Basic speaker hookup

FRCN
FRCN Posts: 2
edited April 2010 in Basic Hookup/Wiring Questions
I bought some speaker wire that was not color coded or marked to make sure red goes to red and black goes to black. I had a long run and lost track of which one was which. What would be the effect of the wires being mismatched at the speakers? A noticeable noise? Diluted output? I am running these wires to my surround speakers. Thanks for the help.
Steve
Post edited by FRCN on
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,729
    edited April 2010
    Out of phase...not good.
    Political Correctness'.........defined

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  • comfortablycurt
    comfortablycurt Posts: 6,745
    edited April 2010
    Hook them up one way, and if it doesn't sound right, hook them up the other way. You should be able to tell right from wrong. Hopefully anyway.;)

    Just make sure the volume isn't real high. You'll be fine.

    It's either that, or trace the run of wire all the way back.
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  • wutadumsn23
    wutadumsn23 Posts: 3,702
    edited April 2010
    I usually put a mark on one of them before I start so I don't get em screwed up. Also makes it easier in the future if I disconnect them. I just put some nanners on the speaker ends and will get some soon for the AVR ends. Makes life a lot easier. Welcome to Club Polk.

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  • Tony M
    Tony M Posts: 11,181
    edited April 2010
    Use a batterys' ( 9 volt or d or c ) terminals at one end and an old speaker woofer at the other. You should have another person help. Woofer goes out when Pos. is hooked up to pos terminal.
    Most people just listen to music and watch movies. I EXPERIENCE them.
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  • hearingimpared
    hearingimpared Posts: 21,136
    edited April 2010
    Feel the sides of the insulation. Many wires that are not color coded have a spine(s) on one of the conductors. You can use this as your guide. E.g., spine side to negative, smooth side to positive.
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  • cnoat
    cnoat Posts: 315
    edited April 2010
    There should be some type of writing on your speaker wire.Sometimes it is pretty hard to see.I use this side for my negative or black.
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  • comfortablycurt
    comfortablycurt Posts: 6,745
    edited April 2010
    Or...instead of doing all of that...;)

    You can just try hooking it up one way...and if it sounds wrong, hook it up the other way. At low volumes, this isn't going to hurt anything. I've accidentally connected speakers with the polarity reversed numerous times...and I'm yet to damage anything.
    The nirvana inducer-
    APC H10 Power Conditioner
    Marantz UD5005 universal player
    Parasound Halo P5 preamp
    Parasound HCA-1200II power amp
    PolkAudio LSi9's/PolkAudio SDA 2A's/PolkAudio Monitor 7A's
    Audioquest Speaker Cables and IC's
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  • comfortablycurt
    comfortablycurt Posts: 6,745
    edited April 2010
    comfortablycurt wrote: »
    Or...instead of doing all of that...;)

    You can just try hooking it up one way...and if it sounds wrong, hook it up the other way. At low volumes, this isn't going to hurt anything. I've accidentally connected speakers with the polarity reversed numerous times...and I'm yet to damage anything.



    That being said, it really bugs me that there isn't any kind of standard marking system for speaker wire/zipcord. Some wires simply are NOT marked for polarity. As others have said above though, many times there is a mark that's really hard to see. Such as a notch/ridge, or very tiny writing etc. I'm guessing you've already looked for these things though.




    edit-Whoops...this was supposed to be an edit to my above post.
    The nirvana inducer-
    APC H10 Power Conditioner
    Marantz UD5005 universal player
    Parasound Halo P5 preamp
    Parasound HCA-1200II power amp
    PolkAudio LSi9's/PolkAudio SDA 2A's/PolkAudio Monitor 7A's
    Audioquest Speaker Cables and IC's
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