In Salas Symmetrical B1 thread, he mentions that he uses RG179 internally for signal wire.
I ordered some Belden 179DT which has a solid copper conductor plus some RCA compression connectors. I am going to try this out as an interconnect and internally in a head amp I am building.
Anyone have experience with this cable? It is a whopping $ 0.48 per foot from Markertek.
I ordered some Belden 179DT which has a solid copper conductor plus some RCA compression connectors. I am going to try this out as an interconnect and internally in a head amp I am building.
Anyone have experience with this cable? It is a whopping $ 0.48 per foot from Markertek.
Darn it!!!
My compression tool won't work on RCA style compression connectors, so I ordered a universal tool off the 'bay and it arrived yesterday.
I stripped a little too much on one end and it shorted the center conductor to the shield!! aaargh!!!! And of course, I should have ordered extras.
So, tune in next week. I plan on ordering extra connectors and make a pair between my phono and buffer, as well. Right now I am using Kimber PBJ and it will be interesting to compare.
My compression tool won't work on RCA style compression connectors, so I ordered a universal tool off the 'bay and it arrived yesterday.I stripped a little too much on one end and it shorted the center conductor to the shield!! aaargh!!!! And of course, I should have ordered extras.
So, tune in next week. I plan on ordering extra connectors and make a pair between my phono and buffer, as well. Right now I am using Kimber PBJ and it will be interesting to compare.
Got a pair set up for listening
I only got to test the new interconnects. I have not given my Kimber PBJs a chance to show what they can do.
This is all preliminary, as my two toddlers became very interested in what Daddy was doing, and the only way to pacify them was to drop my headphones on their heads! Wait..no..I gently placed them over their ears. No children were harmed in this testing and volumes were kept reasonably low.
I could hear alot of detail coming through, especially mids and highs. Lows sounded a bit thick, as of someboy laid a thick blanket in front of a woofer. But this is an early impression so I'll expand more on it later.
One thumbs down to the rca compression connectors I bought from Markertek. They do a great job of grabbing everything really tight and it feels as if you could hang a 10 lb weight from it. (specs say up to 20 lbs, but I won't try it). The bad news was that as I was removing one by reaching around the back of my phono pre, as I was pulling, the barrel piece popped off from the main body. I thought this was no problem, so got out my compression tool and I heard a slight snap. Cool. Wrong! As soon as I released pressure, the barrel popped off. No amount of pressure would hold it in place. So once they pop off, they will never fit onto the connector.
I'll provide photos later so you can see what I mean with greater discussion of my trial.
I only got to test the new interconnects. I have not given my Kimber PBJs a chance to show what they can do.
This is all preliminary, as my two toddlers became very interested in what Daddy was doing, and the only way to pacify them was to drop my headphones on their heads! Wait..no..I gently placed them over their ears. No children were harmed in this testing and volumes were kept reasonably low.
I could hear alot of detail coming through, especially mids and highs. Lows sounded a bit thick, as of someboy laid a thick blanket in front of a woofer. But this is an early impression so I'll expand more on it later.
One thumbs down to the rca compression connectors I bought from Markertek. They do a great job of grabbing everything really tight and it feels as if you could hang a 10 lb weight from it. (specs say up to 20 lbs, but I won't try it). The bad news was that as I was removing one by reaching around the back of my phono pre, as I was pulling, the barrel piece popped off from the main body. I thought this was no problem, so got out my compression tool and I heard a slight snap. Cool. Wrong! As soon as I released pressure, the barrel popped off. No amount of pressure would hold it in place. So once they pop off, they will never fit onto the connector.
I'll provide photos later so you can see what I mean with greater discussion of my trial.
Sonodis
Does this look like the cable Belden 179DT Digital Video Cable (RG179) PER FOOT - Black BL-179DT - SJ Media Systems
If so, you will note that this is 75 ohm coaxial cable. You should check the specifications for the RCA compression connectors to be sure they are made for this specific cable. If not the connection will not be reliable. Also this is the common impeadance for the television cable industry so I this seems a bit strange
Does this look like the cable Belden 179DT Digital Video Cable (RG179) PER FOOT - Black BL-179DT - SJ Media Systems
If so, you will note that this is 75 ohm coaxial cable. You should check the specifications for the RCA compression connectors to be sure they are made for this specific cable. If not the connection will not be reliable. Also this is the common impeadance for the television cable industry so I this seems a bit strange
Thanks for the input and questions
firechief, yes, that is the cable. I purchased it from Markertek as well as the Connectronics connectors. I made sure to purchase the connectors made specifically for that type of Belden cable. I have not yet contacted Markertek, but likely I will by the weekend. Belden markets it as a digital cable, but does mention that it handles analog too. I know, the impedance is not what you expect, but as Salas mentioned, he has used RG-179 w/o issue. I've also seen other 75 ohm impedance cable recommended for analog. Belden 1694A has been a popular cable for audio interconnect. I just ordered some as a comparison. It is also 75 ohm impedance.
