The insulation on speaker wire does not "protect against interference", because speaker wire is not shielded. The insulation only serves to keep the wire from oxidizing and prevent it from shorting against itself or other objects. Also you should note that the wire gauges shown in the video are measured in American Wire Gauge (AWG). British countries use Standard Wire Gauge (SWG) which is different.
+vwestlife I think he was referring to shielded cables, that's why he said don't spend a bunch on expensive cables because shielding is one of the things they advertise, but yeah you're right
Well tough... you're part of Britain. Got a problem with it... fight us. Oh, hang on... we've done that one already. :) I have to say how I long for those days of the IRA. They were such friendly terrorists, not like the current crop of Radical Islamic terrorists. They were nice enough to phone us up and tell us that there was a bomb on the bus/train etc. The current IS lot just have no manners - their parents should be ashamed. Manners cost nothing.
Really think you missed a lot of things in this, you should avoid CCA (copper clad aluminum) wire as it can cause a large amount of impedance even over short runs and go with plain copper or OFC (Oxygen free copper) wire, just go on amazon, anything that is 100% copper is fine, don't get tricked by fancy super expensive name brand wire. Most speakers are between 4-8 ohms, a lot more are 4 ohms than you think. The impedance of the speaker is not as much of a concern with wire as it is with the comparability of your amp. Your wire gauge has a lot less to do with speaker impedance as it has to do with power output/rating of your speakers. If you amp outputs 1-100 watts per channel 14 gauge wire is fine, if your amp outputs anywhere from 100-175 watts per channel you should go with 12 gauge wire. Higher strand count is better for the wires as they are more flexible and less prone to internal breaking. 3:06, is literally the worst stock photo you could have used considering that is not at all how speaker wires go into those terminals. And using connectors like banana plugs does make it easier but also introduces more resistance, just plug wires in properly and you are fine.
+Torbox1 Good quality gold plated banana plugs are actually quite a bit lower resistance than the typical shove the wire in the terminal post hole and tighten the terminal or the crappy spring loaded push in terminals. Quality gold plated banana plugs that are silver soldered to the copper wire can be installed once and last decades without succumbing to corrosion and increased resistance. For most speakers and systems it really doesn't matter all that much as long as the wire gauge is decent and the connections at both ends are electrically solid. OFC or Oxygen free copper is actually marketing BS from an era when it was very easy to get poor quality copper wire with tons of impurities. Pretty much all pure copper wire is oxygen free these days because it would not be cost effective to change the process of making the wire to produce a lower grade. The only time you really have to worry about wire quality is if the wire you are buying is from a cheap Chinese seller where quality and makeup could be an issue. Some of the best speaker wire available for home audio happens to be lamp cord since you can buy it in any length and all common gauges from 18-12 gauge. If you need to install wire in a wall where it will be permanent it is a good idea to install shielded twisted speaker install wire which you can buy in several sizes and numbers of conductors.
I am aware that OFC is merely a marketing term but was covering it because people may come across it have questions about it. As I said any 100% copper wire or OFC wire is fine but you should avoid Copper Clad Aluminium wire. Any mechanical connection regardless of materials creates more resistance either do to the added length or the fact that it is simply 2 materials contacting each other. As long as the connection is solid it doesn't matter, the only thing that could be better would be to solder to the amp. And for the matter of soldering to banana plugs it is indeed a good method that cleans up the look, makes it easy to plug and unplug, and doesn't add any real resistance but it can corrode as with any copper wire exposed to air. I have had it happen before, it was after several years though. But anyway, lamp cord is a good alternative as the insulation is much thicker and you can get it with shielding. Which is nice if you plan on running it through the walls.
@@Torbox1 Not to mention there are tons of videos online proving how bad CCA wire is in a situation where every bit of performance counts. Id rather have nothing holding me back than something as dumb as wire limiting performance.
+Anze G So? American video makers are pretty much forced to do things in measurements other than which they are accustomed, so why is it so much worse now that it is opposite?
I get what you're saying but it's really not that bad. If Americans have to convert everything to Imperial all the time I'm sure you could do it once or twice. Also I'd guess that a large portion of their viewers are American.
+The Bau5 RCA cables in general are usually the worst way to hook up home theater equipment these days. You are correct, if you have to use RCA its better to use quality RCA cables. Optical and digital coax offer far better sound quality even in home theaters that deal in several channels of audio per side. I think the only thing that is still connected via RCA in my home theater is my Onkyo dual tape deck.
Hahahahah optical hahahahhahaaha or coaxial hahahhahahahah.Coax is an RCA conector u stupid noob. There isnt any disadvatages to useing an RCA in home audio.Even XLR give you nothing besides longer distances and less loss.My RCA is 0,75m and amp is very sensitive, can work with 1V source.
Thanks for making it simple to understand. I was trying to explain this to a friend for a system I installed in his new house. Went with 14 guage crutch field or Amazon basic spool sounds great no issues. But he did get sold a 500 dollar HDMI cable from the place he bought his TV. Unfortunately I wasn't there to tell him it's not worth it. I do like how some expensive cables look but never worth the price. Anyway thanks again 👍👍👍
As a professional installer, I usually run 16/2 or 14/2 depending on the length of the run and amp rating on the speakers the customer wants to install. I normally deal with Episode, proficient, paradigm, sonance speakers. All recessed interior or bracket or recessed exterior (decks, patios). Love the video and the explanation you gave to describe impedance.
As you mentioned you're a pro installer.Could you tell me if flat ghost wire is worth the money to spend to run cables for my rear speaker to hide them instead of running standard wire.( I can't drill or run cables in the sling/wall.mutch apriciated for honest answer
@woodman687 if you're worried about Cosmetics and don't mind a white wire around your baseboard, then flat might be a viable option. But if you're picky like me, I'd much rather pull my baseboards off and route my wires behind or underneath them. There's usually a small gap under the baseboard to allow for wires to pass.
@woodman687 if you have money you can spend, another option would be to go wireless. With sonos rear speakers and subwoofer. But you'll also need a sonos soundbar or a sonos AMP to transfer audio from your TV. Add the rear speakers as surrounds.
@B3ASTM0D3. Not a fan of wireless, I already bought all the set up and try to figure out how to connect back speakers without running nasty cables.Any way question still not answered.
Good video... though interference (an electromagnetic phenomenon in this context) isn't going to be stopped by simple electrical insulation. Fortunately it doesn't matter for speaker wires, since EM interference is typically SEVERAL orders of magnitude weaker than the actual power that wire is carrying. EM interference is typically only a problem if it's introduced BEFORE the amplification.
Talking about sound quality, the lack of any type of pop filter or post production audio adjustment in this video is insane. Every "S" sounded like Mike Tyson was doing the voice over.
I just use monoprice 12awg oxygen free copper wire it's cheap and it works. It sounds obviously better than the 16awg stuff that had steel wire and copper plated wire on the other side from Canadian Tire. I also use some banana plugs from monoprice and some rg6 subwoofer cables
Most of the length/gauge spec you gave are for copper wire. Most of the speaker wire in the consumer market is CCA (copper clad aluminum) which requires 2 gauges larger for the same length. Examples: 18 gauge copper or 16 gauge CCA; up to 32 feet 16 gauge copper or 14 gauge CCA; up to 48 feet The general rule is to keep the wire impedance (each conductor) less that 2.5% of the speaker impedance (5% total for both conductors).
True and agree. Insulation deals with protection against accidental grounding or short-circuiting (physical contact), while shielding deals with protection against electro-magnetic interference between adjacent conductors (not touching each other).
I have those new copper socks but the soles of my shoes are aluminum does this mean 16 gauge is good enough for dancing ? Heyyyy !? Point your toes, but I'll give you a [ 7 ]. Yes , I realize its been 4 years but the hors d'oeuvres are still fresh.
Don't listen to these guys. They literally recommended using 22 gauge wire for subwoofers which would put you at risk of starting a fire for anything more than 18w speakers. Just buy at least 16 gauge wire for up to 100w, 8 ohm speakers. You can get 12 gauge wire for cheap and that gets you even better power handling if you need it.
+frenchiveruti You've failed to offer any suggestions. If you want anyone to improve you should be clear on what you're asking for and not use something so broad.
Insulator doesn't do _anything_ to shield the wire against interference. Interference is magnetic and electric fields that couple to the conductor (wire) and cause unwanted currents and voltages that you hear as noise. You can only shield against these with a shield made out of metal. Ferromagnetic metals help against magnetic fields and conductive metals against electric fields. For electric shielding the shield has to cover the entire conductor and be connected to a ground (e.g. device chassis).
Slot1GGamer, that's right. To be very exact and overly pragmatic, insulation is isolating the wire galvanically, meaning that there's no path for the direct current to flow. Shielding is always against non gavanic fields (e.g electromagnetic field). Same coin, different side :)
+LazerLord10 Exactly, 12gauge is cheap, what if you have high wattage speakers? Quick search on eBay shows "high end" Oxygen free wire for $19 for 50' or cheap wire for $45 for 400 feet. Would assume cheap 12gauge is the same or better than expensive 20 gauge. I doubt any of us could tell a difference one way or another.
@@sittinheavy1 with 8 ohm speakers, and a speaker lead length of less than 50 feet, 12 gauge wire should be fine for anything less than 2,000 watts. For 4 ohm speakers, 1,000 watts.
