[luckydevil]

Looking at the DIY gallery has inspired me to build my own interconnects.

I saw this on the site for the GLS Audio Interconnects that I plan on getting. They have this clear shielded cable attached in one of their pics, but it is nowhere to be found on their site.

Anyone know where to get it?

Thanks.

-Luke

 

[Dougigs]

There are two ways to get that look. One is to buy screened cable with an opaque insulator, and wrap it in TechFlex screen (best place to get it if you live in North America is PartsExpress, in Europe/UK is www.coolercases.co.uk . If you get the silver-coloured TechFlex, you don't even need to use screened cable beneath it, since silver TechFlex is conductive and therefore acts as screening (just remember to connect one end of the screen, though ideally not both ends, to ground).

Easier, of course, is to simply use screened cable with a clear insulator. There are a few good suppliers of this:

If you live in Canada, SupremeTronics in Toronto has one of the best deals in the world on this stuff -- I think it's C$2 a foot for very nice stuff; they claim it's silver-plated copper but that sort of nonsense isn't important; what's important is that it's well-made cable with good screening and nice insulation and wire of the appropriate gauge.

In England, Farnell sells it -- the clear is only available in 50ft lengths. They also sell very nice screened cable with grey insulation in any length, in many different thicknesses... if you're a perfectionist, you can even make screened AC cables, which might help you keep RFI out of your audio chain.

Mouser sells Belden CDT, which is good clear screened cable, though only in 500 foot spools for unspeakable sums.

Look on EBay, too: There are entrepreneurs who buy the big spools of this stuff and sell off shorter lengths.

 

[luckydevil]

Thanks a ton for the info.

I live in the US, so partsexpress is probably my best option.

I got a few more noob questions...

I'm thinking I'll use canare starquad for the cable. Then I just put the chrome techflex on the outside of that and then all of inside the clear tubing right?

From what I can tell the opaque insulators are the same thing that is sold at home depot and pet stores for fish tank air lines???

Thanks again for your help.

 

[slt]

Another cable with transparent insulation is the Sommer Corona:
http://www.sommercable.com/2__produk..._800_0079.html

Not sure of its availability outside of Europe.

 

[rickcr42]

Bulk shield braid combined with fish tank "aerator" tubing

 

[Daroid]

I cocnur the recommendation of the Sommer cable corona, it's very rugged and good flexibility. I don't think sommer cables are widely available in the States although it would be a great bang for the buck when it comes to cables like Galileo-238 or Peacock (split-able) as a smaller cable for portable applications

 

[DJ e]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 Bulk shield braid combined with fish tank "aerator" tubing

My sentiments exactly

 

[luckydevil]

Thanks guys!

For the starquad, what size shielding and "aerator tubing" do you guys recommend?

 

[Illah]

Prob 1/4" or 3/8" for the braiding but realize it expands a bit, so getting braid that's a *little* smaller than what you need allows you to you can get a tight fit (baggy shield=ugly). Then then prob 3/8"-7/16" ID (interior diameter) tubing. Also the flexibility of the tubing should be a concern for interconnects, especially with shielding & tubing. The combo can create audio 'pipes' and not 'cables' if you're not careful

Search for 'Masterkleer' tubing at McMaster. Supposed to be quite flexible, find one with a really thin wall for maximum flexibility (like 1/16"):

http://www.mcmaster.com/

--Illah

 

[Dougigs]

Also: It isn't entirely necessary to place clear tubing over your screening. The screening material (whether you use copper screening sheath or TechFlex) is usually sturdy enough on its own. An interconnect with sheathing on top of it and vinyl tubing on top of that will often be so thick that it could only fit neatly into ridiculous $20 connectors.

The pic below shows 1) on the bottom, an interconnect I made with the SupremeTronics cable (with RCA on both ends) and 2) one made with tinned copper sheathing covering a Kimber 3-wire braid (terminated with a 3.5mm / 1/8" phone plug). The latter is used as a six-inch pigtail on the back of a MINT. The sheathing (which I picked up at All Electronics in Los Angeles) is extremely durable... it tends to hold its position a bit, and if it gets squished it stays flat, and you have to pinch it on its edges to make it round again. But it really shields well... I had previously found that if I put my mobile phone next to my MINT setup, which I often did on trains, the GSM signal would get into the audio chain. The copper screening cut that out completely.

 

[luckydevil]

Any ideas on where I can get that tinned copper sheathing online? All I can find is the mylar tech-flex stuff.