OT Crossover Wiring

[LowOhms]

I found a 100ft roll of 12g Teflon silver/copper lurking in a back closet bought a decade back when surplus meant surplus, $0.25 per food, using it now for XO wiring and speaker cable, like the results plenty, mid and highs clear without any smearing, bass has weight, punch, and clarity.

Way Cool report !! How precisely did you implement the wire? I like to pay 50 cents a foot, on eBay, low-balling sellers, for 12 AWG.


With the step-down of the output transformer, ( assuming a tube amp ), you have current - drive, and one can and should ( IMHO ) safely use two to four paralleled runs of 12 AWG, between the amp, and the ALTEC passive crossover. The amount of paralleling, ( 2,3, or 4 runs in parallel, PER POLARITY) I gave everyone guidelines to, is dependent upon the number of Fulton ( 57 1/8th inch ) increments. Now, from the crossover, to the high frequency compression driver, ( as of the last week or so ), I have recently come to understand to NOT use even my existing 14 AWG of Mil Spec - to the 802DS. .More likely, it needs to be 16 AWG, or maybe, just maybe, even 18 AWG, ( so as not to lose the highs ). I need to A-B that when my DIY DC 2A3 JJ amps are done. YMMV.

Inside amps, IMHO, one must use a mixture of various gauge wires, 14 AWG Mil Spec is a decent compromise for many runs, certainly not just a use of 12 AWG. I have stockpiled as small as 18 AWG. I MAY even try 20 AWG on the amp's RCA input jack, to the control grid of the input triode. For that critical span, I shoot for only a two inch wire length, as the "positive" lead. For the direct-couple span, I might want to use 16 AWG, and keep it in the air, not touching anything, and under six inches.

I find it very important to never neatly bundle wire, with tie wraps. It always sounds better to me, when wires don't touch each other, and I like to cross wires at right angles to each other. All of this, I find, is layout, and it can make or break a SET amp, which ( I think ) the E.E.'s will tell us, has no common mode rejection. YMMV. Have fun, all of this is only IMHO.


SD-50, tell us about your precise implementation. Ron seems to like the wire too, wonder what he has done? I wanna to softly, kindly suggest to Ron, it may take more than just James Dickerson's suggestions, to get a A7 or 604 to go !! I think so, but Old Guy likes me to be a better poster, and add .... YMMV. Amen!!

Low Ohms.....Jeff Medwin

[SD-50]

[QUOTE=LowOhms;1970574]Way Cool report !! How precisely did you implement the wire? I like to pay 50 cents a foot, on eBay, low-balling sellers, for 12 AWG.
Hi Jeff
Nothing fancy to my setup, it's my bedroom system, 604-8Ks with the Markwart simplified XO, driven by a NAD C315 amp, music provided by Jolida CD-100 and a Perreaux tuner. Using 6ft lengths of the 12g twisted together, about 2 inches per twist, from amp to external XOs, twisted cables just sound better than straight runs. PIO caps linked with short runs of same 12g, at the output switched to 14g Teflon for both tweeter and woofer feeling that an all 12g setup might thicken the sound. An earlier post shows the XO just before the latest change.

[Boli46]

Way Cool report !! How precisely did you implement the wire? I like to pay 50 cents a foot, on eBay, low-balling sellers, for 12 AWG.


With the step-down of the output transformer, ( assuming a tube amp ), you have current - drive, and one can and should ( IMHO ) safely use two to four paralleled runs of 12 AWG, between the amp, and the ALTEC passive crossover. The amount of paralleling, ( 2,3, or 4 runs in parallel, PER POLARITY) I gave everyone guidelines to, is dependent upon the number of Fulton ( 57 1/8th inch ) increments. Now, from the crossover, to the high frequency compression driver, ( as of the last week or so ), I have recently come to understand to NOT use even my existing 14 AWG of Mil Spec - to the 802DS. .More likely, it needs to be 16 AWG, or maybe, just maybe, even 18 AWG, ( so as not to lose the highs ). I need to A-B that when my DIY DC 2A3 JJ amps are done. YMMV.

