| Author |
Topic: what cord |
Dave Flanagan
From:
Mt. Vernon,Il.
|
Posted 3 Aug 2011 5:46 pm |
|
Here is a cord Question, as I understand it is best to use a shielded cable when using a pa board or running speakers, and a guitar cord is not shielded, if this is true my Question is can a shielded cable be used between the guitar and the amp? This is a pretty simple Question probley but then I'm a pretty simple guy  |
|
|
 |
Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
|
Posted 3 Aug 2011 5:58 pm
|
|
You should use a shielded instrument cable to run from guitar to amp. An unshielded cable (e.g., speaker cable, cable made from lamp cord, or something like that) will pick up a lot of electromagnetic noise.
| Quote: |
| Here is a cord Question, as I understand it is best to use a shielded cable when using a pa board or running speakers ... |
You should never use a shielded instrument cable to run from amp to speaker. The wire on a typical shielded instrument cable is too thin to handle a high-current power signal to power your speaker(s). If that cable shorts, it could toast your transistorized amp quickly - if it opens up, it could toast a tube amp very quickly. Use only a speaker cable adequate to handle the power and length of the run. See this thread started by Ken Fox:
Caution, a guitar cable is not a speaker cable!!!! |
|
|
|
Dave Grafe
From:
Hudson River Valley NY
|
Posted 4 Aug 2011 9:23 am
|
|
Shielded cable has a conductor (or conductors) in the middle with a "shield" of foil or braided wire surrounding it. This shield protects the central signal wire(s) from spurious electro-magnetic interference that can be amplified into unwanted noise. All guitar cords and microphone cables should be of the shielded variety, as well as the reverb hook-up wires in the amp or any other cable intended to carry low-level electrical signals. If you are using POWERED SPEAKERS you would want to run shielded microphone cable to the inputs.
Unshielded cable has two or more identical conductors arrayed side-by-side. There is no protection from stray magnetic sources and the wire itself is generally of a larger gauge than is found in the shielded cables so as to pass much higher current without distortion or resistance loss. Unshielded cables are intended for all high-level electrical signals, such as AC mains and speaker lines.
If you use an unshielded cord for a guitar or microphone you will get A LOT of noise from the line.
If you use a shielded cord for AC mains or speaker runs you will 1) suffer significant voltage drop due to the small wire gauge and 2) induce adequate voltage in the center conductor(s) from the electro-magnetic activity of the shield to let the magic smoke out of your amplifier. |
|
|
|
