Speaker cables - Bare copper vs. tinned copper

[keith_correa]

No, it's not Litz.

They call that (twisted bunches of wire and those bunches again twisted with each other etc) Litz these days. The true definition of Litz has been diluted.

Oh, and why doesn't anyone talk of Mogami coax Cu speaker wire - the W3082? No experience with it? It's extremely good.
Tip: To take it to another level, try 2 runs of it twisted per channel. At the ends, per run, just short the shield and center conductor together and use for each pole. Used this way, it turns brilliant!

 

[jls001]

They call that (twisted bunches of wire and those bunches again twisted with each other etc) Litz these days. The true definition of Litz has been diluted.

Individual strands are not insulated so it doesn't qualify as Litz (in my understanding).

 

[arj]

Individual strands are not insulated so it doesn't qualify as Litz (in my understanding).

Exactly, its individually insulated and woven

 

[keith_correa]

Individual strands are not insulated so it doesn't qualify as Litz (in my understanding).

Correct!

 

[kbhuvi]

Greetings FMs

I will share my experience here. At the outset I would like to say that I am not into propriety audio cables and use the basic stuff for ICs and speaker cables. Also, I am very poor at describing sound so I may not be able to use exact words but will try to get my thoughts across.

Amplifier : Sansui AU 7700

Speaker : Xavian Giuliette

Source : Technics SL1100 with Victor Z1 EB, Stanton 680EE and Cayin N3 with basic ICs

I was using over the counter tinned copper wire 1.5 sqmm with good results with another setup (KEF 105 reference with sansui 4000). Sansui 4000 is a warm sounding receiver whereas 7700 is not as warm but a bit more resolving.

I initially put in the tinned copper wire and the sound was not at all enjoyable – the music sounded lifeless with rolled off highs, midbass bloom and boomy bass.

I connected another 99% pure copper wire 1.5 sqmm to the signal wire (in addition to the tinned copper). For the return path, I removed the tinned copper wire and put in a 12awg OFC from amazon. The sound was alive, balanced mid bass and nice taut bass. However, I stillvdid not like it as the music seemed unemotional and sort of “hurried” (may be due to the decay rate).

I had some vintage wire which was given to me by one of my friends saying it would make a good speaker cable. (Those electrical wires with thick strands - 7 strands). With those wires in place, the vocals gained a little prominence but the voices sounded natural & emotional and the “hurried” feeling was gone as if the notes stayed a little longer before fading.

(The speaker wires are unterminated at the speaker end and a special single point lug at the amplifier end as the speaker connectors as spring
loaded).

PS : I am looking into ordering some speaker wires from Kiran Sales which will be my first foray into dedicated audio cables and so will be able to take the experience further in due time.



Regards

 

[SwaroopKS]

1. DIY Finolex electrical cable in a Milloit braid.

Was actually thinking to try some DIY on power cables and would like to try this. But not able to figure out easily how to do it from the link. Any other links or videos on how to do it?

 

[kartick]

Just an update, I have ordered Belden 8477 and Euroclear wires from Kiran Sales today. Keen to try these in my systems. Let us see which ones seem to match well with my systems. Thanks for the exposure provided on this thread.

 

[RRR]

Will look forward to your review and feedback on these since you will be able to make a direct comparison.

 

[keith_correa]

Was actually thinking to try some DIY on power cables and would like to try this. But not able to figure out easily how to do it from the link. Any other links or videos on how to do it?

I haven't seen the whole video but I THINK this guy is doing it the Milloit way:

 

[SwaroopKS]

Until such time that I can source Auvio, I am going to try Euroclear 12 AWG. These are the specs:
D.C.R. 7.98 ohm/km
Capacitance 110 pF/m
Area 2.5 mm²
Strand 80 x 0.193 mm
Insulation material PVC TI2
Insulation thickness > 0.7 mm
Material Elettrolytic bare copper

Any thoughts?

