Screened lead

[Black Stuart]

Greg,
FEP tubing is very flexible, you can ignore what I found out years ago about multiple conductors but do consider this tubing.

Alternatively you can dismiss the fact that Teflon/PTFE doesn't have the clarity of FEP and I will send you some Teflon for free, I don't use it anymore, let me know how much you need. 26AWG wire will give you air core dialetric, bigger diameter wire nullifies this but you will still have very flexible cable.

I do find it strange that silver/plated copper is only referred to in generic terms - how many microns of silver are used - what kind of copper is used - stranded or solid core.

Oliver Heaviside really was a trailblazer in so many aspects of electrical conduction, most analogue cables made today would make him laugh, didn't realise until recently that he patented the co-axial cable and that was 1880.

I havn't used shielding on chassis signal wire for years. If some could let go of rigid thinking and use unshielded wiring they may get a pleasant surprise.

[Phil Y]

Greg,

When I was looking today, I saw that Van Damme do some thinner stuff. 4.5mm and 3.5mm if I remember. These are twin core but does that matter? Could you not just snip off the second core and not use it?
Or alternatively, use the 2 cores for signal and return an just connect the screen at one end. That is if they are usable in other regards obviously.

Phil.

[Phil Y]

I may give solid silver, single core a try in my phono. As long as hum isn't an issue it would be goods I think. I re-wired my passive pre with that a while back to good effect although it did seem to need some "running in" before the sound smoothed out.

Phil

[Greg.]

Thank you Stuart for your offer. Actually I have loads of PTFE sleeving here already. I want to use basic shielded single core because it works and sounds good and it is easy to work with. These days I can’t be bothered complicating things.

Thanks, Phil. Yes, I’ve seen the thinner stuff from Van Damme but even then it’s pretty thick for multiple runs inside a chassis. Your twin core option is actually what I originally intended to use and I have enough of the thin stuff WD use. All silver plated high grade copper with PTFE dialectics. I’ll probably use this stuff. It just seems so wasteful using twin conductors when one will do. Having said all that, I have used this cable for years including the thicker stuff sold by IPL Acoustics, they call IC2. For me it is the best sounding signal cable I have ever found both inside the chassis and when used for external interconnects. All my valve kit you have listened to has been connected up (inside and out) with this stuff.

[Phil Y]

Hi Greg,

What about using the 2 cores of a twin cable for left and right of one input. You would have to strip the screen back a little further than normal but I don't think that should be a problem. I actually used unscreened wire in my KEL84 and that was dead quiet.
The only risk could be some crosstalk between channels but whether that would be significant.....
It would also mean you only have half as many lengths of cable to fit in the chassis.

Phil

[Greg.]

Yes, Phil, I have given that option a thought. The crosstalk issue is what holds me back. I’ll give it some thought. Might be worth the experiment anyway, however my reluctance is because I am working on someone else’s amp. If I did do it this way, I would use the thicker IPL cable.

[Shane]

There’s a bloke in the states on eBay who I’ve dealt with a number of times. He specialises in silver plated screened cables, prices are good and delivery only a few days. His username is Navships, and I think a lot of his stuff is US navy surplus but I could be wrong. You might want to check out his items for sale. I used his single core silver/Teflon screened cable to wire up my KEL84 before I decided to build a relay board for it. Worked very well.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/navships

[Shane]

Memory fail. What I used in the KEL84 was this

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10-ft-20-...-/231730754816

I used the two cores for signal and ground return with the screen only connected at the rear panel end. Made a neat job as it’s not at all bulky. Looking through his items for sale, prices have gone up a bit since I last bought anything, but still not too bad.

[Phil Y]

Hello all,

Should anyone be interested, I now have fitted in my Phono (from PCB to o/p sockets) solid silver single core in PTFE sleeving. No hum issues.

In my KaT88, as these amps are known to be a bit fussy regarding wiring layout, I stuck with screened lead. After trying a few alternatives, I went with the Van Damme XKE twin core mike flex, the 6.3mm dia. one.

This replaced, in both cases some Shark Wire (maplin) screened lead. This has given a very worthwhile increase in clarity and openness for a prettily modest outlay. I will be sticking with this, at least for now.

Greg, I tried the PTFE stuff you like in my Phono initially but for whatever reason, this gave me a slightly edgy top end. Odd, because as you say, your valve based system had no such issues when I heard it. Pesky system matching I suppose.

Phil.

[Greg.]

Phil, thank you. What is the PTFE sleeved solid silver core wire you are using in the Phono?

Yes, I have no doubt the success of silver plated PTFE in my system, but not in yours is simply system matching synergy, although I always thought my valve system did drive the sound to the very edge of acceptability in this respect. Of course , things for me are very different now.

I’ve been a previous customer of the eBay seller Shane recommends and on his reminding prompt have bought in some very nice PTFE silver plated single conductor screened copper wire good for internal chassis signal/input selected wiring. If it was my amp I was working on, I wouldn’t hesitate to use it, but the amp I’m currently fettling is Intenso’s 6550. I have spent quite some time discussing the sound he likes with him and he has recently had the opportunity to listen to several systems belonging to local friends. In consequence, I’m not sure what to wire his amp with (converting from power amp to 3 input integrated) because he has a preference for a warm, softer and sustained (possibly less detailed) sound. He even commented that his set of new Svetlana winged C 6550 valves brought a sharpness over his old tired set that challenged his listening enjoyment. Because my whole history in terms of upgrading and bringing improvement for me has been geared towards increasing detail, clarity and transparency, he has presented me with a bit of a conundrum that I now need to work out. It is almost about downtuning.

I plan to discuss with John as I have little doubt he will have a constructive view on this, but in the meantime, I suspect I need a basic copper single conductor screened wire for all the hook up, and with the demise of Maplin, the hunt starts again. Any suggestions on a simple single core and screened OFC wire will be gratefully appreciated.