Tag: speaker wire

Tips On How To Connect Speaker Wires

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Installing speaker wire for an audio speaker system is a bit of a funny thing. Though it’s fairly easy to connect, it can still go wrong in many different ways.

Once you’ve settled on a home theater stereo system, connecting your speaker wire comes next. Here is a quick look into how to connect speaker wire step-by-step the way it was designed. Fortunately, it’s quite straightforward.

All you need is to understand the different speaker wire connection types that your system will have. They’re in the form of binding posts and/or spring clips.

Connecting Binding Posts

Binding posts can be found on all kinds of audio systems, everything from low-cost models to extremely high-end equipment.

Binding posts are the most common type that you will find on the back of your speaker system. They are red and black caps. This can accommodate both bare wire and banana plugs. Connecting your speaker wire to a binder post with bare wire is simple. Just unscrew the cap, place the wire inside the opening, then screw the cap down. Connection done.

Spring Clips

Spring clip connectors work slightly different.

On the back of your system, you will see red and black tabs with an opening above as you press the clip. The spring clip connector works well with both bare speaker wire and banana plugs. Once you press on the clip, you push the speaker wire into the opening then release the clip closing the opening.

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Stripping Wires

When you use wire strippers on speaker wire, this gives you a clean connection. This way, you can take any length of speaker wire and cut it down to size. This is why bare wire is the easiest method for connection because you don’t need anything extra.

All you have to do is pull the positive and negative wires apart. They come apart easily. Don’t cut into the insulation on exposed bare wire further down the cable. Expose the wire at the end using a dedicated wire stripper, removing 1/2 inch of insulation from each wire. Twist each of the exposed wires together so that there are no loose strands on each wire. Insert the bare wire into the connectors. Done.

Final Check

When using spring clips, close the clip then pull on the wire to make sure that it is firmly held. For binding posts, place the wire in the opening, screw the cap down, and then pull the wire to make sure that it is firmly held. Always double-check your speakers before you call it finished.

The most important thing to remember connecting speaker wire is there should be no loose strands of copper and your connections should be firmly in place. Always place positive to positive and negative to negative, and have your right and left sides put to their appropriate counterparts.

Shop speaker wire of all lengths, gauges, and types at PrimeCables.ca today.

Does The Length Of Speaker Wires Affect the Quality Of Sound?

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You have your sound system purchased. Now, you are in the process of completing your audio setup. Then, you come across the many, many questions that surround speaker wire and how to use it.

For the tech-savvy, this can be very easy. For those of us not technically inclined this can be a process where you’re wondering, “How far do I place my speakers from my system?”.

The following will hopefully give you a guide as to what length of speaker wire is needed to obtain the best quality of sound.

What Questions To Ask Yourself

Speaker wire comes in several different lengths when you are purchasing it. Mainly, you will find 50 feet
or 15.2 meters and up to 100 feet or 30 meters, and sometimes even more.

A few of the questions that get asked are things like, “Does the length of speaker really affect the sound
that I wanted?”

“If I place my speakers more than 50 feet away from my system, will my home theater speaker wire affect
the quality of sound that I expect to hear?”

“If the speakers are five feet away, will the sound quality be better?”

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Sound In Terms of Speaker Wire Length

The length of speaker wire depends on what you are planning on running.

If you are looking to run a speaker system for a home stereo, you want to make sure that you have the proper gauge first and foremost.

Length of the wire itself can be up to around 25 feet. This will still give you average power levels. This will not diminish the sound quality that you hear.

Specifications

Manufacturers of speaker wire really don’t give any technical specifications that could possibly help you determine what can happen to sound quality for extended lengths.

You could follow the American Wire Gauge standard to help you know what the resistance per foot can be the most appropriate for your system. Do keep in mind, the lower the number of gauge of the speaker wire, the longer the length to speaker wire can be for your system.

Applications

If the power applications of your system are high, such as 2 or 4 ohm subwoofers with a length of 100 feet plus for speaker wire, you’re going to want to have a 14 gauge at least.

