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Duelund conversion to DIY Helix Geometry Cabling

I have been an avid user of the Duelund cabling for over two years now and have used them exclusively in my system with great results. I have built many for friends and have used a full loom of interconnects, speaker cables, power cords and an extensive wiring modification for a previously owned balanced power conditioner utilizing Duelund 600V PolyCast wiring which was transformative. My cabling desires can be a little addictive as I have owned and evaluated 40+ brands of cabling costing more than an entire stereo system!

Over the past six months I stumbled upon a thread here on Audiogon in regards to a Helix designed cabling and as you probably already know, I just had to look a little deeper into this cable design…After a month of studying and sourcing parts, I decided to reach out to the designer/architect, Williewonka who gave more insights and philosophy on how the cable came into existence.

That conversation got the ball rolling in converting one of my KLE Duelund interconnects to Steve’s Helix designed which only entailed replacing the neutral with a Mil-Spec 16 AWG silver-plated copper wire with the neural wire being 3 times longer than the signal wire and of course the “Coiling” of the neutral wire : )

After the modification was complete, I was not sure what to expect from the Helix cabling but I was quite shocked with the results with “ZERO” burn-in time…The sound stage became much wider/deeper with a much tighter/focused image and clarity/transparency is like nothing I have ever heard in any cabling regardless of cost. In fact, I just sold a full loom of a commercially designed Helix Cable that’s renowned around the world and has more direct sale than any cable manufacturer; these $200 DIY Helix Cables walked all over them…

I believe you will hear the same results as I have and have heard back from friends who have already modified their Duelunds with the same results; WOW! Remember the cables will need 200+ hours to burn-in and settle into your system. My system is now 90% DIY Helix to include IC, SC, PC and Coax with each cabling adding its beauty of an organic and natural presentation that draws you into the fabric of the music.

You can tailor the sound of your cables using Duelund, Mundorf silver/1% gold, the outstanding Vh Audio OCC Solid Copper or Silver with Airlok Insulation or your favorite wiring and you can change it at any time…

 

http://www.image99.net/blog/files/category-diy-cables.html

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/difference-in-sound-between-copper-and-silver-digital-cables

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/adding-shielding-to-existing-cables

 

Enjoy,

Wig


128x128wig
williewonka
3,071 posts
 
So, I answer questions from DIYer’s from all over, with vastly differing skill levels of building experience.

As such, I often get the feeling that some of them might be biting off more than they can chew.

I got to thinking about the questions I answer (almost daily) and thought it might be good to take a more "tempered view" of these three latest versions of the Helix cable - sort of a "sanity check".

Also, I know @wig , @grannyring and myself have logged hundreds of hours building and listening to cables over the years and we each have a specific approach when it comes to comparing cables - i.e. things to listen for.
- I know I have trained my ears over the past 10 years and now have over 70 audition tracks I regularly use for auditions
- From a listening perspective, I believe the improvements between these three versions might prove more difficult to discern for a more "casual listener".

Another concern is that less proficient DIYer’s may find some aspects of Building #3 to be challenging, even for a more experienced builder.
- Helix IC cables are more complicated to build than your average DIY IC cable and good soldering skills are definitely a requirement.

The wires used in all three builds are...
- SIGNAL WIRE - 18 gauge Solid Copper with AirLok insulation from VH Audio
- NEURAL WIRE - 16 gauge Cryo Silver Plated stranded Mil-Spec wire with Teflon insulation from Take Five Audio

So here are my "more tempered" thoughts on these three builds.

  • #1 -Single Wire for both signal and neutral coil
    • this is the original cable currently listed on my web site
    • provides excellent performance that rivals or betters most TOTL cable brands on the market
    • the easiest cable of the three to build, even for a novice DIYer.
    • It’s also the most affordable option
  • #2 -Two wires for the signal wire and One wire for the neutral coil
    • by comparison to #1, this cable is a little more articulate, with improved clarity and a more detailed and expansive image
    • a little more challenging to build, but even a novice could build with a little determination and thought
    • it’s also pretty easy to upgrade to this version from #1
  • #3 Two wires for both the the signal wire and neutral coil
    • by comparison to #2, this cable provides some additional improvements in articulation, clarity and image
    • The audible difference between #2 and #3 is actually quite small and the increased difficulty of the build I believe makes previous cable building and soldering experience a must.
    • But if it’s Audio Nirvana you are after? - #3 is the cable to build :-)

    Opting to build #1 or #2 is definitely easier and still results in a cable that provides exceptional audio performance - so don’t think you have to opt for #3 simply because it was found to offer the very best sound quality.

