Best Bulk Speaker Cable Advice

gongos · « **on:** 2 Mar 2006, 07:19 pm »

I'm going to make a pair of 10' cables and am make mechanical connections--no soldering. I'm looking for some advice on some good bulk speaker cable to use. No more than $5 a foot. Thanks.

Jonathan · « **Reply #1 on:** 2 Mar 2006, 07:23 pm »

You could try the Home Depot 14AWG indoor/outdoor extension cable (the orange and black striped stuff). You can crimp on spades or use screw-on bananas. 50' will run you less than $20.

gitarretyp · « **Reply #2 on:** 2 Mar 2006, 07:40 pm »

The cardas crosslink (diycable.com) or dh labs t-14 (audioc.com) are in your price range and seem to be well respected.

avta · « **Reply #3 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 12:23 am »

I've got the DH Labs T-14's and am very satified. I'm running Magnepan 1.6's.

Guy

elcaptain88 · « **Reply #4 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 12:31 am »

SoundKing bulk speaker wire is available in different gauge sizes at partsexpress.com. Why spend more?

earlmarc · « **Reply #5 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 12:33 am »

The Wasatch Cablesworks B-503 and B-510 is in my opinion some the best bulk cable available. $2.00 per ft. for B-503 and $5.00 per ft. for B-510. In fact, I'm selling a 35ft pair of B-503 for $120.00.

warnerwh · « **Reply #6 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 02:25 am »

Canare 4s11 for 63 cents a foot. Excellent speaker cable. I use Knukonceptz 10 ga silver plated speaker cable. This stuff has a polyethylene insulation. It's 2 dollars a foot but won't ever need replacing with the poly insulation and silver plating. Knukonceptz also sells some nice Z type bananas that fit snugly. Just tighten two screws and you're good to go. With Vmps speakers though you need spades on the speaker end. Luminous audio on Audiogon has some that are very heavy duty that come in bare copper, silver plate or gold plate. They're 10 bucks shipped for four of them. You can put them in a vice and squeeze them to the wire for a termination. I also solder them.

Don't bother with anything other than what I've recommended. The stuff at Home Depot and Sound King will let the copper turn green after a couple of years. I had it happen with Monster cables regular 12 gauge some years ago. It turned green several inches up and oxidized copper doesn't conduct too well. That's why I like the silver plate as silver oxide still will conduct fine.

Jon L · « **Reply #7 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 03:26 am »

Quote from: gongos

I'm going to make a pair of 10' cables and am make mechanical connections--no soldering. I'm looking for some advice on some good bulk speaker cable to use. No more than $5 a foot. Thanks.

I'll play audio Devil's advocate and recommend bulk cable 3x your budget

Go with VH Audio CheLA speaker cables. You'll thank me...

Carlman · « **Reply #8 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 03:32 am »

The best 'all around' cheap speaker cable I've found is 'THNN' stranded wire at Lowe's or Home Depot. You'll have to twist the + and - leads if you want it to be one cable. But you can get a multitude of colors and guages.

I have found the Canare 4S11 inferior to just about anything I've tried. I have terminated it various ways, tried it with no termination.. and just don't understand its popularity. However, it must work for some scenarios... I just don't have one of them.

Most of my experience is in SS amps. However the THHN sounds great on my little tube setup in my office. I think it's 14ga.

-C

kfr01 · « **Reply #9 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 06:59 am »

In what ways have you found the Canare 4S11 inferior?

I've had nothing but good luck with it.

randytsuch · « **Reply #10 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 04:41 pm »

Quote from: Carlman

The best 'all around' cheap speaker cable I've found is 'THNN' stranded wire at Lowe's or Home Depot. You'll have to twist the + and - leads if you want it to be one cable. But you can get a multitude of colors and guages.

I have found the Canare 4S11 inferior to just about anything I've tried. I have terminated it various ways, tried it with no termination.. and just don't understand its popularity. However, it must work for some scenarios... I just don't have one of them.

Most of my experience i ...

