Silver inter connect wires

ben62670

I have these things down to a science now, and am selling these to Polk members to help save some coin for you guys. They are 24ga silver solid core Teflon coated braid like PBJ's. I have used different RCA's, and XLR's. Let me know if anyone is interested.

Prices are available on request. There are way to many options to post here, and I give Polkies discounts;)
Please PM me for prices!
Or email me at ben62670 at yahoo dot com
References available to serious inquiries.



Thanks Guys

Early B.

Do you use pure silver or silver plated copper?

ben62670

Early B. wrote: »

Do you use pure silver or silver plated copper?

Pure silver. I have thought of using the plated do to strength concerns, but I have stress tested them, pulling hard, and the solid silver work very well.

bikerboy

Hi,
I have been making silver ICs for a year now and they do sound very nice. It would be cool for others to find out how good sounding diy stuff is. I have used silver coated copper and solid silver. The solid silver has tighter bass and a more open top end. The silver coated copper didnt seem to have as tight of mid bass or as low bass, more one dimensional. At least thats what I found with my system. Good to see others soldering their own.

danger boy

Ben will you be making more silver IC's? what length are the ones in the pictures? How much would it cost if you built me a 1 meter pair?

Al

ben62670

BB Do you braid the wire like I did?

DB It really depends on the termini nation. 3 feet , and the ones with the WBT's are 6 feet.

The wire is fairly cheap, but to get a nice braid it takes time.
Ben
Oh yeah seeing I am braiding them you can pretty much tell me what lenght you want, and XLR's are cheaper than RCA's.

danger boy

ok. i don't need WBT's, and 3 ft is long enough for me.. so are we talking $10 or $100? i'm just looking for a ballpark here.. i've used solid silver wires in the past... and they are very revealing, but in the right system, they can really sound good.

bikerboy

Hi Ben,
I havent braided them yet. I bought wire from reference audio mods and need to get more to be able to try the other configurations. They sound so good I havent felt the need, but I know I will sometime. I have used both the .5mm(24 ga) and the .15mm(35 ga). The bigger(.5mm) does sound clearer in the vocal area and less tizzy in the upper range. I need to mod the jolida amp so I will get more wire to rewire the amp and make more ICs. Where did you get your wire? Are you using silver solder?

ben62670

Yes I am using silver solder. Partsexpress.com has the best deal. Rat shack has small spools on the cheap. They really need to be braided with 3 wires, and don't connect one of the grounds on the other end(amp end). Don't ask me why, but I have definitely seen a positive effect of "shielding" using this technical.

DarqueKnight

Early B. wrote: »

Do you use pure silver or silver plated copper?

This may or may not make a difference in sound quality. I have been using silver and silver/copper hybrid interconnects and silver/copper hybrid speaker cables off and on since 1988. The Signal Cable Silver Resolution interconnects (5N silver) I am currently using in my 2 channel rig outperform the copper based cables I previously used, but I would not be surprised if I ran across a copper cable that outperformed the Silver Resolutions.

One thing I don't like about some of the silver audio cable manufacturers is that they hype up the "superior" conductivity of silver, but they conveniently "neglect" to mention that ultrapure 6N silver (99.9999% silver) is only 5% more conductive than 6N copper, but costs 6X more. If the 6N silver cable is not terminated with 6N connectors and high 6N silver content solder, another 2-3% in conductivity can be lost.

The most common silver grade used in audio interconnects and speaker cables is 4N (99.99%) which is termed "laboratory grade". "Pure" grade silver is 5N (99.999% silver) and "ultrapure" grade silver is 6 (99.9999% silver) and above. 4N silver is only 4.4% more conductive than 4N copper. Again, another 2-3% in conductivity can be lost if the 4N silver cable ends are not appropriately terminated.

I have been reluctant to invest in a pair of 5N or better silver speaker cable because of the cost. Furthermore, A copper cable of sufficent purity and gauge size can match the conductivity of a given silver cable for much less money. One of my "get-around-to-it" projects is to make a DIY pair of 6N silver 10 AWG speaker cables.

Then, there is the matter of sound. Some listeners say they prefer the "more open" sound of silver cables. I don't know if the "more open" sound of some silver cables is a function of the silver alone or a combination of the silver, cable geometry, insulation type, and termination type.

There are quite a few posts on silver cables on Audioasylum.com.

ben62670

I get the silver, and silver plated wire for near the same price. I too am thinking of doing a silver speaker wire for my highs. Thanks for your post. The price of silver IC's are way to high to for the average guy. I am hoping to be able to hook some Polkies up with excellent prices compared to cables you find online.
Ben

engtaz

Looks very good Ben

VR3

How much would you charge for two 3' RCA pairs and one 6' pair?