Since most home systems generally have speakers set up within 25 feet, this will give you adequate-to-excellent sound quality. Please note, extremely long lengths of wire can affect the frequency response slightly. You may not notice this but it’s there. It also depends on which speaker wire you are using.

The length of speaker wire does have an impact on the sound coming from your speakers. An extreme length of speaker wire with a higher gauge (such as 18 gauge) will unfortunately diminish the quality of sound that you should receive. Find out a little more about length, gauge, and get other questions answered when you shop high-quality speaker wire in Canada today from PrimeCables.ca.

What Speaker Wire Do I Need For In-Wall Speakers? – See here

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In-wall speakers are a modern way to bring high-quality sound into your home entertainment space.

Using speaker wire to connect in-wall speakers to an amplifier or receiver, one must use the appropriately-rated wire.

Speaker wire for in-wall speakers is rated CL2 or CL3. This indicates the wire is safe for placement inside an airspace above a drop ceiling or behind a wall. If you intend to bury your wire, additionally, the cable will have to be rated for direct burial.

Why Do I Have to Use Special Speaker Wire for In-Wall Speakers?

In-wall speaker wire is designed to protect against fire. A normal speaker wire, when placed in a wall, can behave like a fuse. If there’s a fire, normal speaker wire will light and spread fire throughout the wall. This is the primary reason why you need special speaker wire for in-wall speakers.

Furthermore, if fire spreads from speaker wire through the wall, this sort of fire could void your insurance. Passionate speaker wire users and home theater users have reported these sort of inconveniences.

Also, in-wall speaker wire is more compact and has a tougher insulation jacket. Sonically, no differences exist. It’s all about the build.

You do not want to compromise the safety or integrity of your speaker system by non-specified speaker wire.

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What You Need to Know About Speaker Wire for In-Wall Speakers

Like with other speaker wire, all the same rules apply.

In-wall speaker wire is identified with two numbers – the first is the gauge and the second the number of strands.

16/2, for example, indicates a 16-gauge wire with two strands or two conductors. The lower the gauge, the thicker the cable and the less resistance there will be inside. Low-gauge speaker wire is defined for distances exceeding fifty feet.

Measure what you’re working with. For distances under fifty feet, a high-gauge speaker wire works. When buying the correct length of speaker wire, add a few extra feet. This will give you a little slack to work with, in addition to making it easier to work with the wire while you’re configuring everything.

Remember, you can always cut it after the fact. It doesn’t hurt to have a little more wire than you probably need and is in fact recommended by experts.

Shop high-quality in-wall CL2 and CL3 speaker wire for in-wall speakers from PrimeCables.ca. Browse different lengths, gauges, and types of speaker wire, as well as speaker systems and audio cables. Craft the optimum at-home speaker system for you.

What is the Best Gauge for Speaker Wires – Read Here!

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Most speakers do not clearly indicate what gauge of speaker wire is best. That decision is yours. If you’re building in-wall speakers or in-ceiling speakers, you will also need a specific type of speaker wire known as CL2 or CL3.

If you’re running wire underground, you will need speaker wire that’s rated appropriate and meant for direct burial.

Also, speaker wires are available with and without connectors. Needless to say, it can get complicated. Our part in this article is to highlight a little of the key differences in speaker wire gauges in an effort to aid you in deciding what’s best for your home.

Gauge is A Thickness Measurement

Speaker wire gauge indicates thickness. A 12-gauge wire is larger. An 18-gauge wire is smaller. Thickness plays a key role in the performance of speaker wire. A thicker wire equates to more capacity, more speed, and less resistance.

A thicker wire isn’t always necessary to get an excellent performance, however.

How Far Away Are Your Speakers?

The dynamics of where your speakers are in relation to their amplifier will dictate what type of speaker wire is needed.

A thick gauge – such as 12-gauge – is necessary for long-wire applications. This is because you have less resistance in a thicker wire. The signal can travel further. You can get more power. For low-impedance speakers, this is perfect.

