Duelund conversion to DIY Helix Geometry Cabling


I have been an avid user of the Duelund cabling for over two years now and have used them exclusively in my system with great results. I have built many for friends and have used a full loom of interconnects, speaker cables, power cords and an extensive wiring modification for a previously owned balanced power conditioner utilizing Duelund 600V PolyCast wiring which was transformative. My cabling desires can be a little addictive as I have owned and evaluated 40+ brands of cabling costing more than an entire stereo system!

Over the past six months I stumbled upon a thread here on Audiogon in regards to a Helix designed cabling and as you probably already know, I just had to look a little deeper into this cable design…After a month of studying and sourcing parts, I decided to reach out to the designer/architect, Williewonka who gave more insights and philosophy on how the cable came into existence.

That conversation got the ball rolling in converting one of my KLE Duelund interconnects to Steve’s Helix designed which only entailed replacing the neutral with a Mil-Spec 16 AWG silver-plated copper wire with the neural wire being 3 times longer than the signal wire and of course the “Coiling” of the neutral wire : )

After the modification was complete, I was not sure what to expect from the Helix cabling but I was quite shocked with the results with “ZERO” burn-in time…The sound stage became much wider/deeper with a much tighter/focused image and clarity/transparency is like nothing I have ever heard in any cabling regardless of cost. In fact, I just sold a full loom of a commercially designed Helix Cable that’s renowned around the world and has more direct sale than any cable manufacturer; these $200 DIY Helix Cables walked all over them…

I believe you will hear the same results as I have and have heard back from friends who have already modified their Duelunds with the same results; WOW! Remember the cables will need 200+ hours to burn-in and settle into your system. My system is now 90% DIY Helix to include IC, SC, PC and Coax with each cabling adding its beauty of an organic and natural presentation that draws you into the fabric of the music.

You can tailor the sound of your cables using Duelund, Mundorf silver/1% gold, the outstanding Vh Audio OCC Solid Copper or Silver with Airlok Insulation or your favorite wiring and you can change it at any time…

 

http://www.image99.net/blog/files/category-diy-cables.html

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/difference-in-sound-between-copper-and-silver-digital-cables

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/adding-shielding-to-existing-cables

 

Enjoy,

Wig


128x128wig
I really like the Helix IC cables and the author is a great guy. His site is very well done also. I slightly prefer the Duelund 16ga built into a double IC in one. Two 16ga +/- runs in a special geometry. I found it more to my personal liking in terms of body, midrange presence, ease and musicality. Just my subjective preference and others may like the Helix recipe with conductors of their choice

Bottom line is a somewhat skilled DIYer can make cables as good or better than those selling for up to many thousands with some of these proven builds.

I need to try the Helix on a power cord as I have yet to do that.
Everyone - many thanks for your support. Glad to hear you are enjoying the benefits of the Helix Geometry cables.

Nice to hear people are trying their own variants on the basic Helix geometry as posted on the web site, because there are simply far too many permutations for this guy to try.

The parts and wires listed on the site are my own preferences based on performance, cost, and availability. As such they may not be the absolute best products available, but they do perform to a very high level for what I consider to be a "reasonable cost". But I do leave it up to the individual to take the Helix design to their "comfort level" - and feedback is always very much appreciated.

As I find out about other products from other DIYer’s, I update the site accordingly.

Over the past year there has been a couple of revisions to the entire lineup. So visiting the site a couple of times a year for any developments may be beneficial.

There will be an upcoming revision posted on the site in about 3-4 weeks detailing changes to the signal wire on the Speaker Cables thanks to Wig.

@wig has tried the 18 gauge solid copper wire from VH Audio for the signal wires on his speaker cables and reported very audible improvements over the Duelund Cotton/Oil wire, so I am just waiting on the postal service to deliver my order of the wire before I try it out for myself. but Wig’s comments sound very positive and from what I have observed of this wire in the power cables, it should be a winner!

FYI: The Helix design (as posted on the web site), is used by DIYers from around the world and so far I have seen postings from around the world including China, Chile, Hong Kong, Russia, Australia, Canada, USA, Bulgaria, Austria and the list goes on.

