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Has anyone tried making their own interconnects?

Hey guys,

I've posted a few threads lately asking about DACs and Class D amplifiers and such. My current system consists of a recently acquired Marsh P2000 pre amp, Aragon 2004 amp, Emotiva XDA-1 DAC, Squeezebox Touch and Silverline Minuet Supreme Plus speakers. I'm also running all Blue Jeans cabling.

I was listening to some Diana Krall last night and it really hit me that I'm pretty comfortable with the synergy that I have with my components. I really enjoy listening to my system.

So, I was wondering if maybe I could try just a little bit of tweaking, since I'm no longer feeling an urgent need to change any components.

My interest is in making my own interconnects. I really have no desire to spend even $100 on an interconnect, but I've found that it is possible to get some good silver or silver plated copper wire at very reasonable prices.

I have a good soldering station and am fairly proficient with a soldering iron, so I figured that I could try my hand at making my own.

Have any of you tried this? What were your results? Which connectors did you use?

Thanks.
tonyangel
mezmo
516 posts
 
Cool. I think yes, it's the real deal. Not currently using the ones I made, but then I didn't do a very good job. Alas.

Honestly, with good materials and craftsmanship, don't think there's anything particularly magic to wires. Markups are huge, and DIY has always struck me as a great idea, on wires in particular. Of course, picking the right materials and supplying the craftsmanship is the trick -- one that I wouldn't claim to have dialed in on either front....
tonyangel OP
309 posts
 
Well, what makes sense to me (not that it means anything) is using a good quality wire with a PTFE sheath of sorts allowing lots of air around the wire. It also sounds pretty easy to do, especially for the lengths normally associated with interconnects.

I'm thinking about trying something like this....http://www.ebay.com/itm/AUDIOPHILE-SOLID-CORE-SILVER-OCC-BULK-WIRE-60FT-24AWG-SPECIAL-1-WEEK-PROMO-SALE-/111123441450?pt=US_Audio_Cables_Adapters&hash=item19df79272a
mental
1,029 posts
 
All kinds of audio sites selling wire and connectors. You can find almost any metal from copper, silver, to a mixture of that with gold.

I don't think soldering is the way to go though I could be wrong. Another thing would be the capacitance vs shielding. Those are subjects that seem to attract the argumentative.
tonyangel OP
309 posts
 
Mental, yeah, that's something I'm going to have to look into. There was a time when I thought that soldering made the best connection, but I have read that crimping makes for the best connection. Well, crimping or some other method of mechanical attachment, like a screw or something.

Still, soldering seems to be the most popular method. I just don't know if that is because it's the best way to go or because it's the fastest way to go when you're talking about line assembly.
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