Save your money. You won't hear any difference. From any of it. Caps are a big deal in crossovers and other circuits because the ear is highly sensitive to even the most subtle changes from midrange on up. If this was a speaker crossover you could line up a selection of expensive quality caps and hear differences between them all. With a sub that all goes away.
The same applies to the wire. Duke (Audiokinesis) told me save my money on sub speaker cables, just use wire off a roll. He was right. No difference. Huge difference with speakers that go higher. No difference with subs.
Those input wires by the way carry almost no current so can be thin, and quality won't matter there either. Look close at my system. Look how much money I am willing to spend on things that do make a difference. Then look real close at the crap patch cord going to the subs. https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/8367 I tried some really nice interconnects, that make a huge improvement everywhere else, couldn't hear any difference on the subs. Human ears simply are not sensitive to subtle timing or whatever it is at such low frequencies. We respond to volume. Which is why multiple sub distributed bass arrays work so well.
Save your money, buy more subs. The more the better. A difference you are guaranteed to hear.
I have done a fair bit of work with speakers testing the effects of LF when changes are done to power cords, cables, etc. The changes are easily heard and most efficacious.
When Bill Dudleston of Legacy Audio entertained my idea of rewiring the Whisper with 10 Ga Clarity Cables, and added his own idea of Clarity Caps (no business relation to Clarity Cable), he was not expecting much. However, the bass measurements showed a 2dB change! That's big shift in performance for bass!
Subwoofers are subject to the precise same influences as other speakers. The qualitative difference in performance is easily heard when enhancements/improvements are done. It's nonsense to suggest a subwoofer would not benefit from upgrades such as internal cable and caps.
Do the upgrade; I think you'll be quite pleased with the result. YMMV
And its worse than nonsense to conflate and confuse internal cabling, the wire from the amp to the driver which does carry a lot of current, with the input wire, which does not.. Can't keep something that simple straight, why expect any better from the rest?
Btw, doesn't YMMV mean your mileage may vary? As in, expect different results? So what you really said is, You'll be pleased with the results... unless something different happens. Brilliant!
Dear @eyrepm : """
It's nonsense to suggest a subwoofer would not benefit from upgrades such as internal cable and caps. """
Agree totally with that statement from @douglas_schroeder . Millercarbon and whom gave him the advise are wrong and if they can be aware of a change in the quality level pérfomance for the better could be only because their systems are really poor in resolution and quality or are " deaf ".
I did it changes in my Velodyne's, changing all internal wiring using all silver KCAG by Kimber Kable. Big diferences. If you want to change caps in the electronics the Wima FKP-1 are better that what you or other people can thing.
@imhififan sorry! Suggestions for better hosting of pics?
Thank you for your inputs! I’ve calculated the prices and I’m just gonna give it a shot. It came to about $100, and another of these subs new will be $3400, unless another freak incident happens and I get another one really cheap.
Off topic: stick to the same model if you’re going stereo subs or just try to match specs?
@rauliruegas I’ve looked at the WIMA FKP-1s now. I see that I have similar looking parts on the boards. Are these the same types? Because I see they look different than regular can types of electrolytic capacitors.
If they are the same types, are these the ones you’ve also switched out?
@almarg
thank you for the fix. Stupid mistake.
ALSO: Edited one of the images. The green circled cables will be swapped. But I'm thinking... the red circled cables are also the link to the driver. Betting this should be swapped, too? If yes then I'm betting it would be easier to do if I removed the connectors/ports... Or maybe not. Maybe resolder the connectors.
If you want an easy and inexpensive, but good upgrade to the leads between the amp and the subwoofer, go to Lowes or Home Depot and pick up a couple of spools of Southwire 10 gauge THHN stranded copper wire, red and black. On each run, wind the cables around each other (twisted pair) at maybe one to two complete turns per foot.
The 12 gauge stranded version of this stranded wire wound two to four turns per foot is really quite good for amp-to-main speaker runs.
Just a caution about the wires from the RCA’s - they look like PTFE (teflon).
When PTFE is heated to soldering temperatures, it begins to decompose, and the decomposition products include one of the most dangerous gasses known, HF. If those wires really are PTFE, best to avoid messing with them.
There are very few things as slippery as PTFE, but cross-linked polyester, which is also used in quality audio cables, is similar. If they are slippery like PTFE or cross-linked polyester, you probably shouldn’t chance it for safety reasons. And you can’t buy better wires anyway.
Suggest that if they are real slippery, don’t change them.
I always make a practice of using pure four nines fine silver wire for speaker internal hookup. It makes a notable difference in presence and sound stage
For short runs of line level signal, especially low frequency, the main thing you are hearing is insulation (the physical phenomenon is called dielectric absorption, or DA). PTFE and cross-linked polyester are the best conventional alternative (only air and vacuum are better).
The people who built your sub may have an idea or two. Have you asked Mr. Casey? He may posit that you are rearranging deck chairs or perhaps he will have a Dirty Weekend Sub deal? Keep us posted please.
@erik_squires I'm ready! Show me! I've actually been thinking about it lately.
@terry9 They actually do have this weird oily-ness to them! Thanks for the heads up. So. Nothing to gain from other cables, then, I gather, expect potential health problems?
I’m going to express a minority opinion here, which is admittedly based just on technical considerations and not on directly relevant experience. And which is stated with great respect for those who have expressed contrary opinions.
From a technical standpoint I find it inconceivable that upgrading a few inches of wire carrying extremely miniscule amounts of current, in a situation where the accuracy with which frequencies above the bass region are conveyed is unimportant, could provide a significant sonic benefit. Couple that with the potential health risk which @terry9 astutely cited, and I see no point in undertaking this effort.
Also, regarding ...
The green circled cables will be swapped. But I’m thinking... the red circled cables are also the link to the driver. Betting this should be swapped, too?
Although I’m not completely certain I believe that the wires circled in red are **inputs** to the Hypex amplifier module, rather than wires carrying the high currents that are provided to the driver. If so my comments apply to those wires as well as to the ones circled in green.
Fuses usually have to conduct vastly more current than the miniscule amount that is conducted by these wires. Also, in many and perhaps the majority of applications the current through a fuse varies dynamically with the music, and as it does so the resistance of a fuse varies significantly, which can potentially cause a multitude of effects. Those effects will not occur in these wires due to the essentially negligible amount of current they are conducting. Also, the effects of a fuse in many and perhaps most applications can occur at any and all frequencies, rather than just in the deep bass region. Fuses in audio components involve completely different situations than this one.
Different yes but till you have first hand experiences with that "
these wires due to the essentially negligible amount of current they are conducting " we will know for sure.
There are safe ways to solder around PTFE, but they involve things like: - fume hoods with high volume exhaust; - respirators; - gloves; - soldering at eye level so hot gasses flow up and away from the face; - low temperature solders; - precision soldering equipment run at the lowest feasible temperature; - and absolutely not fiddling while you hover over something, while you try to remove a connection that someone else made, which may involve high temp solder or a good mechanical connection.
People do tend to recover from HF burns, but they are insidious. HF burns tend to show up after a number of hours, and get worse for a day or two. You can read all about it in MSDS. Best to avoid.
And also, I agree with everything @almarg wrote. Leave the RCA wires alone.
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