Do speaker wires have to be the same length for each speaker?

No

They don't have to be the same length but your sound won't be optimal if they are of different length.  It's simple as that.

Seems like the cable haters in this thread are running wild :-)

@peterjc  It will not help, sir.  We have ways of finding you...

No.

p.s. richopp, I moved and changed my address 😀

Right Christian, listen to the music!! Last night Dire Straits & Anita Baker, both sound beautiful enough for me on my little vintage system!

Yes, or YOU WILL BE ARRESTED.

Send me your address IMMEDIATELY so we can measure your wires.  Better get a good lawyer and bail bondsman, pal.

For a given material, resistance and length formula clearly speaks that the resistance is directly proportional to its length.
R∝L
Which implies that-

When the length of the material is increased, its value of resistance also increases.
When the length of the material decreases, its value of resistance will also decrease.

"Relation Between Resistance And Length - At BYJU’S" https://byjus.com/physics/relation-between-resistance-and-length/

It make not make much of a difference at the lengths we are talking about, but different length cables will have different resistance.

As P=I *V (power equals current times voltage) and I  = V/R, P=V^2 / R, the more resistance, the less power. So different lengths will make a difference. It may not be noticeable, but different it is. 

And they sb really expensive.

If, like the OP, your amp is much closer to one speaker, and you elect to have equal length cables, then what is the best way to handle the excess cable going to the speaker nearest the amp?

I have always kept both speaker cables the same length assuming that they had to be for reasons of timing i.e. the time it takes the signal to travel from the amp to the speaker or maybe for other electronic reasons? However some cables are extremely expensive so buying cable that is not needed is costly. So if your amp is not placed in the middle i.e. equidistant from each speaker (mine is next to the right hand speaker) you could get away with having a much shorter cable one side than the other. In my case I could have a 1 metre cable from the amp to the right speaker and a 3.5 metre cable going to the left speaker but I have never tried it. I was considering buying Townshend Fractal 1 cables to replace my Townshend Isolda cables but didn’t get them in the end due to finances but I was assured by the distributors for the cables that there was no problem whatsoever in using cables of unequal length. I am not sure if this is just because of the type of cables these are or if it is true of all speaker cables though. As for the timing issue I thought about well obviously unless there is a massive difference in length (far greater than would be used in a domestic hi-fi setting) you would never hear the difference in the time the signal arrives at each speaker as it is almost instantaneous on both channels irrespective of whether the cable is 1 metre long or 5 metres long so to your ears both speakers produce the sound at exactly the same time. Anyone who believes that their hearing can detect the difference in timing that is measured in a microsecond or two is quite plainly wrong, they cannot.

Is there any scientific reason that different speaker cable lengths will make a detectable difference in sound quality - no.

Will you be able to notice any sound quality difference with different cable lengths - no.

As an audiophile will you always wonder if you are not getting optimum sound quality partially because the speaker cables are not the same length - absolutely.

Therefore get them as short as possible and equal lengths (and like someone else posted - it helps with resale value).

The answer to this question is maybe. You do not want too much impedance mismatch between the left and right cables, because that can cause a difference in the frequency response of each of the speakers.  So if the cables are both relatively short and the distributed impedance is minimal then the lengths can vary significantly without ill effects.

Wow,I will have a lot of extra speaker cable now...lol.

Try…

That's the UFC bout portion of this discussion, @limomangus .

Yes, you can have a pair of speaker cables of different lengths to a stereo set.  Technically, the % difference in electrical parameters of two different lengths of speaker cable is very small.  So there's arguments on both sides on whether it's audible or not.

For me, I wouldn't be able to discern the difference - too busy listening to the music.  However - the difference is still there (audible or not), so why not make them the same length if you easily can?  But also again, for custom installs or other extenuating circumstances which make it hard to keep both lengths the same - cut away!

I thought it always reads cut the speaker cables the same length. So if I have one speaker next the stereo and the other across the room.You can have one 3ft length and the other at the length you need ?

I've got about 200 ft of good 12 AWG cable you can have for the price of shipping. Some is cut in length. I have two systems set up with it. It works very well, I was running it in about 30 foot lengths. Ask and ye shall have. White color.

Some speaker wires are custom cut and terminated/soldered and I guess if it was expensive enough you could save a few bucks with different length cables.

However I have OCD when it comes to my stereo with everything being lined up perfectly, no cables touching each other or the floor, etc., so for me they should be equal because there is some electrically measurable difference with different lengths that is not audible, but still "there". That's enough for me. I am sure we've all bought something that was supposedly better that we paid extra for that is not audible or detectable as an improvement individually.

