Electrical Installation, 6.1LOUDSPEAKER CABLE

6 ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION

6.1LOUDSPEAKER CABLE

To get the maximum performance from your loudspeaker, copper wire and good quality connectors must be used.

6.1.1Loudspeaker Wire Gauge

The most important factor in selecting loudspeaker cable is its resistance, which is a function of the wire gauge and length. You want to keep the total resistance of the cable under 0.2 Ohms. Doing so will maximize electrical damping (which maximizes the transient performance) and minimize power losses. However, for lengths over 100 feet, the wire gauges needed to meet this requirement are usually not practical to use for both physical and cost reasons. Therefore, #10 AWG is recommended as the most practical gauge for those situations. TABLE 8 shows the minimum wire gauges to use for various loudspeaker cable lengths. A larger gauge (lower number) than the minimum listed is always acceptable. For each cable length both wires in the cable have been figured into the total resistance.

	Minimum Wire
Cable Length	Gauge (AWG)	Total Resistance
10 ft (3 m)	#16	0.08 Ohm

25 ft (8 m)	#14	0.13 Ohm

50 ft (15 m)	#12	0.16 Ohm

75 ft (25 m)	#10	0.15 Ohm

100 ft (30 m)	#10	0.20 Ohm

200 ft (60 m)	#10	0.40 Ohm

300 ft (90 m)	#10	0.60 Ohm

400 ft (120 m)	#10	0.80 Ohm

500 ft (150 m)	#10	1.00 Ohm

Note - Metric length conversions are approximate

Table 6: Loudspeaker Wire Gauge Selection

6.1.2Loudspeaker Cable Selection

For portable applications use two conductor cable made with stranded copper wire having rubber or rubberized, plastic insulation. Cable that is round will lay flatter, coil up easier, mate with in-line connectors better, and usually last longer. Cables of various lengths with in-line connectors already attached are available from your musical instrument dealer. Make sure it is at least the minimum wire gauge for its length as shown in TABLE 5.

If you chose to make your own cables, 2 conductor electrical cable, such as that used for heavy-duty extension cords, works well. Flat-type cables such as zip or lamp cord are not recommended as they quickly end up badly twisted, have less rugged insulation, poorer mechanical properties, and do not mate well with in-line loudspeaker connectors. For loudspeakers, exotic (and usually expensive) audio cable is usually no better than standard electrical cable of the same wire gauge.

For permanent installations, where speaker wire is permanently fixed in place, it is not necessary nor economical to use cable intended to be flexed such as for portable use. PVC jacketed or similar, multi-conductor cable is easy to work with and more economical. An excellent and probably the most economical wire is electrical wire such as stranded THHN or THWN available in hardware stores and electrical supply houses.

6.2INPUT JACKS (See SECTION 6.4 for proper wiring of the connectors)

The XLT and XLTE loudspeakers have jacks that accept two types of connectors: Neutrik Speakons and 1/4 in. tip/sleeve plugs.

PAGE 20 Community XLT / XLTE Series Owner’s Manual