[WGH]

Well, it can cause some phase shifts.

What are phase shifts and how do they affect the sound? Does that mean that a double run of different types of speaker cables are potentially bad?

[Danny Richie]

A phase shift is a time delay in one range verses another.

[corndog71]

FYI, you can get great results doing that same thing with a polyethylene tube. It is a lot easier to install too.

I didn't realize PE was anti-static.  Still, I think I prefer the dryer sheets as it keeps the cable flexible.  PE tubing might be a bit too stiff.

[Voncarlos]

I picked up some 1/4 inch polyethylene tube (PE) and fed it through the Kimber Kable. As you can see, the cable is still very flexible, as flexible as it was before adding the PE tube.
I was looking forward to hearing a nice change in the sound but I didn't like what I was hearing. Now the sound was too analytical and added a lot of Sssssssss and ffffffffffsh sounds to the vocals.
As you can see, adding this PE tube spreads apart the conductors and I think it also acts as a dielectric. Someone who is in the know, please correct me on this.
So one or both of these two things are causing this change.
I removed the PE tube, and the cable retained it's larger size. Doing this did not get rid of the hot treble.
So, it was the spacing of the conductors that was the cause.
The cable in it's virgin form was braided snugly, so I worked the now loose-braid back and forth between my hands to close up the spacing, but not back to the point of a tight braid.
Leaving just a little bit of spacing in the braid has worked. I now have an extended treble but without it being "hot".
Unfortunately doing all this has disrupted the cable and I think they need to "break in" again.
I should add, this is on a 20 foot run of cable and I would expect this effect to be less on a smaller length.
 

[corndog71]

Fascinating.

[Danny Richie]

Another very note worthy tweak, is to put them in a cooler with dry ice for about three days. It might also help to stick them in the freezer for the first day then go to the dry ice. The dry ice will melt off by about the mid 2nd day mark depending on the cooler and a slow warming up will begin.

[Rocket_Ronny]

Carlos:

Go to Walmart and buy their 40 foot run of "Yard Master" patio chord no. 2382 and give that a try.

I brought over a set to a friends house who tweeks his Acoustats and gear constantly and has tried many a cable. We cut up the Yard Master cable and slipped it in his system. He thought we were wasting our time putting in junk cable and not broken in at all.

HE WAS FLOORED, AND SHOCKED!

All of this is system synergy of course, but is worth a try.   


Rocket_Ronny

[Voncarlos]

While I was making the curved side panels for the OB5s, I made an extra set just in case someone wanted me to make a pair of OB5s for them. I haven't gotten any requests for that so I would like to offer those extra side panels to the forum for $20 a piece plus shipping.
There are 4 and they're all the same except for their height.
Radius is 9 ft.
The width is 17 inches.
The edge is 3/4 inch.
The widest point of the curve is 1-1/16th inch.
The heights are 32, 31-5/8, 31-11/16, 32.
I'll also let the jig to make the curve go for $20.

[Voncarlos]

Carlos:
Go to Walmart and buy their 40 foot run of "Yard Master" patio chord no. 2382 and give that a try.
I brought over a set to a friends house who tweeks his Acoustats and gear constantly and has tried many a cable. We cut up the Yard Master cable and slipped it in his system. He thought we were wasting our time putting in junk cable and not broken in at all.
HE WAS FLOORED, AND SHOCKED!
All of this is system synergy of course, but is worth a try.   
Rocket_Ronny

Okay, I made the Walmart cable, it comes as a 40' length, and I made two 10' cables from it. I thought it was okay for a temporary cable, although it was lacking in bass authority. And no wonder, how can you have 2 conductors making up 66% of the cable, and 1 conductor making up the remaining 33% ???



I also didn't think the PolyVinyl jacket was doing any good as a dielectric. So I stripped it off and added a fourth conductor from the left over. Now I had 2x2 conductors.



Slipped that into a Techflex sleeve and shink-wrapped the ends. I didn't want these cables to stand-out so I chose a boring Techflex color to closely match the carpet. You can buy the Techflex in lots of different colors and patterns, some of them are pretty wild.



Hooked them up and noticed the bass had improved a lot. I let them burn in and lived with them for a few months until I got around to cutting up my Kimbers to 6.5'.
Okay! Major differences between the two, (unless you're one of the flat-earth-ers).
The Walmart modded cable was okay for a cheap cable, the bass was decent but the high end had a sibilants that was too hot for me and the "black-space" between players was muddy.
The Kimbers on the other hand, were marvelous!
The imaging and soundstage was like you were sitting in the 3rd or 4th row, just how I like it.
The bass was great, in fact it was too great and overloaded the acoustics in the room, and the "black-space" was nice, or so I thought . . .

So all of this, started me on a journey to correct my room acoustics using Bass & Broadband traps that I could DIY. If your interested in that, see my thread on the Acoustic Circle.
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=85842.0

Here's a picture of how the room looks after the additions.

[Danny Richie]

Very cool.

[corndog71]

Reading over this thread I noticed something I missed before.  You mentioned the Kimbers were killing the highs.  Then you mentioned they were 20' runs.  8TC has a somewhat high capacitance to begin with so it's no surprise cutting them down made them better.