Van Damme Hifi Speaker Cable

[nopiano]

I use the VD 4mm speaker cable and it’s just fine. No faffing, and no excessive measurements either. Shotgun style is traditional for speakers wires since forever! A pal has just bought 11metre lengths of the 6mm and can’t believe how good it is. Harbeth use VD internally for their speakers.

Newer Naims are not so flaky as their earlier ones, and their own forum has endless cable threads if you are bored!

 

[djh1697]

"It has been stated on other forums that Naim do not use an output inductor in the output stage of their amplifiers, such that the Naim cables have high inductance to compensate for this. Hence for Naim amplifiers, it is better to check that the cable has sufficient inductance per metre, and its capacitance per metre is not an issue too. The cable should be low capacitance per metre to ensure stability of the amplifier. "

This is certainly true in there earlier amplifier designs, however no need to spend a fortune on loudspeaker cable. Kudos KS1 speaker cable, and it is only £30/meter.

I have heard that Kudos have only had 10km manufacturered , I would hurry while stocks last!

I should be loaning some from my local Kudos dealer, who, in there personal systems, 2 out of 3 staff, have replaced NACA5 with the KS1.

This product must be the bargain of the decade!

 

[GSV Ethics Gradient]

I'm always disinclined to believe a post with exclamation marks in it. Nearly ended that sentence with one though, which would have made for an interesting paradox...

 

[nopiano]

I have heard that Kudos have only had 10km manufacturered , I would hurry while stocks last!

Given there are dozens of great cable types available, much of it costing far less that £30 per metre, I’d suggest there’s no need to hurry at all. And if it’s so good, I’m sure they’ll splash out on another reel. (Van Damme probably sell that much every week)

 

[gowiththeflow]

I'll keep the brands anonymous.
I bought a pair of speakers about 6 years ago, from a reputable HIFi shop who carried a lot of upmarket and High-end gear. They originally had cost around £4000.

I declined the dealers kind offer to sell me some vastly overpriced speaker cables to go with them.
He therefore offered to loan me two pairs of cables to try out, with no obligation to buy, to see what I thought. No pressure to buy or anything.
I thought, OK I'll give it a go.

Two 3 metre pairs.
One pair from a well known HiFi cable brand, costing just over £300 (£50 per Metre) and the other from a European brand I have never heard of and have never heard of since, costing over £400 (IIRC about £70 or £80'ish per Metre) for the 3M pair.

I already had a set of new Van Damme 6mm LC-OFC cables, so I tried them all on the new set-up.
I won't go on at length to describe the amount of playing and faffing around I did, or to mention how I thought I heard differences, but then thought I heard no difference or even other totally contradictory differences.

The end result - I concluded that I was trying too hard and that there was really no discernible difference between any of the cables that I could honestly nail down or swear to.
The Van Damme has stayed and performed perfectly well with those speakers and another pair since.


c

 

[gasolin]

Van damme hifi cable is surpose to be better than the blue cable

Van Damme “Blue” and Hi-Fi Grade 6.0mm Speaker Cables | Hifi Pig

hifipig.com

 

[Rollo]

Thanks for all your comments and advice guys. Went for the Van Damme Hifi in the end. We'll impressed with the sheer amount of copper in these cables and the double crimped (Airloc) bananas are solid!

 

[Deleted member 188516]

Thanks for all your comments and advice guys. Went for the Van Damme Hifi in the end. We'll impressed with the sheer amount of copper in these cables and the double crimped (Airloc) bananas are solid! View attachment 1639View attachment 1640

class !

may i ask what size did you go for ?

(i used the 6mm version)

 

[Rollo]

Thanks, I went straight for the 6mm mate.

 

[Deleted member 188516]

Thanks, I went straight for the 6mm mate.

good choice as thicker the cable the better !
as the plugs have been attached properly it should last for ever so see it as an investment. give the plugs a clean with this once a year and they should remain perfect.

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[Rollo]

Thanks for the advice and link. Already started burning them in😁. Got a wee hour before the wife arrives home. Don't know if it's placebo but on first impressions the sound stage sounds huge!

 

[nopiano]

Thanks for the advice and link. Already started burning them in😁. Got a wee hour before the wife arrives home. Don't know if it's placebo but on first impressions the sound stage sounds huge!

Great news! I got mine from Luca Sound and Vision too. Great service and top workmanship. A few months later I bought the jumpers too.
Mine are 4mm which is plenty for my modest 2.5 metre pair.

 

[Deleted member 108165]

Already started burning them in😁
Don't know if it's placebo but on first impressions the sound stage sounds huge!

Yep, both placebo my friend
But if it sounds good to you then that's all that matters.

 

[nopiano]

 

[Rollo]

Great news! I got mine from Luca Sound and Vision too. Great service and top workmanship. A few months later I bought the jumpers too.
Mine are 4mm which is plenty for my modest 2.5 metre pair.

Totally agree great service and Poland to the UK in 4 days. We'll impressed...

 

[nopiano]

Totally agree great service and Poland to the UK in 4 days. We'll impressed...

Yes, I think he was based here when I bought mine, but I’m guessing may have returned home before the COVID-19 lockdown.