Just one question though, if its 2.5 mm² then isn't it 14 AWG rather than 12 AWG? I wanted to try these but they also have 4 mm² which is 12 AWG so looking for a suggestion on which one to choose.

 

[prem]

Always choose the minimum thickness that your speakers will need, assuming you don’t need more than 10-12 feet lengths.

 

[SwaroopKS]

Always choose the minimum thickness that your speakers will need, assuming you don’t need more than 10-12 feet lengths.

Is that because the sound would become dense with cable that is thicker than required?

 

[prem]

Yes. Also it may feel a bit heavy and slower.

 

[shyamv]

On a whim, I ordered a length of Belden 8477 from Kiran Sales to pair with my recently acquired PM8005 (again an impulsive bargain buy to test out its pairing with SA8005 cd player and QAcoustics 3050i in a secondary setup). I was on the fence with PM8005 amp with my old QED cable, it was a little too strident and bright for my liking. Bass was a little bloated and the soundstage a little forward..so much so that I was constantly reaching for the amps tone controls. I was surprised how PM8005 amp made my laid-back, warmish speaker so very forward and excitable. While I was quite postive that the cable won't make any difference, I still decided to give Belden 8477 a try as it is quite inexpensive.

When I hooked it up, I was pleasantly surprised. Cable seems to have definitely made a significant difference in this setup. Bass is a tighter without the boom, highs are little rolled-off the way I like it. There is less detail though but the presentation has become a little darker, warmer and sweeter...again the way I like it.

Cable is still cooking..hopefully it gets even better with a few more hours of burn-in. Thanks to the folks in this thread for the 8477 reco. This has been my first experience with tinned copper and I like it so far. I want to now try this in my main setup too.

 

[Mayank Shah]

Belden are good per se, but have heard that it takes about 100+ hours for burn in.

 

[shyamv]

Belden are good per se, but have heard that it takes about 100+ hours for burn in.

Yes, It's been 20+ hours and I already like what I hear. Another 100 hours or so, I hope to attain audio nirvana . More seriously, I did not think that cables would make a difference in entry systems such as mine. I would not say I am a cable convert yet but let's say I am less of a skeptic now. Thanks to the folks here!

 

[Miany]

Yes, It's been 20+ hours and I already like what I hear. Another 100 hours or so, I hope to attain audio nirvana . More seriously, I did not think that cables would make a difference in entry systems such as mine. I would not say I am a cable convert yet but let's say I am less of a skeptic now. Thanks to the folks here!

Good to hear this. I too have the Belden 8477. Yet to try that though...

 

[firearm12]

Anything other than copper in cables, and my mind says something is wrong somewhere. Cooper seem more musical and tonally better to me. Other materials sound unnatural; some bright some metalllic

Recently I loaned the Furutech speaker cables which are quite expensive (at least for me) and in both my systems, I did not find it to pair well. The detail retrieval was quite good but overall the sound was fatiguing and it was not something that could let me listen to music for long. It had Furutech's Rhodium spade and banana connectors.

rhodium sucks wherever it’s used, i don’t understand why rhodium is presented as the best. It sucks midrange and enhances treble artificially, sounds hollow to me. Gold or copper any day is better. I am using a furutech basic speaker cable (not very expensive ones) without connectors and I feel it’s fine. i have a rhodium iec power connector somewhere in house, if I put it in my system anywhere i cannot tolerate the sound. I have found furutech copper to be very good especially tonality they provide on instruments.

 

[Miany]

Tried Belden 8477 in my setup. I was using DAC SPY211 before. Very different presentations. But i like what i am hearing now. Only had couple of hours in them. Its a real VFM cable. Looks like i will be sticking with 8477...

 

[Hari Iyer]

I have tried stranded copper, tinned copper, microphone cables, telephone cables, magnetic wires etc, but i keep going back to my stranded silver plated copper wire as my interconnect cables.