Does SpeakOn cable diameter matter?

[sawzalot]

I have found this chart helpful. For short distances like from amp had to cabinet, 16 AWG has always been fine for me. If I'm running 25-50 foot runs from power amps to PA subwoofers I use heavier cables.

 

[cableguy]

Just don't forget the flux capacitor...…..

 

[okcrum]

Very helpful plating for various RF applications, as the black sulfide tarnish retains some conductivity

Fixed it. Editing timeouts are hell when you have my memory recall. Actually Ag2S is classified as a p-type semiconductor IIRC.

 

[agedhorse]

Ya, that's like #6. Not quite welding cable, but...


Not for audio. Very helpful plating for various RF applications, as the oxide retains conductivity. Conversely, I've sputtered high power waveguide with titanium to inhibit arcing in a few cases.

Silver plating under teflon is one helpful application.

 

[murph7489]

in the electrical business I call that simply SJ wire..I make extension cords out of it all the time.

 

[Avigdor]

[...]
almost, superconductors do exist, Zero Ohms Resistance
I want someone to wind a pickup with some of that!

I always find this picture from CERN brings it home:

"Regular and superconducting cables for 12500 amperes used at LEP (top) and Large Hadron Collider (bottom) respectively." Large Hadron Collider - Wikimedia Commons

Of course you'd need a serious cooling plant for the superconductor, especially if you managed to use it in pickups. Although it would add a new class of posts: "Help, my cooling failed mid-gig and my pickup quenched"

 

[mmbongo]

Not sure if this part was answered, but..

NEVER NEVER use an instrument cable as a speaker cable. An instrument cable has a tiny center conductor with an outer shield. Not suitable for speaker cable.

 

[beans-on-toast]

Buy the gauge and length that you need. Bigger is not always better.

A lower gauge will be heavier and could put stress at the connector. It might also be less flexible depending on the wire and the outside sheathing.

 

[seamonkey]

Of course you'd need a serious cooling plant for the superconductor, especially if you managed to use it in pickups. Although it would add a new class of posts: "Help, my cooling failed mid-gig and my pickup quenched"

"My helium leaked and I sang like a chipmunk all night."
"Making helium balloon animals during breaks is a big hit with the crowds I play for."
"Our cables entangled and we decrypted everyone's cell phone"

 

[bherman]

For audio signals, 16 AWG can handle considerably more than 10 amps safely and legally.

What's important is that it's for audio speaker applications (completely different set of standards are used for audio than GENERAL POWER DISTRIBUTION) and the length of the cable. This determines the performance. 16 gauge 6 feet long is going to be fine to about 18 amps for all intensive audio applications purposes, this is the equivalent of 1300 watts RMS into 4 ohms and 650 watts RMS into 2 ohms.

As the length grows to 25' this power number will decrease, not because of safety but because of performance, damping factor and power loss.

Also, your math is off. If 16 AWG could only handle 10 amps, that would represent 400 watts into 4 ohms and 200 watts into 2 ohms.

@agedhorse for those of us with rudimentary understanding of all things electrical, can you clarify? Sounds like what you are saying is that for typical amp to speaker connections using Speakon connectors, 16 awg wire is more than adequate. Interesting that when I do a quick search for premade cables online, almost all of the speaker cables available are advertised as 12 awg. Commercial overkill??

 

[agedhorse]

in the electrical business I call that simply SJ wire..I make extension cords out of it all the time.

As an EE specifying products on a drawing for the industrial controls market,the differences between SJ and SJO or SJOWor SJOOW are huge and they are not necessarily interchangeable. If SJOW is specified and SJ is provided, that would fail inspection and need to be replaced with the specified cable.

@agedhorse for those of us with rudimentary understanding of all things electrical, can you clarify? Sounds like what you are saying is that for typical amp to speaker connections using Speakon connectors, 16 awg wire is more than adequate. Interesting that when I do a quick search for premade cables online, almost all of the speaker cables available are advertised as 12 awg. Commercial overkill??

Often, yes. Sometimes no.

It depends on the power, the load impedance, and the length. All 3 factor into what wire size is acceptable.

Audio speaker cable is different from a code or standards perspective because the signal is not continuous, therefore temperature rise is not the same as for other areas of electrical applications. This is covered under UL 60065 and UL 62368.

