[adam1516]

Hi chaps,

Well, after much consideration, I have finally decided to go with the Wharfedale DX1 HCP 5.1 speakers.

All I need now is the correct speaker cable to accompany them.

I need a 25m reel, plus sub woofer cable.

Thanks for any advice chaps.

[chrisjr]

If you read magazines such as WhatHifi then you really need some pure silver multistrand cable rolled on the thighs of East Asian virgins for the ultimate sonic purity. For example

http://www.russandrews.com/product.a...GBP&pf_id=3266

However if you live in the real world a bit of two core mains cable does the job equally as well in most cases and is a hell of a lot cheaper!

[adam1516]

Do you mean something like this -

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Quality-2-5m...2061977&sr=8-6

[el_bardos]

Originally Posted by chrisjr

If you read magazines such as WhatHifi then you really need some pure silver multistrand cable rolled on the thighs of East Asian virgins for the ultimate sonic purity. For example

http://www.russandrews.com/product.a...GBP&pf_id=3266

However if you live in the real world a bit of two core mains cable does the job equally as well in most cases and is a hell of a lot cheaper!

Pretty much agree, most of the audiophile stuff is pseudo-science designed to get people to spend a lot of money for no benefit (other than maybe a placebo effect, it's funny how people think it sounds better when they spend more!)

The one thing to consider from a proper engineering perspective is the resistance of the cable relative to the speaker impedence. The lower the better ideally, although it has to reach a certain level before the human ear will notice.

Material, thickness and length are the things affecting the resistance. Speaker cable is almost always copper so not worth thinking too much about material, you're going to be stuck on length dependant on where you want the speakers so the only thing you can control really is the thickness of the cable - the thicker the lower the resistance.

I don't have any figures to hand but you should be able to google to look at what the resistance per unit length is of different gauge wire is, you just need to multiply by lengths you're running to get the overall resistance and aim for the thinnest wire that will get you below about 5% of the speaker impedence value (assuming you have 'normal' ears, it's a bit of a rule of thumb by all accounts)

[adam1516]

Originally Posted by el_bardos

Pretty much agree, most of the audiophile stuff is pseudo-science designed to get people to spend a lot of money for no benefit (other than maybe a placebo effect, it's funny how people think it sounds better when they spend more!)

The one thing to consider from a proper engineering perspective is the resistance of the cable relative to the speaker impedence. The lower the better ideally, although it has to reach a certain level before the human ear will notice.

Material, thickness and length are the things affecting the resistance. Speaker cable is almost always copper so not worth thinking too much about material, you're going to be stuck on length dependant on where you want the speakers so the only thing you can control really is the thickness of the cable - the thicker the lower the resistance.

I don't have any figures to hand but you should be able to google to look at what the resistance per unit length is of different gauge wire is, you just need to multiply by lengths you're running to get the overall resistance and aim for the thinnest wire that will get you below about 5% of the speaker impedence value (assuming you have 'normal' ears, it's a bit of a rule of thumb by all accounts)

This is why I come to this forum so that I can avoid spending hours on Google reading gobbledygook and jargon (no offence)!

[el_bardos]

Originally Posted by adam1516

This is why I come to this forum so that I can avoid spending hours on Google reading gobbledygook and jargon (no offence)!

None taken, although I fail to see the point of coming to a forum to blindly follow what random internet people who may or may not know what they're talking about suggest without explanation, and nothing I've written is more complex than GSCE physics.

[adam1516]

Originally Posted by el_bardos

None taken, although I fail to see the point of coming to a forum to blindly follow what random internet people who may or may not know what they're talking about suggest without explanation, and nothing I've written is more complex than GSCE physics.

http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm

Perfect!!

[jjne]

Cable can make a noticeable difference to sound in some circumstances (especially over a distance) -- but there is no correlation between price and "sound quality".

[diablo]

The cheap wire mentioned earlier sold by 'electrosmart' Is copper coated aluminium, which has a much higher resistance than pure copper cable. I know because I once made the mistake of buying some.

Something like this :
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/CASPEAK79.html
- will do the job nicely without much expense.

[adam1516]

Originally Posted by diablo

The cheap wire mentioned earlier sold by 'electrosmart' Is copper coated aluminium, which has a much higher resistance than pure copper cable. I know because I once made the mistake of buying some.

Something like this :
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/CASPEAK79.html
- will do the job nicely without much expense.

Ah yes, I did notice that. I did find this -

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/25m-Loud-S...item27b977658e

The approximate distance from the rear speakers to the amp will be about 30 feet.

