Recommended speaker cables

[Teetertotter?]

@highfigh There are other charts by individuals. I chose the one I posted as said was an electrical engineer with experience as an installer and his own business, at one time. He has some good reading material plus more chart info with tools, to use as a guide to decide. His general experience received more of my attention, over others.

 

[highfigh]

@highfigh There are other charts by individuals. I chose the one I posted as said was an electrical engineer with experience as an installer and his own business, at one time. He has some good reading material plus more chart info with tools, to use as a guide to decide. His general experience received more of my attention, over others.

OK, I have discussed this with EEs, too- not one said there's any reason for overkill and large gauge is only needed when the system is driven hard, like a live concert venue.

 

[Verdinut]

OK, I have discussed this with EEs, too- not one said there's any reason for overkill and large gauge is only needed when the system is driven hard, like a live concert venue.

How about long cable runs? That is an important factor which some EEs are ignoring because series resistance reduces an amplifier's damping action on loudspeakers.

 

[Kingnoob]

I know someone who did TEF analysis on speaker wire and found that until the length exceeds 60', 16 ga is fine for most applications and he has been a recording engineer, live sound engineer, producer, installation contractor and performed other services for roughly 50 years. He did the TEF in the early-'80s, around the time the speaker wire BS started and he came into the store where I worked specifically to talk about it.

How do you measure awg ? I can’t read the writing on speaker wire I got 12-14 as my thicker cable , 16-18 as cheaper ones. I’m unsure the awg tho ..
So 16-18 fine in short runs ? I remember those old hifi shelf systems used like 22awg thin .

 

[Verdinut]

How do you measure awg ? I can’t read the writing on speaker wire I got 12-14 as my thicker cable , 16-18 as cheaper ones.
So 16-18 fine in short runs ? I remember those old hifi shelf systems used like 22awg thin .

The wire AWG rating is usually printed on its sleeve. The smaller the digit, the bigger is the diameter of the cable and its amperage rating. The 16 gauge is good for lengths up to 10 feet. The 14 AWG is preferable for longer lengths and lower impedance speakers.

Speaker Wire

 

[highfigh]

How do you measure awg ? I can’t read the writing on speaker wire I got 12-14 as my thicker cable , 16-18 as cheaper ones. I’m unsure the awg tho ..
So 16-18 fine in short runs ? I remember those old hifi shelf systems used like 22awg thin .

If the wires aren't long, 16 ga is fine. The cable I use has marking every 2' but after using this stuff for 50 years, it's not hard to determine the gauge by sight. If it's twisted and about the diameter of a wooden pencil lead, it's 16 ga. If it's a bit thicker but not as thick a a regular Sharpie marker, it's probably 14 ga and if it's about the thickness of a Sharpie, it's 10 ga.

When I started working at a stereo store in '78, every store included some 18 ga with the systems sold, but we also had 16 ga as a paid option. IIRC, we included about 25' and most systems didn't need more than that.

The combo systems with a turntable on top and little speakers with masonite back were lucky if they had 22 ga but OTOH, that's fine for a 5 W amplifier.

 

[highfigh]

How about long cable runs? That is an important factor which some EEs are ignoring because series resistance reduces an amplifier's damping action on loudspeakers.

EEs don't ignore that (well, most of them, anyway)- they know very well how length affects performance. I worked with an EE who spec'd 14 ga speaker cable that, as it turned out, needed to go more than 120' from the rack to the speakers and I got in his face about that. It should have been powered by a 70V amplifier but with a HP crossover, damping factor is a moot point.

 

[TheRealOC]

So what I ended up going for was this QED 79 strand speaker cabling.

QED Profile Classic 79 Strand Speaker Cable - 100M Drum

QED Profile Classic 79 Strand Speaker Cable - Black - 100M Drum is available from HifiHut in Dublin. Free delivery on all orders above €50.00 Visit our Dublin showrooms or contact us for advice on speaker installation and cabling.

www.hifihut.ie

Went with this option, because at this point, we have no idea what make/model of amplifier (or amplifiers) we'll be using in five years time to drive the whole house audio, or what make/model of in-ceiling speakers we'll be using. So at this point, my main concern was not being in a situation where I'd have to open up the walls again in five years time, and this seemed like a good futureproof choice.