It would have been important to note that cheaper speaker wire doesn't always use copper or even better OFC (oxygen free copper). The Amazon Basics 16awg speaker wire for instance, uses 42 stranded CCA or, "Copper Clad Aluminum", which as we all know is less conductive than what you really want anyway. The real answer is look for 14awg all around, OFC construction and a decent jacket to combat snags and tears/some interference issues. Brand name doesn't matter as long as you're getting the bases covered. For reference, I currently use Monoprices' Core Series OFC 14awg. It's a dollar more than the Amazon option and you get everything you need, nothing you don't need to pay for.
Fun tip: Those 6' 2 wire $1 extension cords for 2 prong electrical outlets at the dollar store can be cut and made into super cheap, effective speaker wire.
I did this a few days ago except with an old extension cord I found. I think it was 16awg, pure copper. Tinned the leads with solder and hooked them up, don't know if they sound better than the 22awg cables I had before but at least I have the headroom to go louder now.
+StoreBrand | Bernie2016, higher gauge wire isnt going to be your limiting factor, your amp or speaker will give up before the wire burns out. Also most extension cords are solid core not multi strand, thus having a higher resistance.
Metech None of my extension cords are solid core. 16awg solid core would be pretty damn stiff. The cord I used was multistrand pure copper (as far as how pure idk). Heat increases resistance, so even if the wire itself isn't ever going to burn I would at least now have no added resistance from warm cables.
the amount of residence you are talking about here though is miniscule milli ohm if not less, and in a home theater environment is makes no difference. Also if there wire is getting hot it would mean there is to much current being pushed through you wire. As for the solid cables im for straya, and majority of ours are solid core cause it easier to roll up.
Metech I guess I've never really thought about how much resistance it adds, good point. Another benefit to thicker cables is durability, I've had to re-strip my 22awg cables because of breakage from when I move the speakers around and have to disconnect. My speakers use a screw terminal (vintage hi-fi) and my amp uses spring terminals so my wires go trough a little wear, which is another reason why I opted for thicker cables.
Impedance is the broader definition of resistance. Impedance CAN equal resistance if there is no capacitance/inductance. Therefore, technically they are different but practically they can be the same
I can go one better... lol.. 8ga (it might even be 6ga, i'm converting my native metric 4mm diameter from memory) for 6ft6in runs of no more than 25 watts per channel rms. Was some automotive power cable i got free and used because i had it. Had to get the butane torch on it to solder it into the banana plugs. Always causing myself stress to save a few pennies, me.
Sean S the difference would not be noticeable at all, and would barely be measurable. for 12 gauge wire, the resistance is about 1 mOhm per foot, so a 20 foot run (40 feet total) is 40 mOhm, represents a half a percent increase in resistance if your speakers are 8 ohm and 1% if they are 4 ohm. a 1% difference in volume is completely undetectable to the human ear, as large changes in power correspond to small percieved changes in volume, which is why the decibel scale is used.12 gauge wire at 20 feet would lose 0.043 dB, which is negligible. even 16 gauge at 20 feet is still a very small difference measured, and completely inaudible. at shorter distances, wire is even less of a concern. TL;Dr : unless you have VERY high power >500W per speaker, very long runs >100 feet, or speakers with an impedance of less than 2 ohms (basically subs only) your wire is fine.
I've been into PC since 1992 and I admit, sound is something I put off at the back seat so I never bother to learn more about it. Thanks for this video, I learned few new things about speaker system!
Where are liquid nitrogen cooled cables? Cooling cables lowers their resistance, turning some materials to superconductors. Overclocking audio cables, yeah!!
+Federico Passarelli True, but cooling will get you much closer to a superconductor and thus having no resistance at all. Decrease in resistance of better materials is miniscule, as discussed in the HDMI video.. :P
+Federico Passarelli Wrong, the resistivity of gold is higher than copper. It is used for contacts because it doesn't corrode but it has an about 50% lower conductivity. So it would be really stupid use gold cables.
Good honest and correct video. I like Belden 14 AWG 2C Hi-Flex commercial speaker wire or the 16 AWG Belden wire , you can get it in bulk at about .40 .50 cents a foot and its in wall rated also . The ready made parts express and Mono-price terminated wire pairs are inexpensive and decent also and so is the 16AWG inexpensive roll of RCA speaker wire ,I think 50' is like 8.00 and electrically and insulated just fine OTOH real simple for a short run 16 AEG Home depot zip cord is fine as well and all of these will sound as good as $1000.00 plus exotic metal /exotic design loudspeaker cables that are a sham and if you can hear difference with the exotic wires it is being deliberately attenuated to differentiate itself and it is not accurate . Home depot and Amazon should have all this.. Just make you sure your wires have decent inexpensive terminals on each end and you are done .
It's not just impedance that determines wire. You do touch on gauge and length, but it's not that an 8ohm speaker needs a certain gauge. It's how much current you intend to put through the wire. You aren't putting 500 watts through a 30ga wire.
+cad5359 This is a quick guide and addressed all the essential issues for those not familiar with this topic. If you are doing the real audiophile stuff you do not need this guide as you already know this stuff. Don't be an idiot troll.
I frankly don't understand why you would think about it that much anyway. Just use as thick a wire as fits into the clamps on your speakers and make it as short as possible and you're done. It's not hugely expensive or anything. What would have been more important information is what kind of wire to use. High strand count cables with fine gauge individual strands and NOT shielded.
+Lukas Görgner Actually if you are going to be installing the wire into the walls of your house as a home theater system you should install shielded speaker cable. Strand count really doesn't make much of a difference since that wire could also be solid conductor when installed in the walls. Stranded only helps make a difference for ease of bending if the wires are not installed in the walls. At audio frequencies you don't have to worry about skin effect so any strand size even up to solid wire of the same gauge will have the same electrical properties. Stranded is just easier to work with.
+cad5359 At about 625 volts rms you could deliver 500 watts through 30awg wire. That would be a bit unrealistic since the insulation on the 30 gauge wire is only rated for maybe 600V but it could be done. 30awg copper wire has a resistance of ~0.1Ω/ft so a 6 foot length of wire would be adding 1.2Ω of resistance to the 8ohm load so a loss of ~15% of power at full load. The realistic maximum power output of 30 gauge wire pair 6 ft long would be ~10 watts on a car audio system and 15-20 watts on a home theater system depending on RMS system voltage. That being said even with cheap home theater systems the wire gauge that is included in the box is usually 22-18 gauge (7-16 amps for short runs) so at short runs for the front channels and much lower power requirements for the rear channels the included wire gauge should be enough for the typical 75-100 watt per front channel and 15-30 watts for rear and center channels of most consumer home theater systems.
During my hifi-days i experimented with "premium" cables. The cable i got set me back about 10$/M. So it was a budget premium thing. But it did improve my sound a bit. Everything became more focused and i gained clarity in the higher parts of the spectrum, however the changes ware small. Speakers carry an analog signal so cable quality are a factor in a way you don't find with digital signals. In my case buying cables for 50$ for my front system ware a good investment. A ~500$ NAD receiver and B&W speakers for ~2000$ justifies the relative small cost of the cables. If you ware thinking of getting better cables for your "Samsung Blu-Ray all-in-one HT system" i would have said save your money, it's not worth it.
+Kim Mortensen Premium cables start at more than that. More like $50/m, but $10/m would still get something nicer than the cheap shit that's mostly used. But anyway, I completely agree. People go nuts about those that spend $10000 on speaker cables, but the guys that do already have 1/4 million worth of gear anyway, so it's not much in the grand scheme of things. As long as things are sensibly matched, it's all good.
99.99% Oxygen free copper that are silver plaited. Sure you can get a similar specked cable that are far more pricey. But are it a better cable, or just a more expensive one? But i get what you are saying. in the Hifi-world a 10$/M cable are not considered expensive. But my point ware that speaker cable do matter (unlike what Luke are saying) and that you can get premium cables with out ponying up the premium cost.
+Kim Mortensen "oxygen free"? Your brain? Sorry, that's marketing wank, as is the silver plating (it's only slightly more conductive than copper, and that includes simple electrical installation cable copper, which is exactly as oxygen free).
So you are proving to me that i did not experience a sound improvement with going with a more expensive cable that had silver and probably better copper in it as well.. Interesting.. i still recall it as it was a small improvement.. But my point was that my cheep-o premium cable (like under 100$ total, including terminals) had all the bells and whistles as those insane ones that cost over 10 times as much.
Kim Mortensen The placebo effect is a bitch. Certain medications also work better, if they are more expensive (yes, this has been scientfically tested), mostly those medications that don't do anything in the first place. As long as you didn't do a blind test and someone else exchanged the cables randomly multiple times, I wouldn't even trust myself. My point is that a normal electric wire (of the same diameter) will have the same bells and whistles as your cheap-o premium cable. How can I say that? Physics/chemistry. Even the most pure copper (better than "oxygen free") is just 2% more conductive than your bog standard electrolytic copper from a century ago (yes, that's when the standard was set). Oxygen free copper is defined to be 101% of that standard, so *one whole percent more conductivity*! But todays refining process is so much under control that even your normal copper gets that number without a problem. Even if you would hear a one percent change in conductivity (which you don't), "oxygen free" copper wires would still be a waste of money, because normal wires have the same property. Did you now that *silver is considered an impurity* in oxygen free copper (because it very often comes with the copper ore and isn't easy to separate)? You have a wire plated in that? Btw. that 1% is just the increase in conductivity (or decrease in resistance) of the wire. The wire resistance (if thick enough) already is negligible when considering the resistance of the connectors. Typically at least 10 to 100 times more per connection (which you have at least two of, maybe even four) than the whole resistance of the wire. And even that is very low compared to the impedance of the speaker of 4-8 Ohms.