And a few DIYers have made significant contributions to the site with their own extensions to the Helix Geometry e.g. "The Bad Ass Helix Bi-wire" speaker cable and the XLR Helix Image interconnect.

@grannyring - FYI - the parts/materials listed for the power cables on the web site are the best I have tried to date. The Source Component cable is exceptional, but for amps, using 4 strands of the silver wire would start getting a little expensive, which is why I used copper, but the choice is yours.

For those of you that may be sitting on the fence, or for those of you that believe my reasonings as to why the Helix geometry provides such great performance is just "nonsense" - I would just say - try them :-)

- You do not have to use the wires and connectors shown on my web site.
- I started a lot of this development using CAT6 for interconnects
- and Romex for power cables.

Anyhow - enough from me - thanks to everyone that has jumped on the Helix train. It will stop at any station so you can get onboard anytime

Any questions - just ask :-)

Grannyring,

You mentioned you have a website.  I tried googleing Acoustic BBQ to find it and did not find it.  Please post your website. I'm interested in PC's Interconnects and Speaker wires.  Thanks.
Thank you.  I see in the previous post you mentioned using an 18awg solid wire for a signal wire for a speaker cable.  Isn't that too small for a speaker conductor?  Do you triple up on that run so the proper current is delivered to the speaker?  I'm confused.
@kurt12k

The required gauge is determined by your Amp power rating and impedance of your speakers; my current system is a 4.5 Watts 2A3 SET DHT and 15" Full Range drivers.

I’m running 2 single runs of Vh 18 Ga OCC solid copper with Airlok which has a combine aggregate of 16 AWG which is quite efficient for my setup and one could double that for an aggregate of 12 AWG, which would suit most amplifiers.

Even with 4 runs of 18 Ga OCC and factoring in price performance ratios, you would have to spend over $1.8K and still not beat this DIY Helix Cable.

Wig
@kurt12k - history has us believing that for speaker cables, generally a thicker gauge provides better performance. Numerous cases of using a thicker gauge wire have proven to be beneficial, primarily because a thicker cable reduces the overall resistance.

Fast forward to this point in time and we now know much more...
- solid strands of wire is able to carry more current than stranded wire
- insulation (i.e. the dielectric constant) is responsible for a lot more distortions within the wire itself than previously thought - the lower the D.C. the better
- higher quality copper (or silver) in wire provides better conduction of the signal, both in dynamics and clarity

So if you look at the current carrying ability of a generic 18 gauge solid strand copper wire you will see it can carry far more current than the same gauge of stranded wire - see this link...
https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/wire-gauges-d_419.html

READERS PLEASE NOTE: The values cited in the table and the example below, should only be used as an "approximation", because there are many other factors to consider with AC signals of varying frequencies.

But for the sake of simplicity - to get a "rough approximation" of the power handling capabilities of an 18 gauge solid core wire - the chart shows it can "handle" 9.5 amps

so if we were to use this 18 gauge wire for mains purposes i.e. in a 120 v circuit
- we know that V x A = (Watts),
- so 120 x 9.5 = 1,140 (Watts)

So it looks like 18 gauge would handle significantly higher capacities than a large percentage of amps on the market would require?
- However, with an audio signal there are very large dynamic transient peaks that have to be considered AND also varying frequencies - which complicates matters

So for most speaker cable applications I recommend using at least two strands of the 18 gauge solid copper wire from VH Audio, gently twisted together - effectively, 15 gauge..

NOTE: If you are using an amp > 600 watts output, with a 4 ohm (or lower) speaker load, I would recommend 3 strands. Otherwise, using more strands will probably not achieve much in the way of noticeable improvements when used in the cables that use the Helix geometry..

You could use strands of 18 gauge Solid Silver, for ultimate performance, but I think you will be entering the world of "diminishing returns".

My focus is on "Bang for the Buck", so I tend to select wire combinations that perform very well, but keep the cables on the "more affordable" side of crazy..

