Why is the wiring inside the speaker cabinet (Altec 1233's) such a tiny gauge? when we run wires from the amp to the cabinet, we use a 12 or 14 gauge wire, but the internal wiring is maybe 18 or 20 gauge.
Why so small (especially when these cabinets can handle such large power loads) a gauge wiring?
It's a matter of how MUCH tiny wire is in the cabinet.Originally Posted by Michael MCS
Why is the wiring inside the speaker cabinet (Altec 1233's) such a tiny gauge? when we run wires from the amp to the cabinet, we use a 12 or 14 gauge wire, but the internal wiring is maybe 18 or 20 gauge.
Why so small (especially when these cabinets can handle such large power loads) a gauge wiring
As in, not much. The 2 feet or so of smaller wire in the cabinet does have more resistance per foot than a larger wire does, but there is so little of it that it cannot add much to the total resistance of the circuit.
Wire is rated in Ohms per unit length and smaller diameter wire is usually higher resistance per unit length than larger wire. Using 20 gauge to wire the speaker to the amp using 5-10 feet may be OK, but will result in a higher resistance than using 12 or 14 gauge. Long runs should be heavier to avoid adding resistance in the wires, which may affect the damping factor of the amp.
As to the power handling, the wire will heat up a little because it does have some resistance, but compared to the resistance values of the voice coils it is not very much, so the voice coils will always be hotter than the wire. And compared to the size of the internal wires, the voice coil wire is even smaller.
Put enough power in, and the voice coils act as a fuse, and burn up to protect the wire...
Last edited by 4343; 04-11-2009 at 12:54 AM. Reason: Power Handling
Mike Scott in SJ, CA
Drive 'em to the Xmax!
thanks Mike. I appreciate you taking the time to answer a rookie's question.
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