Porsche Posted January 15, 2002 Share Posted January 15, 2002 My existing speaker wire, I just found out, (I'm a newbie at all of this, and I'm learning!) is 16 gauge Acoustic Research "Home Theater Pro Series - High Performance Flat Speaker Cable." It's a 2 conductor flat speaker cable with a lifetime warranty. Now, I've been introduced to Monster Cable (I just went out today and bought GOLD-PLATED Banana Plugs and MONSTER CABLE VIDEO 3 COMPONENT VIDEO at $189!) thanks to you Klipschians, should I drop down to 12 G speaker wire, and go with Monster Cable? Or do other brands suffice as well, including Acoustic Research? I understand that my RF-3's (FRONTS) should be 12G? My RC-3 (CENTER) should be 12G? And my RS-3 (REAR/SURROUNDS) should be 14G? Should I scrap my 16G Acoustic Research and go for something a little more robust, or will this do a great job? Thanks! Porsche ------------------ Onkyo TX-DS575X( Receiver Sony DVPS 560D DVD Player Klipsch RF-3 Klipsch RS-3 Klipsch RC-3 Klipsch KSW-12 Subwoofer Sony 32" WEGA TV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdm56 Posted January 16, 2002 Share Posted January 16, 2002 Personally, as far as sound quality, I think wire pretty much is wire. As long as your runs aren't too long, 16ga should be fine. I use 12ga all around in my music rig, but the runs to my surrounds are about thirty feet long. The runs to the l and r fronts are around 12 feet. Too light a wire run too long can result in some high freq. roll-off, but 16ga should be fine for runs under 10-12 ft. ------------------ JDMcCall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuckears Posted January 16, 2002 Share Posted January 16, 2002 In my experience, and from reading many comments from those from the different strata of audiophilia, the difference made by cables and interconnects is mostly dependant upon the caliber (high-endedness?) of the equipment you are connecting. My first receiver, an Akai 30-watt AAR22 (still using it as a tuner) is not going to allow for a revealing interpretation of your source material... my McCormack amp and preamp, however, saw amazing (to me) differences between various cables. I don't think I would settle for anything less than 12-guage for my mains and center... as for the surrounds, I have no direct experience, but I should think 12-14 guage should be fine. ------------------ Klipsch Fortes, Oiled Oak McCormack DNA-1 Power Amp McCormack TLC Pre-Amp Adcom GCD-700 CD Player NHT SA3 Subwoofer Amp Hsu TN1220 Subwoofer Old Akai cassette Deck Akai AAR22 used as tuner Nordost Solar Wind interconnects Kimber 4TC Speaker Cable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boa12 Posted January 16, 2002 Share Posted January 16, 2002 w/ the same given cable quality, 16ga even up to 50ft should be fine even w/ the highest end stuff & most keen hearing. jmo ------------------ My Home Systems Page This message has been edited by boa12 on 01-17-2002 at 03:09 AM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lindsey Posted January 16, 2002 Share Posted January 16, 2002 I gotta go with boa on this one. I am using 12ga for fronts and center but am using 16ga (home depot in-wall variety at 35 ft each) for my surrounds (Chorus I's) and they sound fantastic. I actually have the channel settings of the rear surrounds set at a lower volume (-11) than my mains (-10). Which leads me to another question... When I had my speakers reversed (Chorus I's up front and Chorus II's in the rear), I had the I's set at -12 and the II's set at -6 (dialed in at 75db), thinking this was because of the 16ga wire and the fact that the runs were 35' long. Now that I have the II's up front and I's in the rear, my settings are -10 and -11 respectively. Both speakers are rated at 101db @ 1w/1m. Why does it seem my Chorus I's are more efficient than my II's? Thanks, Mike ------------------ My Music Systems Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cc1091 Posted January 17, 2002 Share Posted January 17, 2002 My local Hi-Fi shop loaned me my first set of MIT Terminator2s with the promise that after 30 days, if I didn't want to buy them, they would take them back at no expense to me. I loved them. I wanted to buy them even at the shop's price of $575.00, but found some on the internet for a lot less. I found the same model for $185.00, and the Bi-Wire model for $212.00. MUUUUUCH better (though still expensive). I felt that they really did make the speakers