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RG-8 11gauge Speaker Cable

Want.to.Learn

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Has anyone tried RG-8 11 gauge cable for speaker wire? We used to use it back in the 80s . WE thought it sounded better than the Monster cable or Kimber cable that was available at the time. It is a little stiff, and a pain to terminate, but we swore by it.

I'm afraid that I'm to deaf to hear the difference now. Would somebody test it blind side by side with the rubber SJ- 12-2 gauge cable that we use for live sound?

BTW, every Live sound event I've ever seen uses rubber 12 gauge (SO or SJ style twisted pair or several pairs) wire with great success. If it's good enough for Prince on stage, is it good enough for Hi-Fi?
 

Blumlein 88

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I've heard it in a system in the 1990's. It worked fine. Not much reason to blind test it. In reasonable lengths they'll be the same.
 

Speedskater

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Yep, it was used occasionally back in the 80's & 90's. One advantage back then, it was shielded from taxi, police and CB interference.
Today no reason to think that it will sound different from any other cable with similar total end-to-end resistance.
 

DonH56

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Yah, works fine, but a bigger PITA to connect than plain old zip cord. I only used it because I had spools of it on hand from my CB/Ham radio days. I use standard zip cord (12 or 14 AWG) these days.
 
OP
W

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Yah, works fine, but a bigger PITA to connect than plain old zip cord. I only used it because I had spools of it on hand from my CB/Ham radio days. I use standard zip cord (12 or 14 AWG) these days.
Amen to the PITA part. I have piles of 12 ga. around that I should just use i guess. I am just trying to create the highest quality possible within my budget.
RG-8 is about the only fancy wire i can afford.
 

fpitas

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The usual approach to wiring is to use twisted pair for very low impedances, That's because magnetic field pick-up is the greatest concern. So, if you want to obsess, get large gauge zip cord and twist it, or buy large-gauge extension cord (most are twisted internally) and install audio connectors. Shielding won't accomplish much for a speaker connection. Any tiny voltages picked up won't be audible, and the speaker itself will reject common-mode voltages pretty darn well. Plus, the extra capacitance from shielding may upset your amp.
 
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Speedskater

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Wait! speaker can and occasionally do pick up interference. What happens is the interference sneaks in thru the feedback loop to the sensitive input stage. Then the input stage acts as a radio detector.

TRUE: the extra capacitance from shielding may upset some legacy and boutique amplifiers.

Twisting any unshielded cables and cords is a good thing.
 
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