12 AWG Speaker Cable Manufactures??? Newbie

cowtrimmer · May 2012

Do you guys actually break away long enough to answer questions ? If so I'm in, wooohooo.

tonyb · May 2012

We have enough cable debate threads here than you can tip cows on a Saturday night. A simple search will give you reading material until you are able to collect social security. You can also take a look see at the threads going now on MIT cable demos and the reviews by our own members. Of coarse MIT and monoprice are at 2 different ends of the cable pond, but you'll get the jist.

BlueFox · May 2012

cowtrimmer wrote: »

Maybe while you guys are standing around in your circle jerk you can give us your insight on speaker wire ?

I can't speak for anyone else, but I do have past posts that provide this info. Basically, the trip has been from good, to better, better, better, and better. At this point, I am more than happy with the sound, and will start spending money on gear upgrades that will, hopefully, complement the base I have built with interconnect cables, speaker cables, and power cables. Each piece has been a very positive improvement.

Maybe I should make a web-site that states this. Then that will make it more believable for some people. :rolleyes:

Anyway, for speaker cables in the two-channel system I started with

12 gauge twisted, stranded, hardware store copper. Good

Then I went to Mapleshade "Double Helix Speaker Cable with PLUS Upgrade". Better
(Now in the HT/multi-channel system)
http://shop.mapleshadestore.com/Double-Helix-Speaker-Cable-with-PLUS-Upgrade/productinfo/DHELIX-PL/

Then I went to Omega-Mikro "Planar Speaker I". Better
http://www.omegamikro.com/Speaker_cable_I.html

Then I went to Omega-Mikro "Planar Speaker V Active". Better
(I upgraded from these mainly because they are cat fragile.)
http://www.omegamikro.com/Speaker_Cable_V.html

Currently at Shunyata Anaconda Ztron. Better
http://www.thecableco.com/Product/Anaconda-11379

Hope this helps.

teekay0007 · May 2012

My gosh, why make this SO VERY DIFFICULT? The guy's a NEWBIE running two pair of Monitor 30s, a CS1 and a PSW10 with an Onkyo TX-SR605. His longest run of cable needed is 25 feet........I can say that I am VERY VERY confident - yes, by personal experience - that he'd be EXTREMELY happy with 14 AWG oxygen-free copper cable from Monoprice! A 100-foot roll would cover his total needs and it can be in his hands for about $30. I've used longer runs of this very cable, driven with less power by a similar Onkyo receiver to a similar grade of Polk speakers, and couldn't be happier with the sound quality produced. The product has 125 user reviews on their site with over a 98% satisfaction rate. Who knows though, they may all be made up by Monoprice employees.

For any of you other posters...why not just suggest another product if you know of a specific one that would be more likely to satisfy his needs at a REASONABLE price? To send him off to "research all of your other threads" where you "discuss this topic at length" is pretty SILLY! Just make a recommendation if you have one, simple as that. Oh, and I'm sure he would get a lot out of the suggested threads about MIT cables, or any others mentioned that cost multiples of what his whole setup cost, for maybe a 10-foot cable length!! :razz:

headrott · May 2012

DarqueKnight wrote: »

Nothing wrong with frequenting several forums according to your interests. It is wrong to compare one forum to another when you don't know the differences in moderation levels and the general differences in population characteristics (maturity, knowledge, level of interest, etc.).

Corvettes aren't cheap. They aren't a general consumer item like much of the merchandise in audio, therefore I would expect that the age, income and maturity level of the Corvette forum to be much different than that of a general audio forum.

The Corvette is a high-end performance vehicle, right? If you go to an audio forum that caters to high end audio enthusiasts, you won't see this kind of crap happening over there either.

Imagine this: What if people who have no relevant experience with performance automobiles in general, and none with Corvettes in particular, were always jumping in people's faces saying stuff like "this or that performance tweak is a waste of money" or "Corvettes are for people with small d*ck syndrome" or "there's no difference between the various Corvette models that a sensible person would recognize" or always throwing up some rigged contest where a Corvette was "beaten" by a Honda Accord/Ford Taurus/Toyota Camry?

What then?

You are awesome Ray. I am not doing an "ego boost fest", but I love how you can so clearly articulate your arguments/suggestions/questions. Excellent.

