wires
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457 Posts
.
NOT all cable is created equal
in some ways
strands
how many strands
I like flexable wire, it makes running the wire easier cuz it bends easier
as for name brands, brand X 4awg ofc 2,000,000 strand is the same as brand Y 4awg ofc 2,000,000 strand.
Insulation materials make a difference also.
butt, I digress
copper wire is copper wire
I wouldnt use other types of wire cuz the main difference is contact area needed to efficiently conduct the electricity. Copper is inexpensive. Just get good connectors.
if you think I'm wrong, well it wont be the first time.
NOT all cable is created equal
in some ways
strands
how many strands
I like flexable wire, it makes running the wire easier cuz it bends easier
as for name brands, brand X 4awg ofc 2,000,000 strand is the same as brand Y 4awg ofc 2,000,000 strand.
Insulation materials make a difference also.
butt, I digress
copper wire is copper wire
I wouldnt use other types of wire cuz the main difference is contact area needed to efficiently conduct the electricity. Copper is inexpensive. Just get good connectors.
if you think I'm wrong, well it wont be the first time.
considering you work at a "professional" car audio shop...one question: do you guys use less-than-the-best quality stuff on customers' cars? if not, don't you already know what brands to use? if so, please give me the full name and address of the place where you work....so i'll never make the mistake of setting foot in such a low-quality, deceiving, sub-Circuit City-style establishment, which sells Wal-Mart products and installs them with Best Buy expertise.
Hey sport Platinum I dont know if you have a sound advice in youre area but they do good good quality jobs. Check them out at www.wegivesoundadvice.com see if they have a store near youres and go check them out 
It's makes me smile when people talk about wires.
Wire is wire. Don't get sucked into marketing "scams". The only real important characteristic is gauge, but don't foreget there are things like dimminishing returns. Bigger may not be better, just more expensive.
Wire is wire. Don't get sucked into marketing "scams". The only real important characteristic is gauge, but don't foreget there are things like dimminishing returns. Bigger may not be better, just more expensive.
There is many differences in the type of wire one runs. THe gauge is a major part of insulating the power . If you ran say 8 gauge for a 1000 watt amp the wire would melt and the fuse would blow like crazy. other than that power and ground doesnt really matter, but remember more power = lower gauge. I think rca's have a more significant diffrence. Im not positive oin that though. i am getting a 2000 watt amp so eventually im goin to have to put in 4 gauge wire instead of the 6 gauge i am currently running. I think thats it.
Let's be realistic here! A 1000W amp will not melt 8awg wire. You may have too much voltage drop across that run, but it definitely won't melt.
If you want to use some basic theory here, you'll need to understand the overall resistance of your power feeds (and yes the feed going to ground is just as important). Most wires have a spec for ohms/foot. Once you know that, you can use the formulae to determine your voltage drop:
P = I*I/R = I*V = V*R*V
V = I/R
Alternatively, you can measure the voltage drop across your amp underload.
Most amps have a spec for voltage operating range. Your goal with the above is to make sure you do not fall below this spec.
If you want to use some basic theory here, you'll need to understand the overall resistance of your power feeds (and yes the feed going to ground is just as important). Most wires have a spec for ohms/foot. Once you know that, you can use the formulae to determine your voltage drop:
P = I*I/R = I*V = V*R*V
V = I/R
Alternatively, you can measure the voltage drop across your amp underload.
Most amps have a spec for voltage operating range. Your goal with the above is to make sure you do not fall below this spec.
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Ah yes. How I do miss those electrical engineering classes. :biggrin: :tongue:Rick W said:
heh... does that mean the 4 ga wire I have powering my 200W RMS amp is not necessairy? how about the 6 ga on my 150W rms Sub amp?
hey, when they are selling the 4 ga at 8 ga prices (on a special)... why not go for it, eh? doesn't hurt anything to go bigger. only thing holding me back is the 10ga running from the alt to the battery.... hmmm.....
hey, when they are selling the 4 ga at 8 ga prices (on a special)... why not go for it, eh? doesn't hurt anything to go bigger. only thing holding me back is the 10ga running from the alt to the battery.... hmmm.....
I agree with some of the statements above. As far as power wire is concerned, mainly the gauge is what matters. As long as its oxygen pure free copper which must stuff is these days you wont find an advantage from one over another.
For RCA wires though there are some differnces. For example having wire that is helixed definately provides less noise. What happens is the noise runs over both wires but the wires are helixed so noise which could be RF or injected AC is cancled out. The same signal is present on both wires but both wires are placed opposing each other inside the conductor which causes them to cancel each other out. This i did notice helped with alternator whine in my car. I went from Isoteric to Monster Cable's that had this feature
Another thing that is important thing that makes a differnce is having a balanced cable. Now im sure all of you are wondering what is a balanced cable??? I gurantee most of you out there are like WTF is that. Well you do want what comes into the wire to not be altered by the wire or change the music right? Well thats what a balanced cable does. It has multiple sized wires for bass mid and treble. Some wires only have two different types for highs and lows. These frequencies have different Bandwidths and prefer certain types of wires over another. For example lows really like a solid conductor and high like a thin multi-stranded conductor. I will state this though unless you have an ear for these things you wont notice a large difference.
Brad
For RCA wires though there are some differnces. For example having wire that is helixed definately provides less noise. What happens is the noise runs over both wires but the wires are helixed so noise which could be RF or injected AC is cancled out. The same signal is present on both wires but both wires are placed opposing each other inside the conductor which causes them to cancel each other out. This i did notice helped with alternator whine in my car. I went from Isoteric to Monster Cable's that had this feature
Another thing that is important thing that makes a differnce is having a balanced cable. Now im sure all of you are wondering what is a balanced cable??? I gurantee most of you out there are like WTF is that. Well you do want what comes into the wire to not be altered by the wire or change the music right? Well thats what a balanced cable does. It has multiple sized wires for bass mid and treble. Some wires only have two different types for highs and lows. These frequencies have different Bandwidths and prefer certain types of wires over another. For example lows really like a solid conductor and high like a thin multi-stranded conductor. I will state this though unless you have an ear for these things you wont notice a large difference.
Brad
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heheliqtenexp said:
After playing at high volumes for a while, you won't have much of an ear for anything! :biggrin:
Yep, the normal human ear can just bearly hear a differene of 3dB gain or loss in volume. Thats why for bandwidth measurements they take it at 3dB on each side of the slope. Thats equivalent to 0.707*Vp(peak voltage, not peak to peak). Cable do make a difference, its only part of the solution for great sound too. Speakers and amps are just as important. One of the best amps I have ever heard is the new JL audio ones. They incorporate lots of nice features like impedance matching and many similar technologies to Rockford amps. Speakers though is your own taste. What I look for is one that is very even in response, that way I can EQ it to sound whatever I want very easily. But if your not up to EQ'ing your car Polk speakers I recommend. They are definately not the best but they last, have a well rounded sound, and usually can handle the power demands most people need a speaker to handle.
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3,503 Posts
Ok, now that I know what an ohm is, could someone tell me what a volt is???Avenger said:
:biggrin:
I'm just joking. :wink:
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