Very short speaker cable length recommended?


Hi folks, I've read some article that a too short speaker cable could make the sound worse, is this true? The statement was btw from MIT. I've always thought a short speaker cable (less than three feet) could bring improvement to the sound, at least it wouldn't do any harm. What is your opinion regarding this issue?

Chris
dazzdax

Showing 1 response by anacrusis

There is a small on-line cable company that makes wonderful cables, some of the best I've ever heard. When my new wall unit required that I move the speakers about 15' away from the source I decided to go with long interconnect runs of this cable into mono-amps and short (6') runs of speaker cable. The bass dropped off dramatically, as did the impression of power and dynamics. When I changed interconnects to those containing thicker, heavier wire things returned to normal.

It seems to me that there are definable, quantifiable values that determine whether this or that cable is electrically suitable and will perform as expected in any given situation. Certainly there are differences between the sonic character of this cable and that by virtue of their design and the materials from which they are made, but we as consumers should not have to play guessing games with electrical parameters and it is high time that manufacturers step up to the plate and start supporting our efforts at component matching by either standardizing or disclosing specifics that directly relate to component/cable matching.