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What wire to build my own RCA interconnects?

motorider

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It looks like Amphenol is the brand of choice here for the ends. What wire is recommended. I know nothing of the subject and could care less about the snake oil crap. If I could get Amazon basics in a 1' length, that is what I would do. My options seem limited to expensive offerings of $20 or more. I would rather build my own and learn something. Learning is the game for me here.
 

RayDunzl

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What wire is recommended.

Canare, Mogami, Belden are three that come to mind.

Anyone (manufacturer) who knows what they're doing and provide some data on the cable capacitance, inductance, etc.

Whatever you have laying around (what I usually have done) works (probably) just as well for short (a foot or five) runs.
 

DonH56

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You could just buy a spool of RG-6 from most anyone... Belden is good but most are fine. RG6 is a bit heavier and better shielded than RG-59. Or Belden, Canare, Mogami, etc. instrument or mic cable (more flexible, not as well shielded, but more than good enough for most consumer installations). Note you will need CL2 or CL3 rated cable for in-wall use.
 

sergeauckland

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You could just buy a spool of RG-6 from most anyone... Belden is good but most are fine. RG6 is a bit heavier and better shielded than RG-59. Or Belden, Canare, Mogami, etc. instrument or mic cable (more flexible, not as well shielded, but more than good enough for most consumer installations). Note you will need CL2 or CL3 rated cable for in-wall use.
RG6 or RG59 are my choices too. I prefer RG59 as it's that bit more flexible, and for line levels or digital, the better screening of RG6 isn't so important, but your circumstances may require better screening. Both cables are 75ohm so equally usable for analogue, S-PDIF or AES-3. They're cheap and can be bought in pretty much any DIY warehouse where they're sold as satellite or TV antenna cable.

Where I need greater flexibility, I use instrument cable as sold for guitars etc.

S
 

DonH56

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^^^ Agreed, of course. They are both solid center conductors by default but I have seen variants with stranded center conductors. These days a lot of the bulk cables are CCA; I tend to look for pure copper even though it is more costly, mainly because I keep a spool on hand and never know if the next patch cable I need to make is a 3' audio cable or 100' RF link.
 

levimax

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I made interconnects using Belden 1505F and Switchcraft 3502A plugs and am very happy. The coax is small diameter and flexible while still well shielded and reasonably low capacitance and the plugs are small diameter, sturdy, and grip the connectors well without the extreme grip some plugs have. Not expensive at all.
 

HammerSandwich

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If I could get Amazon basics in a 1' length, that is what I would do. My options seem limited to expensive offerings of $20 or more. I would rather build my own and learn something. Learning is the game for me here.
Why not buy the 15-foot Amazon cable for $12, then chop it up? Meets all criteria, AFAICT.
 

RayDunzl

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Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I "liked" solid core coax over stranded alternatives back when I played with short signal cables.
 

levimax

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I do not believe in any magic in interconnects but there are real quality difference between the cheap Monoprice and Amazon cables compared to "home made" cables made with decent wire and especially decent plugs. The cost is comparable and you get the exact length you need. The Monoprice plug broke VERY easily when I tried to adjust it because it wasn't fitting right. I have also "shortened" some Amazon Cables as suggested and when you see the shielding compared to some decent Belden cable it is very obvious the quality is not the same. I doubt any of it is "audible" (besides some possible noise ) but in my case I have a tri-amp system and I like to experiment and having well shielded, high quality flexible interconnects of the correct length with reliable and durable plugs is well worth the effort to solder the ends on.
 

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esm

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The Monoprice plug broke VERY easily when I tried to adjust it because it wasn't fitting right.
I have a bunch of cables that now look exactly like your picture. Plugs made out of stamped sheetmetal (rather than these porous cast units) won't snap off like that; it's almost never a question of fidelity/resistance/however you want to measure them, it's a question of durability.

Related, is this the thread where we link to the Monster™️ cables vs. a coat hanger posts? ;)
 

SchwarzeWolke

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I'm a fan of Amphenol connectors, enough room to work with. Other than that I'm using Sommer Cable. I'm from Germany though, so this is the obvious choice.
 

sergeauckland

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Wayne A. Pflughaupt

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I like the Neutrik RCA connectors of all the ones I’ve used. Canare’s L-2T2S or L-2E5 cable is as good as it gets and is cheaper than Mogami.

Honestly, if one cable is all you’re making, by the time you invest in the materials and tools and equipment for soldering , it’d be cheaper just to pay the $20.

But – if you’re inclined to make your own and this is new for you, check out my epic guide to DIYing your own cables.

https://www.hometheatershack.com/fo...-guide-making-your-own-cables.html#post116023

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt
 
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M

motorider

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I like the Neutrik RCA connectors of all the ones I’ve used. Canare’s L-2T2S or L-2E5 cable is as good as it gets and is cheaper than Mogami.

Honestly, if one cable is all you’re making, by the time you invest in the materials and tools and equipment for soldering , it’d be cheaper just to pay the $20.

But – if you’re inclined to make your own and this is new for you, check out my epic guide to DIYing your own cables.

https://www.hometheatershack.com/fo...-guide-making-your-own-cables.html#post116023

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Thanks for the link. I will definitely check it out. I already have a great soldering station due to my involvement with RC everything. My total cost would be the wire and the ends. I have access to rg6 all day long at work. So it's just the ends. I was unsure of the monoprice cables due to the post above by @levimax and his past postings about them in other threads
 

levimax

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I was unsure of the monoprice cables due to the post above by @levimax and his past postings about them in other threads[/QUOTE said:
I have never posted about Monoprice cables before.... must have been someone else with similar experience
 

bigx5murf

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I used mogami and neutrik to build my replacement RCA cables for my SL-1200. Checking now though, looks like prices really went up since.
 

SchwarzeWolke

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[...] I already have a great soldering station due to my involvement with RC everything. My total cost would be the wire and the ends. I have access to rg6 all day long at work. So it's just the ends. I was unsure of the monoprice cables due to the post above by @levimax and his past postings about them in other threads
Oh, if you just need the "ends" and you're good at soldering, just build yourself some cables. I did this because I was able to get white, red and black ones with the corresponding colour of the Amphenol plugs. :p
(Especially white with white plugs in 2m was mandatory for our living room :facepalm:)
 

rebbiputzmaker

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Canare star quad is always a good bet imo. I prefer to not use coax, rg59 or rg6 as they often require use of a connector of matching size and style.
 
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