Luke, you look soooo tired in this episode. Maybe it's just the lighting, or maybe Linus is working you too hard, you know, at the office and *outside* the office...
+Techquickie Yes speakers impedance changes with frequency, but it is almost always higher then what is the listed on the speaker. Anything lower then the rated 4, 6, 8, ohm etc. could blow up the amplifier if it is not built or rated to handle the lower loads. Thicker wire is not really needed for that reason. Higher ohm loads are easier for the amp to drive since there is less current. Lower ohm loads are much harder to drive, use more current, and cause the amp to heat up even more. I had a 0.5 ohm stable Orion high current (cheater) amp back in the day that you could fry an egg on. Only 50W x 2 at 4 ohms, and 100W worth of power according to most sound organizations back then, but it put out 600-800W depending on voltage bridged into a 1 ohm load.
22 guage....are you out of your mind? The minimum guage for ANY decent setup is 18 guage for the front, center, and surrounds if they are short runs. Subwoofer connections for external amplifiers would be 16 guage minimum regardless of run length. I have been installing stereo equipment in homes and autos for going on 30 years and have never heard such bad advice. I personally use 16 guage for front, center and surrounds and 14 for external subwoofer amps. My suggestion...stick to computers and let A/V experts record advice for home theatre installations. P.S. throw all that 22 guage garbage wire that you get for free in the trash.
+Les S, actually, for the subwoofer would depend if it is a passive or active subwoofer. Passive (depending on wattage) I would go 12 minimum. Active, then you just need a good 75 Ohm wire if you are using the LFE channel on your receiver. Otherwise you are correct if you are using the crossover in your subwoofer amp.
+BaddMatt Thats why i said with an external amplifier. The focus of the video was speaker wiring not line level wiring such as the lfe output of most integrated surround decoders.
Installers aren't experts on anything except doing reliable installations quickly enough to earn a living. This is real expert advice, from somebody who's actually designed both electronics and speakers for the original "high-end" audio company, McIntosh: www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm Given the usual < 6 foot speaker cable lengths in home stereos, I defy anyone to actually hear any difference between even 22 AWG speaker wire and anything else you can buy, find, or steal -- the longer the length and the lower the nominal speaker impedance, the heavier the gauge you should buy. That's all. Simple.
NWinnStudio Seven of Nine can assimilate me ANY time she wants! There will be NO resistance (I'm talking some superconductor level of NO resistance!!)..
Emile van der Merwe Because if you wire your speakers with reverse polarity, they will run out of phase, causing canceled bass thus resulting in bad sound.
Hi, how about a vid explaining the different sound setups you can get from the connectors on you Mobo i/o port with 2.1,5.1 etc explained and the associated colour contacts and what they each do, maybe covering USB sound options also with features and benefits of each option.
This video is in the English language, and most native English speakers live in North-America. Here's what North-Americans do when we watch European and Asian videos about wires: We google a conversion chart! It is quite a lot to ask of a content provider to adjust to YOU... And using both systems all the time is impractical and makes videos confusing, long, and boring. So, like it or not, the situation is unlikely to change anytime soon. So, get a damn conversion chart!
These guys are Canadian, as am I... Although most of our measurements have been metric for decades, we still have AWG for wiring, inches for speaker sizes, and per-pound meat prices. Often both measurements are shown, but not for wires, as far as I've seen. Instead of thinking he's doing anything wrong, why don't you just google a conversion chart and grow up. For all you know, his audience is mostly North-American. (You don't see us complaining about European videos, do you? -- oh, yeah, Americans... never mind.)
If your really skint and using free with equipment bell wire buy some solid core 5 amp from B&Q or wherever, only drawback at the cost is its inflexibility. Note Julian's observation about polarity, red to red and black to black when connecting. Only a good idea if you have a decent set of binding posts both ends, don't try this with the nasty sprung spring terminals or they will break.
Marcelo Exactly! I tried a few different brands of premium in-wall speaker cables to make my place look neater but the sound is horrible compared to my current setup.I finally ran those high-end speaker cables in flexible conduits for in-wall installation. It is true that speaker cable quality doesn't matter if you have mainstream electronic gears.
The video had good advice regardless if your system is low or high end, if you have a good system, just get a lower guage and use shorter runs. Dont fall for the snake oil, in the land of directional cables LOL.
Che Marcelo.... agáchate y conocelo, juaaaa , no hablando en serio, mi equipo es un radio grabador Sonny con doble casetera y compactera reversible. Los monitores de estudio de Abbey Road son B&W de $10k por que AR compraría unos cables Audiokuest de $15k y no me digas que hay mas baratos de la misma marca por que me confundo por que Abbey Road compraría los Audiokekes de $2k si existen los de $15k cocos
I bought F&D T-60X Bluetooth Home Audio Speaker, which has 55w *2 output (I'm not sure of the OHMS but looks like its 8omhs), i want to know which speaker wire is best to connect these 2 speakers in india? what gauge speaker wire should i purchase. they will be placed at a distance of approx 5-6 meters from each other.
Are we actually expected to remember everything we're taught? Don't forget there's crap teachers who only assign book work instead of actually engaging with their students.
@@Storebrand_ I"m 51 I can stil remember the 3 laws of motion/force as well a v=ir...and it's been 35 years since i learnt them...and no, I didn't use them for work related purposes in my adult life. The difference is I'm not a millenial, and I paid attention in class and retained what I was taught.
this helped me alot since i though higher number gauge wire would mean thicker cable, not i know smaller number = thicker wire, but is there any quality difference between wires you are using in a home theater system?
+Skinnwalk3r Yes and no, you can get "high quality" (more expensive) low oxygen/oxygen free wire but the reality is they don't make a difference compared to standard wire these days (for home theatre use) unless you luck out and get something that shouldn't even be on a store shelf like copper clad aluminium wire (CCA) - not that I've ever seen CCA speaker wire but I'm sure someone in China would be making it ;)
Length and Gauge (thickness not width), if you're going to used shielded cable (to reduce RF and EM intereference) only ground the shield at one end to drain any electrical potential.
+Techquickie It depends on the length of the wire and how many WRMS you are putting though the wire those two things determines the (awg) wire gauge you need to run
+Per-Arvid Land lol the reason why you should use metric is easy its simpler, makes sense and more accurate the reason they don't is because it hurts americans feeling making them change
+herranton1979 A great quick and dirty way to convert from C to F is double it and add 30. And to go from F to C take away 30 and half the remaining. It isn't perfect, but it gets close to the real answer.
There is a "thin pipe" running between the output transformer (which is where your speaker cable starts. You just don't see it inside the amp) and the speaker out connectors (so to speak) Adding a "wider pipe" after a "thin pipe" does nothing to alleviate the pressure or resistance in the signal path.
16 gauge... 22 GAUGE? You're telling people to use THREADS! You also neglected to mention matching wire size to POWER. You should NEVER hook up a high current amp with say 200+ watts to some thread thin little 22 GAUGE WIRE, that would be insane. I'm running a Parasound amp with 275 watts per channel, and I have 8 GUAGE wire, DOUBLE, because I'm biamping the front L/R/C. You people making these videos as if you were giving out good advice are a joke. You spent more time on your fucking COMMERCIAL than you did wire info, which was all pretty much BS anyway.
A lot of speaker wire is not pure copper now, but some kind of copper-plated aluminum amalgam which is cheaper and not as good. Are your gage recommendations based on pure copper wire?
So, if your system isn’t up to the task of high resolution.......this video is correct. It won’t matter so much what wires you use. But, if you the best of whatever you have, you will indeed hear differences in wire no matter who makes it. It will vary in minor details of the soundstage, frequency response, margining, etc. if you don’t know of what I speak, fear not....as you are simply not there yet to know better.
Very bad cable may make a slight difference. Otherwise, no difference. It at least, any difference will be difference rather than improvement. That's just basic engineering
I certify this video snake oil free, good advice for beginners! PS: you determine cable guage based on the power capability of your Amplifier..just one small point missed.
Fiber optic transmits data/information via pulsing light, you couldn't power a speaker with it, you could only send the information regarding to your audio signal of interest. Through copper wire you are able to provide the necessary electrical current to drive the inductive load of your loudspeakers.
+ArchOfWinter Fiber is digital. You can use copper for digital as well (coax), and TBH I don't notice a difference between the two on my receiver. Ones and zeros are ones and zeros, after all.
For my international friends out there :) 6x4m room:- 6-8 Ohms: front speakers-> 9m @ 0.6mm rear speakers-> 18m @ 1.3mm 4 Ohms: front speakers-> 9m @ 1mm rear speakers-> 18m @ 1.6mm feel free to correct me if there's anything wrong.
Can you do an as fast as possible on Pascal and Polaris, and what they really mean? Thank you in advance, and also thank you for all of the wonderful quality content that you guys are constantly putting out!
The amount of power will also affect gage selection. If your speaker wires are warm, then you are losing too much signal (I squared r loss ) you needed thicker cables. I suggest 16 gauge for 100 watts and work from there.
the only other thing i can think of is getting higher strand count per gauge will make the wire a bit more flexible and able to bend around things easier.
Could you possibly make an episode explaining the differences between different audio plugs (xlr,3,5mm, rca, etc) and explain what are their downsides and upsides?