and amplifier sound at least three times better, so paying two bills for them was easy to justify. Not sure what the real gague of these are since most of the length of the cable is about 3/4" in diameter (I don't imagine that this is all wire). The leads at each end must be at least 12 ga wire though. Bottom line is, "If you can't hear the difference, don't pay for it." I didn't think I would hear a difference when I accepted the shop's offer, fortunately the HiFi store was generous to me. I will buy something there someday to repay my debt to them (maaan that VTL system they had playing with B&W 802s the other day was smoooth, sweet AND cost as much as my car when it was new..maybe next lottery ticket). This message has been edited by cc1091 on 01-17-2002 at 01:08 AM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Garrison Posted January 17, 2002 Share Posted January 17, 2002 Porsche, My experience has been that some people hear differences in cables, others don't. I have no idea why. I also find that people who DO hear differences in cables, will hear differences between ANY two pairs of cables. I am one of these people. I'd suggest going to a hardware store, or home depot, and buying enough feet of ANY wire to hook up your system. Pick something with a large enough gauge, depending on length, so resistance won't be a factor. If you stick with 12 gauge, you ought to be okay. If you pick up some cheap, 12 gauge wire, hook it up, and don't hear much or any real difference, I'd save the money and forget about messing around with more expensive cables - you probably won't hear any difference. If you hook up different wire and DO hear a difference, well, my symphathy. You are now about to embark on a lifelong process of "...gee, I wonder if there's anything better I could be using...". This is where a good dealer comes in handy - they let you take stuff home and try it out before you're committed to keeping it. I hear differences with EVERY SINGLE DAMN WIRE I TRY, and sometimes those differences are the opposite of what you'd expect (ie, bring home the cool expensive high end specialty wire, and it sounds WORSE than the stuff I'd been using...) Ray ------------------ Music is art Audio is engineering Ray's Music System Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted January 17, 2002 Share Posted January 17, 2002 The Cable Company is a great way to audition cables. I quote from the site - http://www.fatwyre.com/: "Customers can borrow cable samples from over 60 cable manufacturers for evaluation where it counts, in your own system. We ask you for your feedback on what cables worked for you, and we track this information in our cable-matching database. This way we can tell you what cables other audiophiles with the same components have found to work best for them. We are unique because we carry almost every cable. We are an unbiased source for good advice. A US customer(more information for International Customers is available) may borrow a group of cables from The Cable Library for a period of approximately 2 weeks. Given shipping times this should leave the cables actually in the consumer's hands for trial for approximately 7 to 10 days. A deposit equal to 10% of the selling price (minimum $50.00) of the borrowed cables will be charged to the consumer's credit card when the arrangements for the initial cable loan are made. This deposit is not refundable, but will be applied in full against purchases (cable or non-cable products) from The Cable Company or our Ultra Systems affiliate. After the initial home trial, subsequent trials will incur a 5% deposit. f>s>I have used this service several times over the last 10 years or so to audition various cable combinations within my systems. It has been a great service and I only have positive things to say about them. Of course, right now, I am VERY happy with my current cable choice as it seems to perform a synergistic match with my tube gear and Cornwall I. kh ------------------ Phono Linn LP-12 Vahalla / Linn Basic Plus / Sumiko Blue Point CD Player Rega Planet Preamp Cary Audio SLP-70 w/Phono Modified Amplifier Welborne Labs 2A3 Moondog Monoblocks Cable DIYCable Superlative / Twisted Cross Connect Speaker 1977 Klipsch Cornwall I w/Alnico & Type B Crossover system one online / alternate components / Asylum Listing f>s> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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