Van Damme 2.5 or 4mm for the Dali Zensor 1s?

[admin_exported]

I was recommended the 4mm but i thought in general 2.5mm was fine for smaller bookshelf speakers? Also i'm currently using some old gale cable i had lying around and i was wondering how much of a improvement i would hear with a cable like the Van Damme blue series? What i'm hearing through the Dalis at the moment sounds pretty darn good!

 

[CnoEvil]

If you don't want to go with the 4mm and you don't have a very long length, the 2.5mm will be fine.

 

[matthewpiano]

Glad you are enjoying the Dalis. 😉

 

[Anonymous]

If you don't want to go with the 4mm and you don't have a very long length, the 2.5mm will be fine.

Thanks, it will be 2 metres. The price of the cable alone isn't too bad but the connectors take the price for two 2 metre cables to £48! I'll probably just get the cable first then look at connections. Would something like the Van damme provide a more accurate sound? I'm looking for something that's relatively transparent. Cheers.

 

[VoodooDoctor]

If you're not planning to do lots of kit changes and unplug the cables a lot, do you need the connectors?

 

[CnoEvil]

If you don't want to go with the 4mm and you don't have a very long length, the 2.5mm will be fine.

Would something like the Van damme provide a more accurate sound? I'm looking for something that's relatively transparent. Cheers.

That would be my guess......but you tell us when you get it.

 

[Anonymous]

Glad you are enjoying the Dalis. 😉

Thanks! :cheers:

 

[Anonymous]

If you're not planning to do lots of kit changes and unplug the cables a lot, do you need the connectors?

Not necessarily but i thought i'd get some banana plugs at least for the speaker end. I'll just buy the cable for now anyway.

 

[lindsayt]

I bought some Van Damme XLR connecting cables. They do the job OK but I was a bit disappointed by how thin the actual conducting cores were. The cables look chunky but most of that is insulating material. Looking at eBay listings for 4mm Van Damme speaker cable it looks like they follow the same pattern.

The thickest multi strand copper cables that I've been able to find so far has been 762 strand which costs £1.08 per mono metre in 100 metre rolls, and a bit more per metre if you buy shorter lengths.

I would have thought that small bookshelf speakers would benefit more from thick cables than huge speakers due to the bookshelfs tending to be be less efficient than large speakers, and therefore drawing more power for a given volume.

Speaker cables are one of those things that you should try yourself if you're interested. Some people feel that they are important, other people feel that they are unimportant. It's possible that your old Gale cables might sound as good as anything else in your system. It's also possible that you might prefer something else.

 

[Anonymous]

If you don't want to go with the 4mm and you don't have a very long length, the 2.5mm will be fine.

Would something like the Van damme provide a more accurate sound? I'm looking for something that's relatively transparent. Cheers.

That would be my guess......but you tell us when you get it.

I will, just trying ascertain if it will make a significant difference. 😉

 

[michael hoy]

Try this - UP-LCOFC Hi-Fi Interconnect & speaker series, third section down.

I use the 4mm on my Apex with banana plugs both ends, the 2.5 would be good enough for what you are wanting.

 

[Anonymous]

I bought some Van Damme XLR connecting cables. They do the job OK but I was a bit disappointed by how thin the actual conducting cores were. The cables look chunky but most of that is insulating material. Looking at eBay listings for 4mm Van Damme speaker cable it looks like they follow the same pattern.

The thickest multi strand copper cables that I've been able to find so far has been 762 strand which costs £1.08 per mono metre in 100 metre rolls, and a bit more per metre if you buy shorter lengths.

I would have thought that small bookshelf speakers would benefit more from thick cables than huge speakers due to the bookshelfs tending to be be less efficient than large speakers, and therefore drawing more power for a given volume.

Speaker cables are one of those things that you should try yourself if you're interested. Some people feel that they are important, other people feel that they are unimportant. It's possible that your old Gale cables might sound as good as anything else in your system. It's also possible that you might prefer something else.

Yeah i thought it looked well insulated. I use Van damme trs/xlr cables which is why i'm looking at it plus the many positive things i've read. The Gale cable was about £3 a metre when i bought it and it's nice and robust but it's a bit too short and i can't place the amp where i want it.

