16 gauge, 12 gauge,... (1 Viewer)

[Yoon Lee]

Is it true that any 12 gauge speaker cables are better than any 16 gauge speaker cables? Or, is there different quality of 12 gauge that matters more than simple gauge numbers? I have 12 gauge cable for car audio, and thicker monster cable is 16 gauge and I'm not sure thicker 16 gauge cable will actually improve the sound...

 

[Dan Hitchman]

At the very least bump up to the Home Depot $.47 a foot copper 12 gauge speaker wire.
Dan
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[Rick Radford]

>>I've heard others talk about the copper(positive)/silver coated copper(negative)cable at HD

 

[Allan Jayne]

It is not that the thicker 12 gauge wire will improve the sound but rather the thinner 16 gauge wire (any brand) will degrade the sound when you have a long distance between amp and speaker.
Less than ten feet you can get away with 16 gauge wire.
One of the conductor's being silver is just to make it easier to match the polarity and get speaker phasing correct, sometimes there is a ridge on the outside of the jacket for that purpose.
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[Edited last by Allan Jayne on September 09, 2001 at 07:26 AM]

 

[Dalton]

I recently upgraded from 5.1 to 6.1 surround. I needed a 30 ft run for the rear center. My other speakers are wired with 10 guage monster xp(VERY THICK WIRE). I have heard alot of guys here on the forum saying they used the 12 gauge from Lowes or HD so i figured what the heck i would try it(the monster xp is $1.50ft). Went down to Lowes and found 12 guage for 30 cents/ft. Wired the speaker and have to say the guys are right, no audible difference in sound quality in my ears(and some friends). I think 12guage shoul fit the bill in most situations.

 

[KevinQ]

The 12 gauge wire is quite thick. Is it difficult to insert it to speakers or receivers?
How did you guys get around with the problem?
[Edited last by KevinQ on September 09, 2001 at 11:16 PM]

 

[Bob McElfresh]

Kevin: Welcome to HTF!
Yes, I had the same problem: 12 ga cable barely fit into the binding posts.
But binding posts also take banana plugs.
I discovered the MegaCable banana plugs from Radio Shack. The dual-plugs have a solid black spacer bar and the back-end un-screws to open a large hole in the side. I think even 10 ga wire would fit in. Insert wire, tighten and you have a neat & strong banana.
I use the dual-bananas for behind my speakers.
But these things stick out about 3" so for behind my receiver, there is another MegaCable from Radio Shack. This one un-screws into 2 parts. You thread the speaker wire into the barrel and fold the copper strands over the top. (It has a place for this.) Then you screw the banana part back on top and it compresses against the copper strands for a very strong connection.
(I emphasize "Strong" because for a few months I was using the Monster "Twist-Crimp" bananas. These things would pull-loose from the wire every 2 weeks. Whenever I sat down to start a DVD, I would have to hit the "Test-Tone" button on my remote to listen if all the speakers were still hooked up.)
The Radio Shack bananas sell for about $6 per set. The Monster version sells for $11 per set. Several other companies make these for different prices as well. I'm only recommending Radio Shack version because you probably have a local store near you.
Hope this helps.