 

[TotalVictim]

cable prices are ridiculous agreed.
however as long as they are constructed well, with quality connections to the plugs, they will last forever and never wear out !

Wut? You've never had a pair of cables aged 10, 15 or more years? They get dirty and worn on the exterior. Terminations get broken, worn-out and oxidized. Multiple repairs take their toll and reliability and well as looks begin to suffer. Cables, be they ICs or speaker, definitely do not last forever and do most certainly wear out.

 

[Al ears]

Looking at the bend on those cables might it not be better to connect them to the lowest pair of inputs?
Just curious.

 

[TotalVictim]

I use the VD 4mm speaker cable and it’s just fine. No faffing, and no excessive measurements either. Shotgun style is traditional for speakers wires since forever! A pal has just bought 11metre lengths of the 6mm and can’t believe how good it is. Harbeth use VD internally for their speakers.

Newer Naims are not so flaky as their earlier ones, and their own forum has endless cable threads if you are bored!

Yep, one would have to be very bored indeed to wade and waddle through the Naim forum. I will summarize what you find there:

1. Poor folks spend a lot on the unwieldy and inflexible NACA5 and then complain about it.
2. Rich folks buy the SuperLuminas and beat their chest about how wonderful they are making everyone else feel poor.
3. The adventurous try expensive Chord or Tellurium and wonder of the next model up is better.
4. Everyone else spends ages wondering which cable will not blow up their amplifier because Naim forgot the zobel network in the output stage.

Just saved you a trip through the jungle.

 

[Al ears]

Wut? You've never had a pair of cables aged 10, 15 or more years? They get dirty and worn on the exterior. Terminations get broken, worn-out and oxidized. Multiple repairs take their toll and reliability and well as looks begin to suffer. Cables, be they ICs or speaker, definitely do not last forever and do most certainly wear out.

Wear to the exterior, at least on a decent pair of cables , can only occur through movement.
Oxidized terminals can be cleaned and surely terminals only break if improperly used and as for wear out again this doesn't happen with spades surely.
Says him who's cables are quite happily continuing their job after 10+ years.
Perhaps it depends on the quality of cable you buy in first instance.

 

[nopiano]

Looking at the bend on those cables might it not be better to connect them to the lowest pair of inputs?
Just curious.

That’s an interesting thought. The cables are quite flexible, so it’s actually quite a natural arc they follow. Possibly the picture with a wide-angle phone lens makes it look more extreme though.
I’m never sure whether I’m prioritising the tweeters when the woofers obviously need more power. I recall the demo pair I borrowed used the top sockets, so I connected mine the same. Later I fitted the jumpers.
What I’m more tempted to try some time is ‘diamond’ wiring, but it’s a bit of a faff crawling around on the floor with pliers to gently tighten the spade connections.

 

[Deleted member 188516]

Wut? You've never had a pair of cables aged 10, 15 or more years? They get dirty and worn on the exterior. Terminations get broken, worn-out and oxidized. Multiple repairs take their toll and reliability and well as looks begin to suffer. Cables, be they ICs or speaker, definitely do not last forever and do most certainly wear out.

my van damme cables were roughly 10 years old...
because i look after my kit the terminations never broke, but then, they were assembled correctly by a professional...
any oxidation on the plugs was taken care of via deoxit...
oh and they did not get dirty because my house is clean !

 

[Gray]

Wear to the exterior, at least on a decent pair of cables , can only occur through movement.
Oxidized terminals can be cleaned and surely terminals only break if improperly used and as for wear out again this doesn't happen with spades surely.
Says him who's cables are quite happily continuing their job after 10+ years.
Perhaps it depends on the quality of cable you buy in first instance.

Surely true.
With appropriate terminations, only the most inferior cables wouldn't last a lifetime (in a domestic hi-fi situation).
(If they're being honest, how many people expect to live longer than their cables?).

 

[Al ears]

That’s an interesting thought. The cables are quite flexible, so it’s actually quite a natural arc they follow. Possibly the picture with a wide-angle phone lens makes it look more extreme though.
I’m never sure whether I’m prioritising the tweeters when the woofers obviously need more power. I recall the demo pair I borrowed used the top sockets, so I connected mine the same. Later I fitted the jumpers.
What I’m more tempted to try some time is ‘diamond’ wiring, but it’s a bit of a faff crawling around on the floor with pliers to gently tighten the spade connections.

It was only a thought as the bend did look a bit extreme in the photo, whichever way it is wired I don't think any speaker is getting priority. Wouldn't want to see you crawling around unnecessarily....

 

[woodbino]

That’s an interesting thought. The cables are quite flexible, so it’s actually quite a natural arc they follow. Possibly the picture with a wide-angle phone lens makes it look more extreme though.
I’m never sure whether I’m prioritising the tweeters when the woofers obviously need more power. I recall the demo pair I borrowed used the top sockets, so I connected mine the same. Later I fitted the jumpers.
What I’m more tempted to try some time is ‘diamond’ wiring, but it’s a bit of a faff crawling around on the floor with pliers to gently tighten the spade connections.

Absolutely. My 50p per metre Wilko cables from 11 years ago are still going strong!! Sound amazing.