Stranded or solid conductor - audio digital coaxial

 

New member
Username: Bomber

Post Number: 1
Registered: Nov-08
Hello guys,

I don't know much about this kind of stuff, but I'm wanting to connect my DVD/CD player to my surround home theatre reciever using an audio digital coaxial cable.

All of my local shops sell the audio "Monster Standard THX digital coaxial cable".

I read that it has a "stranded conductor", but most other audio digital coaxial cables use a "solid conductor".

What is the difference ?
Is one type better than the other ?
I'm not sure if I should purchase the "stranded conductor" cable which most shops are stocking, or should I find one with the "solid conductor" ?

I plan to use the connection for both DVD and CD.

Thanks!
 

Silver Member
Username: Jrbay

Livonia [Detroit area], Michigan USA

Post Number: 479
Registered: Feb-08
This may upset several on this forum but my thought would be that you never want to spend more on your cables than you do on the equipment. In other words if you have a $100.00 receiver your cabling is not going to be the weak link, with very few exceptions, to your system.

According to Wikipedia:
Solid

Solid wire or solid-core wire consists of one piece of metal wire. Solid single strand wire is cheaper to manufacture than stranded wire and is used where there is no need for flexibility in the wire. Solid wire also provides strength and protection against the environment.

[edit] Stranded
Stranded copper wire

Stranded wire is composed of a bundle of small-gauge wires to make a larger conductor, which may optionally be insulated. Stranded wire is more flexible than a solid strand of the same total gauge. Stranded conductors are commonly used for electrical applications carrying small signals, such as computer mouse cables, and for power cables between a movable appliance and its power source; for example, sweepers, table lamps, powered hand tools, welding electrode cables, mining machines and trailing machine cables.

At high frequencies, current travels near the surface of the wire because of the skin effect, resulting in increased power loss in the wire. Stranded wire might seem to reduce this effect, since the total surface area of the strands is greater than the surface area of the equivalent solid wire, but in fact a simple stranded wire will have worse skin effect than a solid wire, because of its increased average resistivity due to inclusion of air gaps within the wire.

However, for many high-frequency applications, proximity effect is more severe than skin effect, and in some limited cases, simple stranded wire can reduce proximity effect. For better performance at high frequencies, litz wire, which has the individual strands insulated and twisted in special patterns, may be used.

OK then what does all of this mean for you Brent?
IT obviously adds to the confusion but unless you have huge money invested in your components or have a VERY challenging environment I bet you will never know the difference between a decent cable like this:

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10236&cs_id=1023603 &p_id=2680&seq=1&format=2

and any of the other cables you are looking at.

This may provide some additional information:

http://customconnectionsonline.com/faq7.html

Hope this helps
« Previous Thread Next Thread »



Main Forums

Today's Posts

Forum Help

Follow Us