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Internal Speaker Wiring ??

I just had occasion to pull a driver from my Thiel 7's and was quite surprised to see what looked like a rather "wimpy" wire connecting the driver to the crossover. It made me wonder if the "weakest link" theory applied to internal speaker wiring. In other words, am I foolish to spend hundreds of dollars on amp wiring and speaker cable when there may only be garden variety wiring inside the speaker ??
x947
sean
6,231 posts
 
Albert's comments are not unique. Most current model speakers that are not "mass production scrap" are voiced using specific components. That includes the wiring. Altering the internal wiring can / does play with the end result of what you hear. The first manufacturer that i specifically know of that REALLY payed attention to internal wiring and did what most people would consider "strange" even by today's standards was Genesis back in the 1970's. Arnie went to great lengths to get exactly what he wanted out of those speakers even back then. He staggered gauges on the same driver, some were solid while some were stranded, etc... This was even done on very inexpensive bookshelf models way back then. Then there are manufacturers like Klipsch who uses absolute crap inside of the boxes. The wiring and most of the internals need to be changed if you really want to see what their basic design is capable of. They pinch the penny so hard to keep productions costs down that you can literally hear it "ringing" out for help : ) Once that is done though, you would have a hard time recognizing that they are the same speakers. Sean >
bob_bundus
1,834 posts
 
Sean: talk about junk cabling inside Klipsch; man it looks just like lamp cord. I was ready to rewire with D.I.Y. Kimber stuff (I even bought the wire). Then I learned that it will likely change speaker's voicing, especially if replacing copper wire with silver, so I never did it. Still I'd still like to put in some improved copper wire. Can anyone suggest a source? thanks
trelja
3,226 posts
 
A good source for very nice copper wire is Axon. Their products are distributed by OrcaDesign. Parent company is JMlabs. They also handle Focal drivers, Solen/SCR caps, and all types of accessories. The wire is the softest copper available, although they do not specify purity. I have used it with good result. It is 20 gauge solid core wire. Insulation is PE I believe(may actually be PVC...). If you want teflon insulation, go to HomeGrown Audio, for 99.999% pure 22 gauge copper wire, with teflon insulation($0.39/ft, I think). But, I have found that speaker wire is much less critical of dielectric composition than interconnect. I am not sure of the price of Axon these days, but I can tell you it will be ridiculously cheap. To put it in perspective, they produce a speaker cable(Axon 8), using 8 of these conductors(+ filler/PVC jacketing). It is basically a mirror of AudioQuest speaker cable(falling between Indigo and Midnight). In construction and sound. BEST cheap speaker cable, bar none(although no audiophiles know about it). When I used to buy it, it was $1/ft!!! It may now be $2/ft. But, you are only buying one of the conductors; no filler or jacketing. So, you do the math... I can also echo the comments of those above. But, have found a good amount of success by going through the internals of a loudspeaker. I found that I came to use 17 or 19 gauge to tweeters. 15 or 13 gauge to midrange drivers. And 10 to 12 gauge to low frequency drivers(woofers/midwoofers). It is up to you, how you run the wiring internally. Early on, I went with braiding, and always stuck with it. Not to say it is the best, just my habit. One thing to bear in mind is when replacing parts on speakers(be they drivers, wire, or crossover components - ESPECIALLY crossover components), be patient. Allow them the proper time to run - in. Just like you would afford a new pair of speakers. Some of the best caps(MIT/Rel) sound absolutely horrible out of the chute. Leaving one with an enormous case of buyer's regret/panic. But, after a few weeks, there is no comparison. Don't panic. Just give things time. If you still feel that disappointment a month later, then you can say the change was for the worst. And, it is always a good idea to keep the old parts. Just in case... Good Luck!
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perfectimage
406 posts
 
I have tried to get my speaker rewired and my amplifiers modified at a few different places and they refused to do it everytime. All for the above mentioned reasons. It happened enough to scare me not to even try.
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