So I'm thinking of having a go at making a set of Cat 5 speaker cables for my neighbour.
I have seen pictures of it done in so many different ways, I have no idea how to start.
My main concern is current carrying capacity. I can't give him something that might melt...
His speakers are Aspara HL1 SE, amp is currently a Krell FPB 600 but shall be changed to a 10-30wpc valve amp in the near future.
Runs need to be 2.5m.
What do you guys suggest? How many cables, what weave pattern, what brand/type of cable should I use?
He currently has some big MIT things. They are supposed to be good cables - I'm trying to show him that cables don't have to cost thousands of pounds so I need to get it right.
Cheers
I have seen pictures of it done in so many different ways, I have no idea how to start.
My main concern is current carrying capacity. I can't give him something that might melt...
His speakers are Aspara HL1 SE, amp is currently a Krell FPB 600 but shall be changed to a 10-30wpc valve amp in the near future.
Runs need to be 2.5m.
What do you guys suggest? How many cables, what weave pattern, what brand/type of cable should I use?
He currently has some big MIT things. They are supposed to be good cables - I'm trying to show him that cables don't have to cost thousands of pounds so I need to get it right.
Cheers
Watch out for high capacitance in braided Cat 5 speaker cables, especially since you mention a valve amp. Though 2.5m is not long it could have an effect. Been there, not going back. All I got was a muddy sound compared to even basic QED stuff. I swear by Van Dam speaker cable these days, the twin stuff with transparent insulation. No need to spend more and if you want it to look impressive get the 4mm version and fit some nice looking connectors.
Thank for that. I do have reservations with the idea of these Cat5 cables. Though I would like to give it a try. Maybe even try making some interconnects.
Is all cat5 the same or are some makes better than others? I know they all have to conform to the same standard...
The whole cable thing is full of divided opinion though and I think it always will be.
Personally I switched from using thick OFC copper from maplins to some cheap QED and the improvement was very noticeable. Then I borrowed some Chord Odyssey, which is silver plated copper in teflon and ended up having to buy some. It was just 'better'. However, I draw the line there. I shall never buy anything else, unless I need something longer one day or need more for bi amping etc.
Is all cat5 the same or are some makes better than others? I know they all have to conform to the same standard...
The whole cable thing is full of divided opinion though and I think it always will be.
Personally I switched from using thick OFC copper from maplins to some cheap QED and the improvement was very noticeable. Then I borrowed some Chord Odyssey, which is silver plated copper in teflon and ended up having to buy some. It was just 'better'. However, I draw the line there. I shall never buy anything else, unless I need something longer one day or need more for bi amping etc.
6mm T+E household wiring cable is ideal for static installations. No loss. Cat5 is signal cable, not power cable. That would be like using telephone multicore for loudspeakers.
No advantage using silver plated as silver plated starts to come into its own at frequencies above 50MHZ, no advantage in audio.
No advantage using silver plated as silver plated starts to come into its own at frequencies above 50MHZ, no advantage in audio.
cat5 plenum is a teflon insulated version that many report superior to the standard version.
One possible advantage to silver plate is it keeps the copper from oxidizing.
You won't know until you try it...
One possible advantage to silver plate is it keeps the copper from oxidizing.
You won't know until you try it...
Plenum cable is designed not to emit toxic smoke if it burns. It's used when run through cold air returns in ductwork. It's usually much lower quality than non-plenum rated at roughly 1/3 more cost. The insulation tears and chafes more easily and usually shows an ugly bruise if bent too tightly. Non-plenum is much easier to work with.
Like many people, I am of the opinion that any reasonably heavy gauge wire, made of ordinary copper, will work fine as speaker cable. (What do you suppose the voice coils and crossover inductors inside the speaker are made of? 🙂 )
Cat5 Ethernet cable has a resistance of about 30 ohms per 1000ft, so a 10 foot speaker cable made using all 4 pairs of a Cat5 (4 conductors going out, 4 coming back) will have a resistance of 0.15 ohms. This is about the same as cheap "bell wire" and 3 times the resistance of the 1.5 sq mm flexible cord used on 4-way extensions and heavy duty appliances in the UK.
