Speaker cable

[woodbar]

Classic!

View: https://youtu.be/yfl6Lu3xQW0?si=aWpi5Q4ttlYV1auG

I mentioned it once, but I think I got away with it.

We didn't start the war - yes you did - you invaded Poland!

 

[Fandango Andy]

It's probably all been said, but there are two many responses to read.

Don't buy cheep rubsish, it's a false economy. Go for pure copper.

Equally, don't go for high end fancy wire that makes ridiculous claims.

Work out the length you need and then google "speaker wire gauge chart" to work out what thickness you need. Maybe go a little thicker than you actually need just to be on the safe side.

 

[Jasonovich]

I mentioned it once, but I think I got away with it.

We didn't start the war - yes you did - you invaded Poland!

🤣

 

[giggsy1977]

It's probably all been said, but there are two many responses to read.

Don't buy cheep rubsish, it's a false economy. Go for pure copper.

Equally, don't go for high end fancy wire that makes ridiculous claims.

Work out the length you need and then google "speaker wire gauge chart" to work out what thickness you need. Maybe go a little thicker than you actually need just to be on the safe side.

I concur. Van Damme cable is more than sufficient (or any other oxygen free copper cable, think Kabel Direkt are a good alternative). It's used in recording studios which says it all. Usually 2.5mm squared is sufficient unless very long length or very large amount of current. Can use 4mm but unless 15m plus it's not necessary.

 

[Revolutions]

I think Abbey Road still use Van Damme Blue in every room. That speaks volumes to me.

 

[davidf]

I concur. Van Damme cable is more than sufficient (or any other oxygen free copper cable, think Kabel Direkt are a good alternative). It's used in recording studios which says it all. Usually 2.5mm squared is sufficient unless very long length or very large amount of current. Can use 4mm but unless 15m plus it's not necessary.

There are some studios that use higher quality cables. Most studios just use something that works.

 

[Jasonovich]

I had used Van Damme blue and black balanced XLR speaker cables for my Adams and Focal, then switched to Mogami quad, which were better, less fizz in the high frequencies, then switched to Gotham quad, better still.
WBC sells these on Amazon, don't cost an arm and a leg.

 

[woodbar]

Dare I mention headphone cables?

That is one advantage of having done away with my speaker systems - quality cables for headphones are considerably less expensive - unless you go for the ones that have been matured in snake oil for a year of course.

There are definitely subtle differences when trying various cables on my headphones so I assume the same phenomena exists when changing speaker cables?

 

[giggsy1977]

There are some studios that use higher quality cables. Most studios just use something that works.

Something that works being a cable that transmits the signals through all the equipment with minimal degradation. If it's good enough for Abbey Road and doesn't cost a packet it'll do for me!

 

[Jasonovich]

Dare I mention headphone cables?

That is one advantage of having done away with my speaker systems - quality cables for headphones are considerably less expensive - unless you go for the ones that have been matured in snake oil for a year of course.

There are definitely subtle differences when trying various cables on my headphones so I assume the same phenomena exists when changing speaker cables?

Worth checking out Etsy. They do excellent custom cables with Amphenol plugs, mine below is starquad soldering Mogami cabling. Nice quality in the sound, aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

My previous cables were Furukawa single crystal wiring, also came with Amphenol plugs, they sounded slightly better than the Mogami but absolutely boring to look at.

https://www.etsy.com/uk/search?explicit=1&q=hifiman+furukawa+single+crystal+headphone+cable&ref=pathways&instant_download=false&rpq=Hifiman

 

[woodbar]

Very interesting - not really looked at that site before. They certainly list an awful lot of cables.

You could end up spending a fortune on trying a few out!

The OEM cable that came with my Fiio FT5 is excellent and came with a very neat interchangeable plug set for the amp - it converts easily between 3.5mm SE or 4.4mm Pentacon using a miniature inbuilt screw in multiplug and the usual 3.5mm to 6.3mm adapter as well as a 4.4mm Pentacon to XLR and supposed to have 392 strands of silver plated monocrystaline copper! Phew, must be good! Basically it means you can plug the phones in to virtually any device except a 2.5mm Balanced which I only have on my M15S and never use as it always feels a bit flimsy I think.

Even the OEM cables for the Fiio FT1 is acceptable, although a little microphonic, and not as meaty as the FT5 version, understandable in view of the price difference.