A thin speaker wire gauge – such as 16-gauge – is perfect for shorter distances. In this context, ‘short’ means less than 50 feet.

For the majority of people, a thin speaker wire is fine and will be the most cost-effective wire to choose.

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How Much Speaker Wire Do I Need For My Speaker System?

To know how much speaker wire you need, measure it. You can use string, twine, or just about anything. Measure from your receiver to each speaker location. Add a few extra feet which will give you some slack to work with just in case it’s needed.

Now, there is speaker wire with connectors and without. If you buy speaker wire without connectors, you may want to use banana connectors on the ends. Otherwise, you will be attaching bare wire to a home theater receiver which can be a frustrating experience. Banana connectors make the job so much easier.

Lastly, when connecting speaker wire, identify the positive and negative leads. Make sure they get connected correctly. If the connections end up crossed, there either won’t be any audio or it’ll sound unpleasant to the ear.

Find the right gauge. Find the right length. Shop online and save with our speaker wire guide, showcasing different thicknesses and lengths appropriate for home and business use. Buy high-quality speaker wire for your speaker system from PrimeCables.ca.

How to Run Speaker Wires for Home Theater Speakers

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So you got some speaker wire for a home theater system you want to lay down. It’s not hard to lay down speaker wire but how to run wire down successfully through a room without having it outright noticeable is where a lot of debate can happen.

There are ultimately three basic ways to run speaker wire for a speaker system in a home. Homeowners either choose one or a combination to get the job done. There’s running the wires along baseboards and baseboard moulding, there’s running wires using crown moulding, and there’s also running your wires using crawlspace or attic access.

The simplest way to install speaker wire is to use the baseboards. If you have a carpeted room, choose this. Carpets are typically laid down using tack strips a half-inch from the wall. This gives you a built-in channel to use. Just be careful, when laying the carpet back down after you’ve installed the wiring, to not puncture the wiring. If you intend to use speakers wall mounted, you might be able to run the wire through a hole in the wall and down the wall cavity. For some, this can be an option.

Alternatively, if you’re planning to run wire down through a crawlspace or attic, you may also require the services of an electrician. Assuming you’re free from any regulations preventing you from continuing, simply run the wire down the wall from one location to the other. The hard part will evidently be finding the right wall cavity so plan, plan, plan. If you decide to go the route of installing speaker wire using crown moulding, you’ll need to know how to properly install the moulding which is an art in and of itself. Any of these methods will work to run speaker wire. Ultimately, it’ll come down to your personal preferences and the manner in which your home is built.

Anyone serious about having the best quality surround sound audio experience for their entertainment room, speaker wire is almost a necessity. For high-end speakers, there’s nothing better. You get to customize so much with wire that’s adaptable like this. Buy the length you want, input it wherever it’s got to go, and if you ever need to update or swap some of it out, a little extra’s not far off.

For oxygen-free, copper speaker wire cable in Canada, visit PrimeCables. You can rely on PrimeCables’ speaker wires for the utmost transmission of high quality audio signals day-in and day-out.

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Get our Speaker Wire with Cheaper, Stronger, and Faster from PrimeCables!

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Cheap high quality speaker wire in Canada is a specialty for PrimeCables. Throughout the past couple decades, speaker wire has become the go-to method for connecting loud surround sound speakers and amplifiers. To audiophiles and home theater enthusiasts, the benefits of speaker wire are well understood. In this space, it is considered one of the best cable types to use which is in large part what got us so interested in it. For the lowest prices on speaker wire in Canada, we’re proud to say that no one comes close to PrimeCables.

 

Speaker wire is a tremendously diverse way of hooking up a speaker system for the home. Refined from a wire system originally developed in the 1920s, speaker wire comes in a range of price, quality, aesthetic, and convenience. Beyond the obvious benefit of paying less for it, PrimeCables has worked with our manufacturers and suppliers to prioritize quality as well. After all, there’s no need paying less for speaker wire if what you’re receiving is a low quality version. When you shop with PrimeCables, know that you will receive a high performance, conveniently packaged, and affordable speaker wire that you can manipulate to your home theater surroundings.