 

[abarson]

almost, superconductors do exist, Zero Ohms Resistance
I want someone to wind a pickup with some of that!

This is a superconducting magnet being assembled. It is cryogenically cooled to reach the theoretical zero ohms resistance. You sure you want four of these in your bass?

 

[Killed_by_Death]

almost all of the speaker cables available are advertised as 12 awg

I'm not sure how they even FIT 12 AWG wire into SpeakON terminals TBH. I used 14 AWG on all the speaker-wires I made up & 14 AWG barely fits.
For a short run like most of us are using 16 AWG is fine, but for a long run or something with more than 1,300 Watts at 4 Ohm, 14 AWG should suffice.
That's why I made all mine 14 AWG, a little over-spec on purpose to suit most applications.

However, 14 AWG costs about twice as much when you're buying by the foot:

Also, the diameter of the cord would be too thick to fit through a SpeakON strain-relief "bushing" if it's 12 AWG & has the thick jacket.

 

[agedhorse]

12AWG will fit SpeakOn connectors but the prep and assembly needs to carefully executed.

With NL-4's, 2 chucks are supplied, one (white) fits SJ type cable while the other (black) will fit most S type cables. This applies to 2 wire cable, most 4 wire cases will not fit properly.

4 wire cables are much more difficult to assemble well, and in general SJ type cable is a much better choice since is also places less stress on the mating connector.

In pro audio, any cable 50' or less is often 14 gauge unless driving 2 ohm loads. In my touring systems all of my amp racks lived behind the speakers, so everything was 14 gauge 4 wire. For the monitor system, where 4 ohms was the minimum load, 50' x 14 gauge was the norm.

 

[seamonkey]

There's a marketing gimmick that some cable has big fat insulation on it even though the internal wire gauge is small (as in size, small cross section)
This kind of cable can be hard to fit, best to avoid it.
I found that especially true when hooking up a bunch of powerCON TRUE TOP connectors.
This stuff really helped: Ideal 31-388 Clear Glide Wire Pulling Lubricant
As did actually reading the directions Neutrik publishes.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

Frank Zappa always recommended a good lubricant

I opened up an instrument-cable years ago & under all that rubber was a tiny filament-like center-conductor, that's when I decided I'd only build my own going forward!

 

[agedhorse]

Frank Zappa always recommended a good lubricant

I opened up an instrument-cable years ago & under all that rubber was a tiny filament-like center-conductor, that's when I decided I'd only build my own going forward!

There are plenty of quality instrument cables available if you avoid the off-shore Amazon and eBay type products. All the major manufacturers have high quality models. (note that I did not say esoteric or audiophile or "magic woo-woo") models.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

The added advantage of building my own is that IF one fails I can cut off a portion & put on a new connector, since they usually go bad at the bend right before the connector.
Yes, I've had it happen, losing 10 cm of wire is better than replacing the whole thing.
It also costs less to build your own, IME.
Sure you can get them cheaper, but then they don't specify what they're made of or the Capacitance/Length.

 

[S-Bigbottom]

I'm not sure how they even FIT 12 AWG wire into SpeakON terminals TBH. I used 14 AWG on all the speaker-wires I made up & 14 AWG barely fits.

It will, just got to give the tip a nice tight twist before slipping it into the cup.

I got some 12 AWG Livewire brand from the Guitar Center's bulk wire bin that was pre cut they had priced for $3 for ten feet so I grabbed it knowing very well it was way overkill.
Works good if a bit stiff, made two cables from it. The strain ring also fit over the jacket with room to spare, using the NL4FX connector which is what most complete sets of 12 AWG are sold with.

Neutrik says 12-10 AWG in their specs for the 4 pole,
NL4FX
and 16-12AWG for their two pole.
NL2FX
You must have the two pole?

 

[Bassamatic]

The best way to get Speakon cables is to buy them from Monoprice. The quality is great and the price is crazy good. They began as a cable manufacturer many years ago and now make and sell all kinds of audio products with terrific quality and pricing. Some people think that the 3rd party Speakons are troublesome, but that is not the case for at least the last 5 years - they are excellent. My neighbor provides professional PA and DJ services and that is all he uses. I have bought a couple for my needs as well - no problems!!

i.e. - 3 foot NL4/NL4 cable - 12 AWG cable - $8.99 - click here and select the length you want - Invalid Link Removed