Long Run of Speaker Cabling

Are you looking for what wire gauge to use or specific models?  Do you have a budget?

What are you using now, what improvements are you looking for and/or what sound characteristics are most important to you, and what’s your budget?

Since you have CJ gear and therefore probably do not want to tip the tonal balance or make any change to the sound, I recommend Transparent. The highest tier you can afford. 

I have all Audio Research gear and use Transparent for all cables except for my amp power cord. Highly recommended. 

Before spending the large amount it will take to acquire a more "premium" cable you might consider spending about $180 total to purchase two 18' runs of Canare 4s11 "Star Quad" speaker cable from Blue Jeans Cable.  It ends up being 11 gauge as I remember.  It has four individual 14 gauge conductors withing each jacket and two are combined within each spade or banana to result in 11 gauge per side.

If you end up not liking the cable you are only out a modest $ amount.  You will find a good number of accolades and users here for the cable.

I make my own using Belden 5T00UP 10 AWG cleaned up with Techflex and shrink wrap along with connectors of choice. I had a lot of long runs throughout that house and purchased in bulk. Purchased by the foot it is $1.89 at Parts Express or buy it a desired length and terminated from Blue Jeans Cable. You can spend more and I would if I thought there was a chance other options would perform better.

Thanks for the responses. I currently use Van Den Hul Teatrack Biwire Speaker Cable. Can't say there's a specific improvement I'm looking for but rather am looking for an "overall" improvement. Some opinions I have gotten in the past are that Van Den Hul Teatrack is not that great. I'm sure there are better options out there, I just don't know what they are.

Budget for the pair is $3,000.

Thank you!

ghdprentice -

I just looked up the Transparent cables you suggested. Very good-looking cable and 20' Bi-wire options within my $3k budget. Care to share which one you're using?

Thank you!

Mogami makes a bi-wire cable which can be combined to form a single ~9 gauge wire which I'm very fond of.   Very flexible and easy to work with despite the massive copper inside it. :) 

Combinerd with Viborb bananas they are really great.

Thank you, Erik! Not so expensive too!

I’d recommend these AZ Satori cables I’ve had in my system for years that have withstood many comers.  They’re very natural and organic sounding with excellent tonality but without sacrificing treble detail/air, and they offer solid imaging and throw off an expansive 3D soundstage.  They’re a little over your budget, but given their considerable strengths I think they’re still well worth considering.  Read the reviews, and best of luck. 

https://www.thecableco.com/cables/satori-true-biwire-speaker-cable-pair.html

Soix - Thanks for another great recommendation and the link to make for an easy lookup! Yes, a tad over budget but a VERY GOOD prospect!

Why speaker cables so long? 😎

Mike

So many good suggestions . I think the cable company offers trials of multiple cables.enjoy the hunt.

Thanks, all.

Hi, Mike - Long length due to the unchangeable location of component's; speakers in living room electronics off to side in small hallway. My wife does not want the living room looking like a stereo room. Electronics (amps) need to stay where they are, and cables run under the floor.

It would be nice to have another room, a dedicated listening room where this would not be the case...

Mike

back to basics

http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm

I always want a proper gauge of zip first, then compare anything else to that. I'd rather spend the money on something else than a cable IF I cannot hear a preferable difference.

I have 38' from my Amp to my right speaker & I'm using; 

 from Ali xpress. Terminated with Viborg solid copper banana plugs. Opened my system dramatically. As I alway say; '' don't be a chump'' & pay ridiculous monies on products that you can't hear immediately. YMMV, but I wouldn't suggest them if it didn't work for me.

I made up my own cables using the Canare OFC 4S11 wire. I run a 5.1 system and also have very long runs due to the location of my electronics. In fact, the run to one of the surround speakers is about 40 feet!  150 feet of cable in total for the five runs. This made the cost a major factor. 
So I bought a 150 foot spool of the wire and all the required components for proper terminations online from Performance Audio and made them up myself.  All in it was around $500 or so. They’re still fairly new and therefore still burning in but they sound great already. Totally satisfied with my choice. 