In the mean time… one highly recommended speaker cable to consider (let’s see if I can get this right); HD12-3? Years ago either Stereophile or the Absolute Sound did a comparison of a number of low to intermediate speaker cables. They threw in a Home Depot extension cord… ends cut off. It actually sounded pretty good… didn’t win against $1K cables but sounded way better than lamp cord and Radio Shack 18” gauge speaker wire”. I loved the article it was great fun and informative. While I use $5K Transparent cables on my main system. I use HD12-3 on my office system… hidden because of the orange and black color behind my desk.

Sounds like you have a mold problem, ghdprentice. Just kidding... but are you serious about using an extension cord? It’s about $80 for 100 feet on Amazon; for about $10 more, you can get nice 10 gauge real live speaker wire.

Hey Christian:  Hi they are not the same length because one speaker is +/- 10 further from the equip. The stereo is in the corner of the room due to fireplace location, sliding doors, etc... Also the wire to that far speaker goes under the house so that adds a few feet as well.

Ah - so custom install, not quite full in-wall, but close.  Yes, no issues with differing lengths.  I've said before I have a tough time discerning differences between cables, but if say you have your audio rack on the outside edge of once of the speakers (which I thought was the case), why not buy an identical set, and just coil/drape/suspend/whatever the cables over to the speakers.  If anything, as said before - it would help with resale, but I figure you won't be reselling the underfloor wire anytime soon.  Sounds like you've got a fun project ahead! 😃

Funny thing I've done a lot of auto/equipment installs for stereo gear. I use to cut and trim all the extra wire. Nothing was the same length.. Butt connectors everywhere then shrink and zip tie everything.

Same here - I started doing my own car audio custom installs in college (were those the days!) - underseat/trunk/dash mounted amps, and wires of way too varying lengths going all over the place.  It's probably the OCD in many of us when I got into the home stereo listening craze (er- wife calls it a disease): a pair a speakers, audio rack in the middle, and EQUAL length cables. 😋

Again, not sure if I could tell the difference if one side was longer than the other, but it wouldn't "sit" right with me if they were differing lengths. 

And, Mitsy can hear up to 45Khz. 

Mitsy says: "Are you kidding? Of course not!":

 

No, it's a non-issue.  I defy anyone to hear a difference with the lengths used in the average domestic room. There are more phase issues and time smear from a speaker crossover and even more if the speaker is ported. As far as unbalancing the image, room acoustics will make a farce of that.

If the longer cable is a gauge heavier then even the amp's damping factor is maintained.  Keep the cable to the nearest speaker short. Consider the alternative. If there is, say, 8ft extra, what will you do? Coiling it up is worse than having different lengths. Think inductor tucked away amongst all the other mess of wires.

Rather pay attention to your room' acoustics which will do more, much more, than fussing over equal lengths.

Almost all speaker cables manufacturers sell them in equal lengths. Now if you are a diy hobbyists it doesn't natter.

For people working towards or that have an audiophile system they must be concerned with all aspects of a system that may have an impact. In the end every minute detail matters. But, as the OP pointed out this is not a highly resolving system. If you start working towards one, then, one of the steps will be to buy high end speaker cables… at that point they should be of the same length.

In the mean time… one highly recommended speaker cable to consider (let’s see if I can get this right); HD12-3? Years ago either Stereophile or the Absolute Sound did a comparison of a number of low to intermediate speaker cables. They threw in a Home Depot extension cord… ends cut off. It actually sounded pretty good… didn’t win against $1K cables but sounded way better than lamp cord and Radio Shack 18” gauge speaker wire”. I loved the article it was great fun and informative. While I use $5K Transparent cables on my main system. I use HD12-3 on my office system… hidden because of the orange and black color behind my desk.

Hey Christian:  Hi they are not the same length because one speaker is +/- 10 further from the equip. The stereo is in the corner of the room due to fireplace location, sliding doors, etc... Also the wire to that far speaker goes under the house so that adds a few feet as well. 

As an exercise for the perennially geeked, calculating the differences in capacitance, inductance should give a few seconds of mathematical bliss - at least.

intuitively, one would want as small a difference as possible (obviously),  but a few CM aren’t going to change anything appreciably to anything but an oscilloscope. We’re not quite approaching Planck constants for time or length, but what human auditory perception and spatial orientation will define.

this does seem to be a hobby for Asperger’s syndromish fussbudgets, so, you do you, enjoy. Keep us posted on your results.