[jjne]

Originally Posted by adam1516

Ah yes, I did notice that. I did find this -

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/25m-Loud-S...item27b977658e

The approximate distance from the rear speakers to the amp will be about 30 feet.

10 metres? 3A mains cable it is

[BrokenArrow]

Originally Posted by jjne

10 metres? 3A mains cable it is

Actually the speakers are rated at 80W RMS, not sure if this the whole system or an individual speaker. If its a single speaker then for an 8 ohm speaker.

80=8*i^2

i^2=10

So that is 3.16 Amps.

[uk1]

It is however important to have cable that allows you to connect the speakers in phase ie positive out from amp to positive speaker connecter..

[Severian]

Hi, I'm Bi (wired) and one attribute of long spans of speaker cable that I've found grows in importance over the years is its 'livability'. I got some bi-wired Linn speaker cable when I bought my hifi, but have found placing it and cleaning it a right pain over the years. If I was re-wiring now I'd definitely let the music 'travel light'.

[jjne]

Originally Posted by BrokenArrow

Actually the speakers are rated at 80W RMS, not sure if this the whole system or an individual speaker. If its a single speaker then for an 8 ohm speaker.

80=8*i^2

i^2=10

So that is 3.16 Amps.

And the chances of the speakers being run at 80W is...?

(And anyway 3A-rated cable will take well in excess of 3A in practice).

[c4rv]

Originally Posted by jjne

And the chances of the speakers being run at 80W is...?

(And anyway 3A-rated cable will take well in excess of 3A in practice).

exactly.

[Nigel Goodwin]

Originally Posted by BrokenArrow

Actually the speakers are rated at 80W RMS, not sure if this the whole system or an individual speaker. If its a single speaker then for an 8 ohm speaker.

80=8*i^2

i^2=10

So that is 3.16 Amps.

A fine example of 'a little knowledge being a dangerous thing'

3A speaker wire would be MORE than ample, particularly as we're discussing the rear speakers, which are fairly unimportant anyway.

For the main speakers I would suggest using thicker cable, and there are plenty of cheap decent thickness speaker cables about - mains wire is fine, but the extra insulation means it's considerably thicker than it needs to be.

[2Bdecided]

Originally Posted by Nigel Goodwin

A fine example of 'a little knowledge being a dangerous thing'

Indeed - that's the calculation for the ~8 Ohms of wire within the speaker, not the speaker cable (which will typically have a much lower resistance).

If the limit was set by heating in the cable due to power (current), you could use much smaller cables. It's the need to avoid changes in frequency response which set the actual limit - 3A mains cable is OK up to 6 metres for 8 Ohm loudspeakers.

You need the "Maximum Wire Lengths For TWO CONDUCTOR Copper Wire" table from the link already given...
http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm
...plus the table of AWG cross sectional areas in mm2 from here...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_wire_gauge
...and the table here which relate the cross sectional area in mm2 to what the cable is typically sold as in the UK...
thinner flexible cables (i.e. appliance flexes)...
http://www.diynot.com/pages/el/el003.php
thicker single core cables (i.e. in-wall wiring)...
http://www.diynot.com/pages/el/el004.php

There is cheap thick multi-strand "speaker" cable on eBay. I do not know if it is 99%+ copper, or how the insulation will fair long-term. I have used it without problems so far. I have also used mains flex, which has to meet a British Standard. Take your pick!

Cheers,
David.

[BrokenArrow]

Originally Posted by Nigel Goodwin

A fine example of 'a little knowledge being a dangerous thing'

3A speaker wire would be MORE than ample, particularly as we're discussing the rear speakers, which are fairly unimportant anyway.

For the main speakers I would suggest using thicker cable, and there are plenty of cheap decent thickness speaker cables about - mains wire is fine, but the extra insulation means it's considerably thicker than it needs to be.

First class honours in Electronic Engineering and £50m sales of my designs in circulation .

But yes, I was being pedantic.

[Nigel Goodwin]

Originally Posted by BrokenArrow

First class honours in Electronic Engineering and £50m sales of my designs in circulation .

I would have expected you to know better then!.

But yes, I was being pedantic.

No - you were been completely wrong!

[ianradioian]

I use 5a lighting flex for my speaker cables and have done so for years. Made me laugh once when I went to the Tonbridge audiojumble and listened to a lovely amplifier and speaker combination......someone asked what speaker cable was fitted to this fantastic sounding audio set up, and the guy on the stand said " lighting flex".

Like the guys who insist on having a gold plated mains lead feeding their amplifier from the mains plug....
What about the crappy old cable in the house wiring then??? lol