What gauge wire to I need to hook up a cab?

[Elliot]

A Maplin link would be especially helpful.

[ailean]

I'm interested to see the responses to this.

I'd assume as thick as possible, with lots of cores. Possibly silver coated if you want to go nuts.

[HTH AMPS]

Marshall used something around 22 gauge, so anything bigger than that.

I personally use Van Damme speaker cable from Maplins - it's improved the tone of every cab I've ever wired up.  I also use it for hooking up the head to the amp.  It's the same thickness as a regular guitar lead, but has two equally sized cores rather than the single core and shield you get with guitar leads.

 :twisted:

[Roobubba]

I've butchered my less-used guitar cables and re-made them with mains power cable. Seems to work ok :)

Roo

[Kesus T]

If you can, get some dedicated speaker connects. They are not expensive at the low end, but are shielded correctly and have large enough cores to transfer the low frequencies efficiently.
At the higher end, Pete Cornish connects are the dog's danglies!

[TwilightOdyssey]

Marshall used something around 22 gauge, so anything bigger than that.

22 gauge is like phone wire!!

I think you mean 12 gauge.

[HTH AMPS]

Marshall used something around 22 gauge, so anything bigger than that.

22 gauge is like phone wire!!

I think you mean 12 gauge.

22-gauge as in a 0.022 gauge string (would 3rd on a 11 set).

The stuff Marshall uses ain't very thick at all, it's probably not even 22 gauge.

 :twisted:

[TwilightOdyssey]

Marshall used something around 22 gauge, so anything bigger than that.

22 gauge is like phone wire!!

I think you mean 12 gauge.

22-gauge as in a 0.022 gauge string (would 3rd on a 11 set).

The stuff Marshall uses ain't very thick at all, it's probably not even 22 gauge.

 :twisted:

??

Sorry, but now I'm really confused.

Are you referring to the gauge of a single strand, or the aggregate gauge of the wire??

A strand of 22 ga wire is NOT sufficient to carry the current demands of a amplifier's signal to the drivers in a cab.

[HTH AMPS]

Marshall used something around 22 gauge, so anything bigger than that.

22 gauge is like phone wire!!

I think you mean 12 gauge.

22-gauge as in a 0.022 gauge string (would 3rd on a 11 set).

The stuff Marshall uses ain't very thick at all, it's probably not even 22 gauge.

 :twisted:

??

Sorry, but now I'm really confused.

Are you referring to the gauge of a single strand, or the aggregate gauge of the wire??

A strand of 22 ga wire is NOT sufficient to carry the current demands of a amplifier's signal to the drivers in a cab.

wire gauge is based on the actual core size, not the insulating material.  the stuff you see inside a Marshall 4x12 is no different to the gauge of wire you commonly see inside a guitar pedal like a DS-1.

next time you're in Maplins/Radio Shack, have a look at some 22 guage wire and see how thin it is.  or (better still), look inside a Marshall 4x12 and see how thin the wire is.

here's some 24 gauge on the Maplins website - this is thicker than the stuff Marshall uses... http://www.maplin.co.uk/module.aspx?ModuleNo=6198&doy=8m11

 :twisted:

[FELINEGUITARS]

Is there any differece if you were to use solid conductor wire or stranded wire.

Which gives more treble response?

[Kesus T]

Treble respone is never in question, depending on capacitance of the wire.
It's the bass frequency transfer which can suffer!

[TwilightOdyssey]

Treble respone is never in question, depending on capacitance of the wire.
It's the bass frequency transfer which can suffer!

Depends on whether the phenomena known as 'skin effect' holds any truck with you, in which case "stranded" wire made up of smaller wires wrapped in separate dialetrics in a helical pattern is what you really want to use.

[TwilightOdyssey]

Marshall used something around 22 gauge, so anything bigger than that.

22 gauge is like phone wire!!

I think you mean 12 gauge.

22-gauge as in a 0.022 gauge string (would 3rd on a 11 set).

The stuff Marshall uses ain't very thick at all, it's probably not even 22 gauge.

 :twisted:

??

Sorry, but now I'm really confused.

Are you referring to the gauge of a single strand, or the aggregate gauge of the wire??

A strand of 22 ga wire is NOT sufficient to carry the current demands of a amplifier's signal to the drivers in a cab.

wire gauge is based on the actual core size, not the insulating material.  the stuff you see inside a Marshall 4x12 is no different to the gauge of wire you commonly see inside a guitar pedal like a DS-1.

next time you're in Maplins/Radio Shack, have a look at some 22 guage wire and see how thin it is.  or (better still), look inside a Marshall 4x12 and see how thin the wire is.

here's some 24 gauge on the Maplins website - this is thicker than the stuff Marshall uses... http://www.maplin.co.uk/module.aspx?ModuleNo=6198&doy=8m11

 :twisted:

Interesting.

22ga is still woefully inadequate.

[_tom_]

I just used whatever Tube-Town include with their cabs, works fine :lol: A bit thicker than regular guitar hookup wire, it only just fits inside the holes on the switchcraft jack, if that helps to judge the thickness?

[Kesus T]

Yay! learnt something new today - skin effect!
Bit complicated when it at gets a bit beautiful mindish with equations but i suppose it makes sense.
The twisted helix bit does seem to make adifference with some of my high end hi-fi cables but is harder to spot with my rig speaker connects.

 BTW 22gauge is what is used in multicore twist, where each individual wire is 22swg - but the overall twisted diameter is much thicker.