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Turntable RCA cable replacement

Eagle1

Eagle1

Super Member
I had both SL-23's go belly up pretty much at the same time due aged RCA cables. These are soldered terminals on the Technics SL-23. Searching high and low for replacements and the best find is at MonoPrice using a 12' cable and cutting in half to repair both. I've read that 5' is optimal on different threads here which I can cut to adapt. Anyone know where you can puchase the cables with male ends on one side and the solderable ends on the other?
 
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Just curious: is that five feet of actual total end-to-end wore length, including the part that is inside the TT, for reasons of electronics/physics, or five feet from the back of the TT, for practical connection reasons? [ I'm guessing it's the former, where trade-offs on capacitance, inductance, etc... are optimal.]

Sorry I don't know where to get the wires you describe, with male ends already on one end. I could probably find used ones cut off of scrap units in the wholesale market here in Hong Kong, but that probably wouldn't help you. The normal practice --at least here-- is to buy the wires and connectors separately, and solder them up yourself. It isn't difficult to do (assuming you know how to solder at all), and you get to pick the wires and plugs that you like and want. For TT wires, remember the signal strength is weak, so use good, appropriate wire and a high-quality (high silver content) solder. Make sure it's a good, clean and solid connection and you should be fine.
 
I usually recommend Petra Component Video Cables for turntable ICs (that might have been the thread John was trying to point you to in the last post), but I checked out that website and I think these should work equally well, and they're even cheaper:

http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...d=10235&cs_id=1023502&p_id=961&seq=1&format=2

You can't purchase then ready to solder--you have to prepare one end yourself. My suggestion is to either purchase the six foot version and cut off the connectors, or get the 12' version and have sets for three turntables--or just use one cable cut in half for the tt and use the remaining 12' set for line level ICs. Component video cables are typically low capacitance so that using 6' is no problem. Make sure it's COMPONENT, not COMPOSITE.
 
KAB sells the factory wires that are exactly as you want them for between $15.00 to $20.00 bucks.

Scroll down on this page until you see the main phone cables..
 
KlipschFan61 said:
KAB sells the factory wires that are exactly as you want them for between $15.00 to $20.00 bucks.

Scroll down on this page until you see the main phone cables..
Click to expand...

Yes, but those original factory Technics cables are higher in capacitance, cost more, and are do not have gold plated connectors. It's very easy to strip coaxial wire, so I don't think it's necessary to go that route.
 
I don't "think" anything but prefer to give the OP some options. It's his table so I'd would imagine he will do what he wants to do.
 
KlipschFan61 said:
I don't "think" anything but prefer to give the OP some options. It's his table so I'd would imagine he will do what he wants to do.
Click to expand...
You're right. I shouldn't have worded it that way. I meant to point out the characteristics of those cables, not make decisions for him.
 
Just to clarify what's available for the Technics..

"For the tweakers, the Technics interconnect cable contributes 90 pF and the wire in the turntable and tonearm wand contribute 10 pF for 100pF total capacitance. So the interconnect rating is 2pF per inch or 24pF per foot. The cable on the M5G and GLD is abit thicker and claimed to be OFC fine strand copper. They also have gold plated connectors."
~Excerpted from KABUSA

Not really sure what qualifies as a good or bad tonearm/interconnect cable capacitance value for the average table but the newer interconnect set for the M5G seems to be the more desirable of what is available. No doubt there are cables with less capacitance available for general consumption but these particular ones come ready to install.
I'll probably opt for a set if I ever do the Cardas recable for my 1210's arm. I'd imagine that my current setup is nominal for the AT440ML I'm using now but I do eventually plan to migrate to a nice MC cartridge with a good quality phono stage so that would probably be a good time to upgrade my arm.
 
Have you considered soldering on some female RCA jacks? That way you can use any interconnects you want in the future, and decent ones can be had for little money.
 
Just curious: is that five feet of actual total end-to-end wore length, including the part that is inside the TT, for reasons of electronics/physics, or five feet from the back of the TT, for practical connection reasons? [ I'm guessing it's the former, where trade-offs on capacitance, inductance, etc... are optimal.]

Measured distance is 50" + maybe 1" to compensate the routing through the base.
 
KlipschFan61 said:
I don't "think" anything but prefer to give the OP some options. It's his table so I'd would imagine he will do what he wants to do.
Click to expand...
Yes it is but I admire the expertise and experience available here. That's why I joined! Great feedback from all of the members. That's why I ask for your input pros and cons.

I'm leaning more at buying several different 12' RCA cables thru MonoPrice and cut to factory length and solder to the board. Two fixes in one at a cheaper cost and hopefully the same or better reproduction. Pro's & con's welcome. Mark
 
Eagle1 said:
Just curious: is that five feet of actual total end-to-end wore length, including the part that is inside the TT, for reasons of electronics/physics, or five feet from the back of the TT, for practical connection reasons? [ I'm guessing it's the former, where trade-offs on capacitance, inductance, etc... are optimal.]

Measured distance is 50" + maybe 1" to compensate the routing through the base.
Click to expand...

