[bik2101]

I was wondering whether the gauge of the wire makes any difference, and if so, how much, in terms of sound quality.

 

[Ashkii21]

I've built a couple of cmoy amps and I am just using a cat5 cable (split apart) for the hookup wire. The wires from the cat5 cable are small and solid. They work for me. I am thinking that the wire gauge for the hookup wires will not make a difference to the SQ, but I may be wrong. If you are talking about speaker wire gauge, then I'm not sure.

 

[bik2101]

guess I should clarify...I guess I'm wondering how much wire gauge matters in making headphone cables and ICs/LODs for connecting amps to other amps and DAPs.

 

[Nausicaa]

Some are thicker and harder to bend. I also use CAT5, noticed no difference between that and other cables.

 

[bik2101]

yeah, that I know.. different wire gauges reflect the thickness of the wire. I'm not planning on using CAT5 cables, but wondering if there is any difference in SQ of wire in the range from 20-28AWG. I know that there is a difference in the material of the wire, but assuming no other variables but wire gauge, will there be a big difference in SQ.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nausicaa /img/forum/go_quote.gif Some are thicker and harder to bend. I also use CAT5, noticed no difference between that and other cables.

 

[FallenAngel]

Wire guage is completely meaningless in respect to sound quality, (at least for me and other able "believers") it is the wire type that matters.

 

[bik2101]

cool...that's what I was hoping to hear actually as I have already ordered quite a bit of wire and was just thinking about whether the gauge of the wire mattered. thanks for that info. just wondering, what type of wire you like (which I know is very much a matter of personal taste)

Quote:

Originally Posted by FallenAngel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Wire guage is completely meaningless in respect to sound quality, (at least for me and other able "believers") it is the wire type that matters.

 

[Tridacnid]

Yep, there shouldn't be a difference unless you use a wire that is too thin for the current going through it. But for headphone purposes, you'll be fine with whatever kind of wire you choose.

 

[FallenAngel]

Yep, a few people on the forum use 42awg for ICs and I've used 28awg for headphones, some of my favorite wire for portable headphones is 28awg and solid-core - incredibly flexible and when braided and covered with nylon multifilament sleeving, it's strong and can withstand abuse of portable headphone cable.

 

[bik2101]

I've read in a few posts that say that stranded wire is much more flexible than solid-core.. Is this true? Is there any SQ difference between solid core and stranded wire?

Quote:

Originally Posted by FallenAngel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yep, a few people on the forum use 42awg for ICs and I've used 28awg for headphones, some of my favorite wire for portable headphones is 28awg and solid-core - incredibly flexible and when braided and covered with nylon multifilament sleeving, it's strong and can withstand abuse of portable headphone cable.

 

[linuxworks]

its NOT about sq! stop with the sq things

its about usability, flex, resistance to heat (soldering).

but nothing - NOTHING - to do with 'sound'.

 

[HiFi1972]

If you can swing it, I would recommend you try building your own cables on a pair of good cans that allow you to plug/unplug cables, listen to many different things you are familiar with and come to your own conclusions because you're going to get advocates for both "camps".

I personally didn't believe that whole "fancy cable" thing until I built my own "over the top" cable for my Senn 650s and then compared it to the stock cable (my cans are 3 years old, so the stock cable is the "better" stock cable). I came to the conclusion that the cable I built (with 18g. SPC and Furutech plug) sounds quite a bit better than the stock cable and even the stereo image (separation of instruments) changed. I want to build another cable using StarQuad to see how much difference (if any) that cable has over the stock one. I don't know if it's the gauge or the type of cable, but to my ears, it was a worthwhile improvement.

 

[bik2101]

wow you need to relax a little bit... this is first time I'm doing this cabling stuff which is why I'm asking these questions. I'm pretty sure you didn't have all the answers when you first started either.

Quote:

Originally Posted by linuxworks /img/forum/go_quote.gif its NOT about sq! stop with the sq things its about usability, flex, resistance to heat (soldering). but nothing - NOTHING - to do with 'sound'.

 

[bik2101]

alright cool.. will try to do that then. just don't want to end up buying all these different parts that I might not end up using, but I guess a lot of it comes down to personal tastes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HiFi1972 /img/forum/go_quote.gif If you can swing it, I would recommend you try building your own cables on a pair of good cans that allow you to plug/unplug cables, listen to many different things you are familiar with and come to your own conclusions because you're going to get advocates for both "camps". I personally didn't believe that whole "fancy cable" thing until I built my own "over the top" cable for my Senn 650s and then compared it to the stock cable (my cans are 3 years old, so the stock cable is the "better" stock cable). I came to the conclusion that the cable I built (with 18g. SPC and Furutech plug) sounds quite a bit better than the stock cable and even the stereo image (separation of instruments) changed. I want to build another cable using StarQuad to see how much difference (if any) that cable has over the stock one. I don't know if it's the gauge or the type of cable, but to my ears, it was a worthwhile improvement.

 

[linuxworks]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bik2101 /img/forum/go_quote.gif wow you need to relax a little bit... this is first time I'm doing this cabling stuff which is why I'm asking these questions. I'm pretty sure you didn't have all the answers when you first started either.

you already had your answer yet you asked again and again.

that's why I got annoyed. how many answers do you need telling you its not about 'sound quality' ?