Sonic signature of speaker cable problems

[DavidShe]

Accepting that decent speaker cables used under normal conditions cannot have a sonic signature, what kinds of cables under what conditions can have a sonic signature? I can think of the following:

1) If speaker cable resistance is not low enough, power output can be reduced and frequency response may be shaped by speaker impedance.

2) If speaker wire capacitance is too high, some less-common amplifier designs can react adversely, adding distortion and, possibly, damaging the amplifier.

What is the sonic signature in such cases? Anecdotal observations are requested.

http://roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm#differences

 

[Deleted member 48726]

There are already some exhausting threads regarding cables which I'm sure will answer your questions.

 

[delta76]

Unless your speaker cable is the most terrible possible (thinnest cable made by worst conductive material), you will be fine. Stop worrying and enjoy your music. Buy a decent but cheap one and be happy forever

 

[alex-z]

It takes a lot of resistance in conjunction with low impedance speakers to have a problem which is even slightly audible. I have ran 4 Ohm speakers through 50ft of 24 gauge telephone wire, and they sounded the same as using 25ft of 16 gauge, just marginally quieter.

I have never seen or measured an audio cable with capacitance so high it would cause a properly designed amp to malfunction. In networking and wireless radio applications it becomes a consideration, but audio is conveniently short distance + low frequency, making signal integrity easy.

 

[Keith_W]

Low volume. Many years ago I bought a house with built-in surround sound. I replaced the built-in speakers with my own rear speakers but used the existing cabling, which was fairly thin gauge wire. I noticed that the volume was pretty low, and the longer I played it the lower it became. I tore my hair out trying to figure out the problem, and I eventually examined the speaker cable. It was REALLY HOT. Replacing the cable with thicker gauge solved the problem.

 

[Deleted member 48726]

Low volume. Many years ago I bought a house with built-in surround sound. I replaced the built-in speakers with my own rear speakers but used the existing cabling, which was fairly thin gauge wire. I noticed that the volume was pretty low, and the longer I played it the lower it became. I tore my hair out trying to figure out the problem, and I eventually examined the speaker cable. It was REALLY HOT. Replacing the cable with thicker gauge solved the problem.

Wow. Must've been a really thin wire / very long or some heavy duty speakers. Or maybe the wire has been bent and strands broken inside creating a point of high resistance.

 

[SSS]

Accepting that decent speaker cables used under normal conditions cannot have a sonic signature, what kinds of cables under what conditions can have a sonic signature? I can think of the following:

1) If speaker cable resistance is not low enough, power output can be reduced and frequency response may be shaped by speaker impedance.

2) If speaker wire capacitance is too high, some less-common amplifier designs can react adversely, adding distortion and, possibly, damaging the amplifier.

What is the sonic signature in such cases? Anecdotal observations are requested.

http://roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm#differences

The major source of problems is not the cable conductor but the connection either to a plug or binding post. This connection can become lose and/or corroded. Worse is pure copper wire into screwing post or plug. I use gold plated banana plugs with the wire soldered in, assembling the cables myself. Fair price and no problem for 100 years.