Speaker Cables With Limited Power

[skippy1416]

Hello,

I am finally ready to upgrade my generic speaker cable to something better but I have a concern that may impact my decision. My amp isn't very powerful (25 w/ch vintage tube) and my cable runs are relatively long (14' each). Do you think that I am limited in the gauge if cable that I can effectively drive? I am specifically concerned about this because I find that when I push my system hard it tends to get a little muddled and I suspect that this is a result of both the vintage and the low power so I want to make sure that if I increase the gauge of the wire that I won't be making the situation worse.

Any assistance would be appreciated.

[jdandy]

Skippy.......Increasing the wire gauge reduces the resistance of a given length of wire. Heavier gauge is EASIER to power.

[skippy1416]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Skippy.......Increasing the wire gauge reduces the resistance of a given length of wire. Heavier gauge is EASIER to power.

Hi Dan,

Thanks for the reply - I suppose that make perfect sense. I was just reading about inductance and capacitance. I am leaning towards Kimber 8PR. Now I just have to find bananas that will fit into the tiny clips on my Tannoys.

Thanks again,

Scott

[2002ss335]

I don't think 14' is a long enough run to cause you any problems due to capacitance, though you are right the lower the gauge the higher the capacitance per foot.

Several years ago I made some DIY speaker cables ~20' long and checked into this. From what I remember the oscillation caused by over capacitance only occurred with certain SS amps not tubes.

Regards,
Todd

[Face]

Originally Posted by 2002ss335

I don't think 14' is a long enough run to cause you any problems due to capacitance, though you are right the lower the gauge the higher the capacitance per foot.

Several years ago I made some DIY speaker cables ~20' long and checked into this. From what I remember the oscillation caused by over capacitance only occurred with certain SS amps not tubes.

Regards,
Todd

There are speaker cables out there that can oscillation in tube amps too, such as Goertz, Polk, and a few others.