I have conducted tests comparing an identical 16 gauge stranded signal wire to a 12 gauge stranded signal wire and there were no perceivable improvements observed in my system using the thicker gauge wire.

Also - For many years I used a high quality 10 gauge speaker cable, until I auditioned a 16 gauge speaker cable with a larger gauge neutral.
- The 16 gauge outperformed the 10 gauge in every aspect we tend to use to evaluate sound quality, including bass fullness, bass depth and bass speed - i.e. the metrics often cited as being noticeably improved when using a larger gauge cable.

FYI: My amp is a 135 watt per channel high current design and my speakers are full range 6 ohm towers.

Ultimately, the choice is yours - and whatever your budget will allow :-)

Hope that helps - regards - Steve


Speaker Cable Update!

I received the 18 gauge solid copper with AirLok insulation from VH Audio yesterday. It took almost 4 weeks to arrive at my house in Canada - via USPS/Canada post. This is the longest any product purchased from VH Audio (normally only takes a couple of weeks), so I guess Covid 19 slowed things down a little.

The upgrade was simple - replace the existing 16 gauge Duelund signal conductor, with two strands of the 18 gauge wire.

- I twisted the two strands together for their entire length with a "gentle twist" i.e. one complete twist every 4-5 inches
- I spaced wood beads about every 1.25" and secured them in place with a very small dab of Hot Glue
- Threaded the wire/bead assembly through the center of the Helix Coil and attached the Banana plugs.

Complete instructions can be viewed on the web site
in a couple of days...

http://www.image99.net/blog/files/category-002ahelix-image-speaker-cable.html

The results were very noticeable as soon as I installed them...
- the image expanded a lot and the precision placement of instruments and artists had more precision, It is now very wide with lots of instruments and artists much wider than the speaker locations
- details were noticeably improved, with more noticeable background vocals and instruments
- clarity had improved, possibly due to the improved imaging.
- Dynamics were even more punchy than before

I thought the previous version that used the 16 Gauge Duelund wire with Cotton/oil insulation was probably as good as it was going to get. But based on feedback from @wig, who had tried it, I thought I should also take the plunge 

I am so glad I did !

Unfortunately, my budget will not stretch to try the 18 gauge Solid Silver with AirLok insulation from VH Audio. At almost $900 just for the wire, it’s a little out of my snack bracket :-).

But the Solid copper wire has exceeded my expectations, So it is well worth upgrading. i.e. if you are using one of the other wire options listed on the web site.

Regards - Steve


@ williewonka

Your Helix design and VH Audio OCC Airlok Cabling is a splendid combination!!

Wig 🙂
UPDATE -  I now have 3 days continuous burn in on the speaker cables and I am finding them to be improving almost daily.

I like the refined fine details and dynamics the Solid OCC Copper with AirLok bring to the sound over the Duelund wire previously used 

Even Internet Radio is starting to sound very good :-)

One thing I have noticed recently is the price of the 10 gauge from Take Five Audio - they had to find a new supplier a few weeks back and the price has since more than doubled. It originally cost less than the 12 gauge.

Whilst I like the robustness of the 10 gauge wire for maintaining the coil shape, I'm thinking the 12 gauge should perform just as well when using the 2 x 18 gauge (effectively 15 gauge) because it maintain a 3 gauge difference between the signal and the neutral and it is pretty robust in maintaining the coil shape also.

A fellow DIYer is trying 12 gauge - I will keep you all updated.

Regards - Steve
I recently installed a 8 ft set of the VH Solid Core Copper Helix Speaker Cables and I am very happy with what I am hearing from my system . The first thing I noticed was how open sounding my system has gotten. Vocals have this quality that sounds so lifelike. The decrease in noise and distortion has made low level listening even more enjoyable. Extension from top to bottom has increased without adding any sizzle or boom. Very smooth and natural sounding. I would say that average recordings now sound excellent, this is for sure a cable that allows your system to sound more cable-less. I believe this is a DIY recipe that will compare to much costlier cables over $2000. While I do not have the experience of listening hundreds of cable designs from big manufacturers, this is the best I have heard and would never go back to overpaying for cables again. I have used cables from Audience, Wireworld, Cerious Tech and Acoustic Zen. This DIY Helix design blows them all away. Very impressed!
@ aniwolfe

That's awesome! It gets even better with additional Helix Cables...