I've been listening to a wide range of mostly electronic music and the Dali's sound great anyway, just the upper mids/highs sound a bit too bright but i'm adjusting, they seem to sound better when placed together close to a wall oddly enough.

I'll probably get some of the Van Damme Hifi series as i'm thinking of using the Dalis in a passive monitor role. The cables are important insofar as changing the tonal quality of the outgoing audio, i don't want too much of that. Good quality ofc should suffice right?! 😉

 

[Crocodile]

I bought some Van Damme XLR connecting cables. They do the job OK but I was a bit disappointed by how thin the actual conducting cores were. The cables look chunky but most of that is insulating material. Looking at eBay listings for 4mm Van Damme speaker cable it looks like they follow the same pattern.

The speaker cable is specified by the cross-section of the conductor. If you buy 4mm then 4mm is what you get.

At 2m the 2.5mm will be more than adequate. As for sounding significantly better/different that what you already have - the bare cable is cheap enough to give it try.

 

[FennerMachine]

After reading this and another recent post on speaker cables I’m planning on a small change to my system. Didn't think it warranted another thread so posting here. I currently have Chord Rumour 2 cables which I think are silver coated.

Thinking of getting some standard speaker cables. Would 79 strand do the job? Found some for £1.69 per meter. I only need a maximum of 6 meters total. Or would it be worth going to Van Damme Blue 1.5mm at 2.49 per meter? Or would 2.5mm at £3.94per meter be a better option?

Only problem is that I need BFA plugs/connectors to my Cyrus amps but I could probably use the ones from my current cables and change them back if I don't like the change (if there is one). I'll only get new ones if the existing cables are soldered to the connectors.

 

[lindsayt]

I bought some Van Damme XLR connecting cables. They do the job OK but I was a bit disappointed by how thin the actual conducting cores were. The cables look chunky but most of that is insulating material. Looking at eBay listings for 4mm Van Damme speaker cable it looks like they follow the same pattern.

The speaker cable is specified by the cross-section of the conductor. If you buy 4mm then 4mm is what you get.

At 2m the 2.5mm will be more than adequate. As for sounding significantly better/different that what you already have - the bare cable is cheap enough to give it try.

That depends upon which 4mm Van Damme speaker cable you're referring to.

This stuff: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Van-Damme-BlueStudio-Grade-2-x-4-mm-6M-Speaker-Cable-/370577404823?pt=UK_Computing_Sound_Vision_Video_Cables_Adapters&hash=item5648227397

Or this 511 strand stuff: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Van-Damme-LC-OFC-4-0mm-Hi-Fi-speaker-cable-with-QED-4mm-Airloc-Banana-2M-pair-/380433751193?pt=UK_Computing_Sound_Vision_Audio_Cables_Adapters&hash=item58939e5c99

Transparent sheathing creates a nice optical illusion where terminated leads look like they have much thicker conductors than they really have due to the magnifying effect of the curved insulating material. If you look at the cut wires end on you'll often see disappointingly thin conducting cores.

The 511 strand 4mm Van Damme cable looks pretty good, although I'm still not sure about the pricing from a material cost point of view when compared to 762 strand cable.

 

[Anonymous]

Try this - UP-LCOFC Hi-Fi Interconnect & speaker series, third section down.

I use the 4mm on my Apex with banana plugs both ends, the 2.5 would be good enough for what you are wanting.

Thanks, is that the same as the hifi studio series? http://www.worldwidemusic.co.uk/van-damme-hifi-series-studio-grade-speaker-cable-25mm-1052-p.asp

 

[Anonymous]

Try this - UP-LCOFC Hi-Fi Interconnect & speaker series, third section down.

I use the 4mm on my Apex with banana plugs both ends, the 2.5 would be good enough for what you are wanting.

Thanks for the heads up, i think this is the stuff i'm looking at http://www.worldwidemusic.co.uk/van-damme-hifi-series-studio-grade-speaker-cable-25mm-1052-p.asp

Apparently this is the cable to get and not the blue series. I'll try the 2.5. 🙂

 

[Anonymous]

Try this - UP-LCOFC Hi-Fi Interconnect & speaker series, third section down.

