In-Wall Speaker Cables - what are my best options?

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Kristo

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Hi Guys,

I've been a (too) long-time lurker on this site. Although I have had contact with a couple of members directly, I think this is my first post - certainly in 3 yrs or so!

Basically, I am finally getting around to sorting my hifi and home cinema room. My kit is nothing special (in some peoples' eyes maybe) but I like it and that's really what it's all about, eh?

I am channeling the walls so I can run hidden speaker cables as I have a 5.1 system to install and a separate hi-fi system which will need to be some distance from its speakers due to power/aesthetics constraints.

Cable runs are approx. 5m to each Front Surround Speaker, 9m to each Rear Surround Speaker, 2m to centre and for the Sub, I intend to run 4m in wall and have about 3m interconnect so I can fine tune positioning when I get serious.

For the hi-fi system, the electronics will be at the centre of one wall, with runs then required of 5m and 9m to the speakers.

I have some CAT5 cable left over from a networking project and there would be enough to complete the runs. Will this be good enough in the Sub and Hi-fi runs. Would members suggest twisting several conductors together to improve signal here or would I really notice a difference by spending on some "proper" cables for these parts?

I don't want this thread to turn into the "typical" bell wire/snake oil slanging match - I do believe quality cables make an audible difference - but I'm on a pretty tight budget here so am looking for a considered range of opinions with this in mind.

Thanks guys, I look forward to reading what you have to say.

Chris
 
Hi Chris,
I have tried the twisted cat5 route before and thought they sounded ok. This was 3 cables platted and the conductors split into 2.This was on a budget system though so not a very thorough test. They are quite thick and bulky though. Another option is solid core 5 amp lighting cable.
Not tried this but have read of others having sucess with it.
However if your going to all the trouble of chasing out walls then it would make more sense to use some decent cable in there.
Make sure you keep the lengths for each speaker pair of roughly equal length aswell.
It would be a shame to have to chop it all out if you upgrade your gear.
How about spending a bit on the fronts and economise on the rears where it's less important.

Martin.
 
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Hi Kristo

just get some 2.5 van damme blue or black. Its robust and does the trick. I have 10 m of the stuff running under my floorboards to my speakers (my system is in a seperate room to the loudspeakers).

I don't think that twisted or braided cat 5 would be such a good idea over long runs. Alot of studio's use the van damme stuff which kind of speaks for itself. There are other alternatives - Gotham and Mogami - but I reckon they're much of a muchness.

cheers philip
 

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