Wig👍
Everyone - many thanks for your very positive feedback - I’m so glad you are all finding the Helix cables are working out on your various systems.

My own speaker cables (recently updated with the VH Audio solid copper wire) have completed day 8 of their continous burn in period i.e. 192 hours, so I have finally given the amp a rest and turned it off. There maybe smaller improvements to be heard, but since the neutral and banana plugs were already burned in I think any additional improvement will be minimal.

The Solid copper from VH Audio is by far the best I have tried to date for the signal wire in speaker cables.

I can confirm @wig ’s findings, in that, as you convert more of your cables to the Helix geometry, the better your entre system will sound.

If anyone has questions - just ask - I’m happy to answer them if I can

Regards - WW

Helix Power Cords Update!

Got all of my Helix PC built, burned in and have been settling in my system for over 10 days and they are sounding phenomenal! My commercially bought Helix PC was my standard as they beat everything and like my previous experiences with Helix interconnects, the Helix PC exercises the same attributes…

The first thing you will notice is how focused they are with razor sharp and locked in images within the soundstage and of course the clarity, transparency, width/depth/height and a realness that’s quite astonishing. Music and detail are not pushed out at you in a forward way but behind the speakers in a palpable and very organic way and it is almost like your amp signal-to-noise ratio has increased 20 db.

If you do not have a cable cooker, I recommend you place these on a component that you can run 24 hours a day for 7-10 days as I cooked mines for 4 days and it took another 6-7 days of settling before they reached their sweet-spot. You will hear their sonic signature immediately but depth and low-level detail will become more apparent and effortless after burn-in.

The reason I mentioned focus is that when I compare this DIY Helix PC to my commercially bought Helix PC and as good as the commercially available product is, glare is a standout feature in relation to the DIY Helix.

I intentionally added one PC at a time to discern any notable improvements and can tell you that each one made a noticeable difference but the PC on my 2A3 DHT Pre was Dramatic as if my Class A Amp doubled its 18 Watts rating!

The choice of connectors is a personal decision but I compared Parts Connexion CF Rhodium Plugs to Furutech FI-11 and 28 and couldn’t discern any sonic benefits to spend over their $49 asking price for a set! I used VH Audio 18 Ga Solid OCC Copper with Airlok as my live conductors and the number of strands was determined by the component.

It's hard to describe the differences but those familiar with analog will get this; DIY Helix sounds very natural or real verses sounding digital... 

Build one low wattage Helix PC and move amongst your source components to hear for yourself the beauty this cord can make in your system.

Wig


https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/2061#&gid=1&pid=14


HELIX PC Update...

I was recently asked what differences could be heard using the Solid Silver VS. the Solid Copper from VH Audio for the LIVE conductor in my PC’s

Since I had just made a 5ft cable using two strands of Solid Copper for the live conductor, I compared it to the PC on my streamer that uses a single strand of Solid Silver from VH Audio for the live conductor. All other wires were 14 gauge Silver plated Mil-Spec. 

To my complete surprise I could not tell any difference between the two wire types.

Perhaps there could be a minor improvement to be had using the Solid Silver wire on components of a higher resolution capability?
- But on the Bluesound Node 2i that I tested the cables with there was no discernable difference.

This Solid Copper wire from VH Audio appears to be exceptional - perhaps I’ll try it on the IC’s :-)

@wig - So glad to hear the Helix DIY’s are working out

I now use Helix PC’s on my guitar amps and they work wonders there also

Have you thought about trying them on a TV?
- they do amazing things for colour and blackness and adds more definition to deep shadow areas of the picture.
- I also had to turn the brightness down on my Samsung 4K.

Regards - Steve
@ williewonka

Thanks for the update and may have to do a shoot out between my single silver PC and one of my copper PC to see if I can discern any differences.

My silver PC is on my tube DAC.

Wig



@wig - that would be great - I think your DAC would be a better component to test these PC's with for sure.