This is purely for ambient background audio (all in-ceiling speakers)

Any thoughts on this choice much appreciated.

 

[Kingnoob]

The wire AWG rating is usually printed on its sleeve. The smaller the digit, the bigger is the diameter of the cable and its amperage rating. The 16 gauge is good for lengths up to 10 feet. The 14 AWG is preferable for longer lengths and lower impedance speakers.

Speaker Wire

Oh so use a magnifine glass lol

EEs don't ignore that (well, most of them, anyway)- they know very well how length affects performance. I worked with an EE who spec'd 14 ga speaker cable that, as it turned out, needed to go more than 120' from the rack to the speakers and I got in his face about that. It should have been powered by a 70V amplifier but with a HP crossover, damping factor is a moot point.

Hmm damping factor I looked it up confusing, don’t really understand it.

So what I ended up going for was this QED 79 strand speaker cabling.

QED Profile Classic 79 Strand Speaker Cable - 100M Drum

QED Profile Classic 79 Strand Speaker Cable - Black - 100M Drum is available from HifiHut in Dublin. Free delivery on all orders above €50.00 Visit our Dublin showrooms or contact us for advice on speaker installation and cabling.

www.hifihut.ie

Went with this option, because at this point, we have no idea what make/model of amplifier (or amplifiers) we'll be using in five years time to drive the whole house audio, or what make/model of in-ceiling speakers we'll be using. So at this point, my main concern was not being in a situation where I'd have to open up the walls again in five years time, and this seemed like a good futureproof choice.

This is purely for ambient background audio (all in-ceiling speakers)

Any thoughts on this choice much appreciated.

looks good quality, my speakers are too cheap to spend that much on cables if it adds anything or detail I can’t say.? I’m using cheap Dayton speaker wire.
But it’s probably going to last a while being higher quality, I’ve not had the luxury of comparing cables lol
Definitely future proof.

 

[highfigh]

So what I ended up going for was this QED 79 strand speaker cabling.

QED Profile Classic 79 Strand Speaker Cable - 100M Drum

QED Profile Classic 79 Strand Speaker Cable - Black - 100M Drum is available from HifiHut in Dublin. Free delivery on all orders above €50.00 Visit our Dublin showrooms or contact us for advice on speaker installation and cabling.

www.hifihut.ie

Went with this option, because at this point, we have no idea what make/model of amplifier (or amplifiers) we'll be using in five years time to drive the whole house audio, or what make/model of in-ceiling speakers we'll be using. So at this point, my main concern was not being in a situation where I'd have to open up the walls again in five years time, and this seemed like a good futureproof choice.

This is purely for ambient background audio (all in-ceiling speakers)

Any thoughts on this choice much appreciated.

Since the price is in Euros, I'll assume you're in Europe- we can't use that in the US because it doesn't meet the electrical code requirements.I would recommend looking into that, wherever you are.

 

[Swerd]

In the USA, the term American Wire Gauge (AWG) is used to describe the diameter of electric wire. It determines a wire's ability to carry current, voltage, and the level of resistance. The larger the AWG number, the smaller the wire is. 14 AWG is smaller than 12 AWG. In Europe, metric measurements of wire cross section area (mm²) are used instead of diameter.

See Wikipedia for American Wire Gauge. It has a very large table that allows you to convert from AWG to mm². Here is a short version:

Also in the USA, there is something called the National Electric Code. It describes electrical installation and construction requirements for safety. (See this page) CL2 and CL3 are requirements for fire resistance of cable jackets.

These codes apply to the USA. I don't know what is required in Ireland. But that is important for you or your electrician to know.

CL2: This is for a cable jacket that resists fire (defined in Article 725 of the National Electric Code). CL2 indicates cable is suitable for in-wall installation and use for certain low-voltage applications. The jacket is designed to protect against voltage surges of up to 150 volts. Examples of CL2 wiring include burglar alarm cables, intercom wiring, and speaker wire.

CL3: CL3 (also defined in Article 725 of the National Electric Code) mirrors the definitions of CL2 wire, but the jacket is designed to protect against voltage spikes of up to 300 volts.

One last point. For all that in-wall or in-ceiling wiring, you should think about installing conduit, tubing designed to contain those wires. It will cost more. However, if you ever need to replace those wires, it will be much easier with conduit.

 

[Trell]

In Europe, metric measurements of wire cross section area (mm²) are used instead of [AWG] diameter.

AWG is sometimes used in addition to mm² when buying cables as a consumer, at least for audio.

At least a bigger mm² means a thicker conductor.

 

[Speedskater]

US sizing systems are confusing:
a] wire diameter: smaller number is larger.
b] machine screw diameter: smaller number is smaller.
c] sheet metal thickness: smaller number is larger.

 

[Trell]

US sizing systems are confusing:
a] wire diameter: smaller number is larger.
b] machine screw diameter: smaller number is smaller.
c] sheet metal thickness: smaller number is larger.

Or volume specified as m*m*ft (used in oil industry).

 

[highfigh]

Or volume specified as m*m*ft (used in oil industry).

Imagine if lumber were quantified in m³, as it is in many European countries. People would lose their minds. It's pathetic. So many people can't be bothered to learn something that's not considered 'American'.......

 

[Trell]

Imagine if lumber were quantified in m³, as it is in many European countries. People would lose their minds. It's pathetic. So many people can't be bothered to learn something that's not considered 'American'.......

My point was that the mixed units of meter and feet for volume is quite bizarre.

 

[Teetertotter?]

This thread is out of CONTROL.

 

[Trell]

This thread is out of CONTROL.

Yeah, it all started with this post:

Recommended speaker cables

Complete newbie question..... My wife and I are renovating an Irish cottage, and we're meeting the electrician tomorrow to plan the electrical first fix.... We don't have the money currently to install in-ceiling speakers around the house. So we looked at our house plans and agreed on...

forums.audioholics.com

 

[Kingnoob]

Yeah, it all started with this post:

Recommended speaker cables

Complete newbie question..... My wife and I are renovating an Irish cottage, and we're meeting the electrician tomorrow to plan the electrical first fix.... We don't have the money currently to install in-ceiling speakers around the house. So we looked at our house plans and agreed on...

forums.audioholics.com

Doesn’t take a genius to research cable and realize the diminishing returns the more you spend. we may as well make a thread debating cables and jump ship on this one.
I’d bet a 6-13 channel amp isn’t cheap …

 

[CladyRasmussen]

Complete newbie question..... My wife and I are renovating an Irish cottage, and we're meeting the electrician tomorrow to plan the electrical first fix....

We don't have the money currently to install in-ceiling speakers around the house. So we looked at our house plans and agreed on everywhere where we could potentially want to place an in-ceiling speaker in the future (represented by red circles in the floor plan).

So the plan is to get the electrician to send all the speaker cable runs from an AV rack in a central location to each of those red dot areas, and then plaster over the ends of those cables. Then in a few years, when we can afford to install in-ceiling speakers, we'll just have to cut holes in the plasterboard where the cables are, and hook up the speakers.

My question is... since we obviously haven't picked out speakers yet, and we don't know what size/make/model of speakers we'll be getting in the future, I think I need to pick cables that are going to work with basically everything? So, should we just run 12-gauge speaker cable everywhere? Would greatly appreciate any advice, many thanks.



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In general there are many great options out there but some popular choices would include Monster Cable's XLN series , Audioquest’s Rocket 33/44 or even Cambered's 6series UL OFC wire if you're looking for something more budget friendly while still getting great results!