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Please Help Me Choose a Speaker Cable

I need to replace my existing speaker cable setup with something more wife-friendly. I am currently bi-wiring with Audioquest Type 4 (tweeters) and Aperature 16 (woofers). About 20 years ago I bought the wires off a spool and had them built w/ banana plugs. You can see a pic of the offensive cable setup on my system page (https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/6318). I put a nice jacket over the cables hoping that would be enough to clean up the messiness.

What I want is something of equal quality that will also fit inside my VTI speaker stands. The stands have a 3/4 inch opening and the 4 banana plugs don’t fit through. I want to continue bi-wiring but would go single if the sound was just as good on a different set of cables. A bi-wired cable terminated with two spades at the amp side would fit through the stands (2 banana plugs might fit also).

I don't want to spend more than $600 and need a 10-12 ft. pair. There appear to be a lot of options on Agon right now. I see names I know are pretty good like Audioquest and Kimber. If I were to pick one I would probably go with the Audioquest Rocket 88 or CV-8 or maybe the PS Audio Xstream. Maybe there are better options for less? Will the cables in this price range be good as or better than what I have? If not, maybe I should try terminating the two cables into one set of banana plugs on the amp end to see if that fits.  I guess I would prefer spades because they would be more flush to the speakers, thus a little cleaner looking.  

Thanks.
treebeard1

Showing 5 responses by bassdude

bassdude
503 posts
 
I love the Anti-Cables - quality product, superb sound, reasonable price for a 10’ pair!
http://anticables.com/speaker-wires/2-channel

If not that... then consider Blue Jeans cables, Better Cables, or Signal Cables - all good products at good prices - and... no BS.

Or... if you want an even better value... get some "magnet wire" on Amazon, and make your own! I did that, and they sound almost identical to the Anti-Cables for $50. Just get the 12ga or 10ga wire and twist a pair with a drill, sand off the ends and coat them with "Pro-Gold" and connect them. Oh yes... you’ll need to mark the pair "R" & "L" on both ends before twisting them to make sure you connect them in phase. Just use red tape on both ends of the "R" wire, or black tape on the "L" wire.

https://www.amazon.com/TEMCo-AWG-Copper-Magnet-Wire/dp/B00IAZNVX0/ref=sr_1_102?ie=UTF8&qid=14876...
bassdude
503 posts
 
treebeard1...

Those look interesting - hadn't seen them before.

Do you have to replace the batteries every 5 years, or so?  Or just the cable - when the batteries die?

toderone...

Yes... the "magnet wire" is stiff and hard to work with... but... you don't need cable stands / lifts to insulate from the floor / carpet.  Same is true for the Anti-Cables.
bassdude
503 posts
 
OK...

Ordered a pair of the AQ CV-8's, also. Will try and compare them to my Anti-Cables 3.1’s and let you know how they compare. We’ll see.

And... I did discover you just replace the batteries, when they die.
bassdude
503 posts
 
Well... I must admit... the AQ CV-8 speaker cables are pretty impressive. Just received them and hooked them up to compare to my Anti-Cables 3.2 speaker cables.

Premature first impressions:

Great soundstage and imaging, very airy - maybe a bit better than the AC’s
Great clarity and resolution of detail - maybe a bit better than the AC’s
Great extension in treble, lots of fine detail (brushes on cymbals, etc.)
Treble balance maybe a bit greater compared to bass and mids - brighter sound
May be a bit cooler sound, not quite as warm, rich and weighty as the AC’s
Bass may be a bit better defined and textured... and maybe a bit less prominent
Mids are very clear also - voices are very life like.

The CV-8 seems to have a sound a bit more like silver cables - which is good, if your prefer the lighter, airy sound of silver.

The AC’s, of course, sound like high-quality copper cables - which is also good, if you prefer the warm, rich sound of copper.

Although premature... I like the AQ’s a lot, because I like the sound of silver cables, which these remind me of.

I’ve always been a bit skeptical that there was much difference in the sound of cables - except that silver cables always seemed to have a bit greater clarity and resolution of detail. And, while there doesn’t seem to be a huge difference in the sound of the AQ’s over the AC’s, others might think there’s quite a noticeable difference.

I would recommend either, depending upon your preferences - both are great values.
bassdude
503 posts
 
Oh... and... almost forgot... the AQ CV-8 speaker cables seem to make the speakers more efficient - they're louder at lower volume levels on the pre-amp POT - by maybe... 15%+.

Not sure I understand why... but... that's the case.
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