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Most of my singe ended RCA interconnects are pretty generic; Blue Jeans or less.Need more, as I'll be bi-amping with an active x-over which is many RCA cables.
Like to keep them as short as possible as again there will be many so I'll be cobbling some together from bulk wire and connectors.
For wire I decided to try Neotech NEMOI-5220 Rectangular OFC-Copper as it's 'only' about $5 a foot. Not OCC but like I stated above, I've been using generic for years and am still alive.
Connectors, going with the current version of the Eichmann Bullet Plug, the KLE Copper Harmony. Not cheap, but to my mind a decent connection at both ends might be as important as the cable in between.
Not a huge investment as I've spent more on one pair of Cardas balanced ICs.
Edits: 01/23/21Follow Ups:
Those rectangular conductor wires look interesting. However, I wonder how practical they are for connecting to most RCA plugs and the KLEI plugs in particular since they have such small low-mass tabs for soldering the wires.
For what it's worth, I have been a lot happier with ETI Link plugs than with the two KLEI plugs I have tried---the Copper Harmony and the Absolute.
I made a pair of ICs using Belden star quad 1192A cable and KLEI pure harmony RCAs on one end and Switchcraft AAA3MBAUZPKG XLR connectors on the other end. The RCAs plug into an Audible Illusions M3A and the XLRs plug into to a Neurochrome Parallel86 AMP. They were very easy to solder and the sound is very good.
Good luck and hope all goes well. Those rectangular conductors and the multiple jackets/shields, looks like a PITA to strip.
so heat won't work. :-(Got all I need for round wire but not rectangular.
But we'll figure something out.
You can be sure I WON'T be posting any pictures of what's going on INSIDE the connectors! :-)
Edits: 01/25/21
This tool (linked), which I have and use, does a great job with wire insulation/shields. But like all the wire stripers that I have (looks like majority of the folks here as well), they are meant for round wire.
As a former bench tech (decades ago) used to production work, I tend to rush when it really isn't a necessity anymore. If I relax and take my sweet time, things turn out fine.
I recommend using an rca jack as a heatsink for the low-mass connector with a heat-sensitive plastic dielectric, Ivan303.
An rca jack out of the back of an old VCR can come in handy, or use an orphaned rca jack in a parts box plugged into the rca connector while soldering will work just fine.
I have a spare CMC rca jack featuring a PBT dielectric with a 433.4°F melting point that works perfectly for the task. Enough mass to quickly/efficiently transfer heat into the metal structure.
That's a great piece of wisdom Duster. Better be thorough, as deformed/melted plastic will definitely ruin everyone's day.
I haven't made any IC's with those plastic RCA jacks but will surely keep that in mind. Thanks.
I have, in the past, made IC's using some Alpha Goertz cables that also have rectangular conductors (but in Ag instead of Cu). I don't recall those being too difficult to strip when being careful, but those cables don't have the multiple insulators/shields/etc. as the one Ivan303 will use.
The copper braid is pretty substantial and covers a copper foil. The colored insulation is easy to strip but the Teflon coating on the rectangular solid copper is very thin and nearly clear so it's hard to remove without damaging the copper wire or to even know if you have removed all of it successfully.
I'll be attaching the copper braid to the ground at one end only and with eight cables to make, be spending a lot of time on this project.
And no, ya ain't gonna get to see any pictures of Ivan's workmanship. Feel free to use your imagination. :-)
A case cutter razor blade is my usual tool for terminations, that and heavy-duty PTFE plumbers tape, with Teflon tape being the 'duct tape' of cable building. You work with the dielectric as much as conductors, since the insulation allows a cable to function. Strain relief is the most artful aspect, with special methods that need to be developed over the course of time.
I'm designing a special interconnect cable/power cord combo, with a need to advance my termination approach with specific tools for particular tasks, so each build follows the same protocol without pondering what to do next. A bit like an assembly line, but more like arts and crafts, with electrical knowledge and insights. It never gets boring, it's always a challenge, Rocket_Powered.
An interconnect and power combo eh? Sounds interesting, can't say I've seen one of those before. I'm guessing a multi-conductor cable. But if so, would you require separate shields for the IC and power conductors?
My idea of of such would be a pair of IC's wrapped with some spacer material to a power cord with cable wrap :).
Challenges keeps the mind sharp! Keep trucking!
Actually, I mean a set of interconnect cables along with a particular power cord to mate them with, which are designed to provide a certain kind of synergy when they are placed together within the signal chain.
It's a novel concept I've not come across. That's all I can share about it for now; sometimes got to keep some matters discreet/undisclosed in the forum.
Cheers, Duster
how many terminations? industrious use of a razor knife & presto, done!
