My setup requires 15 feet of speaker cable for the right side speaker to amp and the left side needs about 25 feet. I've read that speaker cables should be the same length, but don't know if coiling 10 feet of cable, on itself, in the bottom of a cabinet, might have its own problems. What would be the best, trouble free, setup?
Thanks
Thanks
Loose coiling causes no problems since the twin cable carrying current in opposite directions will not act as an inductor because the magnetic fields cancel.
Avoid tight coiling as this does not allow heat to dissipate freely from the cable.
P.S. In itself, an extra 10 ft of one of the cables will not introduce a significant resistance imbalance so I wouldn't worry about just having those two different lengths.
Avoid tight coiling as this does not allow heat to dissipate freely from the cable.
P.S. In itself, an extra 10 ft of one of the cables will not introduce a significant resistance imbalance so I wouldn't worry about just having those two different lengths.
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The cables don't have to be the same length. I often make them the same length out of convenience but there's nothing electrically that requires the cables to have the same length. I just coil up the excess out of sight - usually under the stereo rack (which for me is a small IKEA end table).
I'm guessing those who argue that the cables should be the same length argue that the signal will arrive at the speakers at a different time if the cables are of different lengths. That's true. But electricity travels at around 2/3rd the speed of light so any difference in timing will be imperceptible. Shifting your body by a fraction of an Angstrom would compensate for any timing difference.
I suppose another argument could be that the resistance of the cables should be identical. The cable resistance will be tiny compared to the impedance of the speaker. Any difference in cable resistance will be swamped out by differences between the two speakers and by the differences in resistance of the connectors. The latter is especially true if you use banana plugs or binding posts.
Tom
I'm guessing those who argue that the cables should be the same length argue that the signal will arrive at the speakers at a different time if the cables are of different lengths. That's true. But electricity travels at around 2/3rd the speed of light so any difference in timing will be imperceptible. Shifting your body by a fraction of an Angstrom would compensate for any timing difference.
I suppose another argument could be that the resistance of the cables should be identical. The cable resistance will be tiny compared to the impedance of the speaker. Any difference in cable resistance will be swamped out by differences between the two speakers and by the differences in resistance of the connectors. The latter is especially true if you use banana plugs or binding posts.
Tom
Thanks for the replies and Hi Tom. Still love the Modulus 86 and Parallel 86. I'm getting the cable to power my N803s with the Parallel 86. It will replace my Aragon 8008bb and think it will do a great job. I'm using bare wire connections so I will save $$ by buying only one length and cut it to the different lengths
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So now I need to buy some cable and have read many positive reviews of Belden 9497. The 9497 has had a strong following and glowing reviews by Japanese audiophiles for a number of years. Seems Belden Brilliance 1309a is also considered good, but not many reviews. Both cost around $100 for 100 feet. Has anyone compared, or know of comparisons of these Belden speaker cables?
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Almost any two (or 3) wire copper card will do. Probably 12AWG. Skip the Copper Clad Aluminum (CCA) loudspeaker cables from the big-box stores.
Yes, but it's not always significant enough to be a problem/noticeable. I have had to adjust for a small L/R imbalance on a long and considerably asymmetrical run. I measured the difference at the speaker terminals.
I like GLS for speaker cables. They're available through Bezos' Bookstore. I have some 2x 12 AWG and 4x 14 AWG cable of theirs. There are many strands in each wire and the cable has a nice rubber jacket. It's very flexible and rolls out smoothly.
https://www.amazon.com/GLS-Audio/s?k=GLS+Audio
Tom
https://www.amazon.com/GLS-Audio/s?k=GLS+Audio
Tom
https://www.parts-express.com/Audtek-SKRL-10-50-10-AWG-OFC-Speaker-Wire-50-ft.-100-028?quantity=1
Or any equivalent (copper, closely spaced parallel pair or twisted pair).
If you don't mind a stiffer wire: 10ga Romex mains cable. Remove outer sheath, twist together, say 1 turn per foot. If you really, really must have a brand & want to pay more, Supra Classic 4.0 or 6.0, or, if you want something with a touch of built-in EQ (assuming a voltage source amplifier) Van Damme 4.0 or 6.0 with the heavier gauge being preferable, but you'll be paying more. Not much more compared to the usual hi-fi twaddle, but still paying more.
Or any equivalent (copper, closely spaced parallel pair or twisted pair).
If you don't mind a stiffer wire: 10ga Romex mains cable. Remove outer sheath, twist together, say 1 turn per foot. If you really, really must have a brand & want to pay more, Supra Classic 4.0 or 6.0, or, if you want something with a touch of built-in EQ (assuming a voltage source amplifier) Van Damme 4.0 or 6.0 with the heavier gauge being preferable, but you'll be paying more. Not much more compared to the usual hi-fi twaddle, but still paying more.
I run Supra Classic 4.0 myself, mainly because I was given some offcuts. 😉 Very decent moderate gauge zip cord.
Monster branded wire & some of its knock-offs had / has a bit of a reputation for oxidising; either the copper had some impurities, the dielectric wasn't up to the drill, or both. 😉 I've regularly helped my radio ham dad with sorting out his mast leads since I was a kid; everything from single core to coax & much fancier stuff. The only time we've ever had any issue with the wire itself (and we're in a damp part of the UK) was when a lead, unbeknownst to use, was rubbing against a concrete post (our own fault). Otherwise, nothing. We've got perfectly ordinary, albeit properly made, wires that have been exposed to the elements for decades; copper as bright as the day it was made.
Monster branded wire & some of its knock-offs had / has a bit of a reputation for oxidising; either the copper had some impurities, the dielectric wasn't up to the drill, or both. 😉 I've regularly helped my radio ham dad with sorting out his mast leads since I was a kid; everything from single core to coax & much fancier stuff. The only time we've ever had any issue with the wire itself (and we're in a damp part of the UK) was when a lead, unbeknownst to use, was rubbing against a concrete post (our own fault). Otherwise, nothing. We've got perfectly ordinary, albeit properly made, wires that have been exposed to the elements for decades; copper as bright as the day it was made.
The only time I have problems with different speaker cable lengths, is when there is a very large difference in length. Sometimes the cable resistance can be an half an ohm or more different. That can end up being noticeable in loudness between channels
Source resistance, whether from the amplifier or from the speaker wires, will cause the input signal voltage
at the speaker terminals to tend to follow the shape of the speaker's impedance curve. It doesn't take
much resistance when the speaker dips as low as a few ohms.
An example effect of amplifier source resistance:
https://www.stereophile.com/content/air-tight-atm-1s-power-amplifier-measurements
at the speaker terminals to tend to follow the shape of the speaker's impedance curve. It doesn't take
much resistance when the speaker dips as low as a few ohms.
An example effect of amplifier source resistance:
https://www.stereophile.com/content/air-tight-atm-1s-power-amplifier-measurements
For speaker cable this stuff is quite good and reasonably priced: https://www.canare.com/speakercable Also there is a trick to making it sound even better; anyone remember what it is?
My first audio purchase in Beijing may have been someone's unused length of "star-quad" 4S11. That was a long time ago....
I usually don't worry unless the difference is expected to be more than 20 feet. Larger speaker cable can help minimize the any issues in length difference.
IIRC, sharing a thick fatty was generally part of preconditioning for extending listening sessions at the little shop at the junction* back in the day.
* as I think Dave can attest