Inside amps, IMHO, one must use a mixture of various gauge wires, 14 AWG Mil Spec is a decent compromise for many runs, certainly not just a use of 12 AWG. I have stockpiled as small as 18 AWG. I MAY even try 20 AWG on the amp's RCA input jack, to the control grid of the input triode. For that critical span, I shoot for only a two inch wire length, as the "positive" lead. For the direct-couple span, I might want to use 16 AWG, and keep it in the air, not touching anything, and under six inches.

I find it very important to never neatly bundle wire, with tie wraps. It always sounds better to me, when wires don't touch each other, and I like to cross wires at right angles to each other. All of this, I find, is layout, and it can make or break a SET amp, which ( I think ) the E.E.'s will tell us, has no common mode rejection. YMMV. Have fun, all of this is only IMHO.


SD-50, tell us about your precise implementation. Ron seems to like the wire too, wonder what he has done? I wanna to softly, kindly suggest to Ron, it may take more than just James Dickerson's suggestions, to get a A7 or 604 to go !! I think so, but Old Guy likes me to be a better poster, and add .... YMMV. Amen!!

Low Ohms.....Jeff Medwin

I just came across this thread and I have a question for Jeff. Apparently he uses 2 to 4 pairs of 12 AWG wire between amplifier and crossover. He has now come to the conclusion that he needs to use 16 or 18 AWG between crossover and compression driver not to lose the high frequencies. If 12 AWG loses the high frequencies, wouldn't they have been lost already between the amp and crossover? Just askin'

[Old Guy]

I found a 100ft roll of 12g Teflon silver/copper lurking in a back closet bought a decade back when surplus meant surplus, $0.25 per food, using it now for XO wiring and speaker cable, like the results plenty, mid and highs clear without any smearing, bass has weight, punch, and clarity.

IMHO Teflon and silver plate both offer improvements. Pricey stuff though. I've not found any evidence that solid silver works any better than plated. Didn't Mark Levinson use silver plated Teflon to wire preamps?

[LowOhms]

IMHO Teflon and silver plate both offer improvements. Pricey stuff though. I've not found any evidence that solid silver works any better than plated. Didn't Mark Levinson use silver plated Teflon to wire preamps?

Hi Old Guy,

This Mil Spec wire ( stranded copper, silver plated, teflon coating, ) is m22759/11, and it can be found in various gauges, easily, reasonably, on eBay. I usually low-ball sellers, and pay 50 cents a foot for 12 AWG, and correspondingly less, for higher gauges. At those prices, I feel its a real bargain, a good value for the money spent. Its VERY nice wire to see, strip, solder, and work with IMHO.. Hey, its built to a military standard.

The silver plating must assist high frequencies over plain and pure copper , and one should select the proper gauges for the application, one size, I found out, does NOT fit every wheres. It been my favorite, last two years, YMMV. eBay searches " m22759/11 12, m22759/11 14, m22759/11 16 ", etc etc.

Low Ohms.....Jeff Medwin

[Altec Best]

Juniper was not my call ! I received a p.m. from Todd stating that he wanted to ban LowOhms I just carried it out I was just following our owners wishes.. as Todd said he didn't communicate with me that he had changed his mind I only received a p.m. stating that he wanted to ban LowOhms like to apologize to Jeff for any inconvenience!

Todd give me a call this evening if you get a chance ?

[juniper]

Juniper was not my call ! I received a p.m. from Todd stating that he wanted to ban LowOhms I just carried it out I was just following our owners wishes.. as Todd said he didn't communicate with me that he had changed his mind I only received a p.m. stating that he wanted to ban LowOhms like to apologize to Jeff for any inconvenience!

Todd give me a call this evening if you get a chance ?

My bad AB, you and Todd are the BEST!!!! Thanks again for all the help over the years!!!!