Not braided.

tonyb

You want them braided Sid.....
Any reason why you don't??

danger boy

tonyb wrote: »

You want them braided Sid.....
Any reason why you don't??

so he can blow them up. LOL



JK!

VR3

Make it easier on Ben

ben62670

Vr3MxStyler2k3 wrote: »

Make it easier on Ben

The braid is part of the desingn One wire is tip to tip
One is ground to ground
One is ground from source to nowhere.
I tried the 2 wire twist, and it picked up noise.
I do not understand how a deadend wire likks noise, but it does.

ben62670

DarqueKnight wrote: »

This may or may not make a difference in sound quality. I have been using silver and silver/copper hybrid interconnects and silver/copper hybrid speaker cables off and on since 1988. The Signal Cable Silver Resolution interconnects (5N silver) I am currently using in my 2 channel rig outperform the copper based cables I previously used, but I would not be surprised if I ran across a copper cable that outperformed the Silver Resolutions.

One thing I don't like about some of the silver audio cable manufacturers is that they hype up the "superior" conductivity of silver, but they conveniently "neglect" to mention that ultrapure 6N silver (99.9999% silver) is only 5% more conductive than 6N copper, but costs 6X more. If the 6N silver cable is not terminated with 6N connectors and high 6N silver content solder, another 2-3% in conductivity can be lost.

The most common silver grade used in audio interconnects and speaker cables is 4N (99.99%) which is termed "laboratory grade". "Pure" grade silver is 5N (99.999% silver) and "ultrapure" grade silver is 6 (99.9999% silver) and above. 4N silver is only 4.4% more conductive than 4N copper. Again, another 2-3% in conductivity can be lost if the 4N silver cable ends are not appropriately terminated.

I have been reluctant to invest in a pair of 5N or better silver speaker cable because of the cost. Furthermore, A copper cable of sufficent purity and gauge size can match the conductivity of a given silver cable for much less money. One of my "get-around-to-it" projects is to make a DIY pair of 6N silver 10 AWG speaker cables.

Then, there is the matter of sound. Some listeners say they prefer the "more open" sound of silver cables. I don't know if the "more open" sound of some silver cables is a function of the silver alone or a combination of the silver, cable geometry, insulation type, and termination type.

There are quite a few posts on silver cables on Audioasylum.com.

I have tried copper, and it didn't sound as good. I guess it is like different woods. 'The copper wire was the same gage, and also teflon. Silver is definetly better on my system.
Ben

madmax

Are these stranded wire or solid core conductors?

sophie

so what would it be for a 2 foot and a 3 foot? or two 3 footers?

ben62670

madmax wrote: »

Are these stranded wire or solid core conductors?

Solid

ben62670

Back in town. I will be selling cables again. Let me know what you want, and I will work on a price according to connectors, and length.
Thanks Ben

ben62670

New pics of completed cables in post #1

ABX

ben62670 wrote: »

I have tried copper, and it didn't sound as good. I guess it is like different woods. 'The copper wire was the same gage, and also teflon. Silver is definetly better on my system.
Ben

I like Brass and Aluminum wire the best

ben62670

ABX wrote: »

I like Brass and Aluminum wire the best

that is because you are an asshat
(big smile)

ABX

TRY Aluminum wire sometime ?
If you don't like it's sound,. you can always melt it down and make beer cans.

ben62670

Sorry I had to post it here. The other thread is closed for some reason.

ABX wrote: »

I am new here, and do not believe in wire and capacitor differences.
I have been insulted more then once, and called an **** already.
Well, the guy called me an asshat, but you get the idea.

I said it with a smile:p
and I used to agree with your opinions on wires, and caps. Thats why I had to pick on you;) But with an open mind I figured I would try out some different IC's. I bought some used PBJ's, and the a fellow Polkie came over with some Encore II's, and there has been no looking back. If you lived near by I would love to show the differences between wires on my system. Maybe a fellow Polkie in your area with a nice system would be willing to demo the differences.
BTW I never welcomed you to Club Polk
welcome to Club Polk:)

Face

Anyone who claims cables don't make a difference hasn't tried anything decent.

VR3

Just to let you guys know --

Received my cables from Ben...

At first I was kind of taken back by the fact they are so small... literally like 1/16 that of my other cables as far as size --

They seem pretty durable, I've never been trusting of small cables -- however, they seem to be very durable/strong and overall a possible long lasting cables

Plugged them up, and heard an immediate improvement in the top end. (I love silver cables! lol)

All in all, for the price of a copper cable, you cant beat it -- Ben is making a good product.

Fo sho!

ben62670

Thanks for the review. I also had concerns about the strength of such small diameter cable, but I assure you that I have brutally tested my prototype before sending out the current desgn. If anyone ever has a problem with the I will fix them for free.

They will sound even better as they breakin;)

VR3

Its good stuff

I left you feedback as well --

Just a fwiw