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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
williewonka
3,075 posts
 
@duffyd - Any change will have an effect on sonic performance. Some might say "give it a whirl" since you already have the wire.-

But you have to consider how to connect the cable to the binding posts
- the KLE Innovations bananas will no accept such a large wire
- a double neutral might be too heavy for the KLE Banana and pull it out of the binding post
- so a replacement connector must be used - which will impact performance

Also, the type of connector used may actually negate any benefit from the dual neutral wire

You could end up with a cable that is not as good sounding as the single 10 gauge.

If you think that you want to try it - take a look at Furez connectors - they offer many different sizes and come in plain copper or silver plated.

Hope that helps - Steve
mawe
34 posts
 
@duffyd,
I’m using the ETI pure copper spades with heavy gauge speaker wires.
This had been a recommendation from Nick at Hificollective.uk for the Duelund wire.
I’m totally happy with these spades, best “sounding” connectors. Better than the hollowed types and better than Furutech spades.
duffyd
5 posts
 

Thanks for the feedback.  I think I will start with a single run, maybe experiment with a double at a later date.

As a side note, I also have recently converted all my interconnects to Helix.

It has taken me a big step forward in getting the sound I am pleased with. A big thank you for all the information in this thread. 


williewonka
3,075 posts
 
A few posts ago I had mentioned I had tried Bare Wire inside a clear PVC tube on my speaker and power cables and the improvements were very positive.

I’ve also been monitoring the bare wire inside the PVC tube for signs of oxidation and as of today things are looking very promising. The bare wire is still very bright and by comparison the piece of bare wire on my audio stand is turning a much darker shade of copper.

I also warned in the post that I thought PVC was not the best tube to use because it gripped the wire when trying to insert it - I thought at that time that Teflon tube would be a better material.

Yesterday I received some Teflon tube I had ordered - approx 1/10" internal diameter.

So today I decided to try Bare Wire in one of my interconnects that used Neotech UP-OCC copper with Teflon insulation.

Removing the insulation was quite easy using a hobby knife and running it down the wire and pealing it back

I used
  • two strands of bare 18 gauge Neotech wire, twisted together
  • 3-4 twists per inch
  • one piece of Teflon tube with Heat Shrink at each end

The improvements were far from subtle and heard immediately...
  • more high end details - vocals now had a definite whispery quality and venue acoustics were better defined
  • mid tones were fuller and more complete
  • bass was deeper with better texture
  • dynamics were noteicebly fast with more slam
  • image was little wider and better focussed
  • the whole presentation was more natural and full bodied
Crap! - now I had to do the IC for the digital side :-)

This time I used
  • 2 strands of 18 gauge VH Audio solid UP-OCC copper wire - not the Neotech wire
  • 3-4 twists per inch
  • and the same Teflon Tube build
Again the improvements were easily discernable and just as good as the Neotech wire.

I could not tell the difference between the Neotech and VH Audio wire - which was not that strange because they are both 18 gauge UP-OCC solid copper.

The twisted wires fit the tube nicely with adequate space such that the impacts of the Teflon tube is negligible - basically this approach has a Dielectric Constant very close to Air, which results in amazingly clear details and better image.

The improvements in dynamics was a surprise, because the conductivity of the copper had not changed - just the insulation

I’m hoping that sealing the ends of the teflon tube with the heat shrink that has the adhesive inside will halt the oxidation process as it appears to have done with the PVC tubing.

Now I am all out of ideas - this was the last change I had considered.

Should you rush out and change your cables?

That depends on your own person level of ANAL :-)

BTW - these cables have just started Burn-in, so I will post and update once they complete burn-in in a couple of weeks.

But right now they sound pretty amazing - on both digital and analogue music

Regards - Steve

grannyring's avatar
grannyring
6,479 posts
 
Hot glue the tube ends? 
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