Just from a conductivity perspective the silver should be a little more dynamic and perhaps a little "crisper" - everything else should be the same given the only difference is the actual metal

Looking forward to your observations :-)

Cheers
@wig - I just looked at the photo's on your system page and saw your PC.

I thought my Red/Green PC's looked cool, but your Black and White version looks way more professional, especially with the Carbon style plugs.

Who knew, you can have PERFORMANCE and GOOD LOOKS !

Helix DIYer's are coming up with some cracking "style" choices 
- One guy built the Speaker Cables using the Black Neutral (Helix) with the Solid Copper with Red Insulation for the Live conductor
-  but he stained each bead BLACK 
- they too look very stylish

Thanks to all who have embraced the Helix Design - it keeps me going :-)

Regards - Steve


@ williewonka 

Thanks and it has been a very satisfying project! 👍

I also built my SC with a black neutral and red live. 😁

Wig
@williewonka I would love it if you tried the VHAudio copper in your ICs and reported back - but I have already ordered the Mundorf wire so that is what I will be assembling next week when it arrives.

@wig What type of cable cooking do you do for your ICs, SCs and PCs?  I have a Frybaby that can do voltage and current conditioning on ICs and SCs and would love to learn from your experiences and usage.

Thanks
Talking a Step Back:
I mentioned in a previous post about making Helix PC’s for my Guitar Amps - for these cables I took a step back in their construction techniques in order to provide a more durable cable
1. I use a 12 gauge Duelund stranded wire with the polymer insulation for flexibility
2. I added a cotton expandable sleeve over the live wire for internal abrasion resistance
3. I use a nylon outer expandable sleeve for external abrasion resistance 

Unlike Audio cables, which tend to sit motionless at the back of a system, guitar amp cables have a more dynamic lifespan and must be able to take more of a beating...
- they are connected/disconnected and flexed repeatedly
- they may get trodden on of lay on rough surfaces

Even with these precautions, from a wear perspective, Helix PC’s ARE NOT as durable as a piece of Furutech cable.

PERFORMANCE: - Due to the more dynamic nature of guitar amps, I really could not tell the difference between the "Audio" and the "Live Music" versions when used on my guitar amp..

I will be posting an update to the web site on this I a couple of days

@dbass - they are coming soon

Regards - Steve





Awesome if you think they are better I will have to build another set of RCAs using the VH Audio Copper.

@dbass - I do not believe they will be better than the Mundorf because silver is a better conductor, but they should offer a similar level of performance for "most metrics", just not quite as dynamic and perhaps not quite as  good at imaging.

I could be wrong - But I've come to realize there are so many variables that sometimes you just have to try stuff to evaluate "a hunch" 

Regards - Steve
Post removed 
@williewonka Any updates on using the VH Audio copper cables in your interconnects?

Does anyone use Duelund dca12 600v wire as neutral conductor? I Wonder if it will keep the desired shape, because it seems quite elastic to me.
@dbass - Got sidetracked by wonderful weather :-)

No update as of today, but I will try it in the next couple of weeks

Regards - Steve
@hnnaum - that wire will NOT hold the coil shape.

My self and others have tried different wires for the neutral and all have found that the silver plated Mil-Spec wire provides the best performance from a sound quality perspective, but also holds the coil shape extremely well while remaining very flexible.  

A single solid copper wire will also work, but it is not as good from a sound quality perspective

Hope that helps - Steve

DIY Helix Shoot-Out/OCC Silver Vs OCC Copper Power Cord

Finally had the opportunity to conduct side-by-side evaluation on two power cords that has added immensely to my listening sessions. Both cables are stellar in their performance and I thought there would be razor thin differences but boy was I wrong, the OCC Solid Silver carves out the soundscape with precision, allowing the listener to effortlessly follow the musicians that are developing within and beyond the boundaries of your Loudspeakers. The OCC Silver just excels in ambient retrieval, subtle nuances, decay, air… The OCC Solid Copper is still spectacular and has the same attributes but lacks the overall resolution of the Silver.

