[NEO]

What are the good speaker cables under $50? I mean around 6 ft pair and termiinated with spade or banana. I looked at Signal Cable and Heartland Cable and the cheapest is about $80 shipped. Is there any good quality spaker cable from Merkertek?

If I buy the non terminated cable- how do I terminate them and do I require any special tools? I saw some spades from Monster that say "quick connect" which I understand t requires no special tools. And do I need anyting special than the scissor to cut the speaker cable?

NEO

 

[bundee1]

There was a Radioshack solid copper cable on the Stereophile recommended components list. Do a search on their website.

 

[agile_one]

NEO: I had Dan at Heartland make me up a 4 ft pair and a 6 ft pair for going to crossover then to speakers. Used that way for about a month, but no longer need both pairs. I think I can get by with either, so if you are interested in either 4 ft or 6 ft pair PM me.

One pair is bananas both ends, the other is banana and spades. Dan makes beautiful cables, and these are like new.

 

[Howie]

You know what. 12gauge cables aren't bad at all. I would save the money. If you have to spend it on cable spend it on getting better interconnects.

 

[NEO]

Can I buy a cable, cut it to the required length and terminate it with spade? What tools do I need for cutting and terminating?

 

[Mr_Happy]

You would need a wire cutter/stripper and a crimping tool. There are tools that do both in one. The crimping tool part usually has a oval shaped cutout marked for a specific guage range. You strip the wire, put the wire through the spade and then put the bottom part of the spade in the oval part and then squeeze hard. You can also use pliers but the connection probably won't be as solid as one that you would get with a crimping tool.

 

[Howie]

There are connectors where you just twist off the cap insert the wire and then twist it back on but they're expensive for what it is and obviously doesn't do much to benefit the sound. In fact it might make it worse.

Try looking around some of your local shops especially shops that sell professional equipment. They can generally make you wires of any length and so you can get them to terminate the cables the way you want them. As long as it's a decent wire you should get decent performance. Look around for stores that carry Canare or Cardas cables. Cardas for example has the Crosslink which can be terminated with spades. Don't know their pricing but the idea is to find a shop that will terminate cables for you.

 

[NEO]

Hmm..so cutting and terminating speaker cable is not quite an easy stuff then

Do I need special tool to cut the speaker cable? What about some Monster spade with quick connector? I think they are maded for DIY

 

[princeclassic]

you don't have to terminate the cable. just buy some 12g radioshack or home depot speaker wire and use that.

 

[Gopher]

depending on the length you need, I'd check out used kimber 4tc

 

[Howie]

If you don't have a soldering iron then the cost of terminating your cables would be higher than what you might like.

If you get someone else to terminate your cable that will incur labor and whatever the spade or banana plugs may cost (which can cost more than $50 if you feel like it).

 

[NEO]

so we need to melt the end of the bare wire before crimp it with the connector?

 

[john_jcb]

Quote:

Originally posted by NEO so we need to melt the end of the bare wire before crimp it with the connector?

No there are two options.

First you strip the insulation and crimp on the connector

Second you strip the insulation and solder the connector.

I have never read anything that says that a properly crimped connection is inferior to a soldered one.

 

[Mr.PD]

Hey NEO, If you are careful you can cut wire with good scissors, and strip it with a knife. It's a pain in the butt to strip wire with a knife, but it can be done.
You can find a wire stripping crimping tool at just about any bargain store for a couple bucks. They aren't good ones, but where you will only use it once, it'll be okay.

I use those Monster twist on ends on my Denon shelf system. I think they are a great idea, becuase they use the same method as house wiring, for connection. In fact I think twist on is better than crimp on.

The only problem with using bare wire on your speaker connections is that it oxidizes after a while and looses connection. Copper wire will turn black and you will notice degraded and or no sound after a while. But if you want to clean the connection at least once a year or so, you can bare wire it.

But then again what do I know. I still use some Monster cable wire on my speakers

 

[Orpheus]

hi.

i use Canare 4S11. it runs about $0.7/ft or less. i think less. forgot. somewhere around there. anyway... many companies use this cable to make theirs and call it their own... i've seen repackaged versions of this for $200-300+ on ebay/audiogon. you can make your own for much less.