Salas, yes, I agree that perhaps the best route is to try and solder the cable and compare. I'll spend some time on the 'net researching the right RCA cable. I'm befuddled that these connectors are not as rugged as one could expect.
firechief, yes, that is the cable. I purchased it from Markertek as well as the Connectronics connectors. I made sure to purchase the connectors made specifically for that type of Belden cable. I have not yet contacted Markertek, but likely I will by the weekend. Belden markets it as a digital cable, but does mention that it handles analog too. I know, the impedance is not what you expect, but as Salas mentioned, he has used RG-179 w/o issue. I've also seen other 75 ohm impedance cable recommended for analog. Belden 1694A has been a popular cable for audio interconnect. I just ordered some as a comparison. It is also 75 ohm impedance.
Salas, yes, I agree that perhaps the best route is to try and solder the cable and compare. I'll spend some time on the 'net researching the right RCA cable. I'm befuddled that these connectors are not as rugged as one could expect.
This is very common wire to use on a high gain tube based guitar amp. I'll use it to run the signal to the gin pin on the socket and to a volume or tone pot. I just use solder like normal hookup wire. I only connect one end of the shield so no current can flow. If you have balanced signal use two cables
Hi speedskater,
To make them external audio wires!
I want to see if they make a good interconnect between phone pre and buffer, cd to buffer, or buffer to my amp. It's relatively cheap, has low capacitance, so I thought why not give it a shot! My pbj's cost me over $70 so I thought it would be really cool to see if they have any cheap competition.
To make them external audio wires!
I want to see if they make a good interconnect between phone pre and buffer, cd to buffer, or buffer to my amp. It's relatively cheap, has low capacitance, so I thought why not give it a shot! My pbj's cost me over $70 so I thought it would be really cool to see if they have any cheap competition.
Yeah, I think some folks may be scratching their heads. But some folks like using a thin solid core copper conductor, plus I figured that routing this stuff internally past transformers should prove to work okay in the 'outside' world. And to say once again, Kimber PBJ has no shield.
I'm taking some time for further listening this week, so if you're interested, keep reading!!
ChrisA, thanks for the info! I hope to build a small bass amp in the future, so all this extra wire will come in handy.
I'm taking some time for further listening this week, so if you're interested, keep reading!!
ChrisA, thanks for the info! I hope to build a small bass amp in the future, so all this extra wire will come in handy.
That's Kimber's problem, not mine.
My first priority for unbalanced interconnects is as heavy a shield as possible.
more to report
Ok, again I apologize because this is not scientific at all, but my ears are noticing a nice difference between my budget interconnect vs. my Kimber PBJ.
I still want to do some more listening, but I only swapped between the Kimber PBJ and my DIY cable. All other equipment stayed the same.
I put on some Patty Griffin and I listened to both cables through my Sennheisder HD580 phones. I heard so much more of her voice and it was a better representative of being recorded in a studio. Highs were dull in the Kimber, but clearer on my diy pair. Bass was more impactful too. All around, I really like this cable.
I'll report more as I take the time to listen. Again, this is all subjective with no objectivity since I don't have test equipment.
But when you think about what you can spend on Kimber PBJ vs. what I'm spending on my diy cables, well, it puts a big grin on my face.
Ok, again I apologize because this is not scientific at all, but my ears are noticing a nice difference between my budget interconnect vs. my Kimber PBJ.
I still want to do some more listening, but I only swapped between the Kimber PBJ and my DIY cable. All other equipment stayed the same.
I put on some Patty Griffin and I listened to both cables through my Sennheisder HD580 phones. I heard so much more of her voice and it was a better representative of being recorded in a studio. Highs were dull in the Kimber, but clearer on my diy pair. Bass was more impactful too. All around, I really like this cable.
I'll report more as I take the time to listen. Again, this is all subjective with no objectivity since I don't have test equipment.
But when you think about what you can spend on Kimber PBJ vs. what I'm spending on my diy cables, well, it puts a big grin on my face.
Hi Salas,
Actually, this is using the original compression style connectors. The same that separated back into 2 pieces. The compression on the connection is not compromised...still looks very tight.
The first time I listened after I had just put them together, I had 2 curious toddlers crawling over me and had to put down the headphones after listening for 1 minute. I listened this past Saturday morning when everyone was still asleep, so my ears were fresh as was my sanity.
It's my intent to find a decent RCA connector and solder up a set quite soon.
I also noticed that I was probably hearing more of the soundstage because it seemed much quieter, likely a benefit from the shielding.
Actually, this is using the original compression style connectors. The same that separated back into 2 pieces. The compression on the connection is not compromised...still looks very tight.
The first time I listened after I had just put them together, I had 2 curious toddlers crawling over me and had to put down the headphones after listening for 1 minute. I listened this past Saturday morning when everyone was still asleep, so my ears were fresh as was my sanity.
It's my intent to find a decent RCA connector and solder up a set quite soon.
I also noticed that I was probably hearing more of the soundstage because it seemed much quieter, likely a benefit from the shielding.
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