 

Browse home theater speaker wire from PrimeCables today and choose from the 100ft Speaker Wire 14AWG Enhanced Loud Oxygen-Free Copper Cable – PrimeCables® for $24.99, the 100ft Speaker Wire 14AWG CL2 Rated 2-Conductor Cable (For In-Wall Installation) – PrimeCables® for $34.99, the 50ft Speaker Wire 16AWG Enhanced Loud Oxygen-Free Copper Cable – PrimeCables® for $12.99, the 50ft Speaker Wire 12AWG Enhanced Loud Oxygen-Free Copper Cable – PrimeCables® for $19.99, and the Speaker Wire 12AWG CL2 Rated 2-Conductor Loud Cable(For In-Wall Installation)-4 lengths-Monoprice – 50Ft for $31.99.

 

Though speaker wire comes in many different specifications, something we recommend Canadian home theater enthusiasts to pay attention to moreso than others is resistance. A low-resistance speaker wire will provide more energy and power. Thereby, the shorter the length, the more optimized the performance. The longer it is, the more one may lose power over extended distances. This is why for many of our commercial clients using speaker wire across large buildings, they will commonly employ interconnected speakers and amplifiers, and possible a constant voltage speaker system to help.

 

Speaker comes strong and for cheap at PrimeCables. As if we haven’t given you enough of a reason to shop with us, consider we offer free returns, a 1-year product guarantee, and fast, free shipping to anywhere in Canada on orders above $49. If you’re in the market for speaker wire or are looking for somewhere to buy speaker wire cheap in Canada, visit PrimeCables today.

Speaker Wire Guide and How to Choose the Right Cables for your Home Theatre Setup

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Most speakers do not come packaged with a speaker wire. This means that in setting up your home theatre system, it’s your responsibility to know the right gauge and type of wire required. There are many different options for speaker wire, with connectors and without connectors. For any in-wall or ceiling speakers, a UL-rated speaker wire labeled CL2 or CL3 is required. For any wire running underground to a set of outdoor speakers, wire rated for direct burial is recommended.

 

Speaker Wire Gauge

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The first thing you need to know about speaker wire is what its gauge is, otherwise known as its thickness. The lower the gauge number, the thicker the wire. The thicker the wire, the less resistance there is to the current flow.

Thick wire, such as 12 gauge or 14 gauge, are more common for long wire runs and high power applications. For speaker wire requirements of less than 50 feet, 16 gauge is the standard industry recommendation as it is cost-effective and easy to work with. That said, you should always consult on figuring out the proper gauge for your home theatre speaker wire installation.

Speaker Wire Length and Amount

In figuring how much speaker wire you actually need, run a string from the receiver to each of the speaker locations. Measure the string and then add a few extra feet that can be used as slack. We always recommend giving yourself a margin of error and add a few more feet on top of that. It’ll help in the event of a change in setup or just ensuring the connection to gear is not tight on the wire.

 

Type of Wire

If you do end up going with wire that does not have connectors, buy banana connectors for at least one end of each wire. If you are running speaker wire inside your walls or ceiling, UL-rated speaker wire labeled CL2 or CL3 is a necessity.

 

Delving deeper into it, a 4-conductor cable some prefer as it is a single cable pulled over a long distance. Then, 2-conductor cables from the volume control to each of the stereo speakers are run.

 

A few Extra Tips

Remember to identify the positive and negative leads to your speaker wires, and connect them accordingly. If a connector ends up crossed, you won’t be able to make it work.

Get to know what kind of speaker wire terminals you have, whether they are spring clips or binding posts. Spring clips are easy to work with, though accepting bare wire and pin connectors only. Meanwhile, binding posts provide a solid connection where banana plugs can connect directly.