If a speaker wire is too thick like 12 or 14 gauge, would it have problems fitting into spring clip connection in receivers? The Yamaha RS202BL I have doesn't seem to open up that much to allow for a thicker wire to fit in
So what's the difference between speaker wire and wire you would buy at the auto parts store in a big spool or household wire if you bought it in bulk? . Is it cheaper? I know it's a little more flexible.
+Thebad300 I think he did indirectly address it. Most wires are made of copper, with a few made out of silver alloy and gold. The thing is, the conductive differences are really minor. So for all practical purposes, when it comes to audio, just use copper and adjust the width of the cable to reduce the reluctance. To get a bit more technical, the formula is R=rho*L/A. Silver's rho is about 6%lower than Copper, so its about 6% more effective than a copper wire of the same length and cross sectional area. But as you can see, increasing the area, of a copper wire, by 6% will have the same effect. Since copper is a lot cheaper than silver, the second option is a lot more economical. Hope this helped!
+Thebad300 Not an issue at all as Emile said, as long as you don't pick aluminium or gold cables. Both are bad conductors compared to copper and silver, with silver being just a little bit better (but definitely not worth the money).
+JesseArt Head unit sends a low level signal via RCA cables to the amplifier. The amplifier draws a large current from your battery/alternator at ~14.4 volts, and sends out the amplified signal at a higher voltage, thus making the amperage lower, so speaker wires are less thick than power wires. Don't wire your speakers to an impedance lower than the amplifier is rated for, don't clip your amp, and try to run the RCA and power wires on opposite sides of the vehicle to minimize interference.
So, I'm actually using a repurposed extension cord for my big under-desk speaker. It's fairly thick and I don't hear any problems. Is there a good reason not to use this kind of cable?
My disposable income is very low, so I am trying to work with what I have. I have a stereo with pin connection speakers to the back of the radio. I have a 24" Phillips HDTV with LED LCD (2 HDMI, Dolby Audio, Component L/R Audio, Y/Video, Pb, Pr, Optical Digital Audio Out, & Antenna In). I also have one large 32" Tube TV with few connections (nice for when I want to view on a larger screen, but would sell it in a heartbeat too, if I could), one DVR/DVD player (was amazing pre-digital television stations), and one DVD player. What I would like is to be able to purchase a relatively low cost (less than $75, but no more than $100) receiver/system to get better sound from my Phillips TV, as well as play my stereo when desired. I don't need surround sound, just a basic way to hook everything up so I can use the speakers I already have for more than one device. What can you do/suggest for someone like me?
Doesn't putting too small of a resistance in a circuit (at a constant electrical tension) just cause your power supply to overheat and... self destruct? It's like when you short-circuit a battery. The ohms are fixed (super low, almost zero), the volts are fixed, so it's the amps that try and shoot up to try and match Ohm's law. The battery overheats until's either drained, or is too damaged to supply the volts. So how come low impedance speakers just "give you bad sound" instead of causing your power supply to melt?
+PTNLemay it's more about the amp not having enough power and clipping. It's also wise to never use lower impedance speakers than what you're amp is rated for.
Possible TQ Topic: USB Powered Monitors. Feasible with USB 2.0? 8K with USB 3.1? What's the best USB Monitor possible with a single connector for power and display? Saw a recent advertisement of refurb units being sold for US$70. Sweet deal, if you ask me.
Post-amp: copper is copper. won't matter what grade it is. You'll never notice any frequency drop in the highs with longer runs (this is more notable is longer runs of signal cabling: due to capacitance, not impedance) At the power level and distances involved, I don't see almost anybody needing anything bigger than 16ga. for home audio. I do runs of 100ft of 16gauge for my tops with multiple speakon connectors all the time, no issue. (300 watts rms, 100hz and up) Nothing post amp is shielded (or really needs to be) I suppose he meant better insulation to last a bit longer. The way it's talked about in this implys that lower ohm = better, but that's not really the case.
You should have also talked about Stranded and Solid wires, i almost always try and use solid copper wires just because stranded wire tends to annoy me more.
+DiabeticMadman why solid, they make it with strands for a reason. Cu is still a metal, and bending metals weaken them. the metal is allowed to move individual strands when flexed so the more strands the less likely the Cu will break. solid wire is for permanent non-disturbed installations like building wire.
my HT consists of two overpowered home stereos for front and back and a powered standalone sub, cant find a suitable center yet, funny though I have to tune the bass down quite a bit, essentially all my speakers are bass heavy and the sub just adds even more earthquaking madness to it
pr0xZen positioning makes a world of difference but not on low freq, bass doesnt care about position, Im just trying to remove all low freq from my speakers to leave the sub to it, a low freq cut filter they call it but nothing yet that fits my Frankenstein build
pr0xZen yea I'm looking for a software solution and windows seems to have one, you can set speakers to be "full range" or "not full range" and the latter removes lows, but it removes too much of it, essentially it makes the speaker sound like one of those tiny all-in-one 5.1 setups which is the intended purpose I believe, I need something with more granular control, I guess an individual EQ per channel is too much to ask :( I don't know what to call it but the 4 speakers have a special kind of not-so-low bass that the sub can't replicate, and that kind of bass is actually affected by direction and positioning of the speakers, essentially you can only hear it from across the room, weird
How about those 200$ per 1 feet monocrystal wires, I've actually seen one costing 600$ a meter for some reason, do they make any difference and in which case could I hear that difference.
The insulation on speaker wire does not "protect against interference", because speaker wire is not shielded. The insulation only serves to keep the wire from oxidizing and prevent it from shorting against itself or other objects. Also you should note that the wire gauges shown in the video are measured in American Wire Gauge (AWG). British countries use Standard Wire Gauge (SWG) which is different.
+vwestlife I think he was referring to shielded cables, that's why he said don't spend a bunch on expensive cables because shielding is one of the things they advertise, but yeah you're right
British countries???
England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are considered british countries.
Nicholai Nissen
I consider Northern Ireland a part of Ireland, I am not the only one either...
Well tough... you're part of Britain. Got a problem with it... fight us. Oh, hang on... we've done that one already. :)
I have to say how I long for those days of the IRA. They were such friendly terrorists, not like the current crop of Radical Islamic terrorists. They were nice enough to phone us up and tell us that there was a bomb on the bus/train etc. The current IS lot just have no manners - their parents should be ashamed. Manners cost nothing.
Really think you missed a lot of things in this, you should avoid CCA (copper clad aluminum) wire as it can cause a large amount of impedance even over short runs and go with plain copper or OFC (Oxygen free copper) wire, just go on amazon, anything that is 100% copper is fine, don't get tricked by fancy super expensive name brand wire. Most speakers are between 4-8 ohms, a lot more are 4 ohms than you think. The impedance of the speaker is not as much of a concern with wire as it is with the comparability of your amp. Your wire gauge has a lot less to do with speaker impedance as it has to do with power output/rating of your speakers. If you amp outputs 1-100 watts per channel 14 gauge wire is fine, if your amp outputs anywhere from 100-175 watts per channel you should go with 12 gauge wire. Higher strand count is better for the wires as they are more flexible and less prone to internal breaking. 3:06, is literally the worst stock photo you could have used considering that is not at all how speaker wires go into those terminals. And using connectors like banana plugs does make it easier but also introduces more resistance, just plug wires in properly and you are fine.
+Torbox1 Good quality gold plated banana plugs are actually quite a bit lower resistance than the typical shove the wire in the terminal post hole and tighten the terminal or the crappy spring loaded push in terminals. Quality gold plated banana plugs that are silver soldered to the copper wire can be installed once and last decades without succumbing to corrosion and increased resistance. For most speakers and systems it really doesn't matter all that much as long as the wire gauge is decent and the connections at both ends are electrically solid. OFC or Oxygen free copper is actually marketing BS from an era when it was very easy to get poor quality copper wire with tons of impurities. Pretty much all pure copper wire is oxygen free these days because it would not be cost effective to change the process of making the wire to produce a lower grade. The only time you really have to worry about wire quality is if the wire you are buying is from a cheap Chinese seller where quality and makeup could be an issue. Some of the best speaker wire available for home audio happens to be lamp cord since you can buy it in any length and all common gauges from 18-12 gauge. If you need to install wire in a wall where it will be permanent it is a good idea to install shielded twisted speaker install wire which you can buy in several sizes and numbers of conductors.
I am aware that OFC is merely a marketing term but was covering it because people may come across it have questions about it. As I said any 100% copper wire or OFC wire is fine but you should avoid Copper Clad Aluminium wire. Any mechanical connection regardless of materials creates more resistance either do to the added length or the fact that it is simply 2 materials contacting each other. As long as the connection is solid it doesn't matter, the only thing that could be better would be to solder to the amp. And for the matter of soldering to banana plugs it is indeed a good method that cleans up the look, makes it easy to plug and unplug, and doesn't add any real resistance but it can corrode as with any copper wire exposed to air. I have had it happen before, it was after several years though. But anyway, lamp cord is a good alternative as the insulation is much thicker and you can get it with shielding. Which is nice if you plan on running it through the walls.
@@Torbox1 Not to mention there are tons of videos online proving how bad CCA wire is in a situation where every bit of performance counts. Id rather have nothing holding me back than something as dumb as wire limiting performance.
Feet? Really? You're Canadian, at least show both damn measurement units....
f
+Anze G They could have included the metric ones.
+Anze G So? American video makers are pretty much forced to do things in measurements other than which they are accustomed, so why is it so much worse now that it is opposite?
I get what you're saying but it's really not that bad. If Americans have to convert everything to Imperial all the time I'm sure you could do it once or twice. Also I'd guess that a large portion of their viewers are American.