I use 12 guage THHN, 4 wires in a star quad geometry, and it works great. However, you THHN with all the strands the same size sounds better, and it is hard to find, most of the THHN wire out there has two sizes of strands, and for some reason that does not sound as good.

Randy

G.Michael · « **Reply #11 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 05:28 pm »

The best I've done $-wise, by far, is with Teflon-insulated, stranded wire. Lots of it available on eBay--do a search on "teflon wire." Lots of sizes available. Sometimes you can find twisted pairs. Pretty much everything there costs less than $1 per ft. Most less than 50 cents per ft.

It takes a while for the wire to "break in," so play it continuously for 4 or 5 days.

One more thing, it sounds best unterminated, so don't bother messing around with spades, etc. Treat the ends with Caig Pro Gold (avaiable in small quantities at Radio Shack), and hook it up.

You'll have outstanding cable for less than $1 per ft.

Carlman · « **Reply #12 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 06:41 pm »

Quote from: kfr01

In what ways have you found the Canare 4S11 inferior?

I've had nothing but good luck with it.

It just sounds a bit veiled and the soundstage is usually a bit compressed by it. Zip cord, magnet wire, and THHN wire bested it in that order in those areas for me.

-C

lcrim · « **Reply #13 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 07:15 pm »

I've never tried the Canare or the THHN but keep coming back to this old Audioquest CV-4 that I bought about 30 ft of 5yrs ago. It is solid core and is terminated w/ cheap screw on bananas at the amp end only, nothing at the speaker end. I have tried all kinds of stranded from zip to Cat 6 and always end up coming back to the solid core Audioquest. For a while I had these high dollar NBS speaker cables but when I went back to the Audioquest, it sounded better .
I like Blue Jeans Cable IC's and for speaker wire they sell bulk Belden 5000 series as well as the Canare 4S11 plus decent terminations within your price range. I think I'll stay with what I've got but I'm always on the lookout for good, cheap cable.
This is not meant as a knock on anybody who sells cables on this board and is only my opinion right now. I may change my mind.

F-100 · « **Reply #14 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 07:34 pm »

I've used the Canare 4S11 speaker wire before in my 2CH system and I agree with Carlman's opinion. However, it's a very good performance for a HT system and you can't go wrong with the price.

Doublej · « **Reply #15 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 09:10 pm »

Only problem with the Audioquest CV-4 is that it is a tad more than $5/foot.

I saw it at HCM Audio for $25/foot.

skrivis · « **Reply #16 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 09:19 pm »

Quote from: G.Michael

It takes a while for the wire to "break in," so play it continuously for 4 or 5 days.

It's actually psychosomatic. Speaker wire doesn't require breaking in.

After 4 or 5 days, you convince yourself it works better.

lcrim · « **Reply #17 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 09:55 pm »

Doublej:
I just couldn't believe that price of $25/ft for CV-4 so I checked out hcm audio and they're charging $10 a foot for raw. I found it as cheap as $7.50 w/o trying too hard.
I don't remember spending anywhere near that much and I realize that the guy who started this thread was looking for a $5.00/ft cable but with more shopping I bet one could get pretty close.

Doublej · « **Reply #18 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 11:12 pm »

lcrim,

Ah, the old ID10T error on my part.

Thanks for clearing it up.

I also see there is an 8' pair on Audigon for $106. I guess the seller is looking for $100 plus the $6 listing fee.

thayerg · « **Reply #19 on:** 3 Mar 2006, 11:45 pm »

If you want really cheap, and really good unveiled sound I totally recommend MAGNET WIRE which you buy by the pound, not the foot. It has an incredible thin lacquer coating which you can't believe prevents shorts, until you try to scrape it off to expose the copper. Then you begin to understand that it's serious stuff. There was a thread here a while ago where some brave soul tested a bunch of cables. The one he liked more than magnet wire cost a whole lot more and was only slightly better whereas all the others were distinctly inferior.

Magnet wire is like nordost but less bloodless. It took my system to another level of resolution altogether when I replaced some kimber kable krap with it.