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Vintage Monster Speaker Wires Question

realjimjim

realjimjim

Well-Known Member
I've got a bunch of old Monster wire, the big fat stuff . . . maybe 12 or even 10 gauge??? which I bought back in the 70s and 80s . . .

It has sat unused for at least 20 years . . .

On my present system, SX-1050/1250/1280 and JBL 100s/112s, C-V AT-15s
I have just been using 16 ga wire from Lowes.

I've been thinking about trying the Monster wire and wanted to ask a couple of questions about this.

Is there a way to test the wires before I hook them up? Should they be tested? What could possibly be wrong with old wires?

The wires I'm now using are pretty flimsy and were pretty cheap too. Don't you think the Monsters will be better if they are okay to use?

Thanks for any advice!
 
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The only way to test them is for continuity, wire is wire, if it will pass a signal it's good to go. Is heavy gauge/high end wire better than lamp cord? That's been debated into the ground on this forum with no clear winner. Try it, you might like it. I use Kimber wire on my main rig, I think it sounds a bit better than regular wire, but that's just my opinion.
 
bigaltx24 said:
The only way to test them is for continuity, wire is wire, if it will pass a signal it's good to go. Is heavy gauge/high end wire better than lamp cord? That's been debated into the ground on this forum with no clear winner. Try it, you might like it. I use Kimber wire on my main rig, I think it sounds a bit better than regular wire, but that's just my opinion.
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Thanks for the reply.

I have read most all of those wire debates . . . most interesting.

My thinking is this: Heck, if it's just sitting here . . . maybe try it out.

How do you check for continuity?
 
realjimjim said:
Thanks for the reply.

I have read most all of those wire debates . . . most interesting.

My thinking is this: Heck, if it's just sitting here . . . maybe try it out.

How do you check for continuity?
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Multi-meter. Check for continuity from end to end and no continuity from side-to-side. Or you can just give it a visual inspection. You should be able to see missing chunks of insulation or other damage. Pretty hard to break those big wires in the first place.
 
donprice said:
Multi-meter. Check for continuity from end to end and no continuity from side-to-side. Or you can just give it a visual inspection. You should be able to see missing chunks of insulation or other damage. Pretty hard to break those big wires in the first place.
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I've done the visual inspection and they appear to me to be okay . . . I was worried about the unknown to my Audiotarded self . . . such as I stated before.

And mainly going through all that work of changing them over only to discover afterwards there's some unknown (to me) problems that develop with old unused wires which have sat many years.

Thanks for the help!
 
The first thing you will find, is that most pre 1980 stuff that has push in spring loaded type speaker connections (like the SX-1050) will not accept 12 gauge wire. 14 gauge is about the biggest most will accept.
 
yostie70 said:
The first thing you will find, is that most pre 1980 stuff that has push in spring loaded type speaker connections (like the SX-1050) will not accept 12 gauge wire. 14 gauge is about the biggest most will accept.
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Yes, after checking with guys via this thread I was going to order some banana plugs if I decide to use the Monsters.
 
The bannana plugs will get you around the speaker end, but you still have speaker connections on your receiver that will only accept up to 14 gauge. You will have to cut some strands to make them fit in the receiver.
 
yostie70 said:
The bannana plugs will get you around the speaker end, but you still have speaker connections on your receiver that will only accept up to 14 gauge. You will have to cut some strands to make them fit in the receiver.
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I have a bunch of these from back in the day . . .
 
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RCA makes pins, part # AH11N
I got mine at Menards.
One caveat, they make two different sizes, so get the bigger ones for use with larger wire.
I was fortunate that Menards had both sizes so I could compare them side by side.
 
Another question . . . the monster terminals I have are the Twist type . . I recall back in the day they would come loose whenever and for whatever when I was hooking up other components (one of the main reasons i stopped using those wires) . . .

my question: Can I solder the wires to these ends? The ends are gold . . will they accept solder?

or should i just get new?
 
Monster wire in my Acoustat 6 interfaces from back in the early 80s has all turned green inside the insulation -- but I can not hear any degradation.
 
I have some of that Monster Cable not in use. The Biggest issue with them is the when the insulating jacket off gasses it reacts with the copper and corrodes it. That's why some turn green. If it still looks like clean copper however, I sure it will work fine. It's basicly poor quality, overpriced 12 gauge Lamp Cord IMO. Meamwhile I bought some of their new stuff with the Flux capacitor core...I'm no fool.
 
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realjimjim said:
I have a bunch of these from back in the day . . .
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Believe it or not most of your local hardware stores now carry those connectors (Home Depot, Lowes, etc.). However, check pricing as they can, at times, be more expensive than ordering them, assuming you can get free shipping, otherwise you're out cost of gas and nothing more. As to the question of soldering, yes soldering will work fine. However, you still need to deal with the thickness of the wires so the adapters above, along with soldering, would be best option.
 
eurasian said:
Monster wire in my Acoustat 6 interfaces from back in the early 80s has all turned green inside the insulation -- but I can not hear any degradation.
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Surface oxidation visible through the sheathing shouldn't cause any real issues. If the wire ends are oxidized, then they might make for a bad connection. If so, try this high school experiment:

Pour 1/4 cup of white vinegar into a cup (glass or plastic, not metal!),
Add 1 teaspoon of salt

Dip the wire ends into the solution, hold them there for a few minutes.

Remove them, rinse them, and they should be shiny clean and free of oxidation!

Take before/after pictures and post them. If you start a high end 'cable servicing' business, I want a cut of the action.

;)

bs
 
As far as getting thick wire to fit inside skinny connectors -

Feel free to snip off as much as you need from the end of the wire (reducing the thickness of the wire). The benefit of thick wire is in the length, not the connection. Also, if it's Monster, chances are it has a plastic rod in the middle. Snip that out of the unstripped part and it'll be a bit skinnier. I'd stay away from bananas, etc. if you can.
 
+1 just snip off strands from the stripped end until it fits. If there is ANY risk of the snipped-off part shorting against the other wire or binding post, cover it with heat shrink, or at least electrical tape.

Also, removing oxidation with vinegar takes forever. Use CLR.
 
1tumbleweed said:
As far as getting thick wire to fit inside skinny connectors -

Feel free to snip off as much as you need from the end of the wire (reducing the thickness of the wire). The benefit of thick wire is in the length, not the connection. Also, if it's Monster, chances are it has a plastic rod in the middle. Snip that out of the unstripped part and it'll be a bit skinnier. I'd stay away from bananas, etc. if you can.
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I understand not using banana plugs as most of my speakers don't use them, however, I think the focus was on the "pins" (for the source side) which are solid and will provide just as much contact surface as bare or soldered wire. Some pins are angled to hang naturally putting less stress on the wire, pin and spring loaded connections.
 
eurasian said:
Monster wire in my Acoustat 6 interfaces from back in the early 80s has all turned green inside the insulation -- but I can not hear any degradation.
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Call Monster, and see if there's a lifetime warranty on your wire. They've replaced a bunch of old wire for me for free.

je
 
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