[just trying to lend encouragement]
regards,
The screws on the KLEI connectors are magnetic. We replaced them with brass screws when we used these connectors in our production. I highly recommend the connectors from AECO. They are available in both plated and solid silver versions at very acceptable prices. The AECO connectors have a larger opening than the KLEI connectors.
Edits: 01/25/21 01/25/21
every time i replace a set of KLE copper, silver plated, by these guys a big smile appears on my face; low mass, better contacts, easier to solder, no plastic, gold plated copper, better price, great sound, what else?
By 'magnetic' you mean that the set screws are made of a ferrous metal?
Would have missed that.
Ah, but what size?
I have a ton of need for about every size of metric Allen head screw one can imagine for various pieces of gear that have 'lost' their screws.
Even bough a phono pre on ebay that was missing ALL of its black allen head screws both for the unit and its separate battery unit (which had no battery). OK, seller disclosed all and I did find a suitable OEM battery from China, exact same as used by the manufacturer, at 1/4 what the manufacturer was asking but both units are now scotch taped together!
*Tape Not Visible From The Listening Position*
:-)
"By 'magnetic' you mean that the set screws are made of a ferrous metal?"
Yes. I am not 100% sure, but I think they are M3.
if a were you i'd try Duelund, great for IC, and for everything else
But WAY to much going on in this space to use unshielded ICs.
with the appropriate configuration/geometry, no need of shielding; but if really needed, you can easily add a shield; in both cases you should know how... ;)
Seems to be a well-executed design, with the benefit of a rectangular conductor providing decreased skin effect per effective gauge.
The KLE rca connectors should provide good musicality for the design. Looking forward to a report in the forum.
OFC vs. OCC at twice the price.
Plus the OCC is 10 mm outside diameter and the KLE plugs are about 9 mm inside diameter so that would have required some hacking. Doable but more work.
Four pair on RCA IC with hopefully good cable and very decent connectors for a total of $350 plus labor (mine) is reasonable, I suppose.
Nothing wrong with high-purity OFC. OCC tends to present a smoother, more liquid-sounding signal, but the flavor of good OFC is still musical and detailed.
I'm working on a new cable build, and the OFC wire sounds excellent. Metallurgy is only one aspect of a good cable design. Other factors are also involved in the process.
Inspired by The Return of the Turntable, this ... upgradedness?
"Once this was all Black Plasma and Imagination" -Michael McClure
Vinyl, tubes and horns...
The home we relocated to in Northern New Mexico is about twice to three times the size of the one we left behind in San Francisco, but...
The previous owner built a nice, attached 'studio' to the home and in the process stole one of the garage stalls for the 'studio' bathroom and closet.
So no storage, that is if we wish to put our single car and SYM scooter in said single stall garage.
So we have a 3700 sq. ft. home with one small garage which required the use of the 'studio', or as we say here in New Mexico, the 'casita', for storage. 4000 LPs, multiple TTs, all my tube gear, two sets of horns and misc. stuff; stuff that previously occupied the main floor storage area of our small San Francisco home. OK, not THAT small, as we did add a third floor to it with a loft over the back bedrooms for TV/audio. That's where the tubes. vinyl and horns lived when in San Francisco.
The one car garage thing here in New Mexkcl required that we built a nice, large, two car garage attached to the single, nearly unusable existing one.
Spent a small fortune on it in order that it look original and match the existing 25 year old 'faux adobe' style home, but we now have lots of storage space both at the ends of the new garage plus a shop area plus storage in the old garage.
This allowed for the cleaning out of the 'casita' and converting it to a proper vinyl, tubes and horns space. 400 sq. ft. of open space. A man-cave, albeit above ground and glass on three sides as it was designed as an artist studio.
And most importantly, space to work on and build stuff. And time, and money, as I no longer have to pay for airline tickets and hotel rooms to satisfy my travel-loving wife.
So build we do with lots of tube amps so I can bi-amp the horns with steep, 24db per octave active x-overs.
That requires cables. Lots of cables. But with a shop area I can now cobble together cables.
I saw the pics you posted in Vinyl a while back and it looks
like a great space.
Your commensurate physical expansion seems on a par
with your audio interests, and that is VERY cool!
"Once this was all Black Plasma and Imagination" -Michael McClure
Slightly offtopic, but possibly relevant. In my other thread on Furutech alpha 36 the Nemos speaker cable line came up too. I tried wireworld mini eclipse (which seems similar) and found it to be not a big improvement over blue jeans speaker cable. (Unlike Kimber 8tc, same price as wireworld, but a fairly big improvement over Blue jeans.)
Made of this stuff.
Currently using it between my tube phono pre and pre.
Is it better? Who knows. Don't spend a lot of time worrying about cables, at least not in my vinyl/tubes/horns system in the 'casita'.
Main system in the Casa has some gourmet cables though. Cardas and the like.
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