DIY Helix Shoot-Out/Mundorf Silver/Gold Vs 2X OCC Copper Interconnect


I thought the differences between these two conductors would be day and night and was quite surprised on what I heard. I will say that the Mundorf/Gold combination is more resolving and if your components are not up to the task, you may not even hear the differences… The Mundorf was again slightly more transparent with more bite and the sound stage had more depth. It will really come down to personal preferences based upon the equipment’s ability to extract the very best out of these cables. Two OCC Solid Copper runs on the signal conductor is no slouch and does everything the Mundorf does with just a tad less resolution.


I could definitely live with 2 runs of OCC Solid Copper on the signal conductor of my interconnects but if your source components are in the low wattage range, I would highly recommend going with the OCC Solid Silver conductor/s on your power cords; it’s just marvelous and easily discernable…


Wig


Great feedback Wig. I will be trying running a second 16 gauge Helix negative wire along with the 2 VH Audio solid core copper conductors on positive. So two positive and negative conductors for a double IC. My plan is to try and coil both 16 gauge Helix conductors simultaneously with the rod and drill method.
@ grannyring
Thanks and looking forward to your observations with the Schroeder Method.

I’m also going to add another silver conductor to one of my IC to determine if the additional conductor is discernable and from my previous SM cables, the differences can be dramatic...

Wig 👍
@wig , @grannyring  @dbass - I've just been listening to a pair of 1 meter IC's that now has a single strand of 18 gauge VH Audio Solid Copper, in place of the single strand of 1mm dia (17-18 gauge) Mundorf Solid Silver/gold wire. FYI:  I did not use the cotton sleeve as with the Mundorf wire, mainly because the VH audio wire has insulation.

RE: IC's, I can confirm Wig's findings almost to the letter, the only difference being, I found the Mundorf wire to be a smidgeon fuller sounding and a tad warmer, but we are talking about a difference so small the I had to listen intently on my system at least, but again, there may be more of a difference on higher resolving systems. Every other metric we tend to use to assess sonic performance was identical to my ears at least.

RE: Power cables: - I have also now compared power cables and although I did not hear as much of a difference between the VH Audio Silver vs. VH Audio copper as Wig observed, I did believe that there would be a more discernible improvement when used on components capable of higher resolution.

RE: Schroeder method.  - I'll also wait for @grannyring 's observations. - It's an approach that does seem to provide improvements using conventional cable geometry.

To all - Your modifications and observations posted above are invaluable  in shaping the future versions of the Helix cables, since I am but one guy with one modest system, so when others are willing to try other wires and approaches on an array of systems/components I really do appreciate the time/effort/costs involved. 

MANY THANKS - Steve




@wig Thx! for your comparisons
@williewonka Again Thx! for your feedback on these options.

I built the Helix Interconnects with the Mundorf 1mm Silver Gold wire.  I deviated in 1 way from the recipe and used Cardas 1/4 Lb. Ultra pure tin/lead/Silver/copper Quad Eutectic instead of the WBT 4% silver solder.  Am I losing sonics by not using the WBT solder?
@dbass - the solder you have chosen is very good, so it will provide great performance sonically.

The main reason I specified WBT 4% silver on my web site was to get the point across that a "quality solder" should be used..

When I first started using the KLE Innovations RCA plugs I did notice a sonic improvement when I switched from the solder I purchased from the local hardware store, to the WBT.

I now use a  Eutectic solder instead of WBT and have not noticed any degradation in sound quality and the joints are very reliable

Because of the rapid state change from liquid to solid, the  Eutectic solders make a better joint both electrically and mechanically
- By comparison, the WBT solder does not transform as quickly and can result in a poor joint if your hand is a little shaky, like mine

Regards - Steve
@williewonka thank you for sharing your experiments and @wig as well for your findings.
I am ready to build a 1.3m long Helix interconnect and think I'll go for the Mundorf variation.
A quick question:
-- the signal wire is 1mm (18g) silver;
-> what do you recommend for the neutral / return wire?
Regards


Would it be wrong to point out that you have pretty much built an inductor?  This geometry will not reduce magnetic interference by the way, it would probably make it worse. This is how spark plug wires are wound in order to create high inductance in order to reduce transmission of high frequencies in the wire itself.