Here is a lower cost alternative if you are interested in a good valet/performance ratio.  Yes, this company has its haters, but they are essentially no longer producing anything now.  I have no affiliation with this seller (hope posting a link doesn’t break any rules), other than I’ve bought some things from him. 
 

ebay, Monster Cable M2.4S Bi-Wire

https://www.ebay.com/itm/363385284013?_skw=monster+cable+m2.4s+by+the+foot&itmmeta=01K15ZZ523RDX4S8DJYMY0TTV2&hash=item549b7365ad:g:pvMAAOSw7~9gkuNK&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAABAFkggFvd1GGDu0w3yXCmi1fXnkeFZWZVzU6RkLx%2BFMqvG0hGNaGuqVw33Fv6DKuKiFSDgS%2FkyhmKZk82XAJZtthVrFKnZ3d7a5NOqZNA1Rx5DBbI5Pw5CVpPKmYp3US%2BWMBT9Xq%2Fu0AZPl66bRg8AvGWmg8zA%2BRWQ1Ypt5KSrq4P%2FjbKCM3BzvLwxdvZUzebKY0ZpvRyCp3C0HEdLPm93HQYSRzskhsz0xL%2BeN5PA6xVosidmmBPUnlOPrOGRRQZESgMYVCuAgglLQFIf4Y54DX6ce82onoEgBSQner2UqeH9hxhq4q7yjRWs41qWW0%2F3cZYGbNzY1u7xUUh%2BqCNfRs%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR6bR_L-JZg

Check out this DIY configuration: https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/diy-helix-geometry-cabling?highlight=helix

If that were me I would  get the Blue Jeans Cable option or make my own, then also go to Cable Company for a set of Transparent or whatever you choose.  Try both.  If I did that and liked  the Transparent I'd use that as a biwire on the top and put the Blue Jeans on the bottom.  If I thought the BJ was just fine I'd get another pair and send the Transparent back. Blue Jeans has a couple cable versions and termination options. I'd get their best one. Those are long runs, bewired too,  I had runs like that in the past off a 2A3 amp and used shotgun runs of Clear Day silver cable.  It worked great, so the distance is not a kiss of death by any means.  Of course, that was then and this is now, so try being cost effective.

Hello @rbschauman I have a very similar situation with equipment on the side and one 18' run and one 30' run to speakers.  I have very nice power cables and interconnects, but the long runs were daunting.  I first used double runs of 10 gauge OCC copper from Parts Express and made my own.  But talking with Chris at VHAudio, he suggested Furutech FS Alpha 36 Speaker Cable.  I bought the bulk cable, nice Furutech spades and plenty of nice shrink and (most importantly) an inexpensive Ryobi heat gun.  It was a fun project (I can solder), did not break the bank and a huge sound upgrade.  I left one of the homemade copper runs for the bass end and use the Furutech for the mids  high input.  My new speakers (Dynaudio Confidence 20) actually have only one inout, so perfect.  Chris has more and less expensive wire, and is great to chat with.  Don't sweat the difference in length.  You can't hear it.

The Canare rec is a good one, but perhaps opt for the 4S11G (OFC) version that is now readily available (I have the regular version).

It's a PITA to strip so pay someone to fabricate the cables (it's well worth it).

Here's a link...

https://www.performanceaudio.com/products/custom-cables-speaker-cable-made-from-canare-4s11g-ofc-speaker-wire?variant=42947488743602&country=US&currency=USD&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21026401582&gbraid=0AAAAAD4DT3JSEIyiGmKYsUSG1F0xGcVBg&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIrobnmK_djgMVSCvUAR1JKBwdEAQYBCABEgJ2APD_BwE

DeKay

Similar "problem" as the OP.I'm using BJC 12 ga to good effect. I've found that pay lots of $ for cables is a complete waste.

Thanks, all!

Appreciate all the responses of options to look into. Exactly what I was hoping for! 

elliottbnewcombjr

Thank you for the link, all should check this out. Very interesting.

The preamplifier manual seems quite pedestrian regarding functionality.

On the other hand the manufacturers manual paragraph on cabling is almost alarming without making any outright suggestions.

It's possible they prefer to make cabling suggestions to their customers verbally.

Past audio show reports of CJ demos might mention the cabling used.

Good luck with it.

Transparent Audio makes custom installation bulk wire…10-2, (10 ga. 2-conductor). Terminate with their bananas.  Add their Biwire Bricks. Crimp and seal all connections with silver content solder, shrink wrap, etc.  This will cost you an bit under a Kilobuck.

I have used Transparent cables in my previous setup, wherein my amps where on the right wall instead of being on the side of the speaker. the run was about 12 feet and compared to AudioQuest and Kimber, I did Notice that transparent cables seem to be more "transparent" in terms of letting the amps feed everything to the speaker and not changing it tone. so, take this as a grain of salt.

in my new setup. I stayed with transparent cable as I was impressed when it was used on a longer run. 

joeycastillo,thank you.

"wherein my amps where on the right wall instead of being on the side of the speaker" Very same situation for me. Furthermore, a lot being mentioned about Transparent cables in this thread, building a very strong case for the brand.

Thank you!