Edit: I see now that BlueFox beat me to pointing out the obvious about Ray.

teekay0007 · May 2012

BlueFox wrote: »

I can't speak for anyone else, but I do have past posts that provide this info. Basically, the trip has been from good, to better, better, better, and better. At this point, I am more than happy with the sound, and will start spending money on gear upgrades that will, hopefully, complement the base I have built with interconnect cables, speaker cables, and power cables. Each piece has been a very positive improvement.

Maybe I should make a web-site that states this. Then that will make it more believable for some people. :rolleyes:

Anyway, for speaker cables in the two-channel system I started with

12 gauge twisted, stranded, hardware store copper. Good

Then I went to Mapleshade "Double Helix Speaker Cable with PLUS Upgrade". Better
(Now in the HT/multi-channel system)
http://shop.mapleshadestore.com/Double-Helix-Speaker-Cable-with-PLUS-Upgrade/productinfo/DHELIX-PL/

Then I went to Omega-Mikro "Planar Speaker I". Better
http://www.omegamikro.com/Speaker_cable_I.html

Then I went to Omega-Mikro "Planar Speaker V Active". Better
(I upgraded from these mainly because they are cat fragile.)
http://www.omegamikro.com/Speaker_Cable_V.html

Currently at Shunyata Anaconda Ztron. Better
http://www.thecableco.com/Product/Anaconda-11379

Hope this helps.

BlueFox, these cables you link to in your post show cables ranging from $220 for an 8-foot length up to about $4000 for a 1.5-meter (foot?) one! Which of these options would you suggest the original poster (remember his question?) use on his system which can be had NEW (except the receiver, listed as used - Exc.Cond.) from ebay sellers for UNDER $650 TOTAL ?!?!?

NOT VERY HELPFUL!!!

tonyb · May 2012

bemgolf wrote: »

I am looking for a couple good online dealers that offer 12 AWG that is CL2 rated. I have read numerous articles that state the 12 AWS is better than the smaller 14 AWS, and if you can afford it get it. This is kinda confusing because on mono price the cable is very affordable at $35.00 for 100 ft. If you go to other sites their cable is like $199.99 for monster. I have three questions.

Are these two cables the same quality?

What is with the price difference? Normally cheaper is not better but you never know until you ask?

I really am not looking to spend a gazillion dollars on cable but I would like good to great quality. Can you give me your top 5 manufactures that you have had good experiences with and online retailer sites to get them.

Just more info as to what it will be used for.

70% tv viewing and sporting events
20% movies
10% gaming

Thanks for your input

Here's the original post.

First question- No
Second question- price differences will vary depending on the quality of the wire and the quality of the connectors used along with differences in design. This does not mean price always dictates better sound quality, as there are always good bang for your buck products out there.

Third- Look at Bluejeans, Signal cable, which is a good place to start. If your budget grows, then the world is your oyster. Canare, MIT, Audioquest, just to name a few. There's a cable company for every budget, just like car companies.

If your just starting out and your gear is on the entry level side, Signal cable offers great build quality, and a discount if you tell them your a member here.

Turbota · May 2012

tonyb wrote: »

Signal cable offers great build quality, and a discount if you tell them your a member here.

Good advice. I just bought some RCA interconnects from Signal Wire. I wish I had known beforehand that Signal Cable would have given me a discount for being a member of the Polk forum ... oh well

BlueFox · May 2012

teekay0007 wrote: »

Which of these options would you suggest the original poster (remember his question?) use on his system which can be had NEW (except the receiver, listed as used - Exc.Cond.) from ebay sellers for UNDER $650 TOTAL ?!?!?

His question has been answered numerous times already. Do you lack reading comprehension?

Out of my answers, this is probably the better option for him.

12 gauge twisted, stranded, hardware store copper. Good

In so far as your closing statement,

NOT VERY HELPFUL!!!

Yes, your post does border on the useless side.

gp4jesus · May 2012

Syndil wrote: »

...if you're asking if you can hear a difference between 12AWG and 14AWG...

Yes I can! W/3ohm subs connected to 100wpc, high current amp, XO'd @ 80hz. I'm not saying it sounded better, worse, or different, just louder!

I refer all to post #12. Correct the wire run length to 10' from 12'. Further I've located a table that simply states: 10ga wire resistance is about .001 ohms/ft. A single 10' run of 10ga speaker wire is about .02 ohms. Per the table a double 5' run of 10ga is effectively 7ga wire & about .005 ohms/ft. A net difference of just .0015 ohms, yielded a 3dB(+) output increase! I rewired the subs in 1 channel of my 'A7s w/8ga powerline - big difference in that channel's sub output.

