[jk@home]

To those using Cat 5 as speaker cable, do you just use a single (24-gauge?) conductor per binding post connection? I assume the outer covering is removed, right? Do you twist the positive and negative conductors together, or leave them separated with a ?" gap between?

I was thinking I could braid four conductors together, using two per positive and negative leg, which would equal 21 gauge per side. Still a small gauge speaker wire, but they would be easier to run and mount on my isolators.

[planet10]

I use a single pair of solid strands (cryo-treated0 seperated into an approximately parallel pair. I'm going to try  less separation to see how it affects the top end....

dave

[rockadanny]

I took the "easy" route and followed the Cat5 V3 recipe from audioholics (do a search over there for "speaker cable faceoff"). This recipe:
1.) Twist a pair of cables to length, one will be (+) and one (-).
2.) Repeat.
3.) Repeat. You'll now have three twisted pairs, (+) and (-) in each.
4.) Twist all three cable pairs together. This is for one speaker.
5.) Optional: Put this big cable in a Techflex sleeve and use 6" shrink tube for each post (+) and (-) on each end.
6.) I terminated one end with WBT-like bananas from expressparts and just use bare wire for the other end.
7.) Repeat for the other speaker.

Preference is Teflon insulation instead of PVC.

They sound great!

[Wind Chaser]

When I was using CAT 5, I used single pair.  If your speakers are away from the walls, you might want to leave them in the jacket for the sake of visibility.  I kept tripping over mine.

Make sure the CAT 5 you choose is teflon coated.  The jacket should be stamped CMP or read Plenum.  All other varieties of CAT 5 sound like crap.

I no longer use CAT 5 as the Yard Master is a quantum leap forward.  The difference is so vast you'll think it you spent few hundred dollars more, but go to Wal Mart, and for less than $10 you'll get 40'.

[jk@home]

I got the cable from Home Depot, it has both "plenum" and " CMP" written on the jacket. Hope it's teflon insulated    I was using magnet wire before, want something the cat won't trip over.

Looking at that Audioholics web site, appears that they are using multiple runs of entire cat 5 cabling, the "v3" looks as if it would have a total wire gauge of around 10-11 awg for each leg (8-24 gauge conductors x3).

I was thinking more of just one or two conductors per leg, which would be either 24 or 21 gauge total per positive or negative to each speaker. I'm using FE167s (plus two powered subs) with a S.E.X. amp.

[JLM]

I've used multi-strand un-rated CAT-5 and single strand, teflon coated, cryo'd, plenum rated CAT-5 (both in single pairs).  The later was noticably better.  Both are great bargains (I paid $20 for the pair of cryo'd CAT-5 from a group buy), but both suffer from lack of deep bass.  Obviously this may not be an issue for some single driver speakers.

[rockadanny]

I'll admit that I would not notice its lack of deep bass since I high pass my mains at 85Hz. So while I think this cable is excellent, I cannot vouch for its deep bass ability as for me, that is performed by powered subwoofs via unbalanced connections. 

[Wind Chaser]

Plenum and Teflon are essentially the same thing.  If the cable says CMP or Plenum, you've got the right stuff.

However for < $10 you owe it to yourself to try the Yard Master patio cord from Walmart. 

[Jampot]

a word of caution

I find a short pair of cables which are just a single twisted pair for each side works great with tripath amps - and I haven't noticed any lack of bass.

BUT

I connected them up to an old fashioned conventional amp (to check it out)and it got so hot the heat sinks were untouchable. Something to do with capacitance or inductance (in the twisted pair cable) not sure which.

No damage occurred and the old amp is still working happily with bog standard QED multistrand.

Jim

[Gaara]

I connected them up to an old fashioned conventional amp (to check it out)and it got so hot the heat sinks were untouchable. Something to do with capacitance or inductance (in the twisted pair cable) not sure which.

To my knowledge its the low inductance of these designs that cause them to oscillate.

VH Audio has some good recipes on their site, I use a modified version of one with my PC rig.  There also was another site that had instructions on how to twist the pairs using a jig and electric drill.

[jk@home]

That comes around to what I was wondering, I know (but not by much) that braiding vs twisting vs leaving pos/neg wires separated, results in different electrical characteristic such as inductance.

I was using a 26 gauge twisted pair of magnet wire, My Bottlehead S.E.X. amp apparently didn't have a problem with that.

At one time I thought of trying Homegrown Audio's IC-4 cable, which is 4-26 gauge silver conductors braided like Cat 5. Folks at Homegrown told me twisting was bad, braiding was good. Course they sell braided wire  . I do use a pair of their IC-8 interconnects, but $200 for a speaker cable experiment was too much, the Cat-5 cost me .59 a foot.

Enough saving to cover my diy room treatment panels, which will do more for my system then any cable upgrade.

[Speedskater]

I connected them up to an old fashioned conventional amp (to check it out)and it got so hot the heat sinks were untouchable. Something to do with capacitance or inductance (in the twisted pair cable) not sure which.

To my knowledge its the low inductance of these designs that cause them to oscillate.

VH Audio has some good recipes on their site, I use a modified version of one with my PC rig.  There also was another site that had instructions on how to twist the pairs using a jig and electric drill.

I think that it is poor amplifier design reacting with the high cable capacitance, that causes the oscillation. Cable capacitance and self induction are a trade-off.  You trade more of one for less of the other.

[rockadanny]

Link to measurements of several Cat5 and other speaker wires:

http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/cables/diy-speaker-cable-faceoff/diy-cable-faceoff-measurements-and-value