Which inexpensive speaker cables...

@b_limo ,

where have you been? Long time man. Try Signal cables. These should sound good. How long should the cables be?

Pine Tree Audio offers high-value cables that have gotten good feedback here, and the owner seems to be very helpful in providing good suggestions if you tell him specifically what you’re looking for.  Best of luck. 

https://sites.google.com/view/pine-tree-audio/speaker-cables/speaker-cables

I have had great luck with Pine Tree Audio USB cables.  I would expect their  speaker cables would be comparable.

I use WBC speaker cable and interconnects (XLR and RCA). Here is a 20' run that might work for you.

https://www.amazon.com/WORLDS-BEST-CABLES-Foot-Ultimate/dp/B0CFYBR5X3/ref=sr_1_12?crid=R7WH1Q8G6ALB&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.VzklLbQddHxbvD6pa3AD5BpSgdrxKQPPcJyBtOf0DP6f2D9g_5RwRkg3TTiVCcAbWi5vUQfC-jZLxFfUrZ7IAkis-Gk1kYCEJxY2TlHX9wU-9JEnSu5O0K7pmSjKmLu73ZRyZEbgbmW1U2sPK4smv6MhSwli9zrR2EFtEiYJXegb0eLog3vfexvqPlEzlNqQV9VSnvKkm1a-eYlEcg-E2CM8xURGwzLN3G7zqkHmL1I.ddP_bI4xt7Nfv0Me7YKKloVMBODZYSqpmrc5RImtplI&dib_tag=se&keywords=wbc+speaker+cable+20&qid=1738123738&sprefix=wbc+speaker+cable+20%2Caps%2C166&sr=8-12&xpid=f6r2on2dZOulk

Thanks Milpai and Soix!  Sheesh Milpai, haven't talked to you forever.  I hope you are well.  Your system has just been awesome for awhile now.  

Man, I'm needing long long runs... 20 feet?  I hate doing that but for me life circumstances often dictate my stereo Room.

I was In a house all by myself for years where I could play music absurdly loud anytime I wanted... it was glorious, lol.

Anyhow, really good to hear from you Milpai and you too Soix 😊 

Oh, and I will definitely check out pine tree audio.  Love the name by the way.  Ihave 20 pine trees on my yard

@Thrifty audio,thank you!  I was actually just looking at those but couldn't find a 20 foot run.

You guys are awesome.  Seriously, like15 minutes after my post I get all these great suggestions.

Audiogon and the people here are the best!  

Pine tree was too expensive...

Worlds best cables is the top runner at the moment.

Canare 4s11 with good connectors or buy them already built from bluejeans cables. For a 20ft at $200 you can get much worse than the Canare

Monoprice, GearIt, Canare, and others offer similar wire that’s excellent value and performance. Especially the bulk OFC cables that you can DIY pretty easily.  Make sure to steer clear of copper clad aluminum (CCA). 

i see 20'  canare 4s11 on ebay for a hundo or so--i use it and it's just fine.

@loomisjohnson  +1!

20ft. Canares $99.95 or best offer with $7 shipping out of Minneapolis.

Not going to beat that!

Mogami

Pine tree was too expensive...
 

Looks like the Etherial, Visceral, and Muscular would all be <$200   Did you call them?

https://sites.google.com/view/pine-tree-audio/speaker-cables/speaker-cables

Lookalike Canares is the way to go.  Thanks everyone who replied.  Once I get them and get them in my system I'll give some feedback here on this thread 

To @b_limo it’s great to see you posting back on the forum again. Keep us posted on the results on the cables, and wherever you ended up getting them from. I was looking at the different LC-1 with higher capacitance vs. LC-2 on the bluejeans cable site just to have another set for different setups and other devices I add in once in a while. Best of Luck on everything. 

I have really been happy with "Worlds Best Cables" as they simply use world-class cables, the same brand and model you'd buy doing it the best way yourself, and then use top brand terminations of name brand and models. They build them the way you would if you were doing it right, and no BS. I had a variety of wires and cables and now have gone to them almost exclusively. You can look up the brand and model of the cables and terminations and decide which combinations they offer are best for your need. I have XLR and RCA both from them.

I'm waiting on a demo set of Graham Slee Spatia cables.  I just demo'd their CuSat50 interconnects and loved them, so I ordered a pair.  Depending on the length you need, they might come in right around $200-$230 shipped direct from England.  You can also sign up for their US loaner program and try them out for the cost of shipping (from Kentucky, where the loaners are).  

https://www.hifisystemcomponents.com/interconnects-cables/spatia-speaker-cable.html

Keep in mind that the British Pound price shown on the website includes 20% VAT, which will be deducted from the price for US purchases.  