So if you want improve your system efficiency, mo' bigger, mo' better!

Tony

cowtrimmer · May 2012

Thanks for the clear level helpful response gp4jesus.

Turbota · May 2012

gp4jesus wrote: »

So if you want improve your system efficiency, mo' bigger, mo' better!

Tony

Well, that's it!

I'm going to go to Lincoln Electric and buy a 100' spool of 650 amp / 440V arc welder AC power cable!

:cheesygrin:

cowtrimmer · May 2012

Its only good if it costs you 1k a foot.

HTguru1982 · May 2012

teekay0007 wrote: »

My gosh, why make this SO VERY DIFFICULT? The guy's a NEWBIE running two pair of Monitor 30s, a CS1 and a PSW10 with an Onkyo TX-SR605. His longest run of cable needed is 25 feet........I can say that I am VERY VERY confident - yes, by personal experience - that he'd be EXTREMELY happy with 14 AWG oxygen-free copper cable from Monoprice! A 100-foot roll would cover his total needs and it can be in his hands for about $30. I've used longer runs of this very cable, driven with less power by a similar Onkyo receiver to a similar grade of Polk speakers, and couldn't be happier with the sound quality produced. The product has 125 user reviews on their site with over a 98% satisfaction rate. Who knows though, they may all be made up by Monoprice employees.

For any of you other posters...why not just suggest another product if you know of a specific one that would be more likely to satisfy his needs at a REASONABLE price? To send him off to "research all of your other threads" where you "discuss this topic at length" is pretty SILLY! Just make a recommendation if you have one, simple as that. Oh, and I'm sure he would get a lot out of the suggested threads about MIT cables, or any others mentioned that cost multiples of what his whole setup cost, for maybe a 10-foot cable length!! :razz:

Best advice given so far. I really don't get why harmless cable threads turn into such huge debates. Sure, there are VERY subtle differences to be heard in various types of speaker wire but look at this guy's system. He doesn't need $200 - $500(or more!) worth of speaker wire. Monoprice will work exceptionally well for this type of system. And there will no audible difference between 16, 14 and 12 gauge cable, regardless of what you've been told. Now if you had a multi-thousand dollar system then you might want to start looking at other brands. But for now, Monoprice will work perfectly fine. Good luck.

Turbota · May 2012

I think some folks here just scared the OP off ... He hasn't been back in awhile

DarqueKnight · May 2012

HTguru1982 wrote: »

I really don't get why harmless cable threads turn into such huge debates.

It is because some people insist that they know what someone else will or will not hear with cables that that have not tried and with audio equipment that they have no experience with.

Rather than telling someone, in absolute terms, what they will or won't hear, it would be better if everyone could just make a few recommedations based on their personal experience.

Turbota wrote: »

I think some folks here just scared the OP off ... He hasn't been back in awhile

Despite the noise, there is a lot of good advice in this thread. It is possible that the OP is able to read and learn without active participation. I expect that the OP understands that, when you ask questions in a public forum, you might have to sift through some bs.

transmaster · May 2012

Turbota wrote: »

Well, that's it!

I'm going to go to Lincoln Electric and buy a 100' spool of 650 amp / 440V arc welder AC power cable!

:cheesygrin:

No joke; Truck Drivers that are Hamradio operators who run high powered HF amp's 1500 watts or so. use this heavy duty cable to connect the these amp's to the trucks DC power supply we are talking 13.8 VDC and several hundred amps.

transmaster · May 2012

cowtrimmer wrote: »

Its only good if it costs you 1k a foot.

No that is not good enough Kimber Cable makes a speaker cable made out of pure silver. for two 15 foot runs, with solid gold end connectors will set you back just short of $25,000 Dollars.

If you want to laugh your a$$ off go here: http://www.audioholics.com/education/cables/un-sound-advice-about-cables

and here: http://www.audioholics.com/education/cables/top-ten-signs-an-audio-cable-vendor-is-selling-you-snake-oil

I am going to use Canare 4S11 Cable which I am going to purchase from Blue Jeans Cables. I am going to have it terminated with locking banana plugs. BJC uses ultra sonic welding to affix the banana plugs. This is not the cheapest but I want a quality cable I will not have to worry about failing. This is a 4 conductor cable so in the future if I decide to bi-amp a set of speakers I can do it with these Canare cables. The total cost of this will be just over $100 dollars.

12 AWG Speaker Cable Manufactures??? Newbie

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