[qusp]

lol... yes i'm interested to see what you think of that too

I think he's just using that idea and taking it to the extreme. also in this exampole he's using a 6 wire litz of the set for a stereo signal IC. OK i'll stop talking in the third person now

But if i'm using coax as analogue signal level wire I tend to use the shield as the signal and not ground so this would seem to be at odds with the theory; well not really I guess, because in that case the effectively 'thicker' wire is surrounding the inner conductor and could cause a ground loop if used for ground. Well thats my thinking on it. as I said in the thread i'm no EE and am just playing around with the materials at hand; and listening for results. of course my ears and subjectivity/lack of objectivity are the weak point here but I think i'm on the right track

 

[wudai_e]

Quote:

I would avoid it. it makes LOTS of capacatance where it can be harmful. It does reduce inductance, but in "home" applications the inductance of a SIGNAL level cable is of little importance.

Be harmful in what way? care to explain in more detail? Thanks.

 

[apatN]

Oh Nikongod, I just know you regret getting into this noob-pit.

 

[qusp]

hey

there's good science behind my thinking but whether it makes enough difference to be audible is another matter. to me it did make a noticeable difference; but i'm pretty involved in the experiment so I could be partial; although I was skeptical.

 

[JamesL]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nikongod /img/forum/go_quote.gif if you mean using both wires in a "starquad" cable for a single ended cable, it is very similar, except that the capacatance is far higher. braiding INCREASES capacitance. coax cable minimizes capacitance... I agree, the shield should not be used as an audio ground though. As a VERY good place to start looking into "thick and thin" cable design is the "anticable." you will need a pencil, or something similar and a decent bit of time. take a couple breaks while winding

When you say braiding increases capacitance.. and a twisted pair increases capacitance... that's opposed to... just running them side by side?
Does parasitic capacitance have the same type of effect on DC power cables? Say I wanted to run 250vdc from the power supply to the amp, is it best to use a coax?

Anyways, in conclusion, you're saying...

Twisted pair = bad
Multiple strands twisted around a core = bad
Braided = bad
Coax = bad

So the question is.. which is the lesser of the evils?

Unfortunately, your thick and thin design is not an option(for me). I value durability, simplicity, and usability, over the exotic anticable-type configuration, even if it does mean it loses some of "their ability to time align the music's transient events".

 

[nikongod]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesL /img/forum/go_quote.gif When you say braiding increases capacitance.. and a twisted pair increases capacitance... that's opposed to... just running them side by side?

MULTIPLE conductors together increases parasitic capacitance.

If you have a single wire for sig/ground you are a few steps ahead of multi-stranded designs for capacitance. This whole tangent to the thread started as a quest for less capacitive cables than star quad.
Quote:

So the question is.. which is the lesser of the evils?

indeed, that is the key
for what you are looking for:
I would use a simple twisted pair of THIN wire. Probably 28ga stranded. its durable enough for OEM headphone cables, it will do fine in an RCA. Put it in a multifiliment nylon sheath for strain relief and your set.

 

[qusp]

yes but what about multiple grounds and a single conductor per channel? I have read that it is better to have an easier route to ground than the signal so as to 'force' the RF and waste energy to go down the ground instead of trying to go back up (or interfere with) the signal conductor. in my case its 22AWG jena stranded copper and 20AWG solid core silver. keep in mind this is for portable use so durability is an issue (and we are talking about very short cables), so thinner conductors isn't necessarily desirable. you mention before that you would use a thin conductor for signal and thicker one for ground??? I realize braiding increases capacitance, but as you say what is the lesser evil?

 

[JamesL]

Hmm.. it seems that lower capacitance usually results in higher inductance, and vice versa..
After all, coiling the ground wire around the signal wire is kind of like a inductor, right?
I'm wondering at what threshold, is lower capacitance more desirable than lower inductance.

Headphone cables. I'm thinking either parallel, braided, or spiral/twisted.