Depending on how the cores were connected, the Cat5 speaker cable could have a capacitance 2 to 3x that of an ordinary speaker cable, but this is unlikely to cause problems with a 10 foot run. The mega cable shown above by Andersonix probably has 10x the capacitance of a simple zip cord of the same length.
Cat5 Ethernet cable has a resistance of about 30 ohms per 1000ft, so a 10 foot speaker cable made using all 4 pairs of a Cat5 (4 conductors going out, 4 coming back) will have a resistance of 0.15 ohms. This is about the same as cheap "bell wire" and 3 times the resistance of the 1.5 sq mm flexible cord used on 4-way extensions and heavy duty appliances in the UK.
Depending on how the cores were connected, the Cat5 speaker cable could have a capacitance 2 to 3x that of an ordinary speaker cable, but this is unlikely to cause problems with a 10 foot run. The mega cable shown above by Andersonix probably has 10x the capacitance of a simple zip cord of the same length.
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I agree. Why use signal wire to try to carry heavy current? Cat 5 is designed mainly to carry 4 different low current high frequency signals over distance without crosstalking between each twisted pair. I personally don't see any of these qualities to be useful for carrying low frequency high current signal.
The fep teflon insulation on the plenum rated cat 5 has a higher melting point than the regular version. Teflon is more expensive than the standard insulation that is why it costs more. Teflon has a lower dialectric constant than the standard insulation-some feel that is important. Thus, teflon caps, etc.
Otherwise, it is the same thing so I don't understand why you claim it is "lower quality".
It is stiffer and thus more difficult to braid.
But as Cat 5 can carry signals up to 100's of MHz surely it must be better at carrying audio up to 20kHz?
Because for the properties that matter in that application (e.g., ruggedness, ease of stripping without damaging the conductor), it is inferior. There is an audiophile cult surrounding PTFE and related fluoropolymers, but they're just plastics that have some good and some not-so-good properties, and the whole point of proper engineering is to choose materials with the best mix of properties for a given application. Clearly that will not be the same material is all applications.
In my experience silver tarnishes a lot more readily than copper.
The tarnish you get on silver is silver sulphate, an insulator.
Lower quality is likely the wrong choice of words. Plenum cable is terrible to pull in long runs compared to non-plenum rated. It tears, sticks to everything along it's path and bruises from anything. I've recently replace the complete communications network in the building I work in. It consisted or pulling approx. 60 km of Cat5 cabling through some of the most ignorant areas you could imagine. To me the low quality wire was the wire that didn't survive the install. Yes it has a higher melting point, but this isn't a quality I personally would be looking for in a speaker wire. If it's getting that warm it's obviously got bigger issues. An FT4 speaker wire would likely be better.
Speaker cable needs to carry 20Hz(almost DC) not 100MHz. Two totally different animals.
Yes, I think "lower quality" was not the appropriate way to describe it.
I wasn't mentioning the higher melting point in regards to its application in a speaker cable, I brought it up as an explanation as to why it is used in plenum applications.
FEP and other so-called teflon plastics have a lower dialectric constant than nearly all other plastics used for wire insulation. That is the property cited by those that believe the dielectric has an influence on the signal propagation and thus can play a role in the performance of the cable assembly.
There are plenty of vocal opinions on both sides of the "cables matter" issue..... Ultimately, the only opinion that matters is your own. Try it if you are curious, or not...To each his own.
Hi,
My Cat5 cables are are three runs plaited together and at the end
all twisted pairs are paralled. That gives 12 100 ohm pairs paralled
for a nominal 8.3 ohm impedance. YMMV, works for me.
Personally though I'd recommend 5A 4 core caravan / 3 phase cable,
wired as a star quad, opposite conductors for + and -, as the best
DIY budget speaker cables in my experience. Solder tin the ends.
rgds, sreten.
My Cat5 cables are are three runs plaited together and at the end
all twisted pairs are paralled. That gives 12 100 ohm pairs paralled
for a nominal 8.3 ohm impedance. YMMV, works for me.
Personally though I'd recommend 5A 4 core caravan / 3 phase cable,
wired as a star quad, opposite conductors for + and -, as the best
DIY budget speaker cables in my experience. Solder tin the ends.
rgds, sreten.
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