The ones I use mostly for the Hifiman Edition XS and the Fiio FT1 are Open Heart 16 core balanced, from Ali, which I find excellent. Have got a few, different lengths and either 4.4mm or XLR

 

[Al ears]

Very interesting - not really looked at that site before. They certainly list an awful lot of cables.

You could end up spending a fortune on trying a few out!

The OEM cable that came with my Fiio FT5 is excellent and came with a very neat interchangeable plug set for the amp - it converts easily between 3.5mm SE or 4.4mm Pentacon using a miniature inbuilt screw in multiplug and the usual 3.5mm to 6.3mm adapter as well as a 4.4mm Pentacon to XLR and supposed to have 392 strands of silver plated monocrystaline copper! Phew, must be good! Basically it means you can plug the phones in to virtually any device except a 2.5mm Balanced which I only have on my M15S and never use as it always feels a bit flimsy I think.

Even the OEM cables for the Fiio FT1 is acceptable, although a little microphonic, and not as meaty as the FT5 version, understandable in view of the price difference.

The ones I use mostly for the Hifiman Edition XS and the Fiio FT1 are Open Heart 16 core balanced, from Ali, which I find excellent. Have got a few, different lengths and either 4.4mm or XLR

Yep, interestingly enough the 2.5mm balanced is the only socket I tend to use on my A&K SR25, it is not as flimsy as you might expect.

 

[record_spot]

You'd think that BT would be able to sort out the dropouts I've been having for over a year, but no one seems to be able to. If there's a definite fault, they'd be able to measure something and detect what it is. If electronics is so nailed down with regard to knowledge, why can't they fix it?

Any number of things could be causing that. And yes electronics is nailed down.

As seems to be the popular cliché of the day, two seemingly opposing things can be true at once.

In your case, your (I'm assuming) WiFi is dropping out thanks to an unresolved issue. That doesn't mean that we don't know how electronics works. It just means you've got a problem relating to your WiFi or BT service.

 

[record_spot]

As for me, I use QED XT - bought 3m pre-terminated which saved me a job. Came in at about £40. Very happy with them.

 

[Entrigo]

Does silver cable really make bright speakers sound harsh?

Feels like a 0.01% vs 0.001% amp distortion argument: no-one is ever going to hear the difference.

I did buy some silver cables a year or two ago as I was after more "sparkle". Didn't do a fully scientific blind A/B but couldn't really tell any difference with my standard ones, so back they went. Might be because of my poor short term memory or because of my cloth ears - or because that there was genuinely nothing in it...

 

[Entrigo]

Unfortunately you've raised a q query in a world where there are opinions varying from 'of course they make a difference' to 'any low impedance conductor will do'. You'll find religious flame wars all over the place on speaker cables. Better as you say to listen to see if you notice any difference.

I'm in the second camp and happy with my QED Silver XT Anniversary that I got reasonably cheaply - about six quid a metre from memory - on a Richers clearance. If you join the first camp you can be out for thousands of spondules.

FWIW though, you shouldn't be concerned about 'matching' anything - a cable should have no sound signature accentuating highs or lows. Its main impact is via impedance, which affects the 'damping factor' of the amp. In brief, a driver in the speaker is set in motion by the current deriving from the sound signal (electromotive force) which is how a loudspeaker produces sound. The driver has momentum, and at the end of the intended impulse from the amplifier, keeps moving. A magnet in a coil of absolutely zero resistance (a superconductor) would induce an infinite current in the coil, and stop immediately on the dot. In real world conditions, the lower the impedance of the entire circuit (the coil plus the speaker wires plus the internal impedance of the amplifier) the quicker the speaker will stop its 'overhang' movement and the crisper the sound, imaging, etc will be.

Ergo, you just want the lowest impedance cable you can get to allow the amplifier, not inertia, to control the speaker. In AC systems (audio signals) impedance is generated by inductance, resistance, or capacitance. You will find vendors of unicorn-hair speaker cables boasting of one or another of these, generally. Herein lies a slight caveat on 'sound signature': high inductance attenuates low frequencies, high capacitance attenuates high frequencies. The vast bulk of typical cables consisting of two multi-strand conductors arranged 'shotgun' in a plastic casing are not going to vary much in either TBH.

Thank you for that. It's the first post on cables I have read that brings in some science... Much needed on this subject.

(I will need to re-read it 10 times and break it down further in bite-sized, electricity for dummies chunks but that's on me)

 

[idc]

I think Abbey Road still use Van Damme Blue in every room. That speaks volumes to me.

