Duelund conversion to DIY Helix Geometry Cabling

Would it be wrong to point out that you have pretty much built an inductor?  This geometry will not reduce magnetic interference by the way, it would probably make it worse. This is how spark plug wires are wound in order to create high inductance in order to reduce transmission of high frequencies in the wire itself.


If this provides you more listening enjoyment, then absolutely you should do it, but you should also be cognizant of what you are creating.


w.r.t. a power cord, contrary to what many believe, inductance in a power cord is probably better in many cases. Those high "peaks" they carry high frequencies that the power supply is not great at filtering. Amplifiers usually have inductive filters on the AC to soften those peaks.

@gregm - I use the 16 gauge Mil-spec as listed on my web site with the Mundorf wire and it works extremely well.

If oyu use any thicker gauge then it would be difficult to attach the RCA housing because the finished cable is too thick.

Regards - Steve

@roberttdid - I have been advised by many in the past of the points you have posted above (and more) and have been "ridiculed" in my approach and design.

Many people on the various forums where the helix design have been discussed would "appear" to have significantly more electrical knowledge than myself, but their comments are purely conjecture, since none of them have actually tried the cables for themselves at the time they made the comments

Most high end commercial products are designed by people with far more knowledge/experience about cable design than myself, in labs with huge amounts of resources.

And yet, my cables continue to outperform many of the high end commercial products available.

WRT Your comment about the coil not reducing magnetic interference - I tried a simple test back in time, to verify the effectiveness of the Helix coil for this purpose...
- I selected my phono stage on my amp
- I turned the volume to full
- I held in my clenched fist a standard power cable and a Helix IC connecting the TT to the phono stage
- I observed hum
- I repeated the same process but using the helix power cable and the same Helix IC
- the hum was reduced significantly to almost zero

So, I concluded (rightly or wrongly) that the helix coil was having the same effect as a faraday cage in reducing EMI/RFI - perhaps I am wrong, but my ears told me otherwise.

I would love to partner up with someone that has the , knowledge experience and equipment to be able to measure the effectiveness of these cables, so I could explain WHY these cables work so well, but until then I will continue to trust my ears.

One of the "side effects" of implementing the Helix cables across an entire system that I have observed...
- the solid state components tend to run noticeably cooler.
- I actually measure the reduced heat output and for source components they can run 3-4 Celsius cooler
- and my amp runs 5-6 degrees Celsius cooler.

Why? - I do not know, but I see reduced heat as a good side effect

If you can shed any "light" as to why the cables work so well I would be more than willing to listen, since my reasoning’s are not verified by actual measurement, or as some like to point out - a lack of sound electrical knowledge

BTW - I have posted capacitance and inductance values for the various cables on my web site
http://image99.net/blog/files/0e1ba96cb878bd4ad7c14097b25d258a-82.html

Also, many thanks for your very civil post (honestly) - most people that "disagree" with the Helix design just say I am posting nonsense and should not be believed. (or words to that effect).


Regards - Steve

I was careful in my wording about magnetic interference. Grabbing a cable with your hand is electrostatic interference predominantly and the helix winding will help just like a coax cable will help.  Where it won't is say near a transformer in an aluminum case, or other incidences of magnetic coupling.

WRT Your comment about the coil not reducing magnetic interference - I tried a simple test back in time, to verify the effectiveness of the Helix coil for this purpose...
- I selected my phono stage on my amp
- I turned the volume to full
- I held in my clenched fist a standard power cable and a Helix IC connecting the TT to the phono stage
- I observed hum
- I repeated the same process but using the helix power cable and the same Helix IC
- the hum was reduced significantly to almost zero

Keep in mind, I am not knocking the sonic outcome, I am just describing what is happening.

w.r.t. your equipment running "cooler", I am skeptical, but may I ask, is you amplifier Class-A?  How did you measure the temperature?  If it was with one of those IR ones, they can vary a lot if not used properly.

One interesting thing with adding a large inductor in series with a linear power supply is that the output voltage of the linear power supply will drop. Lower output voltage = lower heat.  I doubt you are adding enough inductance to achieve this though.  You are also adding resistance with the longer wire which also will lower the voltage.  Then again, the AC may have been 115 one day, and 125 the other day when you measured the temps.

On its looks.....similar to AntiCables