If this provides you more listening enjoyment, then absolutely you should do it, but you should also be cognizant of what you are creating.


w.r.t. a power cord, contrary to what many believe, inductance in a power cord is probably better in many cases. Those high "peaks" they carry high frequencies that the power supply is not great at filtering. Amplifiers usually have inductive filters on the AC to soften those peaks.
@gregm - I use the 16 gauge Mil-spec as listed on my web site with the Mundorf wire and it works extremely well.

If oyu use any thicker gauge then it would be difficult to attach the RCA housing because the finished cable is too thick.

Regards - Steve
@roberttdid - I have been advised by many in the past of the points you have posted above (and more) and have been "ridiculed" in my approach and design.

Many people on the various forums where the helix design have been discussed would "appear" to have significantly more electrical knowledge than myself, but their comments are purely conjecture, since none of them have actually tried the cables for themselves at the time they made the comments

Most high end commercial products are designed by people with far more knowledge/experience about cable design than myself, in labs with huge amounts of resources.

And yet, my cables continue to outperform many of the high end commercial products available.

WRT Your comment about the coil not reducing magnetic interference - I tried a simple test back in time, to verify the effectiveness of the Helix coil for this purpose...
- I selected my phono stage on my amp
- I turned the volume to full
- I held in my clenched fist a standard power cable and a Helix IC connecting the TT to the phono stage
- I observed hum
- I repeated the same process but using the helix power cable and the same Helix IC
- the hum was reduced significantly to almost zero

So, I concluded (rightly or wrongly) that the helix coil was having the same effect as a faraday cage in reducing EMI/RFI - perhaps I am wrong, but my ears told me otherwise.

I would love to partner up with someone that has the , knowledge experience and equipment to be able to measure the effectiveness of these cables, so I could explain WHY these cables work so well, but until then I will continue to trust my ears.

One of the "side effects" of implementing the Helix cables across an entire system that I have observed...
- the solid state components tend to run noticeably cooler.
- I actually measure the reduced heat output and for source components they can run 3-4 Celsius cooler
- and my amp runs 5-6 degrees Celsius cooler.

Why? - I do not know, but I see reduced heat as a good side effect

If you can shed any "light" as to why the cables work so well I would be more than willing to listen, since my reasoning’s are not verified by actual measurement, or as some like to point out - a lack of sound electrical knowledge

BTW - I have posted capacitance and inductance values for the various cables on my web site
http://image99.net/blog/files/0e1ba96cb878bd4ad7c14097b25d258a-82.html

Also, many thanks for your very civil post (honestly) - most people that "disagree" with the Helix design just say I am posting nonsense and should not be believed. (or words to that effect).


Regards - Steve












I was careful in my wording about magnetic interference. Grabbing a cable with your hand is electrostatic interference predominantly and the helix winding will help just like a coax cable will help.  Where it won't is say near a transformer in an aluminum case, or other incidences of magnetic coupling.


WRT Your comment about the coil not reducing magnetic interference - I tried a simple test back in time, to verify the effectiveness of the Helix coil for this purpose...
- I selected my phono stage on my amp
- I turned the volume to full
- I held in my clenched fist a standard power cable and a Helix IC connecting the TT to the phono stage
- I observed hum
- I repeated the same process but using the helix power cable and the same Helix IC
- the hum was reduced significantly to almost zero


Keep in mind, I am not knocking the sonic outcome, I am just describing what is happening.

w.r.t. your equipment running "cooler", I am skeptical, but may I ask, is you amplifier Class-A?  How did you measure the temperature?  If it was with one of those IR ones, they can vary a lot if not used properly.

One interesting thing with adding a large inductor in series with a linear power supply is that the output voltage of the linear power supply will drop. Lower output voltage = lower heat.  I doubt you are adding enough inductance to achieve this though.  You are also adding resistance with the longer wire which also will lower the voltage.  Then again, the AC may have been 115 one day, and 125 the other day when you measured the temps.