what guage speaker cable for Polk R50 & Onkyo 605

[LOUISSSSS]

i just got my polk R50's and my Onkyo Sr605.

i also have some 18 guage speaker cable from Belkin (pure AV), would those work fine?

new to HT

 

[Shawn]

It depends how far you are going to run the speakers. I would say though that 18 gauge is too small.

 

[mshan]

What do the manuals say?

If I had to guess,16G is probably what is recommended.

Just get some 16G stranded oxygen free copper speaker cable and see if that sounds sufficient for your needs. Monoprice.com or even a local car stereo store should have it pretty cheap. Some have a tinned return leg, but I don't know if this would have any sonic degradation.

 

[LOUISSSSS]

wait so 16G is bigger than 18G? no idea about this stuff.

i'm probably going to be using about 3-5 ft of speaker cable from the receiver which is right next to my tv where the speakers will be...

 

[destrekor]

Originally posted by: LOUISSSSS
wait so 16G is bigger than 18G? no idea about this stuff.

i'm probably going to be using about 3-5 ft of speaker cable from the receiver which is right next to my tv where the speakers will be...

correct, the lower the number, the larger in size. 12ga is larger. I believe it has been said that 16ga is good for most applications, up to lengths of 25ft. If you have any longer runs, look to 12ga then.

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: LOUISSSSS
i just got my polk R50's and my Onkyo Sr605.

i also have some 18 guage speaker cable from Belkin (pure AV), would those work fine?

new to HT

length? I just buy 12GA, not all that expensive to start with, like $1.50 a metre.

 

[Wuzup101]

http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm

Good read...

At 3-5 feet you are going to be pretty much fine with anything... 18 would be fine...

 

[Muadib]

I'm with you. It's only $30 for 30 feet at Home Depot.

 

[Auric]

Also consider lower gauge is less flexible -even more so with lower quality, so erring on that side can have its disadvantages beyond price. I would rather get the size required and spend the difference (versus just bigger) on better quality (i.e. more flexible and less likely to corrode).

 

[zinfamous]

I have the same front speakers and receiver...I use 12ga that I bought from Monoprice. I have 2 runs that snake across the floor, around doorways, and ceiling of my apartment, so I figured I'd go with the safe bet.