I'm also about to demo Blue Jeans Cable Ten White, which a lot of people rave about as best bang for the buck.  These will definitely come in at less than $200 for a set.  You can buy (and return) Blue Jeans cables through Amazon (but the company is based outside of Philadelphia): https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Jeans-Cable-Speaker-Terminations/dp/B097S6Q182?th=1  

Another cable that I've heard great things about is the Duelund DCA12GA unterminated.  It costs about $33.75 per meter.  You could then buy some inexpensive spade lugs to add.  You can find Duelund here:  https://partsconnexion.com/cart.php

Belden 9497 is well received and can be purchased for about $4 per foot or in ready made pairs.

I make my own out of Cat 5 or Cat 6 from eBay, cut any connectors off, twist different colors, add WBT type connectors from Parts Express or Amazon

Add a few feet to allow extra length needed when you twist them.

Pay attention to the details: I go for pure copper, foil wrapped, 4 shielded twisted pairs, prefer stranded to solid core, 

8 x 24awg = 15 awg

If you can find it, 8 x 22 awg = 13 awg. (smaller awg # is larger)

multiple strand calculator

DNM no question

https://www.dnm.co.uk/cables.html

https://www.dnm.co.uk/acatalog/Ready-to-use-DNM-Cables.html

I can't remember the model number but I had good results in an HT setup using lower end bulk Audioquest cables. I terminated them with some decent quality spades/bananas from Parts Express.

Try Blue Jeans Cable in Washington (north of Oregon).

@b_limo ,

will wait to hear back on your Canares experience. But happy for, since I saw a mention of “baby proof”. I am making an assumption here.

Monoprice or Blue Jeans cables.

Performance Audio.  Just had two pairs of 12ga/20ft cables made because I'm going to bi-amp my new system.  They have options so you can tailor to your needs.  I went with carbon fiber bananas, pants and labels.  I had mine labeled to make it easier when bi-amping.  I did not chose the fancy braided covering but it is an option.  They have a good selection of cables.  Go to "Custom Cables" then "Speaker Cables"  I went with the Canare but you have options.  Trust me, you should check-out Performance Audio. I did my Outlaw surround system using all Performance Audio cables and it sounded fantastic.  The labels make set-up SO MUCH easier.  Especially when hooking-up multiple XLR's. Warning; Once you do custom cables, there's no going back!  I've used Performance Audio a few times and can only say good things.  

They may be slightly above your budget, but Morrow should be considered, even their 1-series.  For me, replaced Purist Audio Design (PAD) as I needed long runs,, and appreciate the low profile and flexibility of the Morrow cables.  No sacrifice in SQ, either.

Too bad about the Pine Tree Audio cost.  Great cables and customer service.  Suggest Blue Jeans cable.  They can customize to any length and type of connectors.  Both companies have excellent customer service and are US based.  

I would check out Audio Advisor or The Cable Co. They have many choices available under $200, like Analysis Plus, Audioquest, Kimber and Cardas.  If you subscribe to Audio Advisor or Music Direct, they both will occasionally offer significant discounts on these quality brands.

+1 Performance Audio. 

Mogami or Monoprice or Blue Jeans have speaker cables in your price range.

All the best.

Canare 4S11

@ soix, Somehow I missed that pine tree audio pricing...the ones you mentioned are in my budget.

I'm snowed in today with some new (to me) speakers so I'll spend the day enjoying them and researching all of the suggested cables!

@Milpai, yes you are correct sir!  I have my first child running around now.  She's 10 months old.  Babies definitely change up our listening areas but it's OK, I'll adapt but I still want some good music playing in the background throughout the day.

Duelund Dual (Double) DCA 12GA Speaker Wire. Good stuff. You can even go old school and use just bare wire instead of using connectors.

I have a set of older Cardas Hexlink 5C speaker cables (3 meters and professionally terminated with Cardas spade lugs) that I might be selling in your price range.  They're a very nice, warm cable with excellent bass.  Let me know if you might be interested. 

+1 BJ cables have been mentioned several times. If you want to save money (about 50%) and enjoy some DIY, here’s what you need:

Choose Belden 5T00UP (as used by BJ), primarily because it has the lowest DCR (0.001 ohm/ft). Ideally, you want the resistance to be 0.01 ohm or less, so a 10-foot speaker cable made of 5T00UP is right at that threshold. Also, it gets one of the lowest capacitance (26 pF/ft) preferred for optimal sound fidelity among the cables in the market. Pair it with Nakamichi plugs, and you’ll have a high-quality set of speaker cables for around $60 / pair.

The result sounds excellent—comparable to the solid copper AudioQuest cables I’ve owned for 25 years.

Belden 5T00UP 10awg bare high-conductivity ETP copper conductors

Belden 5000UP 12awg bare high-conductivity ETP copper conductors

Belden 9497 16awg stranded ETP high-conductivity tinned copper conductors

I agree with Canare or Mogami. I use Canare 4S11 in a 20K system and can think of no reason to change.

Canare 4S11 has been mentioned several times and seems a popular choice. I’m just curious how it stacks up against Belden 5T00UP. See below. Belden outperforms Canare in those attributes.

