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Cat 5 cable???

kerouacknew

kerouacknew

Active Member
Hi,
Im in the process of making some speaker cables out of cat 5 cable. Just wondering if it is necessary to use connectors or if i can just attach with the bare wires? Also, anyone know if this cable is safe to use with my marantz 2230 receiver? Any lastly what is best to use as a connector for a old tube receiver with spring loaded posts?
thank u
shawn
 
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If you're using multiple strands of cat 5, I like to solder them together. Makes a neat little "pin" that will slip in a spring connector or loop around a screw terminal.

Just the bare wire or soldered "bundle" should be fine as a connector for most applications.

Are you braiding the Cat 5 or just using it as is?
 
If you go with enough cat5 to = 12 Ga. (Approx, its a little bigger) then you want to go with banana jacks where possible.

If you are going into spring clips, they make terminators that have a smaller flexible gold end. I recommend these, as the weight and stiffness of the cat 5 braided can tear up a spring clip.

The connectors I used were a tight fit, after stripping and carefully twisting the bundle of copper ends together so they laid and twisted cleanly.

I’m not sure the full bundle is needed, but I have done no more than make a set, haven’t had the planned setup to actually use them.

BTW, braid a little loosely, and stretch the braid after each run, they will be more flexible than a tight braid.
 
Go HERE for instructions on where to buy them. You're asking for flex-pins with gold-plated, braided copper tips. If you can't find the contact info for the reseller, PM luvvinvinyl (his post is linked above), he'll set you straight. :yes:
 
kerouacknew said:
Thanks for the reply.
I will be attempting to braid it as per venhaus DIY.
shawn
Click to expand...

Good luck buddy. I figured 216lf of braiding for a roughly 7ft pair.

As far as the amo issue, when I made mine I asked Kimber if their high capitance wire was OK for my Marantz 1152dc, they said sure, and I've never had a problem.

Pete
 
piece-it pete said:
Good luck buddy. I figured 216lf of braiding for a roughly 7ft pair.

As far as the amo issue, when I made mine I asked Kimber if their high capitance wire was OK for my Marantz 1152dc, they said sure, and I've never had a problem.

Pete
Click to expand...

Hahaha! I made a 12 ft pair! [/ouch]
 
Yeah, im definitely getting some practice braiding.
Wish i had learned this when my daughter was little. Would have come in handy.
Im thinking about just doing just 3 braids of 6 for each speaker instead of the 9. Well this effect the performance much? 9 braids seems like it well be an awfully big cable.
thanks
shawn
 
Give it a shot with less braids, I found these cat-5 cables kind of system dependent and you might prefer less.

I made a bunch of these at different 'thicknesses' and in my low-power SET tube system, less was better and I ended up preferring 1 braid of 3 twisted pairs or even 1 single twisted pair. Wish I would have known this before tearing up my fingers with all that braiding. :)

Playing around with cat-5 really killed the concept of fat battery-cable looking multi-strand wire for me and 'less is more' has really proved the right direction - at least with the equipment I use.
 
I haven't tried splitting the stripes/solids yet - I'm using 1 braid of 3 twisted pairs for each connection (+,-) to each speaker, 4 cables total. Very audible difference in my system, much cleaner sound, brighter top end, cleaner tighter bass. That's also why I just solder the tips, I've only got 6 24 ga. wires at each connection.

When I first tried the Cat 5, I just ran one twisted pair to each speaker terminal, that alone was a "wow" moment. Others here just use the cable in it's original sleeve with no braiding. Lots of options, lots of things to try with Cat 5. If I don't buy the plenum grade, it's just $.18 per foot - that makes it a lot easier to experiment.
 
Hey,
I finished my braiding. I made them with 3 braids of 6 wires(18 total).
Hooked them up this morning and am not really sure if im very impressed with them. You can really hear the highs and the treble but i almost feel i have lost some of the bass from my old pair. Not sure if i will be keeping these attached or not. Any suggestions?
shawn
 
Switch them back and forth a few times (Yes, I know it's a pain...)

Also are the old wires old?

If so, then they are not up to par anyway. if they have ANY green in them, they are done.

Also, keep aware that an increase in the mids and highs can be confused with less base. Not necessarily the same thing...

Hmmmm... got an A/B switch for the speakers? That cuts half of your switching times, and banana jacks really speed things up at the speakers.
 
kerouacknew said:
Hey,
I finished my braiding. I made them with 3 braids of 6 wires(18 total).
Hooked them up this morning and am not really sure if im very impressed with them. You can really hear the highs and the treble but i almost feel i have lost some of the bass from my old pair. Not sure if i will be keeping these attached or not. Any suggestions?
shawn
Click to expand...
The Cat 5 braids do seem to boost the mids/highs, you've not lost any bass. The bass should be tighter and cleaner than before. Let them play for a few days before you decide if you like them, unless they are automatically "grating" on your ears by being TOO bright.
 
kerouacknew said:
Hey,
I finished my braiding. I made them with 3 braids of 6 wires(18 total).
Click to expand...

Congrats, now you are qualified to work in a beauty parlor.

:D

I wonder what gage 18 strands of 24 ga equals? To get to Chris Venhauses' 10 ga equivalent you need 54. When I swapped wires top (cat5) and bottom (Tributaries budget 12ga) on my biamped setup the bass was definetely better (tighter, harder hitting) imho, and I'm not a lean bass person.

Ambitious? Make two more pairs and braid all three together :) .

Pete
 
piece-it pete said:
I wonder what gage 18 strands of 24 ga equals
Click to expand...
Everytime you double the cross sectional area, you go down by three AWG. So, when describing a single conductor:
2x24AWG=21AWG
4x24AWG=18AWG
8x18AWG=15AWG
16x18AWG=12AWG
32x18AWG=9AWG

Thus, 64x18AWG is equivalent to 2x9AWG, so the claim of 54x24AWG is the same as 2x10AWG seems to be close if not right on.
 
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