So I was thinking and the thought occurred to me:
You know the last stage of feedback in most amplifiers, the one that goes from the final output to the (usually negative) input of the second last stage?
Well, what if, instead of the signal for feedback being taken from, essentially, the output terminals: a second wire was run alll the way to the speaker's input terminals for it?
Would this negate any/all of the [unwanted] effects from the properties of the wire? If not perfectly, mostly? (say >90% in most cases?)
I'm wondering because, for a good 100 watt RMS passive speaker system to perform properly, you need an 8-10 gauge speaker wire. If, instead, some lowly 16-18 gauge oxidized lamp cord could be used with a single, equally pathetic (but much less corroded), 28 gauge conductor (think phone cable) that'd be great!
I'm not thinking this should be a feature standard with all new amplifiers, just (if it's viable) a possible feature that some high fidelity amp manufacturers could include on various models of their amps, maybe especially ones to appeal to some of their, more DIY-type, customers. Enable it with a dip switch on the back, which once slid from "internal" to "sense", the trace to the input of the second last stage (for feedback) that usually pulled from the part of the PCB feeding the 5-way binding post (output), it would be directed an RJ11 jack on the rear. Included with the amp, then, would be a custom cable with male RJ11 on one side, and banana connector on the other. The banana connector would be to clamp on the far end of the speaker wire with an alligator clip. Pic:
Right now, to perform really well, passive speakers' crossovers need to be made with 1% parts, and the drivers' properties need to be really consistent + exactly what the crossover was designed for. When you add 0.1 ohms series resistance between the amplifier and that extremely well-tuned system, the crossover slopes no longer align (both slope and cutoff frequency are affected, the higher the order, the more severe the effect). The most obvious and detrimental result of this is the change of the speaker's frequency response - the drivers no longer work constructively through the transition band.
To keep this poast short, speaker wire does matter, and it matters immensely when high quality, consistently manufactured drivers are used with crossovers that are actually designed to match their optimal operating frequency ranges, and those crossovers use quality parts like low-gauge air-core inductors and audio-grade capacitors. And when those quality parts are actually the exact values for the design and not the next closest thing off the shelf. Of course, the amplifier needs to have a low output impedance as well. More matters, but not to this conversation (it's already getting long...). In a lot of cases, whether you use a 16/2 extension cord or 10 gauge speaker wire won't make an audible difference. But also, in a lot of cases when you're dealing with quality equipment designed for high-fidelity sound reproduction, the difference between those two speaker wires is real, and profound. And present at all playback levels.
Thoughts on this feedback? What about method (does the cable need to be shielded or anything else?)
You know the last stage of feedback in most amplifiers, the one that goes from the final output to the (usually negative) input of the second last stage?
Well, what if, instead of the signal for feedback being taken from, essentially, the output terminals: a second wire was run alll the way to the speaker's input terminals for it?
Would this negate any/all of the [unwanted] effects from the properties of the wire? If not perfectly, mostly? (say >90% in most cases?)
I'm wondering because, for a good 100 watt RMS passive speaker system to perform properly, you need an 8-10 gauge speaker wire. If, instead, some lowly 16-18 gauge oxidized lamp cord could be used with a single, equally pathetic (but much less corroded), 28 gauge conductor (think phone cable) that'd be great!
I'm not thinking this should be a feature standard with all new amplifiers, just (if it's viable) a possible feature that some high fidelity amp manufacturers could include on various models of their amps, maybe especially ones to appeal to some of their, more DIY-type, customers. Enable it with a dip switch on the back, which once slid from "internal" to "sense", the trace to the input of the second last stage (for feedback) that usually pulled from the part of the PCB feeding the 5-way binding post (output), it would be directed an RJ11 jack on the rear. Included with the amp, then, would be a custom cable with male RJ11 on one side, and banana connector on the other. The banana connector would be to clamp on the far end of the speaker wire with an alligator clip. Pic:
Right now, to perform really well, passive speakers' crossovers need to be made with 1% parts, and the drivers' properties need to be really consistent + exactly what the crossover was designed for. When you add 0.1 ohms series resistance between the amplifier and that extremely well-tuned system, the crossover slopes no longer align (both slope and cutoff frequency are affected, the higher the order, the more severe the effect). The most obvious and detrimental result of this is the change of the speaker's frequency response - the drivers no longer work constructively through the transition band.
To keep this poast short, speaker wire does matter, and it matters immensely when high quality, consistently manufactured drivers are used with crossovers that are actually designed to match their optimal operating frequency ranges, and those crossovers use quality parts like low-gauge air-core inductors and audio-grade capacitors. And when those quality parts are actually the exact values for the design and not the next closest thing off the shelf. Of course, the amplifier needs to have a low output impedance as well. More matters, but not to this conversation (it's already getting long...). In a lot of cases, whether you use a 16/2 extension cord or 10 gauge speaker wire won't make an audible difference. But also, in a lot of cases when you're dealing with quality equipment designed for high-fidelity sound reproduction, the difference between those two speaker wires is real, and profound. And present at all playback levels.
Thoughts on this feedback? What about method (does the cable need to be shielded or anything else?)
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