How to run speaker wire through walls?

[latrosicarius]

Hi, I am trying to get a wall face plate something like this or this for passing the speaker wire through the walls.

However, instead of doing that, I want it to have a speaker-wire hookup on the FRONT, but a coax (cableTV) cable hookup on the BACK. I was told that they are both the same kind of 20-ohm cable, and I feel that a coax cable will be better suited for the back side because:

• Coax cable has a heavier casing than speaker wire which will protect it when it's inside the wall.
• Coax cable has a screw-on end which will keep it securely fastened to the back side, and I will never have to worry about it becoming undone inside the wall.

What do you think of this idea? Do you think it would work well? If so, if you know of any place I can buy a wall jack that has a speaker-wire connector on the front and a coax cable connector on the back, please let me know.

Thanks

P.S.: Here is a picture to help describe this idea:

 

[fcheshire]

I wouldn't do it if I were you

I can understand your concerns.

But I would stick with a copper speaker wire for your speakers. The more connections you have...the more you lose in quality.

Frank

 

[MDS]

You need two wires for each speaker so even if you could use coax you'd need two. I can't think of any way to adapt an F-connector to a speaker binding post.

You should just use normal binding posts like this: http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=261-352

Those have binding posts on both sides so you can use banana plugs in the back if you want. If you use bare wire, the posts can be tightened down on the wire and it won't go anywhere. Once the wires are in the wall there won't be any stress on them so no real worries about them becoming damaged or loose over time. You must use CL-2 or higher rated wire for in-wall installation and good quality wire has very thick insulation and will resist damage even as you pull it through the wall.

 

[Audioholics]

I believe you're referring to going to connection like this:

http://www.impactacoustics.com/product.asp?cat_id=107&sku=27313

I've seen those and it's fine, however you DO need to run two runs of coax lines per speaker. You may find that running simple 12-gauge speaker wire is a simpler process - especially this type from Impact Acoustics that comes with a nice outer sheath:

http://www.impactacoustics.com/product.asp?cat_id=208&sku=43131

 

[mtrycrafts]

...Coax cable has a heavier casing than speaker wire which will protect it when it's inside the wall.

Just curious here. Why do you think you need such protection inside walls? Do you have hungry critters in there?

 

[latrosicarius]

Hi all, thanks for all your advice.

I've decided to go with speaker wire for behind the walls as you have suggested. You're right, it is probably definitely sturdy enough for being in a wall, and no, I don't think I have any mice in there

However, for the subwoofer, I have decided to go with a wall plate that has female RCA on the front and female "F" cable (cableTV coax) on the back. This is just because of 2 reasons:

• It's cheaper to run a long length of coax than shielded RCA cable
• I don't want the RCA cable to slip off the back. F cable has a nice screw-on feature, and speaker cable (as one of you have mentioned above) is sturdy also because it can be screwed down tightly, so I don't need to worry about the speaker cable, just the subwoofer cable.

Thanks for all your help

 

[MDS]

That's absolutely the right approach for the subwoofer. However, I had a problem with the connector I bought that was F female on the back and RCA female on the front. It could have just been a manufacturing defect (I couldn't get the thick pin of the RG6 cable into the F connector on the back) but I decided to just use a normal F to F jack on the wall plate and a $2.50 adapter to go from F to RCA. Your mileage may vary.

 

[mtrycrafts]

That's absolutely the right approach for the subwoofer. However, I had a problem with the connector I bought that was F female on the back and RCA female on the front. It could have just been a manufacturing defect (I couldn't get the thick pin of the RG6 cable into the F connector on the back) but I decided to just use a normal F to F jack on the wall plate and a $2.50 adapter to go from F to RCA. Your mileage may vary.

You probably had the problem because of the thicker center conductor on the RG6 ?

 

[mtrycrafts]

Hi all, thanks for all your advice.

I've decided to go with speaker wire for behind the walls as you have suggested. You're right, it is probably definitely sturdy enough for being in a wall, and no, I don't think I have any mice in there

However, for the subwoofer, I have decided to go with a wall plate that has female RCA on the front and female "F" cable (cableTV coax) on the back. This is just because of 2 reasons:

• It's cheaper to run a long length of coax than shielded RCA cable
• I don't want the RCA cable to slip off the back. F cable has a nice screw-on feature, and speaker cable (as one of you have mentioned above) is sturdy also because it can be screwed down tightly, so I don't need to worry about the speaker cable, just the subwoofer cable.

Thanks for all your help

With the speaker wires you can still use nice wall plates and attach the wires on the back. You can either use banana or the wire on the room side of the plate. Gives a nice pro finish. MDS discussed the sub

 

[MDS]

You probably had the problem because of the thicker center conductor on the RG6 ?

Yeah, probably. I bought two F to RCA jacks and one was fine and the other I just could not get the pin on the coax to go smoothly into the connector and I didn't want to bend it. So I just went with then normal F connector and a separate F to RCA adapter. Like I said it could have just been a manufacturing defect but I opted for the simple solution of using a separate F to RCA adapter.

 

[mtrycrafts]

but I opted for the simple solution of using a separate F to RCA adapter.

Yeah, simple solutions works wonders