+by CDMC Two different unit types. No conversion available.
One of the best none bullshit videos I have seen from Linus media group
10/10
I thought it was sub par tbh.
+TheLawnWanderer
what's going on with all the bullying?
+Kurt Phillips yeah. They forgot to cover power input/output and how proper RCAs can actually give you better sound.
+The Bau5 RCA cables in general are usually the worst way to hook up home theater equipment these days. You are correct, if you have to use RCA its better to use quality RCA cables. Optical and digital coax offer far better sound quality even in home theaters that deal in several channels of audio per side. I think the only thing that is still connected via RCA in my home theater is my Onkyo dual tape deck.
Hahahahah optical hahahahhahaaha or coaxial hahahhahahahah.Coax is an RCA conector u stupid noob.
There isnt any disadvatages to useing an RCA in home audio.Even XLR give you nothing besides longer distances and less loss.My RCA is 0,75m and amp is very sensitive, can work with 1V source.
Thanks for making it simple to understand. I was trying to explain this to a friend for a system I installed in his new house. Went with 14 guage crutch field or Amazon basic spool sounds great no issues. But he did get sold a 500 dollar HDMI cable from the place he bought his TV. Unfortunately I wasn't there to tell him it's not worth it. I do like how some expensive cables look but never worth the price. Anyway thanks again 👍👍👍
As a professional installer, I usually run 16/2 or 14/2 depending on the length of the run and amp rating on the speakers the customer wants to install. I normally deal with Episode, proficient, paradigm, sonance speakers. All recessed interior or bracket or recessed exterior (decks, patios). Love the video and the explanation you gave to describe impedance.
As you mentioned you're a pro installer.Could you tell me if flat ghost wire is worth the money to spend to run cables for my rear speaker to hide them instead of running standard wire.( I can't drill or run cables in the sling/wall.mutch apriciated for honest answer
@woodman687 if you're worried about Cosmetics and don't mind a white wire around your baseboard, then flat might be a viable option. But if you're picky like me, I'd much rather pull my baseboards off and route my wires behind or underneath them. There's usually a small gap under the baseboard to allow for wires to pass.
@woodman687 if you have money you can spend, another option would be to go wireless. With sonos rear speakers and subwoofer. But you'll also need a sonos soundbar or a sonos AMP to transfer audio from your TV. Add the rear speakers as surrounds.
@B3ASTM0D3. Not a fan of wireless, I already bought all the set up and try to figure out how to connect back speakers without running nasty cables.Any way question still not answered.
Good video... though interference (an electromagnetic phenomenon in this context) isn't going to be stopped by simple electrical insulation.
Fortunately it doesn't matter for speaker wires, since EM interference is typically SEVERAL orders of magnitude weaker than the actual power that wire is carrying. EM interference is typically only a problem if it's introduced BEFORE the amplification.
Talking about sound quality, the lack of any type of pop filter or post production audio adjustment in this video is insane. Every "S" sounded like Mike Tyson was doing the voice over.
I just use monoprice 12awg oxygen free copper wire it's cheap and it works. It sounds obviously better than the 16awg stuff that had steel wire and copper plated wire on the other side from Canadian Tire. I also use some banana plugs from monoprice and some rg6 subwoofer cables
Most of the length/gauge spec you gave are for copper wire. Most of the speaker wire in the consumer market is CCA (copper clad aluminum) which requires 2 gauges larger for the same length.
Examples:
18 gauge copper or 16 gauge CCA; up to 32 feet
16 gauge copper or 14 gauge CCA; up to 48 feet
The general rule is to keep the wire impedance (each conductor) less that 2.5% of the speaker impedance (5% total for both conductors).
Insulation doesn't protect against interference, shielding does, there's a big difference there.
True and agree. Insulation deals with protection against accidental grounding or short-circuiting (physical contact), while shielding deals with protection against electro-magnetic interference between adjacent conductors (not touching each other).
I'm confused. Do I need less cable, if I have small feet?
+Urinstein Yes, because as we all know, the smaller your feet, the smaller your room is.
I have those new copper socks but the soles of my shoes are aluminum does this mean 16
gauge is good enough for dancing ? Heyyyy !? Point your toes, but I'll give you a [ 7 ].
Yes , I realize its been 4 years but the hors d'oeuvres are still fresh.
Don't listen to these guys. They literally recommended using 22 gauge wire for subwoofers which would put you at risk of starting a fire for anything more than 18w speakers.
Just buy at least 16 gauge wire for up to 100w, 8 ohm speakers.
You can get 12 gauge wire for cheap and that gets you even better power handling if you need it.
You really missed a lot of information that could've been useful
Agreed
Notice the fast as possible, they can't cover everything.
Yep agreed
+frenchiveruti You've failed to offer any suggestions. If you want anyone to improve you should be clear on what you're asking for and not use something so broad.
+Ben Thanks for the correction, that fits much better actually.
Insulator doesn't do _anything_ to shield the wire against interference.
Interference is magnetic and electric fields that couple to the conductor (wire) and cause unwanted currents and voltages that you hear as noise.
You can only shield against these with a shield made out of metal. Ferromagnetic metals help against magnetic fields and conductive metals against electric fields.
For electric shielding the shield has to cover the entire conductor and be connected to a ground (e.g. device chassis).
Yes, but you can lable thosevas Insulation aswell since the insulate aganist fields
+Annelise Meier no, it is shielding, insulation only refers to electrical isolation
Slot1GGamer, that's right.
To be very exact and overly pragmatic, insulation is isolating the wire galvanically, meaning that there's no path for the direct current to flow. Shielding is always against non gavanic fields (e.g electromagnetic field). Same coin, different side :)
How I do it: $25 spool of 50ft. 12 AWG wire pairs.
+LazerLord10 Exactly, 12gauge is cheap, what if you have high wattage speakers? Quick search on eBay shows "high end" Oxygen free wire for $19 for 50' or cheap wire for $45 for 400 feet. Would assume cheap 12gauge is the same or better than expensive 20 gauge. I doubt any of us could tell a difference one way or another.
+Meghani Motorsports 12 gauge is overkill for most reasonable people
@@sittinheavy1 with 8 ohm speakers, and a speaker lead length of less than 50 feet, 12 gauge wire should be fine for anything less than 2,000 watts. For 4 ohm speakers, 1,000 watts.
It would have been important to note that cheaper speaker wire doesn't always use copper or even better OFC (oxygen free copper). The Amazon Basics 16awg speaker wire for instance, uses 42 stranded CCA or, "Copper Clad Aluminum", which as we all know is less conductive than what you really want anyway. The real answer is look for 14awg all around, OFC construction and a decent jacket to combat snags and tears/some interference issues. Brand name doesn't matter as long as you're getting the bases covered. For reference, I currently use Monoprices' Core Series OFC 14awg. It's a dollar more than the Amazon option and you get everything you need, nothing you don't need to pay for.
Fun tip: Those 6' 2 wire $1 extension cords for 2 prong electrical outlets at the dollar store can be cut and made into super cheap, effective speaker wire.
I did this a few days ago except with an old extension cord I found. I think it was 16awg, pure copper. Tinned the leads with solder and hooked them up, don't know if they sound better than the 22awg cables I had before but at least I have the headroom to go louder now.
+StoreBrand | Bernie2016, higher gauge wire isnt going to be your limiting factor, your amp or speaker will give up before the wire burns out. Also most extension cords are solid core not multi strand, thus having a higher resistance.
Metech None of my extension cords are solid core. 16awg solid core would be pretty damn stiff. The cord I used was multistrand pure copper (as far as how pure idk). Heat increases resistance, so even if the wire itself isn't ever going to burn I would at least now have no added resistance from warm cables.
the amount of residence you are talking about here though is miniscule milli ohm if not less, and in a home theater environment is makes no difference. Also if there wire is getting hot it would mean there is to much current being pushed through you wire. As for the solid cables im for straya, and majority of ours are solid core cause it easier to roll up.
Metech I guess I've never really thought about how much resistance it adds, good point. Another benefit to thicker cables is durability, I've had to re-strip my 22awg cables because of breakage from when I move the speakers around and have to disconnect. My speakers use a screw terminal (vintage hi-fi) and my amp uses spring terminals so my wires go trough a little wear, which is another reason why I opted for thicker cables.
For everyone reading this: IMPEDANCE IS NOT THE SAME AS RESISTANCE!
how?
+Ognjen Galić Accually, It is
Impedance extends the concept of resistance to AC circuits, and possesses both magnitude and phase, unlike resistance, which has only magnitude.
Impedance is the broader definition of resistance. Impedance CAN equal resistance if there is no capacitance/inductance. Therefore, technically they are different but practically they can be the same
+CRCR7 Agreed, bit in audio tech you got lots of em so they will vary
pretty good summary. wouldn't go with anything less than 18ga though. i'll admit my 12ga speaker wire for 15 ft runs may have been a bit unnecessary.
I can go one better... lol.. 8ga (it might even be 6ga, i'm converting my native metric 4mm diameter from memory) for 6ft6in runs of no more than 25 watts per channel rms. Was some automotive power cable i got free and used because i had it. Had to get the butane torch on it to solder it into the banana plugs. Always causing myself stress to save a few pennies, me.
I am thinking about using 8 ga for speaker wire also same length haha. Did it make a diffference? Im using 16 ga now.
Sean S the difference would not be noticeable at all, and would barely be measurable. for 12 gauge wire, the resistance is about 1 mOhm per foot, so a 20 foot run (40 feet total) is 40 mOhm, represents a half a percent increase in resistance if your speakers are 8 ohm and 1% if they are 4 ohm.
a 1% difference in volume is completely undetectable to the human ear, as large changes in power correspond to small percieved changes in volume, which is why the decibel scale is used.12 gauge wire at 20 feet would lose 0.043 dB, which is negligible. even 16 gauge at 20 feet is still a very small difference measured, and completely inaudible.
at shorter distances, wire is even less of a concern.
TL;Dr : unless you have VERY high power >500W per speaker, very long runs >100 feet, or speakers with an impedance of less than 2 ohms (basically subs only) your wire is fine.
I've been into PC since 1992 and I admit, sound is something I put off at the back seat so I never bother to learn more about it. Thanks for this video, I learned few new things about speaker system!
Where are liquid nitrogen cooled cables? Cooling cables lowers their resistance, turning some materials to superconductors. Overclocking audio cables, yeah!!
+rkan2 I think gold/silver cables would be cheaper than liquid cooled cables, and they also have lower resistence.
I know you are joking, just saying
+Federico Passarelli True, but cooling will get you much closer to a superconductor and thus having no resistance at all. Decrease in resistance of better materials is miniscule, as discussed in the HDMI video.. :P
+Federico Passarelli Wrong, the resistivity of gold is higher than copper. It is used for contacts because it doesn't corrode but it has an about 50% lower conductivity. So it would be really stupid use gold cables.
+Benjamin Steinmann you're right, but silver ones do have lower resistance
should i use kanthal stainless steel or nickel? sub ohm woofing
Good honest and correct video. I like Belden 14 AWG 2C Hi-Flex commercial speaker wire or the 16 AWG Belden wire , you can get it in bulk at about .40 .50 cents a foot and its in wall rated also . The ready made parts express and Mono-price terminated wire pairs are inexpensive and decent also and so is the 16AWG inexpensive roll of RCA speaker wire ,I think 50' is like 8.00 and electrically and insulated just fine
OTOH real simple for a short run 16 AEG Home depot zip cord is fine as well and all of these will sound as good as $1000.00 plus exotic metal /exotic design loudspeaker cables that are a sham and if you can hear difference with the exotic wires it is being deliberately attenuated to differentiate itself and it is not accurate . Home depot and Amazon should have all this..
Just make you sure your wires have decent inexpensive terminals on each end and you are done .
This video didn't help at all, I couldn't hear it because I used the wrong wires for my new speakers.
LOL
Here's something to consider for your next videos - Computer port Oxidation. How to Maintain, Fix and the effects.
It's not just impedance that determines wire. You do touch on gauge and length, but it's not that an 8ohm speaker needs a certain gauge. It's how much current you intend to put through the wire. You aren't putting 500 watts through a 30ga wire.
+cad5359 This is a quick guide and addressed all the essential issues for those not familiar with this topic. If you are doing the real audiophile stuff you do not need this guide as you already know this stuff. Don't be an idiot troll.
I frankly don't understand why you would think about it that much anyway. Just use as thick a wire as fits into the clamps on your speakers and make it as short as possible and you're done. It's not hugely expensive or anything. What would have been more important information is what kind of wire to use. High strand count cables with fine gauge individual strands and NOT shielded.
Watts are a measurement of power, not current.
+Lukas Görgner Actually if you are going to be installing the wire into the walls of your house as a home theater system you should install shielded speaker cable. Strand count really doesn't make much of a difference since that wire could also be solid conductor when installed in the walls. Stranded only helps make a difference for ease of bending if the wires are not installed in the walls. At audio frequencies you don't have to worry about skin effect so any strand size even up to solid wire of the same gauge will have the same electrical properties. Stranded is just easier to work with.
+cad5359 At about 625 volts rms you could deliver 500 watts through 30awg wire. That would be a bit unrealistic since the insulation on the 30 gauge wire is only rated for maybe 600V but it could be done. 30awg copper wire has a resistance of ~0.1Ω/ft so a 6 foot length of wire would be adding 1.2Ω of resistance to the 8ohm load so a loss of ~15% of power at full load. The realistic maximum power output of 30 gauge wire pair 6 ft long would be ~10 watts on a car audio system and 15-20 watts on a home theater system depending on RMS system voltage. That being said even with cheap home theater systems the wire gauge that is included in the box is usually 22-18 gauge (7-16 amps for short runs) so at short runs for the front channels and much lower power requirements for the rear channels the included wire gauge should be enough for the typical 75-100 watt per front channel and 15-30 watts for rear and center channels of most consumer home theater systems.
During my hifi-days i experimented with "premium" cables.
The cable i got set me back about 10$/M. So it was a budget premium thing. But it did improve my sound a bit. Everything became more focused and i gained clarity in the higher parts of the spectrum, however the changes ware small. Speakers carry an analog signal so cable quality are a factor in a way you don't find with digital signals.
In my case buying cables for 50$ for my front system ware a good investment. A ~500$ NAD receiver and B&W speakers for ~2000$ justifies the relative small cost of the cables. If you ware thinking of getting better cables for your "Samsung Blu-Ray all-in-one HT system" i would have said save your money, it's not worth it.
+Kim Mortensen Premium cables start at more than that. More like $50/m, but $10/m would still get something nicer than the cheap shit that's mostly used. But anyway, I completely agree. People go nuts about those that spend $10000 on speaker cables, but the guys that do already have 1/4 million worth of gear anyway, so it's not much in the grand scheme of things. As long as things are sensibly matched, it's all good.
99.99% Oxygen free copper that are silver plaited. Sure you can get a similar specked cable that are far more pricey. But are it a better cable, or just a more expensive one?
But i get what you are saying. in the Hifi-world a 10$/M cable are not considered expensive. But my point ware that speaker cable do matter (unlike what Luke are saying) and that you can get premium cables with out ponying up the premium cost.
+Kim Mortensen
"oxygen free"? Your brain? Sorry, that's marketing wank, as is the silver plating (it's only slightly more conductive than copper, and that includes simple electrical installation cable copper, which is exactly as oxygen free).
So you are proving to me that i did not experience a sound improvement with going with a more expensive cable that had silver and probably better copper in it as well.. Interesting.. i still recall it as it was a small improvement..
But my point was that my cheep-o premium cable (like under 100$ total, including terminals) had all the bells and whistles as those insane ones that cost over 10 times as much.
Kim Mortensen
The placebo effect is a bitch. Certain medications also work better, if they are more expensive (yes, this has been scientfically tested), mostly those medications that don't do anything in the first place. As long as you didn't do a blind test and someone else exchanged the cables randomly multiple times, I wouldn't even trust myself.
My point is that a normal electric wire (of the same diameter) will have the same bells and whistles as your cheap-o premium cable.
How can I say that? Physics/chemistry. Even the most pure copper (better than "oxygen free") is just 2% more conductive than your bog standard electrolytic copper from a century ago (yes, that's when the standard was set). Oxygen free copper is defined to be 101% of that standard, so *one whole percent more conductivity*! But todays refining process is so much under control that even your normal copper gets that number without a problem. Even if you would hear a one percent change in conductivity (which you don't), "oxygen free" copper wires would still be a waste of money, because normal wires have the same property.
Did you now that *silver is considered an impurity* in oxygen free copper (because it very often comes with the copper ore and isn't easy to separate)? You have a wire plated in that?
Btw. that 1% is just the increase in conductivity (or decrease in resistance) of the wire. The wire resistance (if thick enough) already is negligible when considering the resistance of the connectors. Typically at least 10 to 100 times more per connection (which you have at least two of, maybe even four) than the whole resistance of the wire. And even that is very low compared to the impedance of the speaker of 4-8 Ohms.
Luke, you look soooo tired in this episode. Maybe it's just the lighting, or maybe Linus is working you too hard, you know, at the office and *outside* the office...
lol
+mygetrichslowplan SENPAI
+mygetrichslowplan ncie meme
+CS:GO сФинщини Do wires still exist in 4016?
+mygetrichslowplan ALL MEN SHOULD USE BUTTPLUGS
Funny those speaker at 1:53 do not need speaker cable! They are emplified reference monitor bx5a by m-audio own for a time by Avid.
I love how one of the tags is "snake oil"
+Techquickie Yes speakers impedance changes with frequency, but it is almost always higher then what is the listed on the speaker. Anything lower then the rated 4, 6, 8, ohm etc. could blow up the amplifier if it is not built or rated to handle the lower loads. Thicker wire is not really needed for that reason.
Higher ohm loads are easier for the amp to drive since there is less current. Lower ohm loads are much harder to drive, use more current, and cause the amp to heat up even more. I had a 0.5 ohm stable Orion high current (cheater) amp back in the day that you could fry an egg on. Only 50W x 2 at 4 ohms, and 100W worth of power according to most sound organizations back then, but it put out 600-800W depending on voltage bridged into a 1 ohm load.
2:04 giant wire! :D
Im sure shes seen bigger.
She wanted "something thicker than she really needs in order to compensate"
I got the same kind of wire as the picture on 1 minute.. that stuff is fine to use... job done!
22 guage....are you out of your mind? The minimum guage for ANY decent setup is 18 guage for the front, center, and surrounds if they are short runs. Subwoofer connections for external amplifiers would be 16 guage minimum regardless of run length. I have been installing stereo equipment in homes and autos for going on 30 years and have never heard such bad advice. I personally use
16 guage for front, center and surrounds and 14 for external subwoofer amps. My suggestion...stick to computers and let A/V experts record advice for home theatre installations. P.S. throw all that 22 guage garbage wire that you get for free in the trash.
+Les S, actually, for the subwoofer would depend if it is a passive or active subwoofer. Passive (depending on wattage) I would go 12 minimum. Active, then you just need a good 75 Ohm wire if you are using the LFE channel on your receiver. Otherwise you are correct if you are using the crossover in your subwoofer amp.
+BaddMatt Thats why i said with an external amplifier. The focus of the video was speaker wiring not line level wiring such as the lfe output of most integrated surround decoders.
Les S I will give you that about the video being about speaker wiring.
+Les S cat5 is fine for anybody using the all in a box home theatars
Installers aren't experts on anything except doing reliable installations quickly enough to earn a living. This is real expert advice, from somebody who's actually designed both electronics and speakers for the original "high-end" audio company, McIntosh: www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm
Given the usual < 6 foot speaker cable lengths in home stereos, I defy anyone to actually hear any difference between even 22 AWG speaker wire and anything else you can buy, find, or steal -- the longer the length and the lower the nominal speaker impedance, the heavier the gauge you should buy. That's all. Simple.
Water through a pipe is a great analogy for the way electricity flows ! Its idea is used in electro-tech introductions all over!
Resistance is futile!
(If Ohms < 1)
+NWinnStudio
Neeeeeeerd. XD
What a fluke!!
NWinnStudio
Seven of Nine can assimilate me ANY time she wants! There will be NO resistance (I'm talking some superconductor level of NO resistance!!)..
Mains flex works well enough for my speakers, just got to make sure I don't confuse those wires with something I need to put a mains plug on!
No mention of phase and polarity? really?
+Julian Gray Media He is just talking about speaker wire. Phase relates to speaker science.
ok, at the very least polarity. thats very important.
Julian Gray Media Yes.
+Julian Gray Media Uhm, why is polarity important in a wire?
Emile van der Merwe Because if you wire your speakers with reverse polarity, they will run out of phase, causing canceled bass thus resulting in bad sound.
Hi, how about a vid explaining the different sound setups you can get from the connectors on you Mobo i/o port with 2.1,5.1 etc explained and the associated colour contacts and what they each do, maybe covering USB sound options also with features and benefits of each option.
Oh, and nice series Luke and Seb, keep up the great work, it really helps me out, it helped me build a kick ass rig last year :-))
There's one thing called "Metric system". Like it or not, I'm sure some international viewers would appreciate it. I would.
Wesker End I know this is an old comment but they are Canadian they understand its not just American viewers
This video is in the English language, and most native English speakers live in North-America. Here's what North-Americans do when we watch European and Asian videos about wires: We google a conversion chart!
It is quite a lot to ask of a content provider to adjust to YOU... And using both systems all the time is impractical and makes videos confusing, long, and boring. So, like it or not, the situation is unlikely to change anytime soon. So, get a damn conversion chart!
I have 2 subwoofers, they are both 4 ohms, will 12 gauge wire work and how long should I make it? Nice video
Please, I hate doing this, but not everyone uses the old Imperial system anymore. Start putting some metric in there and everyone will be happy.
No we won't. Keep your metric crap to yourself.
These guys are Canadian, as am I... Although most of our measurements have been metric for decades, we still have AWG for wiring, inches for speaker sizes, and per-pound meat prices. Often both measurements are shown, but not for wires, as far as I've seen. Instead of thinking he's doing anything wrong, why don't you just google a conversion chart and grow up. For all you know, his audience is mostly North-American. (You don't see us complaining about European videos, do you? -- oh, yeah, Americans... never mind.)
If your really skint and using free with equipment bell wire buy some solid core 5 amp from B&Q or wherever, only drawback at the cost is its inflexibility. Note Julian's observation about polarity, red to red and black to black when connecting.
Only a good idea if you have a decent set of binding posts both ends, don't try this with the nasty sprung spring terminals or they will break.
You've never ever been listened a real hi-end system to comment...
Marcelo Exactly! I tried a few different brands of premium in-wall speaker cables to make my place look neater but the sound is horrible compared to my current setup.I finally ran those high-end speaker cables in flexible conduits for in-wall installation. It is true that speaker cable quality doesn't matter if you have mainstream electronic gears.
The video had good advice regardless if your system is low or high end, if you have a good system, just get a lower guage and use shorter runs.
Dont fall for the snake oil, in the land of directional cables LOL.
Che Marcelo.... agáchate y conocelo, juaaaa , no hablando en serio, mi equipo es un radio grabador Sonny con doble casetera y compactera reversible.
Los monitores de estudio de Abbey Road son B&W de $10k por que AR compraría unos cables Audiokuest de $15k y no me digas que hay mas baratos de la misma marca por que me confundo por que Abbey Road compraría los Audiokekes de $2k si existen los de $15k cocos
if you have a high end audio setup premium cabals witch are well insulated do help to improve the sound
Do you even metric?
I bought F&D T-60X Bluetooth Home Audio Speaker, which has 55w *2
output (I'm not sure of the OHMS but looks like its 8omhs), i want to
know which speaker wire is best to connect these 2 speakers in india?
what gauge speaker wire should i purchase. they will be placed at a
distance of approx 5-6 meters from each other.
LOL that suspicious girl with the wire
looks Photoshopped.. like she was holding something else... like a 'water bottle' ;D
I mounted pairs of canare 4S11 today. Cheap and amazingly good for the money. Trust me I've lost a lot on snake oil cables...
or you can be familiar with ohms if you attended physics in 8th grade
Are we actually expected to remember everything we're taught? Don't forget there's crap teachers who only assign book work instead of actually engaging with their students.
you dont need a book or a good teacher to remember something as general as U=IR
@@Storebrand_ I"m 51 I can stil remember the 3 laws of motion/force as well a v=ir...and it's been 35 years since i learnt them...and no, I didn't use them for work related purposes in my adult life.
The difference is I'm not a millenial, and I paid attention in class and retained what I was taught.
Orrrrr I the school I was in didn’t teach physics 😞
@@davepastern i'M NoT A miLLeNiaL, i pAid aTTeNtIoN iN cLaSS
ok boomer
this helped me alot since i though higher number gauge wire would mean thicker cable, not i know smaller number = thicker wire, but is there any quality difference between wires you are using in a home theater system?
+Skinnwalk3r Yes and no, you can get "high quality" (more expensive) low oxygen/oxygen free wire but the reality is they don't make a difference compared to standard wire these days (for home theatre use) unless you luck out and get something that shouldn't even be on a store shelf like copper clad aluminium wire (CCA) - not that I've ever seen CCA speaker wire but I'm sure someone in China would be making it ;)
Thanks
Is it bad that I always watch "as fast as possible" videos on 2x speed?
+BradSk88
Weird, me too. I watch pretty much everything but music at 2x speed to save time. I thought I was the only one.
I life my life at 2x speed. Really helps me through my work days.
i can only reliably handle 1.5x
Length and Gauge (thickness not width), if you're going to used shielded cable (to reduce RF and EM intereference) only ground the shield at one end to drain any electrical potential.
Please use meters as well
Aleks Sthlmo Or even, Metres ...
Look there are 3ft in a Meter, now stop whining).
+Techquickie It depends on the length of the wire and how many WRMS you are putting though the wire those two things determines the (awg) wire gauge you need to run
As fast as possible request:
Imperial vs. metric (and why you should always use metric), Thank you.
+Per-Arvid Land lol the reason why you should use metric is easy its simpler, makes sense and more accurate the reason they don't is because it hurts americans feeling making them change
+herranton1979 A great quick and dirty way to convert from C to F is double it and add 30. And to go from F to C take away 30 and half the remaining.
It isn't perfect, but it gets close to the real answer.
When you are in construction you tell me what's more accurate working try to guess what fraction of an inch your at or mm
There is a "thin pipe" running between the output transformer (which is where your speaker cable starts. You just don't see it inside the amp) and the speaker out connectors (so to speak)
Adding a "wider pipe" after a "thin pipe" does nothing to alleviate the pressure or resistance in the signal path.
the more cable costs, the better it is... if it is unde 1k $, you are doing it wrong.
It filled in the gaps in my knowledge of speakers. Thanks
16 gauge... 22 GAUGE? You're telling people to use THREADS! You also neglected to mention matching wire size to POWER. You should NEVER hook up a high current amp with say 200+ watts to some thread thin little 22 GAUGE WIRE, that would be insane. I'm running a Parasound amp with 275 watts per channel, and I have 8 GUAGE wire, DOUBLE, because I'm biamping the front L/R/C. You people making these videos as if you were giving out good advice are a joke. You spent more time on your fucking COMMERCIAL than you did wire info, which was all pretty much BS anyway.
My theater room I run 10 gauge to my sub that’s like 3 ft away from my sub amo
A lot of speaker wire is not pure copper now, but some kind of copper-plated aluminum amalgam which is cheaper and not as good. Are your gage recommendations based on pure copper wire?
memes
so many memes! they're messing with us.
So, if your system isn’t up to the task of high resolution.......this video is correct. It won’t matter so much what wires you use. But, if you the best of whatever you have, you will indeed hear differences in wire no matter who makes it. It will vary in minor details of the soundstage, frequency response, margining, etc. if you don’t know of what I speak, fear not....as you are simply not there yet to know better.
Finally people who know what they're talking about.
Very bad cable may make a slight difference. Otherwise, no difference. It at least, any difference will be difference rather than improvement. That's just basic engineering
Go metric please
Pure OFC (oxygen free copper) wire will also make a difference compared to CCA (copper clad aluminum).
actually depends on the application, silver plated OFC or silver clad OFC is the best for analogue signal
LOL I knew they would dog on premium cables. They do matter to some degree. Most people don't have high end enough stuff to justify them though.
go to audioholics and they will debunk those premium cables
I certify this video snake oil free, good advice for beginners!
PS: you determine cable guage based on the power capability of your Amplifier..just one small point missed.
Could you please make a video about wifi sticks and wifi cards?
How does these copper wire compare to fiber optic when it comes to audio?
Have you guys done an episode on it?
Fiber optic transmits data/information via pulsing light, you couldn't power a speaker with it, you could only send the information regarding to your audio signal of interest. Through copper wire you are able to provide the necessary electrical current to drive the inductive load of your loudspeakers.
So copper also power the speaker. But what about the audio quality?
Copper, HDMI, optical, vs wireless?
+ArchOfWinter Fiber is digital. You can use copper for digital as well (coax), and TBH I don't notice a difference between the two on my receiver. Ones and zeros are ones and zeros, after all.
Short n thick, and watch the ohms/distance. Thanks for making it quick and easy
For my international friends out there :)
6x4m room:-
6-8 Ohms:
front speakers-> 9m @ 0.6mm
rear speakers-> 18m @ 1.3mm
4 Ohms:
front speakers-> 9m @ 1mm
rear speakers-> 18m @ 1.6mm
feel free to correct me if there's anything wrong.
Could you further explain why copper would cause an issue with higher frequencies over a certain distance of wire?
+CDP135Z it's not really how it's described here. You will get some voltage drop with thinner wire over long distances.
Please complete the list with quckie DIY home theater setup with speaker selection, amp and all things related!
Can you do an as fast as possible on Pascal and Polaris, and what they really mean? Thank you in advance, and also thank you for all of the wonderful quality content that you guys are constantly putting out!
I was about to go out and get wire today...thanks Luke!
The amount of power will also affect gage selection. If your speaker wires are warm, then you are losing too much signal (I squared r loss ) you needed thicker cables. I suggest 16 gauge for 100 watts and work from there.
+hitechpa1z1 if your wires are getting warm then you have a problem haha
the only other thing i can think of is getting higher strand count per gauge will make the wire a bit more flexible and able to bend around things easier.
I would think that getting banana connectors you can solder the wires to would give you some good connections.
Could you possibly make an episode explaining the differences between different audio plugs (xlr,3,5mm, rca, etc) and explain what are their downsides and upsides?
+Anrijs Rode they are just interconnects... and not only used just for AV applications
If a speaker wire is too thick like 12 or 14 gauge, would it have problems fitting into spring clip connection in receivers? The Yamaha RS202BL I have doesn't seem to open up that much to allow for a thicker wire to fit in
So what's the difference between speaker wire and wire you would buy at the auto parts store in a big spool or household wire if you bought it in bulk? . Is it cheaper? I know it's a little more flexible.
What about oxygen free copper(OFC) wires vs aluminum wires coated with copper(CCA)? I have heard CCA is less efficient in transferring power.
I only build speakers and am an audiophile but i still watch XD LINUS RULES!
Over the decades I`ve always found that basic 240v Mains Cable makes for good all round speaker wire & quiet cheap it is too
you left out one thing they type and mix of the metals in the wire over long runs can effect the sound quality
+Thebad300 I think he did indirectly address it. Most wires are made of copper, with a few made out of silver alloy and gold. The thing is, the conductive differences are really minor. So for all practical purposes, when it comes to audio, just use copper and adjust the width of the cable to reduce the reluctance. To get a bit more technical, the formula is R=rho*L/A. Silver's rho is about 6%lower than Copper, so its about 6% more effective than a copper wire of the same length and cross sectional area. But as you can see, increasing the area, of a copper wire, by 6% will have the same effect. Since copper is a lot cheaper than silver, the second option is a lot more economical.
Hope this helped!
+Thebad300
Not an issue at all as Emile said, as long as you don't pick aluminium or gold cables. Both are bad conductors compared to copper and silver, with silver being just a little bit better (but definitely not worth the money).
yep you two know every thing what do i know about wiring any way you two are so smart
Didn't mean to offend you, bro. Just wanted to answer your question to the best of my knowledge.
how about making a video about cpu display specs and what u can expect the results to be or how it can be affected
Can you guys do a car audio version of this, kind of a basic how-to on the layout? Head unit to amplifier to speakers and why you do it certain ways.
+JesseArt grab a copy of Yamaha's book on sound re-enforcement. More than covered.
+JesseArt Head unit sends a low level signal via RCA cables to the amplifier. The amplifier draws a large current from your battery/alternator at ~14.4 volts, and sends out the amplified signal at a higher voltage, thus making the amperage lower, so speaker wires are less thick than power wires. Don't wire your speakers to an impedance lower than the amplifier is rated for, don't clip your amp, and try to run the RCA and power wires on opposite sides of the vehicle to minimize interference.
So, I'm actually using a repurposed extension cord for my big under-desk speaker. It's fairly thick and I don't hear any problems. Is there a good reason not to use this kind of cable?
My disposable income is very low, so I am trying to work with what I have. I have a stereo with pin connection speakers to the back of the radio. I have a 24" Phillips HDTV with LED LCD (2 HDMI, Dolby Audio, Component L/R Audio, Y/Video, Pb, Pr, Optical Digital Audio Out, & Antenna In). I also have one large 32" Tube TV with few connections (nice for when I want to view on a larger screen, but would sell it in a heartbeat too, if I could), one DVR/DVD player (was amazing pre-digital television stations), and one DVD player. What I would like is to be able to purchase a relatively low cost (less than $75, but no more than $100) receiver/system to get better sound from my Phillips TV, as well as play my stereo when desired. I don't need surround sound, just a basic way to hook everything up so I can use the speakers I already have for more than one device. What can you do/suggest for someone like me?
You would have to spend considerably more on your other audio components in order to hear a perceptible difference with more expensive wires.
Can you talk about plugging 4 conductor wires into a house amp, that only takes red and black?
Doesn't putting too small of a resistance in a circuit (at a constant electrical tension) just cause your power supply to overheat and... self destruct? It's like when you short-circuit a battery. The ohms are fixed (super low, almost zero), the volts are fixed, so it's the amps that try and shoot up to try and match Ohm's law. The battery overheats until's either drained, or is too damaged to supply the volts.
So how come low impedance speakers just "give you bad sound" instead of causing your power supply to melt?
+PTNLemay it's more about the amp not having enough power and clipping. It's also wise to never use lower impedance speakers than what you're amp is rated for.
Possible TQ Topic: USB Powered Monitors. Feasible with USB 2.0? 8K with USB 3.1? What's the best USB Monitor possible with a single connector for power and display?
Saw a recent advertisement of refurb units being sold for US$70. Sweet deal, if you ask me.
I bought a NHT 3 way bookshelf speaker, what wires should I have to properly connect this to a tv or laptop?
Question, I have some surround sound speakers, but they often have static or noise, could upgrading the cables reduce the noise?
Post-amp: copper is copper. won't matter what grade it is. You'll never notice any frequency drop in the highs with longer runs (this is more notable is longer runs of signal cabling: due to capacitance, not impedance) At the power level and distances involved, I don't see almost anybody needing anything bigger than 16ga. for home audio. I do runs of 100ft of 16gauge for my tops with multiple speakon connectors all the time, no issue. (300 watts rms, 100hz and up)
Nothing post amp is shielded (or really needs to be) I suppose he meant better insulation to last a bit longer. The way it's talked about in this implys that lower ohm = better, but that's not really the case.
You should have also talked about Stranded and Solid wires, i almost always try and use solid copper wires just because stranded wire tends to annoy me more.
+DiabeticMadman why solid, they make it with strands for a reason. Cu is still a metal, and bending metals weaken them. the metal is allowed to move individual strands when flexed so the more strands the less likely the Cu will break. solid wire is for permanent non-disturbed installations like building wire.
+Tera Volt solid core = inside walls
Stranded= not inside walls
longer then 50 feet can cause high frequency roll-off? greatly depends on the wire 'type' He is referring to capacitance.
Please discuss major linux versions, and why one should or should not use them.
my HT consists of two overpowered home stereos for front and back and a powered standalone sub, cant find a suitable center yet, funny though I have to tune the bass down quite a bit, essentially all my speakers are bass heavy and the sub just adds even more earthquaking madness to it
pr0xZen positioning makes a world of difference but not on low freq, bass doesnt care about position, Im just trying to remove all low freq from my speakers to leave the sub to it, a low freq cut filter they call it but nothing yet that fits my Frankenstein build
pr0xZen yea I'm looking for a software solution and windows seems to have one, you can set speakers to be "full range" or "not full range" and the latter removes lows, but it removes too much of it, essentially it makes the speaker sound like one of those tiny all-in-one 5.1 setups which is the intended purpose I believe, I need something with more granular control, I guess an individual EQ per channel is too much to ask :(
I don't know what to call it but the 4 speakers have a special kind of not-so-low bass that the sub can't replicate, and that kind of bass is actually affected by direction and positioning of the speakers, essentially you can only hear it from across the room, weird
its called maximum power transfer theorem, you want the impedance of the load equal to the impedance of the source.
How about those 200$ per 1 feet monocrystal wires, I've actually seen one costing 600$ a meter for some reason, do they make any difference and in which case could I hear that difference.
Like someone else mentioned, just by a cheap ass extension cable and use the wire from that.