I use the 4mm on my Apex with banana plugs both ends, the 2.5 would be good enough for what you are wanting.

Thanks for the heads up, i think this is the stuff i'm looking at http://www.worldwidemusic.co.uk/van-damme-hifi-series-studio-grade-speaker-cable-25mm-1052-p.asp

Apparently this is the cable to get and not the blue series. I'll try the 2.5. 🙂

 

[Anonymous]

Try this - UP-LCOFC Hi-Fi Interconnect & speaker series, third section down.

I use the 4mm on my Apex with banana plugs both ends, the 2.5 would be good enough for what you are wanting.

Thanks for the heads up, i think this is the stuff i'm looking at http://www.worldwidemusic.co.uk/van-damme-hifi-series-studio-grade-speaker-cable-25mm-1052-p.asp

Apparently this is the cable to get and not the blue series. I'll try the 2.5. 🙂

 

[Crocodile]

That depends upon which 4mm Van Damme speaker cable you're referring to.

No - 4mm cross-section conductor is 4mm cross section conductor (I have some of the 4mm shotgun). The size of the insulation is irrelevant. That Ebay listing is a bit of a trick really.

No idea how it can be perceived as disappointing if you're getting exactly what you order? But if you do find it disappointing, don't buy any Chord Carnival Silverscreen. It's 10mm insulation has a couple of weedy 1.45mm cables buried in the middle of it...

Edit - In fact it appears that the Ebay listing is downright misleading. The part number in the photo equates to what VD sell as 0.75mm cable, intended for 100V line systems.

http://www.vdctrading.com/products_gridview.asp?SubSectionID=1&ProductID=15&secName=Van+Damme+Cable#p15

Or maybe they've just used the wrong photo?

 

[michael hoy]

The UP-LCOFC IMHO is the better choice.

see for other opinions - http://www.whathifi.com/forum/accessories/van-damme-cables

 

[Anonymous]

After reading this and another recent post on speaker cables I’m planning on a small change to my system. Didn't think it warranted another thread so posting here. I currently have Chord Rumour 2 cables which I think are silver coated.

Thinking of getting some standard speaker cables. Would 79 strand do the job? Found some for £1.69 per meter. I only need a maximum of 6 meters total. Or would it be worth going to Van Damme Blue 1.5mm at 2.49 per meter? Or would 2.5mm at £3.94per meter be a better option?

Only problem is that I need BFA plugs/connectors to my Cyrus amps but I could probably use the ones from my current cables and change them back if I don't like the change (if there is one). I'll only get new ones if the existing cables are soldered to the connectors.

I don't know mate, the hifi series seems to be the better option. I read some comments about the blue making no difference to the cable it replaced. Maybe someone else can chime in.

 

[FennerMachine]

Thanks for the reply teejuk.

Sorry in advance for the following long post!

I actually bought 4 new BFA connectors yesterday for less than £10.00 total and had some 1.5mm diameter copper cable, real cheap stuff (about £1.00 a metre) that I bought a while back for an emergency. I've changed over to that today. Not sure if its psychoacoustics or a real change but I think the system sounds better. The high frequencies have been tamed a lot, no harshness from any track I've played but most of the sparkle is still there. Bass is a bit better. But instead of trying to isolate small changes that I have to concentrate to hear I've just let the music play and see how I feel. The overall tonality and realism is better. A few but subtle parts of music have come through that I've not noticed before. The music is not 'In your face' like it was sometimes, so a little excitement has been lost but with the bonus of more overall enjoyment!

From my experimenting today, having used my existing system for many, many hours with Chord Rumour 2 (silver coated) and today for maybe 6 hours with cheap cable (pure copper), I can say that for me pure copper is better. I can also see why someone may like silver coated.

Speaker cables are worth experimenting with, but I would advise those who want to to compare silver coated to pure copper, maybe 2 of each to start with and see what you prefer.

 

[Anonymous]

The UP-LCOFC IMHO is the better choice.

see for other opinions - http://www.whathifi.com/forum/accessories/van-damme-cables

I came across it when i was looking for the van damme cable but decided to get the blue cause it was cheaper. That thread by alienrik really sells it though, sounds great. IYE, what has it done to the sound? Increased clarity and seperation with extended low end? 😉