Yes! And coiling the extra cable is NOT audible, don't care what anyone says. In fact, instead of coiling , you can fold it over onto itself and use ty wraps. If using a different length for each channel,  the resistance, inductance, and capacitance will differ for each channel. Why not eliminate that by using same length?

How can They know that I’m a robot?

Hello,

If you don’t have a high resolving system I doubt anyone would notice a difference. If you do splice the wires together look up how to do it correctly. Lastly if you want to get into some better quality cables especially if the lengths don’t matter keep your eyes open for singles. They are typically sold for a high end home theater center channel speaker. The discounts are insane on the used market and if you stick to popular companies you can find two different people selling the same cable model and brand. Also, look at discontinued models from these manufacturers. They really lose value fast. I hope this helps. This store in the Chicagoland area is holding an Ayre Acoustics, Nordost, and Kef event today Thursday, Dec 2nd from 11:00am-9:00pm.
www.holmaudio.com

Probably not as good as Chuxpona, but I am pretty far from Seattle  maybe someday.

I heard they are giving special discounts for the show. Plus, since Axpona was canceled it’s cool to see some of the cool new stuff. I’m excited about that and the new Acoustic Signature Turntable. A friend said it sound incredible!

Ignore the obfuscation and amplification.  Answer is a simple "no".

Ohm's Law is a handy tool. Learn a little about basic electricity. People who would pay over $50 for 20' of speaker wire are buying a fashon designers idea or a name that says I'm buying the best because it has "your name here" on it. My system sounds real good. Blows out candels and will flap pant legs and I could have spent a lot more money if I wouldn't have gone to school to learn about electronics. When it comes to high end audio, most of the time I think you can buy better but you can't pay more...

OK....I’m guilty, all my 2 channel stereo life I’ve thought/believed and been told speaker cables "should be" the same length, I stand corrected, thank you Folks!

The person who asked if he could splice 12 to 14 ga. wire.; - - -  well to that I'd say "with the equipment "laundry list" you stated, the last thing I'd be worrying about is wiring." Coat hangers might even be O.K. This person must really be on a tight budget. I don't think "HIGH END AUDIO" is the hobby for you.

Sorry for the sarcasm !

I'm gonna have to go with the OCD thing too, in the house. Funny thing I've done a lot of auto/equipment installs for stereo gear. I use to cut and trim all the extra wire. Nothing was the same length.. Butt connectors everywhere then shrink and zip tie everything.

5,000 watts in an excavator cab.. Like the guy gave a crap. Using a 10,000 pound breaker, breaking concrete with the volume at 10. Have to have ballistic glass just to keep from blowing it out..

I'm not a robot

if the right/left length differential is greater than 5% it will ruin the stereo imaging

if greater than 15% it will void the warranty on your speakers

if greater than 25% it will be may cause a short circuit in your power amp

if greater than 40% it will be a fire risk and you should only listen to music with nomex suit on and fire extinguisher in hand

😂

Having one shorter than the other would be better than splicing to make them the same length.

This is almost as entertaining as a closely matched UFC bout.

I prefer same length, but I need to ask the OP: "Why NOT the same length?"

If you're running in-wall, got it.  But if not in-wall, you've got plenty of space in your listening room if you have to drape/coil/hang/etc. (there goes another discussion...) the excess on the longer side.

Not unless your ears can detect a phase difference of about 3 nanoseconds per meter difference. 

Same length speaker cable 

not necessary!

good cable go to” Blue Jeans Cable Co”

great sounding 

 custom at a v low cost 

It won't make a difference in any normal setup. But my OCD could never handle the asymmetry... 

Maybe it makes a difference if one line is 250' and the other is 4'. I like to have them at the same length for the superficial symmetry thing.

ok another question, can I splice 12 ga. to say 14 ga. wire? I don't have a high end system, just don't want to spend $$ on a roll of wire if I can avoid it. Old Pioneer sx980 w/ klipsh forte ii, standard A/T turntable + cambridge CD player.

Yes, you can do it. Won't hurt a thing. Will save you some money. Then maybe some day later on down the road you get something better. Until then, relax and enjoy.

Nice if viable but not always possible.

Have different length cables and there’s no echo or any other issues

They must be the same length, or you will hear an echo.

The universe is at rest when they are but no.  

Sure..., and all of the wires inside of every piece of equipment must be the same length for both channels.

And, all "mirror image" parts in both channels must sit equidistant from the power supply.

ok another question, can I splice 12 ga. to say 14 ga. wire? I don't have a high end system, just don't want to spend $$ on a roll of wire if I can avoid it. Old Pioneer sx980 w/ klipsh forte ii, standard A/T turntable + cambridge CD player.