I taught myself how to solder, using YouTube videos and made various cables using Van Damme, Neutrik and some other components. I operated as "Out of this World Audio" and gave a few cables away. It was part of blind testing I was doing, which eventually convinced me that there are far too many fake claims in the world of hifi, especially about cables.

 

[Jasonovich]

Very interesting - not really looked at that site before. They certainly list an awful lot of cables.

You could end up spending a fortune on trying a few out!

The OEM cable that came with my Fiio FT5 is excellent and came with a very neat interchangeable plug set for the amp - it converts easily between 3.5mm SE or 4.4mm Pentacon using a miniature inbuilt screw in multiplug and the usual 3.5mm to 6.3mm adapter as well as a 4.4mm Pentacon to XLR and supposed to have 392 strands of silver plated monocrystaline copper! Phew, must be good! Basically it means you can plug the phones in to virtually any device except a 2.5mm Balanced which I only have on my M15S and never use as it always feels a bit flimsy I think.

Even the OEM cables for the Fiio FT1 is acceptable, although a little microphonic, and not as meaty as the FT5 version, understandable in view of the price difference.

The ones I use mostly for the Hifiman Edition XS and the Fiio FT1 are Open Heart 16 core balanced, from Ali, which I find excellent. Have got a few, different lengths and either 4.4mm or XLR

Etsy is insane with their pricing.
I believe FiiO sell Furukawa single crystal cables for their headphones, but don't have an option for XLR.

I have some good FiiO RCA interconnects for my diner Hifi setup.
Really good quality plugs.

I have Open Heart balanced 16 cores also from Ali, I was using them for my old Edition XS and really good cables. I have so many boxed up, I'd forgotten about. Thanks for reminding me about those! 🙂

AliExpress have so many fine cables that isn't going cost you a fortune. I'm like a kid in a Sweet Shop, looking for something to dazzle me but I understand people's reluctance to try something different.

 

[woodbar]

Yep, interestingly enough the 2.5mm balanced is the only socket I tend to use on my A&K SR25, it is not as flimsy as you might expect.

No, probably not but being from a lifelong mechanical/electrical background I just think there is an awful lot of connections and insulating spacers going on in a very slim plug!

 

[woodbar]

Etsy is insane with their pricing.
I believe FiiO sell Furukawa single crystal cables for their headphones, but don't have an option for XLR.

I have some good FiiO RCA interconnects for my diner Hifi setup.
Really good quality plugs.

I have Open Heart balanced 16 cores also from Ali, I was using them for my old Edition XS and really good cables. I have so many boxed up, I'd forgotten about. Thanks for reminding me about those! 🙂

AliExpress have so many fine cables that isn't going cost you a fortune. I'm like a kid in a Sweet Shop, looking for something to dazzle me but I understand people's reluctance to try something different.

I only tried the Open Heart ones originally because I noticed some comments regarding them on another forum - very glad I did though.

I think Fiio stuff is generally very good quality even with the debacle of the FT1 swivel pins which they quickly modified and sent out free modification kits to anyone that asked for them. More than some manufacturers would even acknowledge I believe? Luckily mine came with the updated fittings already installed.

I have occasionally started to get carried away with enthusiasm, as you say like a kid in a sweet shop, but more so with Banggood and their "bundle deals" especially when they keep saying "buy 3 items more and get another £10 off and free delivery" when the items you are adding are only a few quid each. I know it is clever marketing but some of the prices are ridiculous especially for USB cables, RF cables, small tools etc. etc. and usually acceptable to excellent quality. I do find their main listings often tend to be at a higher price for items compared to AliExpress though.

I still occasionally check your footer for a "Loo" entry - still nothing!😀

 

[Al ears]

No, probably not but being from a lifelong mechanical/electrical background I just think there is an awful lot of connections and insulating spacers going on in a very slim plug!

However, whilst the shaft may be slim the plug itself isn't, its the same size as my 3.5mm connectors.

 

[Gray]

However, whilst the shaft may be slim the plug itself isn't, its the same size as my 3.5mm connectors.

The proprietary Sennheiser twistlock 4-pole 2.5mm plug was my (ONLY) reason for buying two aftermarket cables:
Soldering Pentaconn plugs is a bit of a challenge (especially with the litz cable they use) but at least you can buy the plugs: