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| quote: | Originally posted by Derivative
The oxygen content of copper is meaningless for transmitting low bandwidth (audio frequency) signals down a few feet of copper. Skin effect is similarly meaningless. Cable impedance is meaningless unless you are transmitting high bandwidth signals (ghz range) over short distances (a few feet) or low bandwidth signals (audible khz range) over great distances (thousands of feet). This includes the effects of inductance, cable resistance and capacitive resistance.
Gauge is meaningless in terms of electrical considerations (again over short distances and low bandwidth signals). You will want thicker cables if they will be flexed alot but these are mechanical considerations. Stranded conductors rather than solid conductors will be more flexable as will annealing conductors.
The short of it is: You can use a coat hanger to connect your speakers to your soundcard and it would be every bit as good as a professionally designed and made cable as long as the potential at either end of the coathanger is the same (it is properly grounded) and it is insulated so that it does not come into contact with other signal carrying conductors.
Here are some facts that will help you to make informed decisions and not waste money you don't have to. You can even make your own cables with this information. Its not hard.
http://www.belden.com/pdfs/Techpprs/wcfsbetp.htm
http://recforums.prosoundweb.com/index.php/t/3979/0/ |
While most of this is correct, it really only applies to single runs of unterminated speaker cables (i.e single or dual core insulated interconnects) where there are no other environmental factors (power cables running along side audio cables for instance)and does not provide for terminated balanced cables which is what is needed by the-sixth.
Many other factors aside from just the basic scientific principles are present in a studio situation, which should have a great affect on cable choice. I'm not saying your theory is wrong, just that they would all be true and correct as described if used in a magnetically shielded vacuum. It is very true that single or dual core unbalanced speaker cable should not be too worried about for short distances and really you can use standard 14 - 24 awg electrical cable (from a DIY store) for this purpose.
Even then, IMHO having worked for Belden + Van Damme cable and done AB comparison testing, there is a noticeable difference in perceived sound quality (oxygen free copper, linear crystal alligment, proper insulation etc, etc.).
Unbalanced cable will attenuate badly and be very open to interference when carrying line level signals at anything other than short distances. Ever wonder why you can't really buy phono cables longer than 10m-15?
The reason I say get decent cables is that those other factors come in to play in a studio environment; often power cables will run alongside audio cables, you will be plugging the cables in and out more than once and the quality of the connectors, solder, boots, jacket all add to the durability and ulitmately sound quality of your cables, the material of connectors (gold does not "give better sound quality" - it only protects from corrosion but again this will over time affect the sound qaultiy (and I say this becuase I myself have witnessed countless times degredation in sound quality from tarnished contact surfaces). Remember, with your audio path īt will only be as clean as the weakest link in the chain. Expand that to a micro level, even things like the quality of the solder come in to play, becuase even if you if you do have fancy cable and connectors, the solder will also have to conduct the signal. Also, as these cables are line level balanced, with two conductors and a shield, the actual copper cores are going to be thin (maybe a mm or 2 each at most) - not like "high" level (in audio terms) speaker cable which has completely different considerations.
Basically, get decent cables - you don't have to spend more than £15, they will last a long time and sound better.at the same time don't adhere all the audiophile stuff about pure silver cables etc., as a lot of it is a grey area and it also relies heavily on all things being equal (conditioned power, completely (to over anal levels )clean signal path etc, to achieve minimal and in sound cases negligable differnce in quality.
By the way, brands I would suggect to stay away from are:
Hosa
Proel
Brennel
Phillips (blister style pack available in tesco etc)
Pro gold
Monster
.....These are mostly mass produced in china with the worst materials - open some of the connectors up and see how badly they are made.
Brands to go for:
Belden (great quality, cheap but difficult to find in the UK, especiually as made up cables or short runs).
Draka (decent quality but same as above)
Canare (Very good quality but same as above)
Mogami (great quality, cheap but difficult to find in the UK, especiually as made up cables or short runs).
Van Damme (great quality, not cheap but not expensive, and will make any configuration you could ever want - UK based.)
EDIT: by the way Derivative, are you a telecoms engineer by any chance
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