    As I get older I find myself "tempering" my expectations with a solid dose of "reality". Saves me a lot of frustration - and money :-)

    I plan to keep all three cables in my system for future reference purposes, but I will not feel I am "missing out" when listening to sources that use #1 or #2, to me they are just a little different

    Hope that helps - Steve



    grannyring's avatar
    grannyring
    6,436 posts
     
    The cumulative effect of the Helix cables is quite arresting. I now have Double Helix ICs, USB and jumpers. In addition, all my power cables are now Helix. I can say that the more the better. Each new cable I added increased the realism and resolution of my system.

    Only thing left is a couple of DC power cables for my LPS’s.
    grannyring's avatar
    grannyring
    6,436 posts
     
    I would add this one note. My system is very natural sounding and my Mojo Audio dac has much to do with this. No part of the frequency spectrum is out of balance. In my system a full loom of Helix cables works very well. If a system has a piece of gear or speakers that lean on the hot and lean side of things, then throwing in one warmer IC, for example, can be a good thing. I tried a Duelund Double in my system and that does darken and warm up the sound a tad. May be good for some systems.

    These Helix cables remove noise you never knew was there! They are great at removing noise and bringing you closer to the music and realism of the performance and instrument.


    mawe
    34 posts
     
    Hello,
     I have followed this thread and have been using VH Audio wire since 15+ years, DIY ICs, CheLa speaker cables and some PCs.

    Recently I tried the Helix design for a PC, first with some cheap “normal” pvc insulated 2.5sqmm copper wire to test it. 
    I finally did the PC for my AlloUSBridge Signature with the following parts:

    Hot= 2x 1.2mm dia. bare silver claded  solid copper in a PTFE tube sleeve with inner dia of 2.0mm, light twisted and than sleeved into a PTFE tube with 6mm inner dia.

    Neutral= 2 runs of the same wire in the same PTFE sleeve coiled with a Ground wire as per Helix design recommendation. PC connectors are SonarQuest pure silver.

    This design gives as low as possible dielectric as the surface of the wire is barely touching the insulation and main insulation is air.

    This is a very cost effective approach with a little more work to slide the bare wire into the PTFE sleeves, but it sounds incredibly open, stress free and fast.

    My experiences with PTFE insulated OCC copper compared to the VH Audio Silver in cotton had always been, that the Neotech OCC wire sounded not as open as the cotton insulated wire. And the Airlock insulation is not far off either.

    However, for IC my findings always been, that max wire gauge should be 24AWG. If one wants, one can double it, so 2x 24 AWG for hot and ground. Recently testet a Single 22 AWG wire and was not impressed with the results. Bass and mid/highs had been good, but somehow soundstage became smaller.
    I wonder, why you all use 18AWG for the hot signal in ICs? Has anybody tried instead of 2x 18 AWG a smaller 2x 24 AWG Helix IC?
    Best..
    williewonka
    3,071 posts
     
    @mawe - Glad to hear you are also having success with the Helix design. Sounds like you have been busy :-)

    My goal in sharing the helix design via my web site was to have other DIYer's run with it and try their own adaptions, which is exactly what you have done.

    The information you have provided is valuable and I will certainly consider your findings when looking at a possible "next version"

    Although I have not tried 2 x 24 gauge Helix IC, this is what I have tried...
    - a few versions ago I used a single 24 gauge solid Silver wire in side a Teflon tube 
    - I then tried 20 gauge with teflon insulation and it sounded better.
    - other DIYer's tried the 1mm (18 gauge) Mundorf Solid Silver/Gold wire in  a cotton sleeve and it again improved the sound. So I then tried that  
    - Following that I tried the 18 gauge VH Audio copper and it was as good as the Mundorf Solid Silver.
    - Then @grannyring tried the 2 x 18 gauge OCC copper from VH Audio and again the sound improved.

    So that has been the more recent "evolution" of the current Helix IC.

    It's been a real "team effort" that I could not possibly have accomplished alone.

    But at this time, I am very happy with the IC's current design listed in this thread and right now I just need some time to just sit back and listen :-)

    But I will keep your adaptions in mind for future versions :-)

    Perhaps someone would like to try @mawe's adaptions?
    - be sure post your findings here please.

    Again - many thanks for sharing your adaptions - it's great that people are trying different things with the Helix design. 

    Regards - Steve

     





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