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40ft: speaker cable or interconnect?

After reconfiguring my HT my LCR speakers are about 40 feet from my amp (Bryston 5b-st). I used to have 20-25 ft. runs and things sounded good. I used Frank's (Signal Cable) classic speaker cables.

Now that I've added another 15 feet, should I switch over to interconnects and relocate my amp near the speakers? Aesthetically, I prefer not to do this, but if 40 feet of speaker run isn't recommended, I'd consider it. I might also switch over to mono amps if I did this to minimize foot print up front (maybe Nuforce Ref9 or the like.)

Thanks,
John
jkscherk

Showing 3 responses by jkscherk

jkscherk OP
43 posts
 
While my amp is balanced (Bryston 5B-ST) I'm driving it from a Denon 3806 receiver (obviously unbalanced.) I went through a bunch of gear including Outlaw 990, Halo C2, Sherbourne 7/2100A and Gemstone to arrive where I am now. I wanted a good sounding setup while the whole HDMI thing gets settled. Therfore, using balanced would required some new gear (pre/pro and amp for the other channels.)

I've compared the cost between Frank's Analog 2 interconnect and the Basic speaker cable. "Frankly" (couldn't resist) its a wash....the cost is about the same. I'm sure you could spend more in either application if you wanted to.

Thanks for the input so far!!! :-)
jkscherk OP
43 posts
 
I tired last night to get a balanced connector through the flexible conduit but it won't fit. Unbalanced works fine. I don't want to push the wire through and then put a connector on after it passes through. That means I'd need to use unbalanced or speaker level.

Sounds like some thought unbalanced over this long a run is no better than speaker cable. Does that sound like the general consensus?
jkscherk OP
43 posts
 
On doing some more thinking, I've concluded that I really do not want to locate my amp/amps up near the speakers. If this were a 2-channel listening-only system, I wouldn't have a problem. But since it is my combined 2-channel, HT rig in a dedicated theater room, I really want to keep things as clean and open in front as possible.

I did some research and found Roger Russel's page on cable myths. I won't get into the high-end v. lampcord debate, but what I did find useful was his chart showing cable guage/speaker impedance/length interaction. It tells me that if I stick with a good 12 or 14 guage cable, I really should have no problems and not notice any rolloff. If I go to a 10 guage, I gain even more 'breathing room' in the length.

Unless you guys think I'm making a big mistake, I'm probably going to get some of Frank's Ultra Run which are 10 guage or the Audioquest Bedrock which are 12 guage. Frank's cables are always a good deal and the AQ is on special right now at AA.
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