Advice request - My first hifi system - CABLES

[Bruce Morgen]

In the 'home theater' section of many big-box stores, you may see Copper Clad Aluminum loudspeaker cables.
Often with old major brand names.

It figures I wouldn't know that since I have neither visited such a store nor bought any new speaker wire for many a year.

 

[Steven Holt]

I'm tempted to tell you to go to a hardware store, buy lamp cord, strip the ends and wire it in. Instead, I'll just tell you that Blue Jeans Cable is hard to beat.

 

[Groove01]

Mogami or Canare bulk are solid and reasonable options. Easy to make your own for the specific length you need.

I like Mogami 3103 b/c it’s pretty cheap at ~$2/foot and is flexible.

 

[kemmler3D]

As others have mentioned, any decent copper cord will do. There isn't anything to optimize further as long as you have a remotely normal amp and speakers.

I used canare 4s just so I could make fancy looking cables, and I think anything beyond that is just out of control overkill.

 

[MatrixS2000]

Build your own fancy looking speaker cables. Use this wire, these wire pants, these connectors, some heat shrink and done.

 

[egellings]

Cables are cables, range from cheap zip cord to expensive exotics. For speaker cables, buy a decent diameter cable like AWG 14 or 16, well terminated. Anyways for this hobby, buy what makes you happy, even if they are exotics. No need to succumb to pressure to buy zip cord cables. (Flame suit on)

Pop-swoosh! Thrower ignited! Buy what you like once you can see past exotic claims for cables. If believing in a nonsense claim makes you feel better, and you have been informed about the claim's implausibility, then buy the thing and imagine that you enjoy it. So long as you don't lose faith in the cable later on, you'll be good to go.

 

[Pareto Pragmatic]

What everyone else said.... and I like mediabridge for price and feel.

 

[Premier]

Pop-swoosh! Thrower ignited! Buy what you like once you can see past exotic claims for cables. If believing in a nonsense claim makes you feel better, and you have been informed about the claim's implausibility, then buy the thing and imagine that you enjoy it. So long as you don't lose faith in the cable later on, you'll be good to go.

Giving the fact that very expensive cables are sold on the market, I just asked in order to understand if from a cheap or unshielded cable any noise can arise within the speaker.

 

[kemmler3D]

Giving the fact that very expensive cables are sold on the market, I just asked in order to understand if from a cheap or unshielded cable any noise can arise within the speaker.

The cable between speaker and amp carries a relatively high voltage, so at normal lengths, noise/interference is not a big concern.

For lower voltage signals (like between turntable and preamp or for microphones) noise is a bigger issue, but you only need a normal well-constructed cable to avoid most of it, expensive fancy cables are really never necessary or useful.

If you want to eliminate as much noise as you can, balanced cables (not expensive ones, just any XLR) work great because the circuit is designed to cancel noise that the cable picks up.

 

[Mikig]

I always think that those who need to search for "the sound" through cables, are not actually satisfied with their system. Rather than changing cables to search for the dry bass and the right highs, they should change speakers or at least try to position them correctly...

 

[MatrixS2000]

I always think that those who need to search for "the sound" through cables, are not actually satisfied with their system. Rather than changing cables to search for the dry bass and the right highs, they should change speakers or at least try to position them correctly...

Those same people when told to try eq will snub their nose to the idea, not realizing that any cable that has a sound is basically a fixed EQ.

 

[boxerfan88]

Pop-swoosh! Thrower ignited! Buy what you like once you can see past exotic claims for cables. If believing in a nonsense claim makes you feel better, and you have been informed about the claim's implausibility, then buy the thing and imagine that you enjoy it. So long as you don't lose faith in the cable later on, you'll be good to go.

Exactly! This is just a hobby. For speaker cables, buy a decent diameter copper cable like AWG 14 or 16, well terminated will do. Or buy what makes you happy, even if they are exotics.

 

[Lambda]

Just don’t uses "CCA" or anything with Alumium, iron or steal.

just some plain old copper wire is fine

 

[IEales]

If you want to eliminate as much noise as you can, balanced cables (not expensive ones, just any XLR) work great because the circuit is designed to cancel noise that the cable picks up.

Most home HiFi products don't have XLR. Improperly connected or with badly designed gear, they are no solution.

Giving the fact that very expensive cables are sold on the market, I just asked in order to understand if from a cheap or unshielded cable any noise can arise within the speaker.

Speakers are low and amplifier outputs are very low impedance, so shielding is of little value. Any noise in the speaker originates in the electronics.

 

[DSJR]

I always think that those who need to search for "the sound" through cables, are not actually satisfied with their system. Rather than changing cables to search for the dry bass and the right highs, they should change speakers or at least try to position them correctly...

I've been deeply alarmed at system pics that people post on forums, one recently in particular on an all-but-private manufacturers' form too. No way would those speakers 'sound' at their best and also, he used a vinyl as well as streaming source and the preamp (built-in phono stage) was sandwiched in between the streamer transformer above, the power amp transformer below and the preamp's own supply box alongside, the whole shebang except the turntable sited in the amp-makers' shelving system costing several hundred quid a 'tier' (UK peeps will know the maker).

For runs of several metres or so which may appeal to UK/EU buyers, this is the stuff I mentioned earlier - This lot in a 30m run

Amazon.co.uk

For 'posher' interconnects, 'Worlds Best Cables' have a good presence on Amazon and there's a good few Mogami types there (easy to look up the specs of the wire separately). It's good stuff and the subjectivist forums like the brand as well, so a double benefit

 

[Mikig]

I've been deeply alarmed at system pics that people post on forums

I agree: too often we see a maniacal search for the superfluous and the total absence of use of the basic rules, widely available and understandable for all…

 

[Count Arthur]

For the last set of cables I made I used Van Damme, it's available in a variety of gauges and configurations:

Blue Series Studio Grade Speaker Cable | Van-Damme

Van-Damme grade speaker cable is useful for the recording studio environment, recording studios, live and presentation markets.

www.van-damme.com

One moment, please...

Up-LCOFC Hi-Fi Speaker Cable | Van-Damme

Up-LCOFC hi-fi speaker cables available with 5 conductor sizes. These are found in professional environments to monitor world class recording and mastering studios.

www.van-damme.com

I used the blue stuff:

You can find it ready terminated on Ebay.

 

[DavidEdwinAston]

Dare I ask on this guy's thread, do the cables need to be the same length? (In my case, one speaker four feet from amp, and the other fifteen feet.)

 

[Lambda]

Dare I ask on this guy's thread, do the cables need to be the same length? (In my case, one speaker four feet from amp, and the other fifteen feet.)

If you care about 0.001dB (or so) level difference and a view ns time difference.

Rationally you would not care. since it's extremely unlike that in any unusual scenario you could even measure a difference

 

[IEales]

Dare I ask on this guy's thread, do the cables need to be the same length? (In my case, one speaker four feet from amp, and the other fifteen feet.)

Most every recording studio has the power amplifiers well away from the center of the speakers.

However, some engineers like to have their amps behind the console with their very short leads to the amp and from it to their speakers...