Best interconnects from preamp to amps, within budget


Hi folks. This is my second post to these forums. I’m setting up my equipment again for the first time in decades. A lot has changed since then.

The first thing I did was get new surrounds on my JBL L100t woofers. Then I took one component at a time to the shop for complete inspection, repair and tweaking.

For setup, I bought a bunch of Audioquest Tower interconnects. It was the best I could come up with based upon my little bit of research and budget. I immediately noticed an audible improvement over the 30+ year old generic "patch cords" my equipment came with.

When I hooked up my preamp to the amps (bridged) I discovered I didn’t have any new interconnects that would reach that far. For now I’m using some that are at least a few years old and generic. So, what SHOULD I be using for the preamp/amps connection? I do have to stay within a modest budget, the equipment restoration isn’t cheap. If nobody laughs too hard, I could spend as much as $100-$200 for this connection. They need to be at least 8 feet long, assuming they each need to be the same length.

I have recently read that proper interconnect selection can vary widely depending on the equipment that one uses. For the record, my current system is as follows:

2 Harmon Kardon Citation 22 amplifiers, bridged together

Harman Kardon Citation 25 preamplifier

Harman Kardon Citation 23 tuner

Harman Kardon HD7600 CD player

Harman Kardon HD7400 CD player ( so the same remote doesn’t control 2 CD players)

Harman Kardon EQ8 equlaizer (Not currently in-line, to be used for goofing around with bootlegs etc)

2 Sony TC-K620 cassette decks ( need to be shopped yet )

JBL L100t speakers, until new surrounds are broken in

JBL L100t3 speakers after others are broken in

Thanks for any help with this. As always, it’s appreciated!

Todd K Stearns

128x128toddsyr

Mogami makes great wire. It's what many of the pros use. Either get the "gold" series premade or have some cables made for you.

Blue Jeans.  Use them for all connections to my Harman Kardon HK3490 receivers.

Cheers

 

pine tree audio also offers a broad selection of good sounding well made very cost effective cables

Go to "Mogami Ave" it has EVERYTHING you need on budget.

@czarivey one still needs the Neutrik ProFi or XRL ends ;)

 

Mogami 2534 Quad wire. I purchased 6ft made by World's Best for about $70 on Amazon. 

Many places can made a bespoke length, if one is adverse to using a soldering iron themselves. And that same 2534 can be used for XLRs.