Uneven speaker wire runs

Tarsando, an "audio" signal doesn't travel the speed of sound when it's in the wire because it's an "electrical" signal at that point. It doesn't become an audio signal and travel at the speed of sound until the electrical energy is converted into acoustical energy at your speakers. I think you knew that however.

What kind of cables and how much are you spending? If you're going to buy bulk wire at a couple of dollars a foot and have them terminated, then it's not a issue for resale or buying. If you're looking at name brand or expensive, it might be tough buying them in uneven pairs. And what if you moved your gear at a later date - you'd have uneven cables again. It's always more practical to buy in even lengths.

As far as performance goes, that extra length will result in an uneven voltage drop from each channel to the speakers (ALL wires have a resistance per unit length, speed o' light notwithstanding). The effect of an extra 11 feet would be the same as having two speakers with equal cable lengths but with one speaker set further back a fraction of an inch. It's trivial IMHO.

Hey, MarkPhd, I did know that. I was just commenting on how odd it was--not as odd I guess as worrying about a few feet of speaker cable plus or minus.

I am thinking of buying ViaBlue SC4 cables. The reason I asked is that they can be ordered in various lengths hence the question about whether I should keep the mains the same. Never really thought about it before but I am setting up my system in a new house. Nautilus 802 driven by Lexicon 2x250 amp, Lexicon DC-1 processor.I plan to upgrade to Lexicon MC-8 or MC-12 and Bryston 6B SST. Reference:
http://www.oregondv.com/Viablue_SC-4_Biwire_Speaker_Cable.htm

Just throwing my 2 cents in. I would keep the lenghts the same for the technical reasons mention above. While you may not hear the difference why wonder if you are missing something. Plus resale will be easier. I purchased speaker cables a little longer than I needed just in case I ever wanted to sell them I would have a standard size. I have N802's and would be curious to hear how they sound with the 250 watt lexicon amp. I found mines don't really sound good unless I pair them with high current amps capable of pushing 300 - 400 watts per channel. A friend has the new diamond N802 paired with a Theta which delivers 250 per channel. Despite what the dealer told him they are no where near as open and full sounding as mine with 480 wattsr