For a nominal amplifier output impedance of 0.05 ohms, using a 10 ft speaker cable, the total impedance seen by the amplifier is lower with Belden 5T00UP (0.06 ohms) compared to Canare 4S11 (0.076 ohms). This difference can have a non-trivial impact on the damping factor, potentially affecting the tightness and agility of bass response. You may not notice this difference in an ordinary system, but with high-end gear, it could be quite significant.

                                               5T00UP             4S11

1. DCR (ohm/1000 ft)        1.03                  2.6
2. Capacitance (pF/ft)          26                   45

I'm interested as well.

I did at one point have a 20 foot run of the Belden from blue jeans.  I locked the locking bannanas and the flexibility of the cable.  

Interested in the canare as I've not used that.

Lanx, thank you!

@airwatcher. Thanks for another canare vote

@sd. 3 meters is only 9 feet

Wireworld Luna are incredibly good (Canare sounds shrill by comparison). Really, they are all the speaker cable anyone ever needs. The terminations allow easy swapping between spades and bananas so you don’t ever have to throw them out if you change components/speakers.

98% of audiophiles would benefit far more from upgrading their speakers. 

Mogami 3103 (12 awg) has comparable properties to Belden 5T00UP too.

Anyone here who tells you their expensive designer cables are wrong and ignore the science of sound. Don't by the snake oil.

The only problem with coat hangers is they're not very pliable. Go getGet ANY cheap OFC at the gauge that matches your run. I use 12 AWG for everything, and even that's overkill.

In the world of audio cables, more money doesn't mean better. In most cases, those actually measure worse. 

If solid wire is not an issue, good old romex wire works quite well. 

get off of the insanity of the cable merry go round. Here is all you need

Canare 4S11 Star Quad 14AWG 4-Conductor Speaker Cable  $1.60 a foot.

Parts Express Angled Locking Stacking Banana Plug  $28

Canare L-4E6S Star-Quad Microphone Cable   59 cents a foot

Parts Express Locking RCA Connector   $20

I have probably $100K invested in hardware.. these cables are all you need. 

I agree with airwatcher,the Canare 4S11 wire and some good ends. Even Monoprice speaker wire ain't too bad if you run long distances without a run around. I bought the canare 4S11 by the foot from Performance Audio out of Salt lake City for a good price & service.

I have only used Canare L-4ES6 for interconnects, single ended and balanced, for at least 25 years now and even in my high end car audio comp builds from back then. I will have to give the 4S11 or 4S11G a try in our full time RV system as soon as I start building speakers for it and I will likely try the Beldon 5T00UP. Once I am satisfied with the wire to use I will silver solder them directly to the speakers or crossover components of the various builds I test, OB, sealed, ported, etc....

In my personal opinion, based on success in audio comps and 20 years as a tech on very complex electronics, I believe in good cabling at affordable prices is all one really needs. Anything beyond that the price is exponential for little perceived gain but more likely differences, not improvements, to help different pieces of gear suite the sound of the owners preferences as we all are a bit different in how we perceive things.

Rick

I use Monoprice 2 conductor CL2 12AWG 99% OFC on a 100’ spool, currently $46 at the Monoprice store on Amazon, solderless dead-bolt banana plugs, typically about $20 per 6 pair, and make mine to length as needed. The cable has a white jacket allowing it to be less obtrusive than black against most baseboard paint. 

I’m a big fan of Blue Jeans Cables. They have several types of cables to choose from, they make to order so custom lengths are not a problem, the locking banana clips they use are genius. They ship out quickly and use second day FedEx.  I’ve had a couple of conversations with them and you talk to the owner.  Excellent product Excellent service and real world pricing. 
Don’t forget to check out how they ultra sonically weld the cable to the connector. 
https://www.bluejeanscable.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoq8SFE3KyT2qwB4aUXfAJ_YwQniTAw8Kx_7GkGspxESHLHWnQZu

laugh if you must, but I bought 12 and 14ga. speaker wire from KnuKonceptz Karma.com It’s Twisted oxygen free copper wires in a clear tubing Cheap,Cheap, Cheap. Great sound could not believe the difference they made. I have Mcintosh tube preamp and a Mc452 power amp with Cornwall4s speakers I have not heard anything better. For under 50$ you can’t go wrong. If you don’t like them I think they take returns . My interconnects I spend 1500.hundred on and I still stuck with their cheap speaker wire.And BTW I have no affiliation to this company.

Best inexpensive cable-Belden digital SPDIF cable.  Used until I receive my Westminster Labs Ultra carbon fiber AES cable.  $25 for a true 75 ohm cable.  I've also used Belden XLRs previously on EAR equipment.  My friend and I can vouch for the digital cable though.  Used on Shanling ET3, Jay's Audio CDt3 Mk3 to Topping D70s and Lampizator Poseidon.  A true bargain.  At 12X the price, Grover Huffman all silver SPDIF cable.  Also Grover Huffman power, phono and speaker cables are high end at a much reduced price despite not being SOTA.  Those Masterbuilt Ultras and Westminster Labs Ultras are mucho dinero, best on high end and SOTA equipment.