Yes, it's the former, but that was based on higher capacitance cable used in the past. With the advent of video, lower capacitance cable has been produced which allows longer lengths. You can easily cut a 12' cable in half and use each 6' piece in its entirety without any problem. Capacitance is 17pF (or at least the Petras are) which is very low. Incidentally the video component cable comes in bundles of 3 and 5. The extra two in the 5 are designated for audio, but, if they're like the Petras, they are very high in capacitance and unusuable for a turntable. They could, however be used in line level connections.

I don't want to steer you wrong. I'm assuming that all video component cables are manufactured to the same spec. I'm curious about these, too, so I'm going to order a set myself. If you want to wait, I'll measure the capacitance when I receive them.
 
Okay, I ordered a set of the 5 so I can test all the cables. They're being shipped priority so I'll have them shortly. I'll measure the capacitance and compare them sonically with the Petras and report back. They you will be able to make a more informed decision.
 
I would definitely be interested in your findings since I have no personal benchmark for what could be considered a premium capacitance value for turntable interconnects. All I can surmise at this point is the lower the better. Now I want to know "how lower is better"...:D
 
hakaplan said:
Okay, I ordered a set of the 5 so I can test all the cables. They're being shipped priority so I'll have them shortly. I'll measure the capacitance and compare them sonically with the Petras and report back. They you will be able to make a more informed decision.
Click to expand...

Howard, which sets did you order and from who? I got my 2 sets today from MonoPrice, one is just the standard run of the mill patch cord and the other maybe overkill and not suitable for the phono application. Here's a link to what I received.... http://www.monoprice.com/products/search.asp?keyword=2008&x=19&y=10
The other is http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10218&cs_id=1021803&p_id=2865&seq=1&format=2
 
Eagle1 said:
Howard, which sets did you order and from who? I got my 2 sets today from MonoPrice, one is just the standard run of the mill patch cord and the other maybe overkill and not suitable for the phono application. Here's a link to what I received.... http://www.monoprice.com/products/search.asp?keyword=2008&x=19&y=10
The other is http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10218&cs_id=1021803&p_id=2865&seq=1&format=2
Click to expand...
On the contrary, for phono applications the last thing you want to use is patch cord, because the signal is so sensitive. Most patch cord has painfully high capacitance and sometimes isn't well shielded. The second set certainly looks nice but only time will tell if they work well.

Here is what I purchased:

http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...d=10235&cs_id=1023501&p_id=320&seq=1&format=2

Again, I have found that Petra video component cables work very well for phono. After you brought monoprice to my attention, I purchased their version to see if they are comparable. They just arrived today so I'll report on them as soon as I can.
 
Okay, I tested the Monoprice budget Video Component Cables and compared them to the Petras. I'm including this here for the benefit of this discussion, but will also post it in a separate thread. Here are the product links:

http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...d=10235&cs_id=1023501&p_id=320&seq=1&format=2
http://www.sjgreatdeals.com/pet10-5010.html

Equipment: Pioneer PL-630 equipped with RCA jacks, Shure M91ED, Yamaha C-65 preamp, Sennheiser HD-595 headphones.

The Monoprice I ordered was the six foot set of 5 which included the two audio cables. The video cables were well constructed of a flexible rubber/plastic with moulded on gold-plated RCA connectors. The audio cables were very flexible, very thin cables, but with the same connectors. There are no metal covers and there is no way to remove and reuse these connectors on other cables. When plugged in they held snugly--just right IMO. Both video and audio seemed to be adequately shielded. There was no hum with either.

Just a review of the Petras for those unfamiliar. The plastic cable sheathing is rather stiff--the major complaint with these. The connectors are moulded on, but there is a metal cap which can be unscrewed and removed, enabling them to be swapped for identification, or removed altogether for jacks that are too close together. The connectors are gold-plated and fit snugly but after time can become loose and may require a mild crimp. Adequate shielding with no hum.

Capacitance measurements:
Petra = 18pF/ft
Monoprice Video = 25pF/ft
Monoprice Audio = 67pF/ft

Test results: The MV sounded very good with good high end and bass, good clarity and soundstage. The Petras maybe a smidge better. The MA better than I expected to be honest, but a bit attenuated (reduced) at the high end.

I would continue to recommend the Petras, which are cheap to begin with, but for even greater savings, the Monoprice Video Component Cables are fine. I'd stick with the group of three and forget the audio cables, unless you want to use them for line level ICs in which case they're fine.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...d=10235&cs_id=1023502&p_id=960&seq=1&format=2
http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...d=10235&cs_id=1023502&p_id=961&seq=1&format=2

Keep in mind nothing designated "audio" today is geared toward phono applications. We AKers live in a different world than the rest of society. So discard manufacturer labels and look for the characteristics that count for phono apps: Low capacitance and adequate shielding. While clearly not all video component cable is as low in capacitance as the Petras, it is still generally lower than cable with other designations. And for DIY I continue to maintain that shielded, coaxial cable is the most appropriate construction for phono apps.
 
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