Solid copper or stranded copper for speaker cables? What is your choice and why?

I've always made my own: lamp cord; common speaker wire; monster cable; solid strands of thick copper, stiff, hard to bend; cat 5 and now cat 8.

It's hard to know what you are convincing yourself about 'better'.

So, off to research, something's gotta be real:

What made sense, and what I settled on, is multiple individually insulated, small diameter solid core, i.e. Cat 5. Easy to make myself, flexible enough, put high quality connectors on. Small diameter reduces the 'skin effect'. Many say that's a joke at the lengths we use. Believe in Santa or not?

Now, CAT 8, Pure Copper, insulation for: each strand; each pair; 2 layers of outer insulation, whoopee. Looks cool, personal involvement is rewarding, Sound better?

I've never been willing to spend big money on cables. I've moved my friend's very expensive cables here, listened, better? Even he doesn't hear anything obvious here.

Based on all that, I would never use large diameter solid core again. There was definitely a dullness.

I do think experiences/results vary based on the efficiency of your speakers. Mine are highly efficient horns, 16 ohms (so amp is using 16 ohm windings). Perhaps I could/would hear real differences with different speakers.

I also keep my cables the same length l/r, even though at the lengths involved, many say that's absurd.

 

 

cat 8 info

 

 

I found a version of this with 22 awg, these are 26 awg.

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In any case, I ordered half black, half red, cut the connectors off, twisted the red/black pairs, added WBT type connectors, done.

mitch2

my friend has less efficient speakers, and that is exactly what he did.

I get a kick out of the cable types and gauges we use, especially when I read charts in vintage manuals:

McIntosh's Chart for AWG/distances, (lampcord suggested).

pg 5 or 6 here

McIntosh-MC2205-Owners-Manual.pdf

formula: do not exceed 5% resistance of speaker's impedance

examples:

16 awg: 4 ohm: max: 25'; 8 ohm: max 50'

12 awg: 4 ohm: max 60'; 8 ohm: max 120'.

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calculator:

https://www.wirebarn.com/Combined-Wire-Gauge-Calculator_ep_42.html

My single run of Cat 8: 8 strands of 22 awg is equal to 13 awg

so I'm using 13 awg for 12' run, 16 0hm speakers.

McIntosh chart says 13 awg is good for 100' 8 ohm; 200' for my 16 ohm speakers!

noromance

I don’t use bare wires touching each other in the same sheath, like lampcord.

Both Cat 5 and Cat 8 are small diameter solid, individually insulated,

Cat 8 wraps twisted pairs with insulation, thus 4 twisted pairs, next those 4 pairs insulated, then outer sheath.

 

 

mitch2

you can get Cat 5 or Cat 8 with pure copper, some 6 nines. (99.9999).

originally I thought I was the first person using Cat 5. Then my friend shows me this crazy 'make your own' Cat 5 like you noted. What? Why? maybe I didn't read enough about why, I just found it laughable when Cat 5 was already assembled.

 

noromance

I figured you knew all of this, (as well as every other thing), often I post for imagined others following along.