Oxidation on surface of cable under clear jacket

ANCs = and I also have 

duhhhhh 

Inagroove  Good advice. The 12TCs I have areindividually insulated single strands. I’ll give them a close exam before I connect them. And they’re about 3 yrs old  I’m out of town for about another month. And then another listen.  I was also looking/not ready to buy, Straight Wire and the other recommendations. But not till I reevaluate the 12TCs

BTW. Now I’m also wondering what shape my Oval interconnects are r in?  They don’t have a clear outer sheath. I’ll give them a look when I get back  ANC’s Kimber Hero interconnects

  Lastly, if this is a problem with many cables (affordable and expensive), do we go into this knowing that down the road it’s not a long term investment?

I’m looking for my 10 Ga. Zip cord. LoL

 Hi Deanrk,

When I started building my first Hi-Fi system, decades ago, I built my own speaker cables.  They had clear shielding, and eventually noticed the same oxidation problem that you experienced.  So, I started searching for a replacement...

I agree with the first half of williewonka's comments, but not the second half.

You see, I replaced my DIY cables with Audio Envy cables then realized I had made a mistake.  After a break-in period (over 100 hours), the Audio Envy cables were noticeably unbalanced sounding (thin, harsh treble, average mid-range, anemic bass). 

When I called the owner of Audio Envy to relay my concern, I was told that the 'brand new' cables that I bought a few weeks ago had already been replaced.  Apparently, he was cleaning-out his stock of OLD cables, which he sold to me.  I asked to upgrade these old cables, for the new ones, but he refused to give me credit for the ones that I just purchased!

I turned to Anti-cables (Level 3), which were just a little more money at that time, and I really like Anti-cables as an entry-level solution.  Much, much better balance, coherence, and all-around more 'believable'.  Please know that, other than making full-retail purchases, I have no affiliation with Anti-Cables.

Furthermore, the Anti-cables website states: 

Products may be returned for a full refund up to 30 days after taking delivery. The ZEROs are a full 60 days.

• Returns must be approved before they are shipped.
• Custom made orders are not returnable.

I had one customer-service issue (and exchange) with Anti-Cables and it was promptly addressed. I recently upgraded my speakers, and the Anti-Cables are performing great.  Though inexpensive, I believe that they are NOT a limiting Q factor in my system.

I hope this helps,

InAGroove

Almosthome your guess is better than mine!

Thespeakerdude  outside sheathing is on the thicker side which does afford protection from objects cutting through, but not air infiltration

Seen it worse than this ....

That looks like it would provide limited protection from ingress of external air, but even if it did, there is a lot of air trapped inside to interact with the copper.

So does changing the coating/cover to opaque solve the issue, or hide it?

Winoguy17 yup Mine are worse than that, but that’s it!  And I think as your picture shows, the clear sheathing may be pulled over the copper conductor which allow air infiltration and oxidation to take place.  But when I set up my system in our new house (another post for another time!), I’ll give the Oval 9s and the Kimber 12 TCs a listen to see which I prefer.

Seen it worse than this ....

I have 30+ year old cheap 10 and 12 awg speaker cables lying around, clear insulation, not a hint of oxidation, and I had some cheap 18 awg that was maybe 10 years old that looked like it was outside from day 1.

My understanding is the material and quality of the insulation determines how much oxygen gets in, which seems pretty obvious, but also good OFC should oxidize slower.

Quick Google says the oxide probably 10's of nanometers thick. I don't see that making a big difference to the conductivity. I would be more worried about the connectors. If they are soldered they will be fine. If they are a good quality crimp they should be okay too. Anything else could be trouble.

61falcon. I lived in northern VA. Summer humidity could get high, but home was air conditioned, so I doubt high humidity had anything to do with it.  

Felixa I will put them back into my system and give a listen.  AND I have a pair of Kimber Kable 12 TC (much newer) that I will compare them to, to see which I prefer.

Your cables will still work, they simply will be brighter than what they used to be because the oxidation is a bad conductor and will shift the tonal response towards a litz wire configuration with is brighter than the equivalent configuration where there is electrical contact between the strand. Try them to see if you like the tonal response or maybe have them be recycled.

No, I live in normal conditions.  This problem with greenery is not unique.  The manufacturer knows about it, so he changed the transparent insulation of the wires to opaque in new models.  The sound, as I know, is not reflected.  The problem is precisely in loose insulation and poor protection from the environment.  PVC insulation loses its tightness over time.

Do you live in a humid environment? I've used clear coated speaker wires for many years and have never seen such an issue, but I'm in southern Wisconsin where it is not terribly humid. 

I also got green on Oval 9, after 10 years of operation, I noticed it.  after that he sold it.  Now it is in the Canare 4s11 system, I am more satisfied with it than Analysis-Plus oval 9.

I have a photo of him, I don't know how to post it here.  I haven't been here for a long time.

Steve. Thanks for the recommendation.

I've had this a long time ago and I just tossed them

• the green is oxidation and it impacts the sound.
• it's because the insulation becomes porous over time
• once that happens there is no repairing them

Replace them with Audio Envy cables

• they will outperform many higher priced brands
• provide very godo sound
• are modestly priced
• use great aulity copper (OCC)
• Use great insulation - low Dielectric Constant

If you want better cables then try Zavfino

Regards - Steve

SOIX. Sounds like a good suggestion.  I’ll give them a try

Thanks

I have a really old pair of uninsulated Monster Cables with tinned, twisted wire ends and exhibit the same green corrosion you’re seeing.  Honestly, I use them in my home theater now and they work perfectly fine.  My advice would be that, if you liked how they sounded before, give them a shot and just go by how they sound.  Is corrosion optimal?  Of course not, but if they still sound good to you then just use them, enjoy them, and don’t worry about it.  Just my $0.02 FWIW. 

This must be a common problem for uninsulated copper mesh cables.  Looking at other manufacturers sites and most guarantee their cables for life. But they have “coated” wires.

 I was considering Oval 9's several years ago, was going to buy used. but almost every picture I saw had exactly what you describe, a greenish color on the cable. Deal breaker for me....

petg60 Thanks for the quick reply.  Yes Analysis Plus Oval 9.  Kind of disappointed that they weren’t sealed from the elements. And if I can’t repair them they get tossed.  In the meantime, I have a pair of Kimber Kables I can use

"Oval", is ot Analysis Plus cables?

A little DIY is needed. You can cut the affected area and put another spade or same one if it is with screw terminal. Normally gold plated connectors do not oxidize but you can check it.

I would do all four of them.