Altec 19 hookup wire

**Cal Weldon** · August 5th, 2010, 09:03 PM

Originally Posted by Altec Best

I wouldn't use lamp cord for lamps.

You must have different lamp cord in your country. The stuff here is just fine. Inexpensive yes, cheap no. It doesn't look as pretty as the boutique cable but the last time I checked electrons don't have eyes and don't care, only the listener did.

**timoteus** · August 5th, 2010, 10:00 PM

Okay, now we're getting somewhere. If the original gauge is 20 or 22 and Schell recommends 26 magnet wire...

So I think I'm going to replace the internals with OCC in the 20s. I'm using Anticables' OCC magnet wire for speaker cables and really like them but they're about a 14 gauge. If I can find epoxied OCC magnet/transformer wire in 22, 24 or 26 I'll just wire everything up from amp to drivers in the same material.

Anyone have a source? Partsconnexion has OCC in fine gauge bare wire or with teflon or PVC dielectric but not the red epoxied OCC.

**mah** · August 5th, 2010, 10:05 PM

Transmission lines - or not?

See here:

``Long'' and ``short'' transmission lines : TRANSMISSION LINES

Cheers, Marshall.

**Altec Best** · August 5th, 2010, 11:17 PM

Originally Posted by Cal Weldon

You must have different lamp cord in your country. The stuff here is just fine. Inexpensive yes, cheap no. It doesn't look as pretty as the boutique cable but the last time I checked electrons don't have eyes and don't care, only the listener did.

Hey Cal, The lamp cord around here has been really cheap almost fire hazard cheap.I've seen more lamp cord wire shorted than any other wire cable.I won't use it ever.Time to move on from this wire thread.

**Steve Schell** · August 6th, 2010, 11:49 PM

Westend9, Mr. Wismer may have had it exactly right, I don't know. I have read that higher frequencies travel along the outside ("skin") of the wire while low frequencies travel at a slower speed through the wire core, causing "time smear" and consequent damage to all those golden eared audiophile subtleties. I have also heard RF circuit designers opine that this is pure BS, that skin effect can be a factor in antenna designs and such, but that audio frequencies are all very slow by comparison, and it is all traveling at nearly light speed anyway, so any variation in speed vs. frequency would be negligible. I don't know about all of this, but have noticed that fine magnet wire sounds mo' better to me and so I go with what works.

Derry I used to route the #26 across the ceiling between amplifier and speaker, spacing the two leads a couple of inches apart and holding it in place with transparent tape. Believe me, this wigs people out at hi fi shows. More recently I have taken to spinning it into a twisted pair with a drill, with no apparent sonic losses and perhaps a bit less noise induced. I live across the street from a Boeing plant, so there are all sorts of interesting EMI and RFI noises passing through. I now run the leads on the ground, covering it with carpet samples in foot paths. My speaker business partner and I have taken to covering the wire with black woven nylon jacketing and shrink wrapped terminations, which looks appropriately "high end" at shows.

Let me stress that I am not saying this fine stuff is for everybody. I am running field coil compression driver horn systems with around 108dB sensitivity, so the current flowing in my speaker cables is minimal. I drive my horn subwoofer from a separate SS amplifier, so I "man up" and use something like 18 gauge for this!

Timoteus, I bought an assortment of fine magnet wire sizes on 10lb. rolls year ago on ebay. It may still be a good source for surplus wire, maybe not OCC but good sounding stuff, If you don't have any luck finding what you need, let me know and I'll set you up.

**westend9** · August 7th, 2010, 10:15 AM

Originally Posted by mah

Transmission lines - or not?

See here:

``Long'' and ``short'' transmission lines : TRANSMISSION LINES

Cheers, Marshall.

Thanks, Marshall, that was a good read.

Originally Posted by Steve Schell

Westend9, Mr. Wismer may have had it exactly right, I don't know. I have read that higher frequencies travel along the outside ("skin") of the wire while low frequencies travel at a slower speed through the wire core, causing "time smear" and consequent damage to all those golden eared audiophile subtleties. I have also heard RF circuit designers opine that this is pure BS, that skin effect can be a factor in antenna designs and such, but that audio frequencies are all very slow by comparison, and it is all traveling at nearly light speed anyway, so any variation in speed vs. frequency would be negligible. I don't know about all of this, but have noticed that fine magnet wire sounds mo' better to me and so I go with what works.

Derry I used to route the #26 across the ceiling between amplifier and speaker, spacing the two leads a couple of inches apart and holding it in place with transparent tape. Believe me, this wigs people out at hi fi shows. More recently I have taken to spinning it into a twisted pair with a drill, with no apparent sonic losses and perhaps a bit less noise induced. I live across the street from a Boeing plant, so there are all sorts of interesting EMI and RFI noises passing through. I now run the leads on the ground, covering it with carpet samples in foot paths. My speaker business partner and I have taken to covering the wire with black woven nylon jacketing and shrink wrapped terminations, which looks appropriately "high end" at shows.

Let me stress that I am not saying this fine stuff is for everybody. I am running field coil compression driver horn systems with around 108dB sensitivity, so the current flowing in my speaker cables is minimal. I drive my horn subwoofer from a separate SS amplifier, so I "man up" and use something like 18 gauge for this!

Timoteus, I bought an assortment of fine magnet wire sizes on 10lb. rolls year ago on ebay. It may still be a good source for surplus wire, maybe not OCC but good sounding stuff, If you don't have any luck finding what you need, let me know and I'll set you up.

We're on the same page regarding skin effect.
In the manner of hookup wire, I've noticed little difference between teflon jacketed OFC wire and common copper. Case specific examples are rare, depicting inductive noise interference in components and short runs in other uses.
I have found a local electronics surplus distributor that sells all manner of wire and other bits for low prices. I would imagine that any decent sized city has at least one of these around.

**Altec Best** · August 7th, 2010, 03:24 PM

[quote=Steve Schell;1831755]

Westend9, Mr. Wismer may have had it exactly right, I don't know. I have read that higher frequencies travel along the outside ("skin") of the wire while low frequencies travel at a slower speed through the wire core, causing "time smear" and consequent damage to all those golden eared audiophile subtleties

Thanks Steve having said that I just tried to explain how it was explained to me.Right or Wrong I don't know. Difference so slight that us regular folks(Mediocre Ears)couldn't tell the difference.

I don't know about all of this, but have noticed that fine magnet wire sounds mo' better to me and so I go with what works.

And that is what I was going to say that you should use what is best for you.I chose to delete my posts because I didn't want to get in the middle of another wire "WAR".I just wished you were here more often.As I really enjoy your posts and I can learn quite a bit from your obviously extensive wisdom.

Let me stress that I am not saying this fine stuff is for everybody. I am running field coil compression driver horn systems with around 108dB sensitivity, so the current flowing in my speaker cables is minimal. I drive my horn subwoofer from a separate SS amplifier, so I "man up" and use something like 18 gauge for this!

Agreed ! I'm driving my speakers at the moment with SS 200 watts per channel,for me the 26 gauge is too thin I think, so "Manning Up" was necessary

.The 26 gauge would be perfect for tubes with say 20-30 watt.I don't know how many of us are using field coil drivers, as they are quite expensive.My point was for fine stranded wire as opposed to solid wire really, regardless of gauge AWG.IMHO

Thanks again Steve !! Kind Regards ~ John

**Old Guy** · August 7th, 2010, 04:56 PM

FWIW many speakers can benefit from some series resistance. I prefer using larger wire, though it isn't necessary to go crazy, most people are into "overkill".

I then add series resistance in different amounts, it would take a lot of different wire sizes to try that with wire.

Bottom line is what works for you is right.