Actually, there's nothing wrong with crossing cables. Problems can arise when when cables are run parallel and electromagnetically induce currents in each other(http://cas.umkc.edu/physics/wrobel/phy250/lecture6.pdf). Distance is your friend, in those cases, as the fields diminish per the Inverse Square Law(http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/forces/isq.html). You also want to avoid coiling any cables/wires, as they then become inductors(http://www.electronics-tutorials.ws/inductor/inductor.html).
Creating space between interconnects & keeping cables off the floor
I strongly doubt this is an original idea, but since I came across it on my own, I thought I would share it and solicit the opinions of fellow Audiogoners. Conventional audio wisdom seems to be that power cables should be elevated off the floor and interconnects should not interconnect with one another (i.e., cross) if at all possible. If you have a minimalist system, that may not be a major problem. But if you have a lot of separates and only a narrow space behind your racks to accommodate all the connections, it can become a real problem, as it was for me. Various companies offer various (but generally expensive... and not always effective) solutions for this. For instance, since I use mostly Shunyata power cords and conditioners, my first instinct was to try their Dark Field Mini separators for the web of interconnects behind my system. While these may work as advertised for the thicker and heavier interconnects that Shunyata makes, they were useless on my thinner, but beloved Nordost interconnects, which lacked the weight and the mass to keep the Minis from falling to the floor. Ditto with my Ocos speaker cables. Short of redesigning my entire system, I didn't know what I could could about it until, one day, while walking down the wrong aisle at CVS in search of dental floss, I came across packages of wooden clothes pins. Forgetting all about the dental floss, I bought them on an impulse, took them home, and discovered they make stable lifters and separators for normal width cables. They attach easily to my speaker cables and, spaced about 3 or 4 feet apart, keep them about 3 inches off the floor. If you use them to separate interconnects behind your system -- with the grip end around one cable and the other cable sandwiched between the handle end, the separation is about 1.5 inches... A really cheap, easy and, as far as I can tell, effective way to help tame the tangled web of wires behind one's system. But I'd be interested in what others who have tried this have to say about it. Thanks
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Danham, it is unlikely to make any difference, although it is conceivable that in some systems it might. However, even if it does make a difference there is no reason to assume that having one 11 foot cable and one 4 foot cable would necessarily sound worse than having two 11 foot cables. It is just as conceivable that it could sound better. See my two posts in this thread. As is usual in audio, however, there are others who will disagree. Regards, -- Al |
bdp24, If you're serious.... First, wouldn't that create more of the so called "skin effect" or at the very least another layer of insulation the signal is having to deal with. Second, If you're going to step on the wires without the other add-ons, aren't you likely to step on them with the add-ons? Third, I'd be concerned about any static electricity forming with the "pool noodles". Fourth, Are you really serious? haha! geoffkait, I thought of doing a similar thing years ago regarding hanging my amp from the ceiling. Thankfully, I came across your springs. I do a somewhat similar thing with rubber bands integrated on my Dedicated Audio "Cable Towers". Another layer of isolation. |
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