Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Pros And Cons Of Silver Speaker Cable

By Alison Wilcox


Music, television and movies at home are increasingly popular ways to spend one's free time. With advances in technology these modes of entertainment are becoming better and better and how much you enjoy this experience can depend on the quality of the audio. For this reason, many people want to know the difference between using copper and silver speaker cable.

Of the different characteristics of speaker wire, resistance is the most crucial. In general, you will receive a better sound quality from those that have a lower level of resistance. Three considerations that affect this are the length and the thickness of the wire and the type of material that is used.

There is an inverse relationship between the length of the wire and the clarity of the audio. Shorter wires mean less resistance and thus improved sound quality. Longer wires, on the other hand, will lead to greater resistance and a resulting reduction in the crispness of the sound.

The next consideration, thickness, goes hand in hand with length. Generally speaking resistance will be lower and thus sound quality higher when the diameter is greater. This means that you will experience greater clarity of sound with short, thick wires than with longer, thinner ones. With shorter lengths, you can use less thickness and still get roughly the same results.

A third factor is the type of material that is used. Copper is widely used because it has a low resistance and is relatively inexpensive. Copper will oxidize but its oxides will conduct, unlike aluminum. All of these considerations make copper a solid choice.

While copper certainly has it's advantages, there is one area in which silver exceeds it. Silver is a better conductor due to its lower resistance. As a result, more leeway is possible in regards to how long and thick the cables are while retaining similar levels of sound clarity.

There is one main drawback, however, to straying from the standard. As usual with higher-level resources, the cost of using silver can be quite a bit higher than that of copper.

In order to decide on which option is preferable, you should consider what's best for your particular situation. Silver may be preferable in cases where it is necessary or desirable to have thinner, shorter wires and the cost is not a big issue On the other hand, when finances are a major concern and there is more flexibility on the size, standard copper cables may be more than sufficient to fulfill your needs.

It's impossible to say that there is one best choice for everyone. There are those that believe that it's always best to use the highest quality materials while there are others who state that the difference is negligible and not worth the extra cost. When making a final decision, it could be worth your while to sample both types to determine what your opinion is on this.

As always, there are pros and cons to each alternative. The choice between copper and silver speaker cable will come down to which of these is most relevant to you for your particular needs and conditions.




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