Looks like an interesting project. I’m surprised you didn’t wear gloves though. Bare hands will transfer oils and dirt onto those wires.
Not Chinese Fakes But Not big $$$ Either
Tired and bored after reading 11 pages of posts about Chinese Counterfeit Cables (guilty of a couple entries myself), and looking for a DYI project, I decided to split the difference between Cheap Fakes and outrageous prices for name brand American made cables. After doing lots of research and reading I selected bulk "CHELA" speaker cable from VHAudio https://www.vhaudio.com/speakercables.html and connectors, shrink tube etc, from AV Outlet https://www.avoutlet.com/av-cables-connectors/av-connectors/speaker/furez-sp8-wp38xlnp/
This has been a fun project and a first for me. The total cost was +/- $400 per 8 foot cable. Given the quality of materials, such as 48 strand OCC copper wires, which translates to 10 AWG, I think the cost is very reasonable. I try to build as much as I can but mostly it has been woodworking in the past. I encourge everyone to try their hand at projects. It's always more rewarding than shoveling cash at retailers. If you're interested, here's the project in detail.
Cheers
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Most excellent and I could never work with those tiny wires. @bigtwin Great post!!! |
OCC copper, 10 AWG, superb dielectric, pure copper terminations - those cables should be fantastic! Well done putting them together too. I would definitely try these in my system, whereas I wouldn’t touch those Chinese cables of unknown materials & build quality. Woe to the guy who accidentally mixes a light pink wire into the white bundle, or vice versa. Looks like you’re too meticulous for that to happen :) |
Bigtwin: Thanks for the mention and posting. Nice job constructing the cables! I look forward to your listening impressions when you get the rest of your rig up and running. Enjoy :-) Just a quick clarification that most squeeze type semi-auto strippers are terrible, especially the ones that have the serrated jaws. My favorite strippers that have served me well for well over 30 years are the Klein ’Kleinkurve" strippers that you can get at Home Depot. They have circular holes that don’t jack-up the conductor surface when stripping. There are two models (both have blue handles), with one that goes from 10 to 18 AWG, and another that goes down to 28 AWG. I highly recommend both, and they are both under $25-$30.
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@carlsbad I have a stripper/crimper tool but it doesn’t go below 20 awg. With a new box cutter blade as shown, I only needed to put very light pressure on the blade and simply roll it over the wire. The covering came off easily and not one wire was knicked. I was surprised at how easy that part of the job was. |
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