[CButterworth]

Well,  I got the toroids wired-up and got around 54V last night, so my AKSA 55 is well underway and all that remains is testing the powersupply rectifier, then making the internal connections to the amp boards.

Hence the questions:

1. I have Vampire Wire 18 gauge continuous cast stranded wire.  Will this be sufficient for the speaker binding posts (my guess is that it will be OK).

2.  Will the same wire be good for the signal and ground inputs?  Or should I use the CAT 5 method?

Thank-you,
Charlie

[Carlman]

I used 18ga for the speaker leads and all other wiring... EXCEPT the RCA terminals... that's CAT5.  I'm very pleased with the results.

-Carl

[andyr]

Charlie,

Signal wire should never be thick - that's why Hugh includes teflon-coated 24awg Cat5 which is thin enough to do an excellent job.   However, some people claim that using wire as thin as 30awg gives you better sound.

The physics behind the best thickness for speaker wire and power wire is different - many people use the sort of multi-stranded, 18awg wire you mention.  I myself use solid-core for mains and 30 amp automotive wire for DC power.

Regards,

Andy

[Malcolm Fear]

I use 4 strands of teflon coated CAT 5 for signal. I braid 4 strands together (after untwisting it). 2 strands for signal, 2 for return.
I use 8 strands braided for speaker load, 4 for positive, 4 for return.

[stvnharr]

Charlie,
Either the Vampire or Cat 5 will work just fine.
I use 22 or 24 ga. Vampire for all my wiring.
I use a braid of 8 for output and earth, and 2 each or inputs.
With 18 ga. you might want to use about half, as more in not necessarily better.
The Cat 5 will do just as good in Malcolm's configuration.
Either way you are in for a treat