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anonymous 19 August 2003

Hey guys,
I'm looking for some 30 foot mic cables with good quality connectors. I want the best for the least $. I am not a believer in the $200 3" thick "gold guilded" cables. What brands or models can you recommend, in the 30-40 buck range? And in general what do you guys look for in a good cable. I usually go for the neutrik connectors, and 20-22 gauge. Also, where have you found good prices on them? I would make my own if I thought it was easy enough, but for just a couple of them, I don't think it's worth my time or expense.

Thanks,

Rob

[ August 19, 2003, 01:36 PM: Message edited by: Rob Chittum ]

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anonymous Tue, 08/19/2003 - 18:07

I'm not finding a lot either.

Everybody seems to be selling 24 gauge wire, but with spiral shielding. Yes, spiral is more flexible, but also more prone to noise. It is also much easier to construct your own. Less digging than with the full braid type.

http:// sells both spiral and full braid cable. I buy it by the roll, but find little savings from doing my own work. The benefit is building cables to the exact length I require.

Balanced XLR connections use differential signaling which is highly noise resistant. I suspect the spiral cables are entirely adequate in all but the most noisy of environments.

Randyman... Tue, 08/19/2003 - 18:39

The Parts Experss "Dayton Pro" balanced wire is pretty darn good, and I believe it is 22 ga AWG with a braided sheild.

The Carare stuff is also very good. MARKERTEK makes pre-fabbed cables with Canare cable and Neutrik connectors. Check em' out. They do large scale broadcast and production stuff, but cater to the project guys like us as well...

Later :cool:

anonymous Wed, 08/20/2003 - 06:26

Randyman,
I think that Markertek may be the way to go. I called them and they priced 30 foot cables made with canare cable and neutrik plugs for $33 in any colors that I want. The fact that they can custom make the lengths you need is a plus. This price seems pretty decent compared to some other stuff I have seen, and I know that canare cable is good. The e-bay cables look o.k. but I don't know anything about the construction, whether they're braided or what... Anyway, thanks for all of the suggestions.

Rob

Randyman... Wed, 08/20/2003 - 19:23

Markertek will take good care of you. I got 150 feet of the Canare 22ga cable and made quite a few misc. cords I needed with appropriate XLR and TRS connections. I really didn't save much, but I had some extra connectors, so I went ahead and used them.

Braided cable is nice n' quiet, but god I hate un-braiding it! :cool:

[ August 20, 2003, 09:26 PM: Message edited by: Randyman... ]

sheet Wed, 08/20/2003 - 20:36

Oh common guys. I like that cable that comes with the $9 recording mic from Radio Shack. It only has two conductors, bu you can make an 1/8" to 1/4" to XLR adapter, and then wrap the thing in foil, and there you have a free cable...NOT! I AM JOKING. I got that tip from recordingwebsitedotcom.

anonymous Wed, 08/20/2003 - 22:06

I bought 16 of the eBay crap cables. All copper, 98% braid, 22 gauge signal wire. The connectors are not Neutrik, but appear to be a quality copy of an NC3MX type.

For $5.99 each, 25' they will fill a need for performance cables. I cannot build them for this price, and certainly not if considering soldering (and braid-exposing) 32 connectors.

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