speaker wires

dave shepard

I am looking into getting new wires for my speakers and need some input for them. I'm open to all wires but will not be looking to get the ones that I will have to morgage the house to get like I've seen in the back pages of the S&V magazine. Kimber, Signal and Monster are the ones that I am currently looking at. I currently have 16 guage Phillips (no end connectors) I bought from Wal-mart to get the HT ball rolling and feel that new wire might be the next best upgrade I can make for the sound. Every HT store and almost every forum member recomends bi-wire so I am thinking I will go that route. Signal (only seen them on-line) makes some nice looking wires but want appeal to those who might know first hand. My speaker wire length needs are as follows.

1 Rt front 70=5ft
1 center 40=15ft
1 Lf front 70=16ft
1 Rt rear 38=33ft
1 Lf rear 38=35ft

The other speakers in my sig. are awaiting the new up and comming HT that will be in the new home we will be moving to hopefully by next year, in case your wondering. I also would like to know if bi-wireing the rear 40's would be a good thing to do for the sound. Also is one connector better then the other? Should I keep wire lengths the same for each matching speaker?

Thanks
Dave

Frank Z

Dave,
I'm sure you've seen enough threads about wires to know that it is a topic that can lead to some major pissing contests. There are a lot of differing opinions about of high end wire vs. bulk wire from the hardware store. The only real way to know whats best for your system is to try as many options as you can and see if you hear any difference between the different types of wire. Make sure that what ever you buy can be returned for a full refund if you decide not to keep it. Pick up some 12 guage SuperFlex from Home Depot ($.44/ft) and throw it into the mix while your at it.

If possible have someone else swap out the wires for you so that you can listen without any preconceived notions based on name brand or price. If the high end cables do for ya, that's great! If not, that's great too! As long as you enjoy what you're hearing, well that's all that matters.

pjdami

Dave,

what type of interconnects are you using? If you haven't upgraded those, I would do the ICs first before speaker wire. If you do a lot of two channel listening, I would definitely start with ICs for those channels.

Speaker wire, I think the Kimber may be too "zippy" for the RT line. I have Kimber, Transparent, and DH Labs Silver Sonic Q10. Lately, I prefer the sound of the DH Labs Q10 over the other two in my two channel rig. Very neutral and transparent cable. Doesn't seem to add or take away from anything. It just sounds "right" to me. No treble or bass adjustments needed.

http://www.value-audio.com/

Ask for Jeff. I left a message for him and he called me back and spent like 35 minutes talking with me on the phone. Went into system details and what my goals were and he was right on the money. I was going to buy ICs from him too. But he suggested that I try just the speaker cable first instead of making a sale. Very honest person and looking out for his customers.

Also, check out the reviews on www.audioreview.com.

dave shepard

From the DVD player I have a fiber cable to the reciever. The main preferance is movies, I listen to audio very little about a 90%movie 10% audio. Can the cable and or wire effect the way mid and highs are heard from the speakers?

Dave

amulford

Dave,

There is a difference w/ better wire. I had pretty much the same as you. I didn't have the $$ to go for the really hi end stuff, but picked up a couple of spools of Monster XP for about $150. Then I ordered connectors from here:

http://www.cablestogo.com/product_list.asp?cat%5Fid=412

I did keep the lengths the same, just to be on the safe side.

It may not be the level some require, but I set up two systems for around $200 and they both sound pretty good.;)

pjdami

Dave,

Since you don't listen to audio too much and you need long lengths of cable (missed that on my first post; wow you need some long lengths), you may want to consider IXOS 11 gauge cable at $1.25 / foot which is reasonably priced. They also sell 15 guage (which you may want to try out with the highs if you biwire) and 13 gauge.

http://accessories4less.com/Amazing/itemdesc.asp?CartId=9887637P-EVEREST-VZUQ874&ic=IXOS%2DXHS706S&cc=&tpc=

You can read about the theory in the construction of the wire where the conductors repetitively criss-cross each other at 90 deg to minimize interference.

You may just want to order enough to biwire your mains and do a shootout with Monster or the Home Depot wire just to see if its worth the extra bucks for you Dave. Its the only way to really tell. All of our gear is different, different rooms, different ears, etc.

Paul

F1nut

Bi-wire for video sound, don't bother. Actually, I have found that if you upgrade the jumpers that you'll get better results for less money and trouble. For the lengths you need (why so long?) I'd recommend at least 12 gauge or the Signal wire.

wlrandall

"Doesn't seem to add or take away from anything."

This I have to ask and at the risk of being flamed like I never have before...

How does anyone on Earth know that? How many have heard studio masters to know exactly how the track is "supposed" to sound? Were you there, in the control room, as the final mix was assembled and laid down?

I ask this because all music is produced differently, depending on who the mastering engineer is and what the artist(s) want you to hear with probably no regard at all for what components are in your system and certainly not what ICs and speaker wire you use. It is, in the end, the subjective opinion of the end user and has nothing to do with people thinking they "know" how a song is supposed to sound.

Want the truth?? Plug a function generator into your system, do some real time freq sweeps with an analyzer, plot the source vs. the output and see how accurate it really is. Objective testing reveals the truth. Subjective testing only reveals the defects in humans-been doing it for eighteen years and nothing has changed. I've seen vastly different test results on the exact same test setup just because the jurors thought something had changed!!

