Length- Speaker wire/interconnect ?s

I'm not surprised by the previous two responses, as this is pretty general knowledge. All I can add is that I'm having no trouble at all with 9' interconnects--not really long but not really short either--used with a passive preamp. Do you have monoblock power amps? That's the only way to have very short speaker cables, and is worth thinking about. I made that change recently, and will never look back. It brought me a lot closer to the music.

I forgot to say one thing: I'm also using a CD player straight into the 9' interconnects, with no problem. And another thing: shielding isn't the ONLY reason, surely, for having short speaker cables with long interconnects.

All of the above are good replies. Do keep in mind that in either case...speaker wire or interconnect..the shorter the better. Define what the total is between your source(s), your pre-amp, your power amp and your speakers,.. then come up with the total lengths and divide as you see fit...although the suggestions for the longer length being the interconnects is accurate. The thing to remember is that ALL wire...shielded or not...is an antenna for RF and all other airborne electronic noise. Would any audiophile open up any component they have and lengthen any of the internal wire?,..of course not. This is why that no matter where it is, or what type it is (digital, interconnect or speaker) the shorter the better...waveguide logic does not apply.

The only other snag is decent long interconnects ususally more $$$ than decent long speaker cables. They are correct in there assumptions.

This is science not magic, there are many things to consider, shielding for RF & EMI interference on cables as far as I know has only been measured as having any positive effect above 100K this is well above the audible range. I think you should be most concerned about signal loss and signal degradation, so if the Boneville power administration is going to send electricity hundreds of miles it is sent at a high voltage and then stepped down at the last point practicle. Capacitance is more of a problem at high frequencies and lower signal levels. Considering no outside influences on the wire I would recomend to use the shortest cable at the lowest signal strength point.We are not just talking about wire but a system. If you would like to learn more about the science behind wire not the "magic" I recomend Stephen Lampens book" Wire, Cable, Fiber optics" this book is written for engineers and is available through McGraw Hill.