.

 

[JBryan]

The first day home I wired up the ol'Klipsch Belles with a couple of extension cords....which I aim to replace one day when I find a friendly sort to help me move them out so I can access the wiring board.

 Is there any chance of those old extension cords (brown two-strand from Ace Hardware) damaging either the speakers or the amp? Not really worried about the amp so much as it is an old Onyko 508 that came with the speakers but the speakers themselves have become like children....I've even named them... "Abra" and "Kadabra"....is that wrong?

Keith,

Unless your cords are bare in spots and there's the possibility of a short, they won't cause any damage to your speakers. You may want to replace them if they are terribly corroded as they will inhibit the signal a bit or you may just want to try another wire to listen for improvement. I've always liked Goertz Alpha Core wires because they have low impedance and work well with low-wattage amps and high efficiency speakers - and they are relatively cheap (<$200/8' pr).

I'm in Towson if you need some help moving your speakers around - where you at? I'm sure there's some psychological explanation for giving names to inanimate objects but I can't imagine its a harmful practice or symptomatic of a mental dysfunction - go for it. How about Ana(belle) and May(belle) or Jeza(belle) and Isa(belle)? How long have you had the Belles?

[JBryan]

I have a 6.5 foot Radio Shack gold something interconnect running from my one VRD mono to the Peach.  The other VRD has a 2 ?? foot.   I realize uneven lengths might not be a good thing, but should I be thinking about upgrading sooner rather than later?   I've no clue if I'm missing out on something.    I replaced the Radio shack ICs between Jolida CDP and Peach with AudioQuest Ruby that I got along with a speaker purchase.  These are 4 feet?

Am I correct in assuming the preamp to amp ICs might be more critical than CDP to pre?   And, I have video gear in this area.  Don't all audio IC's have protection against interference?   I do have a tad bit of hum and need to clean everything up so I'm curious as to what people are doing to deal with their mass of wiring - at least to make it look better? 

Well, to find out if you're missing out on something is one of the mainstays of this hobby and why some folks keep moving gear in and out of their system before the dust has a chance to settle. While I would suggest at the very least, having equal lengths of ICs and wire, PWK didn't think the lost nanoseconds and added resistance would even be noticeable - but that's just an opinion and doesn't make it so. Your system is a whole - there is no spot where you can put less emphasis and not weaken it but its up to you to determine where to compromise. Cables and wires are inherently neutral (some more so than others) and the type of material, resistance, impedance and shielding will impart some characteristic to the signal. I try to choose cables and wires that either have no influence on the signal (usually very $$$) or ones that "color" the sound in a way that appeals to me. Of course, its all relative and zip cord will do a fine job for most folks so it really comes down to how far you want to travel down that road. Have fun...

[meagain]

I never paid attention to it. I was playing around with DVD players, etc. and simply slapped them in while I was back there then forgot about it - then went on to deal with my DVD players's sound.. I'm sure if I thought about it, I wouldn't be able to tell. If a change isn't big, I can't tell most changes without a/b'ing. I find it unfathomable that people can for instance, remember how one cymbal crashes in a song, change things around for a relisten - and remember every single aspect of that cymbal crash. And I can't imagine 2 speakers in separate corners sound the same anyway. mine don't.

But I would think the IC's between preamp and amps would be more critical than CDP to preamp. Just my guess but I'm hearing not? I've only had the Radio Shacks between Peach and VRDs.

[meagain]

Right, IDK but I think I could probably do better than $19 ICs with the level of gear I have. I DID hear a difference with speakerwire here. Traditional Monster, lamp cord, grey Home Depot stuff. We're now using the Monster now which I have problems with as well if only in the looks department. I don't recall if we bought it new or it's from a pile from the 80's 90's.

[Strabo]

But I would think the IC's between preamp and amps would be more critical than CDP to preamp.

Here is why I agree with that.

The signal coming out of your preamp will be a fraction of the signal coming out of your CD player, therefore, anything that the preamp wire happens to pick up (RFI or whatever) will be a higher ratio of noise versus signal compared the CD players output.

But, from a long time installation guy I know, in his opinion which seems to make sense, make the speaker cables as thick and as short as possible for the lowest capacitance and resistance (remember, capacitance combined with resistance is a filter). This means that the amp(s) should be as close to the speakers as possible (less than a couple feet). The trade off is longer interconnects between the amp and preamp which we see above is the weakest and most vulnerable signal.

If you follow both of the previous points then the connection from CD player to pre is the last one to worry about because it is relatively short with a relatively strong signal.

[gonzp]

  Lisa,

     Audio Karma has got several interconnect cables up for audition.  All you have to do is put your name on the list, recieve the cables, audition, write up a review and ship them on to the next person on the list at your expense.  Pretty good way to listen without purchasing.  

 

[Audible Nectar]

I have also been walking the cable walk some of late (especially since my Mac system has been completely updated internally and well broken in), and am finding out that for these ears, IC cables are NOT created equal.

I used to take the approach that cables were pretty much cables. I believe that prior opinion was due to the system not being sufficiently resolute to hear those differences. Now that my system is more resolute, the differences in cabling shows up more.

I have used basic cables such as Radio Shack and Blue Jean cables, and compared those to cables like the Alpha Core Goertz Silver Sapphire, and my personal favorites so far, a solid copper core cable hand built by my "tube guru" audiophile friend here in my local area. The lower cost cables (like the RS and BJ cables) tend to have a little more "edge rasp" than the higher end offerings do. I also find that silver formulas tend to have a little more "thin/lean yet focused" sound to them, and a little less bottom "heft" in the bass, while the coppers tend to be fuller and more "meaty" sounding. The better cables (both silver and copper) have smoother, more liquid response than the low cost offerings do.

I wouldn't worry TOO much about cables, however, until the rest of the system is where you want it to be. Get your crossovers, components, and tubes in line and where you want them before losing too much sleep over the cabling. If there are issues in your system that you are trying to fix (like deciding what crossovers suit you, for example), cables aren't going to help that much. I would save the cable issue until there isn't much else to do. Cables are more the "seasoning" or finishing touch for your system, not much good worrying about them if you don't like the "meal" in the first place. So don't sweat this TOO much.

I am also of the opinion that once you do visit the cable issue to persue both the source to pre as well as the pre to amp......both cable positions will impart some changes to the system sonics.