Whew! Flame suit on for this one...

pjdami

No flame suit required bud. Hey if it sounds "right" for me in my room with my gear and I'm happy, then that's all that matters right? I hear ya about the intentions of what the recording should "really" sound like. But in my subjective testing of these wires and oh yes it is very subjective and only a matter of my humble opinion.. these were the observations that I noted and nothing more. Personal preference.

Frank Z

wlrandall,
Good post, nothing to flame.

dave shepard

Originally posted by F1nut
Bi-wire for video sound, don't bother. Actually, I have found that if you upgrade the jumpers that you'll get better results for less money and trouble. For the lengths you need (why so long?) I'd recommend at least 12 gauge or the Signal wire.

I figured that the better sound from bi-wire would apply to movies also, is that not correct? The lengths needed are because my room size is 19Wx25Lx9H and I will run the wires under the floor and the equipment is located in the front corner.

Dave

JrVtecAccord

I use Stinger HPM twisted series speaker wire, the reason I use car audio speaker wire is because it looks better to me, like most of us, we have speaker wire exposed, so why not have something that looks nice and not an eye sore. Also, the price is right and this is what I use in my car:D

F1nut

Dave,

I'm no HT guru, but IMHO bi-wire runs for your set up would be a waste of money, in fact I've gone over to the camp that thinks bi-wires for 2 channel or HT are a total waste, period. Using a heavy gauge wire will get you better results when you upgrade the jumpers to match the gauge of speaker wire.

Jesse

BTW, car wire should stay in the car. There are lots of "home" wires that are very pretty.

dave shepard

Thanks F1, I will look into the jumpers also. Do you know a place to start looking for good ones?

Dave

F1nut

All you need are short pieces (12") of whatever speaker cable you end up buying.

mmadden28

Haven't searched all the threads yet, but I have a related question.

Is there a difference between using two wires (per speaker-not bi-wiring) to effectively increase the "thickness" as opposed to just getting the desired guage to begin with? Other than cost-in other words will using two wires introduce any artifacts, etc? Or does it make no difference at all?

treitz3

Many of these cable pissing contests may come down to one not specifying whether the application is for HT or 2-channel.....

That's not the case in this instance......and I quote a specific application.

"1 Rt front 70=5ft
1 center 40=15ft
1 Lf front 70=16ft
1 Rt rear 38=33ft
1 Lf rear 38=35ft"

Those with experience to this very question, please assist. Others need not bother to reply.

mmadden28

dave shepard wrote: »

...The lengths needed are because my room size is 19Wx25Lx9H and I will run the wires under the floor and the equipment is located in the front corner.
Dave

Does "under the floor" mean down to the basement and over and up or does that mean under the carpet?


***********************
Why does everybody feel his wires are so long?
In my own case my room (back to front) from wall to wall is about 18'. My receiver is about 6' up in the entertainment center. The speaker jacks are low on the wall (about 2' from the floor) but left of the reciever by about 5'.
Its another 1-2' down to the basement (over 18') back up (1-2') and another 7-8' up the rear walls to the two rear speakers.
So, assuming I ran my wires in straight square lines (no diagonals when visible) which looks neater and allows for some play in the wire, that's 4+5+2+18+2+8 which is +/-39' of wire for speakers that are essentially going across an 18' room.

ben62670

mmadden28 wrote: »

Haven't searched all the threads yet, but I have a related question.

Is there a difference between using two wires (per speaker-not bi-wiring) to effectively increase the "thickness" as opposed to just getting the desired guage to begin with? Other than cost-in other words will using two wires introduce any artifacts, etc? Or does it make no difference at all?

I have AQ wires for my lows. You just can't beat the punch, and I use the Silver StarQuads I build on the highs. Its like wine, and cheese. As Jesse has stated. For HT I think it would be a waste of money. For inconsistent lengths like above I would say to go to WalMart(did Ben just say this?), and in the auto section you get better wire cheaper than in th electronics department. Monster XP is no better than WalMart. I have run both.

daboyz

In wall long runs go to Bluejeans and get the Belden 5000UE for $.58(?)/foot and don't look back.

daboyz

mmadden28 wrote: »

Does "under the floor" mean down to the basement and over and up or does that mean under the carpet?

I wouldn't go under the carpet but that's just me

WilliamM2

Those with experience to this very question, please assist. Others need not bother to reply.

But you replied.:rolleyes:

I don't think it matters anyways, on a thread that's over 4 years old. Hopefully Dave already has the information he needs.

mmadden28

WilliamM2 wrote: »

But you replied.:rolleyes:

I don't think it matters anyways, on a thread that's over 4 years old. Hopefully Dave already has the information he needs.

Ya know, I didn't realize that until you mentioned it. Huh.
Well opinions do change over the years. , and I still had a relavent question related to the post-I suppose I should've started a new thread?

WilliamM2

mmadden28 wrote: »

Ya know, I didn't realize that until you mentioned it. Huh.
Well opinions do change over the years. , and I still had a relavent question related to the post-I suppose I should've started a new thread?

Sorry, that was not directed to you at all.

There should not be any difference between running two wires as opposed to one wire to reach the correct gauge. Although that method will cost more than a single wire of the appropriate gauge, but if you already have the wire, might as well use it.