So I just spent only $140 delivered. I got the belden 8402 interconnects with switchcraft rca connectors. Also about 70ft of the orange and black twisted 9497 speaker wire and took the spades off my current speaker cables(wbt)put them on the belden. I ran 1 twist to each binding post. With just a couple hours on the belden. My bass is tighter, depth of stage much better and overall smoother top end. Whole presentation is cleaner. I cant believe that over the years the less and less I spend on cables as I made more educated purchases, the better it gets. Lmao!!!
I also got enough to wire my xovers I'm building and run from xover to each driver.
I'm sure some of you may already use this and some of you may be thinking about it. Just wanted to let you know I'm a believer now.
Yep, no crazy gold plated fairy dust in those cables, just good very high quality wire, really just what you need.
Now wrap them in some of that fancy TechFlex braided covering with pants on the end, add some fancy dancy banana plugs coated with some fancy metal plating and sell them for 1500.00! Truth be told, they would probably be better than most of the stuff out there.
BillWojo
Originally Posted by Petro
Re Belden 9497.
I am glad you are pleased. Have you ever considered that 16 AWG 9497, between an amp and the crossover, would be appropriate for running a ALTEC tweeter, AWG-wise, and it will never be able to exhibit the full-audio-range transfer efficiency of larger, or lower AWG wire ??
What about running the woofers optimally?? Woofers take the equivalent of 9 AWG, on short runs, but its gotta be a well-designed / well-made 9 AWG !!
I mean, Shindo and those guys using 9497 just reflect one Japanese perspective you have duplicated, meek and mild. Excuse me for now, time for tea!
Low Ohms
Yes I have thought about that. I'm actually using 2 runs of 16awg to each post on each driver and each post amp to binding posts. And belden is coming out with a thicker gauge soon that I would like to try. I hear what your saying but I can't deny it sounds better.
Sent from my Moto G Play using Tapatalk
Yes, but your two runs of 16 AWG only gets us just 13 AWG, as an equivalent. Hardly 9 AWG.
For short runs, on ALTECS, ( one or two Bob Fulton lengths, NOTE : 57 1/8th inches is ONE Fulton incremental length ), we use two runs of 12 AWG per polarity, amp to speaker, which is like 9 AWG. ( Thats about like five of your 16 AWG in parallel. ) Three Fulton lengths we use three 12 AWG in parallel per polarity. Longer runs, four Fulton lengths ( 19.03 feet and longer ), we have carefully determined four runs of 12 AWG sound best.
When you go to more wire, you can not continue to use stranded copper. You need some silver content to maintain the high frequencies, in a linear way. That can get costly....usually. BUT,
I have previously posted up here some very specific wire recommendations, lengths, gauges, and implementations, to crossover, tweeter and woofer. It all uses Mil Spec wire you can get on eBay, for pennies on the dollar. If you are careful, at 50 cents a foot for 12 AWG. M22759/11 12 , and sometimes m22759/11 14 at 40-45 cents a foot. 16 AWG for as low as 20-25 cents a foot - a real audio bargain.
Its multi stranded copper, with a thick silver plating on each strand, enclosed in teflon. Dream to work with, and nice to hear. See my prior posts on it and contact me for the latest, most specific implementations we use. Its nice going-to and also-inside the ALTEC VOTT or 604 . ( From the crossover, one Fulton length to the drivers, double 12 to each woofer polarity, and a single 16 to each tweeter polarity.)
Everyone seems to have ignored me so far on this....which encourages me !
Dennis Fraker ( Serious Stereo.com ) and I use this Mil. Spec. wire, me at his suggestion. He used it at the recent October 2016 RMAF / Denver show, where I assisted him. This year, Dennis' GPA 604 MLTLs and special SET amps got " best overall room choice " of the whole show, by Stereophile's reviewer, Herb Reichert, himself no rookie.
I use it inside my SET 2A3 amps also, internally. I will use a single run of 16 AWG, from my crossover, to each polarity of the 802D, where I bypass the crummy press-to-fit connectors, and I solder direct to the diaphragm tabs, a 57 1/8th inch ( Bob Fulton length ) of M22759/11 16. Nice sounding to my ears, less distortion under drive, better dynamic contrasting..
Jeff Medwin
Last edited by LowOhms; February 18th, 2017 at 03:20 PM.
I just bought some of the M22759/11 12
Not at all into esoteric speaker wire, but this just makes sense.
And will be better than what I've been using.
Ron
Enjoying Altec Speakers since 1972
Wire
One to keep an eye on for surplus deals.
Last edited by mah; February 12th, 2017 at 06:58 AM.
Opinion is only as valid as its verifiable supporting evidence.
I'm a firm believer in both of these cables as well!
I am running Belden 9497 end to end (Amp to Crossovers and Crossovers to Speakers)
I'm also running Belden 8402 for my interconnects.
I have a couple Duelund DCA16GA Interconnects as well as WE16GA Interconnects - These both are a lot of fun and present the music really well.
Maybe I've just drank the popular-blog-koolaid but I've never noticed this drastic of a cable difference since implementing them.
Hi Ron,
Please see my just " edited " Entry #5 in this thread, where I updated HOW to best implement such wire, with the latest information I have available to me.
Its specific enough. If you have AMY questions, email me.
Jeff
I haven't ignored your suggestions Jeff. I read all of your responses although a little lengthy
I bought this belden and it made everything better instantly. And the cables they are replacing were no joke. I just ordered some more. And finished my 1200hz xovers. Although I'm still waiting on the resistors I ordered everything else is complete. I used 9497 twist off every cap( your suggestion of getting rid of cap wires as much as possible). All jumpers, and out to the drivers, Lpads and binding posts. I'm leaving the xovers on top of speakers for now, so I'll probably bypass binding posts and hook speaker cables directly in xover.
One thing I'd really like to do is solder directly to my 902's but I'm not sure yet. Where do you think would be the best place to do this.? I'd like to be sure before soldering inside the covers.
Thanks
Steve
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