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Stranded vs singal core conductors and skin effect

Yea, Yea, I did a search. I did find similar topics, but I still don't know which solution is preferable. Many mega-buck cables utilize solid core. Is solid core a better solution (conductor, etc.)? Isn't it the geometry (twisting, braiding, etc.) that addresses the skin effect issues? Are there other scientific reasons for utilizing stranded wire vs singal core? I am really considering making some DIY speaker cables. If for no other reason, than just for kicks - sounds kind of fun. I have read up on so many different theories. I realize that inductance and resistance are extremely important factors, as well as capitance, and for whatever reason, it must be a challange to design a cable with extreamly low measurments in all three categories?? I don't really fully understand why. HOLD ON - I don't want a complete lesson here. I'm just seeking some input from the engineering-minded or the knowledgeable DIY community as to which type of wire offers the best conductivity (and other factors??) for designing a DIY speaker cable. Additionally, which geometry is the preferred method?
2chnlben
palerider
46 posts
 
Cables are pure simple physics, no big deal. Thick solid are the optimal solution, but every other configuration also gives a signal, it just ain`t that pure and powerful anylonger.
musicnoise
377 posts
 
Skin effect is not an issue for audio freqs = I started out in electronics as a teenager building a Heathkit 101 ham radio, worked as an electronics tech in the US Navy, earned a BSEE after return to civilian life and spent two decades working in the field. Skin effect is a big issue at radio freqs but the effect on low freqs (and audio comprises relatively low freqs) just is not an issue. As with a lot of snake oil, there is always a kernal of truth - the push to sell cables based on ideas like skin effect is a classic in this regard - take some scientific principle and then expand its reach - it is not whether skin effect has affects audio freqs- rather it is the magnitude of the effect that matters. The only thing that really matters as far as speaker wire (assuming that your runs are relatively short (50 ft or less) - is the awg - small awg - big wire - low resistance - less IIR losses. stranded vs solid - the stranded will be more flexible.
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shadorne
7,477 posts
 
Musicnoise,

I could not agree more with your statement above. We live in a highly unethical modern world of sophisticated snake oil (couched in science). Audio cables are just a tiny microcosm of the problem. You have TV adds now (that governments allow) which suggest what ailments you may suffer from and what drugs you should ask your doctor to prescribe you. Worse you have Al Gore running around like Henny Penny telling everybody the sky is falling down with the snake oil of Global Warming. The science/data behind many modern ridiculous hyperbole is actually unfounded - all extrapolated from faulty statistical analysis/testimonials and a few kernels of truth, such as that CO2 is what atmospheric physicists would call a green house gas.
milen007
54 posts
 
try a 2mm magnet wire that resemble anti-cable. there is few success in this method. you might just lose few buck if its not working. just my 2 cents
carl109
134 posts
 
"But, different salts (or, spices) do taste different in the same way that different cables sound different."

Bob's right I'm afraid; salt is salt. It's a sodium chloride crystal and if pure will taste the same regardless of what brand it is. However, they can taste different due to additives or impurities. Sea salt can contain other minerals which alter the flavor.

Using that analogy, cables can sound different when made from different metals (eg copper, silver, blends etc), but comparing one 99.99% OFC copper cable to another is unlikely to yield much difference, provided the AWG suits the length of cable run.

And I'm not an engineer!
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